National Sex Offender Public Registry
The National Sex Offender Public Registry www.nsopr.gov website was opened July 21, 2005, by the Department of Justice "that the public can use to track thousands of offenders across the country via computer." [1]
"Assistant Attorney General Regina Schofield said the national registry was designed to be a repository for the names of an estimated 500,000 sex offenders now listed on separate Web sites that are maintained by states." [2]
The national registry, which "provides photographs and information about offenders, including the neighborhoods they live in and how close they are to schools" opened with records from 22 states and records "from the rest of the states are expected to be online by year's end, Schofield said." [3]
Purpose
The National Sex Offender Public Registry website is a public service of the U.S. Department of Justice through which "interested members of the public have access to and may search participating state Web site public information regarding the presence or location of offenders, who, in most cases, have been convicted of sexually-violent offenses against adults and children and certain sexual contact and other crimes against victims who are minors. The public can use this Web site to educate themselves about the possible presence of such offenders in their local communities." [4]
DOJ Disclaimer
- Information from the various state Web sites is not hosted by the Department, and the Department has neither responsibility for nor control over the information available for public inspection or search from individual state Web sites that are accessible through this Web site.
- The Department does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of the information contained in state Web sites regarding specific offenders or with respect to the omission of information about other offenders who may be residing, working, or attending school in the vicinity of any location that is the subject of any search using this Web site. In this regard, the Department accepts no responsibility or liability for damages of any kind resulting from reliance on this information or lack thereof.
- It is possible that information accessed or obtained through this Web site may not reflect current residences, employment, school attendance, or other information regarding such individuals, and users are forewarned that it is incumbent upon them to verify information.
- Any user seeking more information or verification should communicate with the responsible state agency and/or the local law enforcement agency where the offender resides, works, or attends school, as appropriate.
- Any individual who believes that information contained in a state Web site is not accurate should communicate with the state agency responsible for compiling and updating the information with respect to that state Web site.
- Any person who uses information contained in or accessed through this Website to threaten, intimidate, or harass any individual, including registrants or family members, or who otherwise misuses this information, may be subject to criminal prosecution or civil liability under federal and/or state law.
- Users are urged to read and review the Department’s information collection and privacy/confidentiality policies before using this Web site.
- Users are cautioned that states participating in this Web site have their own information collection and privacy/confidentiality policies, as well as policies/disclaimers/terms and conditions for access to information contained in state sex offender Web sites that they may wish to review.
Source: DOJ National Sex Offender Public Registry website accessed July 22, 2005.
Contact details
External links
- Kevin Johnson, "National online registry of sex offenders launched," USA Today, July 21, 2005.
