Sex Crimes Offender Registration Unit
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Do all people convicted
of a sex offense have to register?
A. Only offenders who were convicted after 1970 and were still
under some type of supervision on September 1, 1997. Many
people convicted of sex crimes before this date do not have
to register. Judges may exempt some if the law allows.
Q. What restrictions do sex offenders have?
A. Offenders only have restrictions if they are under supervision
(probation or parole). These are conditions set by the court
or parole board and may restrict where they can live, work,
and who they may have contact with. These conditions may vary
by each individual offender.
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Q. What is the difference between probation and parole?
A. Probation is when a person has been convicted of a crime
but is not sent to prison (TDCJ). They have a probation officer
that makes sure they are abiding by the rules the Judge stipulated
to them. If a person cannot abide by these conditions then
the Judge will revoke the probation and send them to prison.
Parole is when a person has been convicted of a crime and
goes to prison (TDCJ). A parole officer supervises offender
and makes sure they abide by the rules the parole board has
stipulated. If offender does not abide by the rules they can
be sent back to prison.
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Q. Can sex offenders live anywhere?
A. If the offender is under supervision their residence must
be approved by the supervising officer. If they are not under
supervision there is no restrictions as to where they can
live.
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Q. Can they go to school grounds, parks or community centers?
A. If under probation supervision they will have child safety
zones stating they cannot go within a certain distance of
school grounds, parks or other places children gather. Offenders
under parole will have some conditions on them. All conditions
vary by each individual offender.
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Q. Do sex offenders have to post signs at their homes?
A. Some offenders have to put signs on their homes if the
Court has ordered them to do so. This condition of supervision
is very limited. Most offenders do not have signs.
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Q. How often do sex offenders have to register?
A. Most offenders have to register once a year and this is
around their birth date. If an offender has two convictions
of a violent offense they have to register every 90 days.
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Q. Is it a crime for an offender to not live where they
are registered?
A. Yes. It is a felony for an offender to be living someplace
other than where they say they are living.
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Q. What information can I get on a sex offender?
A. You may get all public information on them. This is a picture,
full name, age, gender, DOB, street address, city, state,
zip code, victim sex and age, shoe size and supervision status.
Also a brief description of the crime committed.
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Q. Are schools notified of sex offenders?
A. If the victim of the offender was under 17 years of age
then a notice is sent to schools in the area where offender
lives.
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Q. Will the Sheriff's Department come out and talk to
groups about sex offenders and child abuse?
A. Yes, you just have to call and request someone to come
out.
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Q. How many sex offenders live in Harris County?
A. This number changes on a daily basis, however, Harris County
does have the largest numbers of sex offenders in the State.
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Q. Can I search for sex offenders on line?
A. Yes, the Texas Department of Public Safety has a web
site you can search free of charge.
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Q. Do sex offenders have to register in other States?
A. Each State is different but all 50 states have some type
of sex offender registration law. A good source to find out
about other states is: http://www.klaaskids.org
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Q. Isn't someone supposed to let us know when a sex offender
moves in?
A. If a sex offender has a High-risk level the Department
of Public Safety is to mail out post cards to the community
he has moved to.
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Q. What does the risk level mean?
A. Offenders convicted after September 1, 1999 are given a
Static 99 test. This is a simple test about the offender's
criminal history and refers to the crime committed. The offender
will be given a high, moderate or low risk assignment. This
level is used for public notification purposes only.
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Q. If a sex offender has a low risk does that mean they
are not too dangerous?
A. No. A test cannot tell us for sure if a sex offender will
offend again. It is known sex offenders do have a high recidivism
rate. There is no real way to tell if an offender will offend
again.
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Q. Do some offenders get away with not registering?
A. Some offenders are not required to register by law because
of when they committed their offense. Judges exempts some
sex offenders from registration, however the law is very specific
on whom a Judge can exempt from registration.
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Q. Do we (civilians) have the right to print out flyers
from the DPS website of sex offenders and pass them out in
the community?
A. There is no criminal law saying you cannot put out public
information on sex offenders. We do not recommend this action.
Our recommendation is to invite out the police agency that
registers the offender and have a community meeting so correct
information can be given out.
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Q. Do sex offenders have rights?
A. Yes offenders have rights.
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Q. Can we report a sex offender that is acting suspicious?
A. Yes, you may report him to your local law enforcement agency.
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Q. Can sex offenders live with children?
A. If the offender is under supervision they will most likely
have restrictions about being around children under 17. Each
offender's conditions are set to their needs.
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Q. Are all sex offenders printed in the newspaper?
A. No. Only sex offenders who were convicted after September
1, 1995 and their victim was under 17 years of age are printed
in the newspaper. If an offender has received a LOW risk level
he is only published in the paper for the very first time
he is required to register. No juvenile offenders are published
in the paper.
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Q. Do juveniles adjudicated of a sexual crime have
to register as a sex offender?
A. Maybe. A Judge can exempt juveniles adjudicated for a
sex crime from registration.
- A juvenile Judge can make an offender register as an
adult sex offender would.
- They can have them register with law enforcement and
registration is not public information, or they can exempt
them from registration all together.
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Q. How long does a sex offender have to register?
A. If he was convicted of a sexually violent offense they
will register for the rest of their life. If it was for a
non-sexually violent offense they will register for the duration
of their supervision plus ten years. Juveniles adjudicated
for any sex crime will register for ten years past their supervision.
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