With respect to the police mentioning where "residency restrictions" came from, this is absolute proof they have no idea what is from the Adam Walsh Act, and what comes from the minds of state lawmakers. Residency restrictions DO NOT come from the AWA federal law, what has happened is, state lawmakers, when enacting AWA requirements, coupled their own requirements which have nothing to do with AWA, then blame the federal law. This is th kind of misinformation that is spreading across the nation.2-22-2011 Ohio:
Scott Hildenbrand has a pragmatic attitude about the responsibility law-enforcement agencies have to keep track of registered sex offenders who live in area communities.
"In a perfect world, we wouldn't have any sex offenders," said the chief deputy of the Geauga County Sheriff's Office. "But this isn't a perfect world. We do have sex offenders and we need to have a system in place that accounts for their whereabouts so law-abiding citizens can have peace of mind."
The system referred to by Hildenbrand has been in place since Jan. 1, 2008, when Ohio's Senate Bill 10, originally passed in July 2007, went into effect.
Ohio already had been at the forefront of states in registering sex offenders since the mid-1990s. With the implementation of the legislation, Ohio became the first state to come into substantial compliance with the federal Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006.
"Nothing that's happened since then indicates to me there are any problems with the system," said Lake County Sheriff Daniel A. Dunlap. "Our role (in monitoring registered sex offenders) has grown greatly in recent years. We take advantage of any program that enhances the safety of our citizens."
A key provision of the bill established residency restrictions for registered sex offenders. They are prohibited from establishing a residence within 1,000 feet of a preschool, school or day-care center. The law also establishes three classifications for registered sexual offenders.
Tier III offenders are individuals convicted of the most serious felonies. They must do in-person registrations every 90 days for the rest of their lives at the sheriff's office in their home county, and the sheriff's office must provide written notification by mail to all residents living within one mile of the offender when they move in.
Tier II offenders must register twice annually for 25 years. Tier I offenders must register once per year, on the anniversary of conviction, for 15 years.
As of Friday, the office of Attorney General Mike DeWine reported that there are 17,927 registered sex offenders in Ohio. That total is down slightly from 18,809 in November 2009.
The eSORN list is linked to 88 sheriff's offices and 32 correctional facility records offices of the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections.
In the Lake County Sheriff's Office, the registration and monitoring of registered sex offenders is handled by deputies Michael Perry and David Harvey.
"Is the system flawless? No. But our success rate is good," Perry said. "It's a group effort involving law enforcement and the courts. We're very aware of what citizens want."
Perry said that a new wrinkle in the system, in place since late 2010, sends written notifications to registered sex offenders of the next date they must report to the sheriff's department.
"This eliminates the excuse of not knowing the registration deadline," Perry said.
"Once the individual goes three days past the deadline, a warrant is issued for his or her arrest."
Hildenbrand said that in Geauga County, there have been "several instances" of registered sex offenders violating the 1,000-feet rule. Those individual were required to change residence to come into compliance.
Lake County Prosecutor Charles E. Coulson has been critical of the legislation since it hit the books in 2008. Coulson said the law casts too wide of a net.
"The law is arbitrary and indiscriminate," Coulson said. "We want to protect the public, of course, but by covering such a wide area, we are needlessly putting the spotlight on people whose offenses may not rise to the level of seriousness this law intends to address.
"There are individuals who technically fall under this law, needing to register, who are not a danger to society," Coulson added.
"I hate to see kids who make one stupid mistake forced to wear a scarlet letter for the rest of their lives.
"Right now, there is no discretion for judges who know the entire history of a case. We need to give the judges some discretion."
In June 2010, the Ohio Supreme Court by a 5-1 vote threw out sections of the legislation.
The justices ruled that provisions of the law violated the constitution when state officials were forced to change the classifications of individuals convicted of sex offenses prior to implementation of the new rules.
Perry said the ruling necessitated a certain amount of paperwork but did not represent a setback to the registration and monitoring of sex offenders in Lake County. ..Source.. David S. Glasier
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