Law passed to remove some sex offenders from South Dakota registry

As good as this seems, there still are some kinks: Since AWA has forced states to include folks retroactively it seems logical that, the term of registration should also be retroactive, in that, term should begin when the person was first placed in the community, not when this law was enacted.

3-30-2010 South Dakota:

VERMILLION, SD (KTIV) - Sex offender laws are to help crack down on those who commit a crime. But if you are an 18-year-old dating a 17-year-old you could find your name on the sex offender registry for life.

That's why one Siouxland state wants to take some names off the list.

Sheriff Andy Howe has his very own link to local sex offenders in Clay County, South Dakota. But, even he thinks the list is just a little too long.

"There are people on the registry who are married because things change," says Howe.

Clay County and every other county in South Dakota will soon need to change their sex offender policies. The state recently signed a bill that will place sex offenders on a three tiered registry, eventually allowing some names to come off the list.

"Previously people were on for life once they came on they stayed on and that didn't differentiate," Howe says.

The new system will allow names in tier one to come off the list in 10 years, for crimes like statutory rape in which both persons are of similar age. Tier two names will come off in twenty five years for crimes such as incest, and tier three names will never come off the list because of their likelihood to commit again or because of the severity of the crime.

And county officials like Sheriff Howe believe this is a good thing for some of those convicted.

"What we have is the ability to take out from those who really aren't likely to offend and concentrate on those that are," says Howe.

County officials say the new law will take effect on July 1st of this year, making the list's like Sheriff Howe's just a little bit shorter.

As of May 2009, there were 15 registered sex offenders in Clay County, South Dakota. ..Source.. Forrest Saunders