Find out how many sex offenders live in your community

[guenwyvar]

Ok, this may be just new to me but I typed a zipcode into google (so I coould get directions) and it came up with how many sex offenders live in that particular area. So then I typed in my own zipcode and found out that there are 17 registed sex offenders in the small town I live in. EWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!

[Peaches O Malley]

This site is more reliable IMHO http://www.nsopr.gov/ The site gives you a pic, offence level, description and shows a map of how close they are to schools and day care facilities.

There are 14 in my present zip code.

[Bean]

Holy crap! I had 33 in the 2 zipcodes in Leesburg!

[daBaroness]

Not to diminish the level of shock we have when we find out we're all living among offenders - the problem with the laws requiring sex offenders to register and the websites and other sources that disseminate the information is that under the umbrella of "sex offender" are lots and lots of categories that some websites don't publish.

Some are pretty benign - like consensual sex between boyfriend and girlfriend where the boy is of legal age and the girl is not - and vice versa. I've also heard of cases where children have been forced by their parents to have sex with one another - and the oldest child is put on trial and required to register for the rest of their lives - I kid you not.

There are everything from truly dangerous rapists and pedophiles to kids who get caught in the act - literally. Personally - I would feel more comfortable knowing what kind of crime the person is convicted of as well as knowing where they live.

[Gemdrite]

Personally - I would feel more comfortable knowing what kind of crime the person is convicted of as well as knowing where they live.
The website that Peaches posted does tell you what kind of crime the person is convicted of, in case you hadn't checked it out yet. I used that site when looking for a place to live. It's pretty handy.

[MaidenFaeSnow]

Here's (http://www.dpscs.state.md.us/sorSearch/)one spcifically for Maryland. You can now register to be notified when an offender moves.

[Sorcha Griannon]

There are 100 in my zip code, but I'm thinking that might just be a limit in there system. LA county is notorious for relocating problem people up in the desert where I live, so it doesn't surprise me on how many live up here. What is scary is how many names look familiar (I would bet 15 of those names come to the pharmacy). And 1 man (rape by force) is a well known regular at the pharmacy. He has the personality that makes it impossible not to like him, but a couple years ago, a girl at the pharmacy came across his name on the list. Lets just say, it was hard to help him after that. Now, he's still treated well, but, I can't say I don't think of what he did every time I see him.

Sorcha

[LadyLaura]

Well, you can tell by the age the person is by DOB and the year the crime was committed if it could be an underage and underage thing. I found out using Peaches' website that there is someone on the list living around the corner from me. Not a good thing, but I've always taken precautions to be safe regardless, as everyone should. After all, these people all started out having no record.

[fresa3302]

...the problem with the laws requiring sex offenders to register and the websites and other sources that disseminate the information is that under the umbrella of "sex offender" are lots and lots of categories that some websites don't publish.

Personally - I would feel more comfortable knowing what kind of crime the person is convicted of as well as knowing where they live.


I appreciate your insight daBaroness. I did check the site, and I have checked it before. I found that a teacher I used to work with is in my city. I did not know that before. He is on the list, but I know the story. He had a relationship with a student. While that is absolutely wrong, he is not the kind of offender that is going to grab one of my kids or attack a stranger. Knowing some background information helps.

I have written before about problems that we have been having with our oldest son. We were trying to get him into a treatment facility but kept hitting brick walls. In February we were told that he "had not done enough yet." On April 2nd he was arrested at school and charged with GSI (gross sexual imposition). He groped a female; grabbed her butt. She happened to be a teacher... he did not know that. I am glad that it was a teacher, because it made his charge more serious.

He had another similar charge from December, but the police would not carry through with it. I asked nicely, I begged... he told me that he was "dealing with rapists and more serious offenses." I told him that if he did not help me with this situation then my son's name would be the next to come across his desk. He didn't care.

When he was arrested in April they put it on the news and... and the radio... and they released his name. At this point they decided to prosecute on the December charge. They also decided (after we were publicly humiliated) that he had now "done enough." The hardest part for me I think, was that the media assumed that we had caused this child to act out like this. We have done everything possible to help him since we adopted him. It was not enough.

