SEX OFFENDER REGISTRATION
Ohio Revised Code section 2950.04 requires that every offender who is convicted of or pleads guilty to, or has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to, a sexually oriented offense that is not a registration-exempt sexually oriented offense shall register personally with the sheriff of the county within five days of the offender's coming into a county in which the offender resides or temporarily is domiciled for more than five days, shall register personally with the sheriff of the county immediately upon coming into a county in which the offender attends a school or institution of higher education on a full-time or part-time basis.
There are several classifications of sexually oriented offenders. Some require community notification while others do not. I have often been asked why they and their neighbors were not notified that a sexually oriented offender lives in their neighborhood. The Scioto County Sheriff's Office strictly adheres to the law when registering sexually oriented offenders and the community will be notified accordingly as required by the Ohio Revised Code.
Ohio Revised Code section 2950.01 classifies sexual offenders into three major classifications as defined below:
SEXUAL PREDATOR:
means a person to whom either of the following applies:
(1) The person has been convicted of or pleaded guilty to committing a sexually oriented offense that is not a registration-exempt sexually oriented offense and is likely to engage in the future in one or more sexually oriented offenses.
(2) The person has been adjudicated a delinquent child for committing a sexually oriented offense that is not a registration-exempt sexually oriented offense, was fourteen years of age or older at the time of committing the offense, was classified a juvenile offender registrant based on that adjudication, and is likely to engage in the future in one or more sexually oriented offenses.
Community Notification & Registration Requirements:
Offenders designated as sexual predators are subject to registration/verification requirements for life unless a judge modifies or terminates the sexual predator designation. Sexual predators are subject to the community notification provisions and the reporting requirements at 90-day intervals.
SEXUAL ORIENTED OFFENDER:
is a person who has been convicted of, or pleaded guilty to, committing a sexually oriented offense, but who has not been designated as a sexual predator or habitual sex offender.
Community Notification & Registration Requirements:
Sexually oriented offenders are subject to the registration/verification requirements annually for a period of 10 years after release. THESE OFFENDERS ARE NOT SUBJECT TO COMMUNITY NOTIFICATION.
HABITUAL SEX OFFENDER:
A person to whom both of the following apply (except when a juvenile judge removes this classification pursuant to division (A)(2) of section 2152.84 or division (C)(2) of section 2152.85 of the Revised Code):
(1) The person is convicted of or pleads guilty to a sexually oriented offense that is not a registration-exempt sexually oriented offense, or the person is adjudicated a delinquent child for committing on or after January 1, 2002, a sexually oriented offense that is not a registration-exempt sexually oriented offense, was fourteen years of age or older at the time of committing the offense, and is classified a juvenile sex offender registrant based on that adjudication.
(2) One of the following applies to the person:
(a) Regarding a person who is an offender, the person previously was convicted of or pleaded guilty to one or more sexually oriented offenses or child-victim oriented offenses or previously was adjudicated a delinquent child for committing one or more sexually oriented offenses or child-victim oriented offenses and was classified a juvenile offender registrant or out-of-state juvenile offender registrant based on one or more of those adjudications, regardless of when the offense was committed and regardless of the person's age at the time of committing the offense.
(b) Regarding a delinquent child, the person previously was convicted of, pleaded guilty to, or was adjudicated a delinquent child for committing one or more sexually oriented offenses or child-victim oriented offenses, regardless of when the offense was committed and regardless of the person's age at the time of committing the offense.
Community Notification & Registration Requirements:
Offenders designated as habitual sex offenders are subject to registration/verification requirements annually for a period of 20 years after release. A sentencing judge may determine that a habitual sex offender is subject to community notification.
The State of Ohio has provided each Sheriff's Office with the ability to register sex offenders by means of the internet. The information we enter is then compiled into a main database where the public can search and view all offenders who have been registered including those where community notification is not required.
This new program is commonly known as E-SORN (Electronic Sex Offender Registration and Notification) and is kept up to date as each Sheriff's Office around the state enters their registrations. I have attached the following links to permit our community to review the information compiled during the registration process and would encourage you to visit these sites in the event you would have questions concerning sexual offenders who have been registered by the Scioto County Sheriff's Office along with the other eighty-seven Sheriff's Offices around the State of Ohio.