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Michigan arrests 405 in sex registry violations sweep

405 arrested in sex registry violations
BY CHRIS CHRISTOFF
FREE PRESS LANSING BUREAU CHIEF

May 5, 2006

LANSING -- A 14-day sweep resulted in 405 arrests of people who didn't register properly with Michigan's sex offender registry, State Police said Thursday.

Officers from more than 100 police departments checked 2,884 residences across Michigan to find violators, State Police said.

An additional 585 warrants for sex offender list violations were requested. The sweep ended April 30.

It was the second such sweep led by the State Police to pick up convicted sex offenders who haven't kept their registrations or addresses up to date. A similar sweep in 2005 resulted in 846 arrests.

Among the 405 recent arrests, 58 were in Wayne, Oakland, Macomb and St. Clair counties. Those counties accounted for almost half of the additional warrants issued.

The sweep targeted those who failed to change or verify their addresses for the sex offender registry by the April 15 deadline.

Those convicted of felony sex offenses must verify their addresses four times a year with their local police. Those convicted of misdemeanor sex offenses must verify their places of residence once a year.

Penalties for not complying with the sex registry ranged from a 93-day jail sentence to a 4-year felony.

All offenders must report changes of address within 10 days of moving.

Most of the warrants were for not verifying addresses; a few were for minor infractions such as not paying for or signing registration forms. Forty-two people were charged with additional crimes.

The registry was created to help the public determine whether convicted sex offenders live nearby. Critics say the registry stigmatizes even those convicted of lesser offenses, including teens who have had consensual sex with minors.

As of May 1, 38,936 people were listed on the state's registry.

"Compliance with the state's sex offender registry is not optional, it is the law, and we are prepared to enforce it," Michigan State Police Director Tadarial Sturdivant said.

Contact CHRIS CHRISTOFF at 517-372-8660 or christoff@freepress.com.

Community Watch comments:

Great job Michigan!  Let's help keep each other safe and aware.

Students seek to raise awareness of Oklahoma sex offender registry

Students seek to raise awareness of Oklahoma sex offender registry

The Norman Transcript

Transcript Staff Writer

The name of the game is "Guess the Sex Offender," and students at the University of Oklahoma will be at the Wal-Mart Supercenter, 333 N. Interstate Drive, from 1-4 p.m. Sunday in attempts to educate Norman residents about an online database that allows families to locate sex offenders in their neighborhoods and community.

"The goal of the project is break down stereotypes that sexual predators are easily identified. Our mission is to take the guessing out of identification by educating people that they can find offenders in their community through the Web site," said C.J. Caudle, a Team Passion representative.

The Oklahoma Sex and Violent Offender Registry can be accessed at:
http://sde.sta-te.ok.us/home/defaultie.html

Team Passion is comprised of students in the principles in public relations class at OU, who chose public awareness of the online database as a group project.

"This event is the culmination of a semester worth of work for Team Passion," Caudle said. Our preliminary research involved working with both the Norman Police Department and the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy. Both agencies educated us on the nature of the issue, and provided an excellent theme for our project.

"'Know Your Neighbor' is our theme. We aim to raise awareness of the service and more importantly, get citizens involved in fostering relationships with their neighbors. By creating awareness and dialogue between neighbors, we can build a safer community for our families," he said.

The booth will use the game to attract and educate the public. In addition, Team Passion will provide candy, food and drinks to those who visit the booth.

Community Watch comments:

Know your Neighbor and Let's help keep each other safe and aware!

Senate Passes Crackdown on Sex Offenders

Senate Passes Crackdown on Sex Offenders
By Associated Press

8:44 PM PDT, May 4, 2006

WASHINGTON — The Senate on Thursday passed sweeping legislation to set mandatory minimum sentences for people convicted of sex crimes against children and set up a public database linking state lists of sex offenders.

By voice vote, the Senate approved the bill, sponsored by Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah. The House passed a similar measure in March as part of a broader crime bill. The bills, which differ on matters ranging from courthouse security, hate crimes and registration of juvenile sex offenders, must be reconciled by negotiators from each chamber before the legislation is sent to the White House for President Bush's signature.

Both bills would create a national database to link individually-managed state Web sites that track sex offenders. Members of the public would be able to search all the states' data.

The legislation also would require convicted sex offenders to register their whereabouts every month, in person, and would upgrade failure to comply from a misdemeanor to a felony.

Under current law, those convicted of child sex crimes are required to register once per year, by mail, Hatch's office said. Failure to comply is a misdemeanor.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., said more than 58,000 children are abducted by people who are not family members and that 100,000 convicted sex offenders in the United States are unregistered.

The Senate bill is S. 1086.

Community Watch comments:

Excellent progress - let's help keep each other safe and aware.