OK- AG clarifies sex offender registration

8-6-2008 Oklahoma:

OKLAHOMA CITY — Out-of-state sex offenders whose crimes meet the requirements of the Oklahoma Sex Offender Registration Act must register if they live, work or attend school in Oklahoma, according to an opinion from Attorney General Drew Edmondson's office.

The state Department of Corrections sought the opinion after some sex offenders who had been convicted in other states questioned why they had to register as sex offenders in Oklahoma when they didn't have to in the state where their crime was committed.

"We're pleased with the opinion, and it supports what we've been doing," DOC spokesman Jim Rabon said Tuesday.

Rabon said the department takes elements from a state or federal crime that was committed in another state and compares them with elements of the Oklahoma statute that most closely matches.

The opinion states that regardless of whether the elements required to prove the out-of-state violations are explicitly repeated in the Oklahoma law, the person with an out-of-state conviction or deferred sentence is required to register as a sex offender in Oklahoma.

Oklahoma has about 5,850 registered sex offenders, Rabon said.

Anyone subject to the Oklahoma Sex Offender Registration Act must register with both the Department of Corrections and the local law enforcement authority having jurisdiction in the area where the person lives or intends to live. ..News Source.. by Oklahoma Attorney General