He is currently in a treatment facility at $200.00 a day (in excess of what the insurance pays). We have financial help to pay for it. Otherwise we would not be able to. He will be there for at least 2 years.

He will have to register for the next 10 years. I am upset because had we received help when we asked for it, it may not have gotten to this point. Would I want to know if my daughter were going to school with a kid like this? Well, yes. The word "sex offender" I think causes people to feel a need to grab their children and protect them. More information about their crimes can help you to understand their boundaries (or lack of) and perhaps serve the public better.

It is very difficult when your family is placed in this position.

[daBaroness]

Yes, the site Peaches linked is a good one. However - I did a check of the neighborhood I'm moving to in the next 10 days and my address is 1831 - the offender's is 1821.

Here's the point though - his crime was statutory in the 2nd degree and I looked up what the law says. It's unlawful for a person over the age of 21 to have sex or any kind of sexual contact with someone under the age of 18. This includes what would normally be considered consentual sex by both parties were they both a different age. It also doesn't have to be penetration - it can be the kind of touching of breasts or genitals that most couples do in the beginning of a relationship or even in the course of foreplay or "heavy petting."

So if you're 21 and your boyfriend or girlfriend is 17 and you're out parking at your local inspiration point or lover's lane making out or playing touchy-feely and you're caught - if you're the older one you're getting more of a screwing than you know. If you're convicted through the evidence and testimony of a police officer, the parent of the younger person, or a complete stranger who witnessed even a part of your activity - you may not get jail time - but you will be required to file as a sexual predator for the rest of your life.

There have been many cases where couples have chosen to get married in order to avoid prosecution and lifetime predator registration. That's why I think this kind of registration needs to be better thought out because there are so many degrees and levels of variation to these crimes. I'm not going to worry so much that I'm living three doors down from a guy who had sex with his younger girlfriend when he was 21 that was consentual and occurred 15 years ago with no other prosecutions than I am a guy who is a repeat offender just released from prison with a conviction record against minors a mile long.

I just seems to me there needs to be a better way to classify these people and for some - a way to exponge their record or remove them from the list if their crime was a one time gaffe of age.

[Gemdrite]

I just seems to me there needs to be a better way to classify these people and for some - a way to exponge their record or remove them from the list if their crime was a one time gaffe of age.
Oh, I completely agree with you there. There definitely needs to be some kind of change in that department. The problem is, I couldn't tell you how to fix it. To not have any age limit leaves the door open for true predators to prey on young girls who do consent because they've been mentally screwed with beforehand.

[daBaroness]

I think it would be *relatively* easy - it would completely depend on the precise conviction from each case. If it's a case like I decribed above - fine, convict the guy or gal for having sex with their underaged partner - but don't require registration as an offender for the rest of their lives. Or list them for five years or something. Just use common sense.

I'm all about the serial predator being listed for a lifetime. Or even the one-time offender who is 21 and a stranger to his/her victim. I know it's difficult to judge intent - but the law does it all the time and there's a big difference between two young people with raging hormones doing the horizontal mambo in the back of the minivan - and a complete stranger, predator, stalker who's intent is evil.

[Alchemist23]

I think it would be *relatively* easy - it would completely depend on the precise conviction from each case. If it's a case like I decribed above - fine, convict the guy or gal for having sex with their underaged partner - but don't require registration as an offender for the rest of their lives. Or list them for five years or something. Just use common sense.

I'm all about the serial predator being listed for a lifetime. Or even the one-time offender who is 21 and a stranger to his/her victim. I know it's difficult to judge intent - but the law does it all the time and there's a big difference between two young people with raging hormones doing the horizontal mambo in the back of the minivan - and a complete stranger, predator, stalker who's intent is evil.


Agreed. This is the kind of thing I would like to know when I find out that I have 51 in my area, and one up the street. In a little hick-fly town.

I think there is quite a number with the "raging hormones" syndrome. BTW, didn't they change the age of consent to 16? I think they did here. We were discussing it at work. I think they changed it to 16, if, and only if, the sexual partner is within like 4 years or something.