Sex offender registration not retroactive

3-5-2012 Ohio:

MARION - A court ruling has allowed some sex offenders to no longer register in their communities.

On Feb. 22, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled that sex offenders who completed their jail time before 1997 would no longer have to register as sex offenders in their counties.

According to the Associated Press, the ruling upheld a 2010 decision that threw out sections of Ohio's 2007 sex offender law that upped public notice requirements for sex offenders and applied them to previously exempt offenders released before July 1, 1997.

There are 148 sex offenders registered in Marion County, said Larry Yoder, sex offender registration officer. This ruling may affect two offenders. Yoder said since the offenders both committed their crimes out of state and served time out of state, their cases were pending clarification.

Sex offenders in Ohio are classified in different tiers depending on the offense and conviction date.

Those offenders who were convicted from 1997-2007 are classified under Megan's Law.

Yoder said that Megan's Law divides sex offenders into three tiers: Sexually oriented offender, habitual sex offender and sexual predator.

The tiers decide how long a sex offender must register with the sheriff's office in his county:

» Sexually-oriented offender: Registration once a year for 10 years;

» Habitually sex offender: Registration once a year for 20 years;

» Sexual Predator: Registration every three months for life.

In 2008, the Adam Walsh Act went into effect. From Jan. 1, 2008 forward, sex offenders were divided into tiers with more aggressive reporting requirements:

» Tier One: Registration once a year for 15 years;

» Tier Two: Registration twice a year for 25 years;

» Tier Three: Registration every three months for life.

Yoder said that once an offender reaches the end of their registration tree as ordered by the court, they no longer have to register as a sex offender.

"The idea behind the Adam Walsh Act was to have it replace Megan's Law, but the court ruled that the Adam Walsh Act could not be retroactive," Yoder said. Now both laws are on the books, and will remain there until the last sexual predator classified under Megan's Law dies.

In Marion, there are 27 individuals categorized as sexual predators or Tier Three offenders. Some of the crimes associated with Tier Three are rape, sexual battery and murder with sexual motivation.

The majority of offenders fall into sexually-oriented offenders or Tier One, which includes crimes like sexual imposition, voyeurism and pandering obscenity.

The Marion County Sheriff's Office is the sole agency in charge of registration of sex offenders and verification of address.

In August 2011, the sheriff's office partnered with the US Marshall's Office, the Marion City Police Department, Marion County Probation and Adult Parole to do a sweep of Marion, checking up on all sex offenders in the area.

"It was a two-day operation," said Yoder. "We worked out of the Sheriff's command post at the Marion County Fairgrounds, and went to physically visit each offender's residence in the county."

When there were staffing cuts, the Sheriff's Office started having Yoder and the Auxiliary Deputies doing routine verifications of sex offender residences.

There was no change in service due to the December layoffs.

Sex offenders have to register by a certain date. Yoder said that if they do not register by that day, he sends them a certified letter that states they have seven days to register.

"If they still don't come in, I file paperwork with the detectives to charge a felony for failure to appear." The case is then turned over to the prosecutor.

If offenders fail to register more than once, Yoder said there is a mandatory three-year prison sentence attached to it.

"We have no tolerance for registration violations." ..Source.. by Tabitha Clark