Bill would expand list of sex offenders in Oregon's public database
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PORTLAND, Ore. – A proposed law about to go before Oregon lawmakers would expand the number of sex offenders listed on Oregon’s searchable website.
Only a fraction of offenders currently appears on the site, the KATU Investigators learned last year.
Many families type their addresses into the site to find out if any sex offenders live near them, but chances are they click right past the “conditions of use statement” page, which explains in fine print that only sexually violent sex offenders and predatory sex offenders who have the highest risk of re-offending and require the widest range of notification appear.
In Oregon, that’s less than 800 of the 18,000 sex offenders who must register with the state - roughly four percent.
Bridget Sicon, an officer with the Portland Police Bureau’s sex offender registry detail, said the current system can gives families a false sense of security.
“This database only gives you predatory if you’re a citizen,” said Sicon.
She showed us the database that she has access to as a police officer. A search of a one-mile radius around KATU's studio turned up no sex offenders in the civilian database. When Sicon searched the police database, she found 32 sex offenders in the same area. Ordinary families searching the public database would not see those results.
The same pattern shows up across the Portland metro area.
House Bill 2549, now in the Ways and Means Committee in Salem, would overhaul the way Oregon’s sex offenders are categorized by creating three levels of risk.
In doing so, an additional 400 sex offenders would be added to the state’s public website, bringing the total to about 1,200.
Idaho puts 100 percent of its sex offenders on its public website. California lists 75 percent, and Washington puts about 30 percent on its public site.
Sex offender rights advocacy groups believe not listing all sex offenders on the Oregon website protects the privacy of those who committed lower-level crimes and have a very low risk of re-offending.
Until something changes in Oregon, Sicon believes people need to be made aware of the information they’re not getting about the sex offenders who may live around them.
“I talk about it all the time with citizens to try and educate them,” Sicon said.
We ran a search on both the public and police databases for several ZIP codes in the Portland area to compare how many registered offenders show up in each:
| ZIP Code | Number of offenders shown in public database | Number of offenders shown in police database |
| 97030 (Gresham) | 4 | 146 |
| 97205 (SW hills/Goose Hollow) | 7 | 60 |
| 97214 (Inner SE Portland) | 19 | 206 |
| 97232 (Inner NE Portland) | 0 | 32 |
| 97239 (SW hills/Terwilliger) | 1 | 14 |
| 97202 (Sellwood/Eastmoreland) | 1 | 72 |
Did you know that each agency like the district attorneys office gets an addttional grant upto $150K for each sex offense conviction in thier jurisdiction???? Sex offenses are Good business and business is GOOOD!
I used to loath anyone who was a sex offender. I was a cop and though about killing a few and just say they tried to kill me with "planted gun". knowing that anyone can become a sex offender at any time for pretty much anything.
Your all potential sex offenders...you just havent gotten caught yet. If you had sex in a car, peed outside, touched yourself because you saw some hot guy or lady...yeah. you have issues.
Im a sex offender. I am a great father of three little girls. I own a home for them, I have a successful business. My offense...was a picture of thier mom, my wife that was in Her yearbook from highscholl...Encouraging child sex abuse 2 is my crime.
From the posts in this forum we certainly have a lot of people who don't sin! Of course that's not possible, because all human beings sin! The bible says (word of god) we all sin and fall short of the glory of God. And sin is punishable by death; "all sins" not just some sins! You people who would deny someones civil rights because "you" decide you are some how less of a sinner have another thing coming indeed!
Ignorance, emotions and the desire for the press and politicians to look busy are what's driving most sex offender laws; not reason or data. It's too bad that Oregon is about to fall for this useless hype called sex offender registries.
RFID CHIP! mandatory for sex offenders - end this stupid we can't keep track of them, they don't register.
Use the technology we have for good use - too logical? yep that is the problem...ppppffffffttttt
@colorowdy I say we take you into this clinical room. Strap a rubber band onto your pee pee. called a penil plethesmograph, Strap you down in a chair, eyes fixed open by means of a bracket, and show your child rape videos, child nudity videos until we are certain your Not a chomo..Then we should strap you down, give you a thourough polygraph about every sexual thing you have ever done in your life. If we don't like your responses we will slam our hands onto the table, yell at you until you admit to things that you may or may not have done... That is called the sex offender treatment program..Can you pass??? I did...as does any S/O in Oregon
Ever see the movie "A Clockwork Orange"?
Its called http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aversion_therapy ...
The powers that be are just inciting people and nothing more! If parents keep kept an eye on their kids they wouldn't have to worry about sex offenders. And 90% of all sex offenders is known to the family! So maybe mom and dad should be doing their jobs and watching their kids closer!
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No one is saying we shouldn't be vigilant and protect our children. But there is nothing like picking on a segment of society and demonizing them as to make the rest of us feel superior!
 @Postone I am not sure what you mean by picking on a segment of society. This particular segment are low life scum that steal innocents from children - Those need to be held ACCOUNTABLE for their actions and spending time in jail does not stop them from doing it again...I say RFID CHIP them and keeping track is easy. I personally know 2 young girls that live this and it was there own father - do you think he will stop when he is released? NO! RFID CHIP I am starting a movement to make chipping sex offenders mandatory - not that the chip will stop them but the authorities will know where they are at any given moment..could include a shock so if they do stray where they should not be - zappo! To make sure it is not removed - embed it into the scrotum nice and deep....Sex offenders should not be tolerated or treated with dignity - think about what they do...it is a offense to all of society.
 @colorowdy  @Postone Great thought! But I'll advise that before you start your "movement to make chipping sex offenders mandatory", you need to work on rewriting the constitution because it doesn't sound like what you are thinking about can happen even in China or Myanmar, talk less of USA.
 @Postone You are correct, most are known to the family.  They make themselves appear to be the nicest,  most compassionate, caring and loving kind of people.  They never look like the creepy guy who you avoid like the plague.  Sometimes they groom the family and children for a few years before they do anything.  By that time it is hard to believe that they would harm anyone in your family because they have been part of your family for years.  Think about your friends, would you trust any of them with your children?  They could be the person grooming your family.
Belonging to a family where we know first hand the offender is not listed on the public website is frustrating. He has plead guilty to two counts of Sexual Abuse 1 but there were about 9 other charges that were rolled up into the time. Â Now he is out and free and doing whatever he wants and NO ONE knows about him. Â He will do it again, give him time. Our family wasn't the only one he changed and we know there are others out there. Â
It has been proven time and again that sex offenders violent or not (if there really is such a classification, one would have to ask the victim) at some time will continue their pursuit of there perverted ways. I believe that they all need to be listed for public safety purposes. If you don't want to be listed, don't do the crime. Perverts, lowest form of cells sucking air on this planet. Once convicted they lose their rights to mingle peacefully in a law abiding society. Honor and truth, please.
 @souptonuts Where is the data to support your claim? About the registries; other than making some people feel good what evidence to support the thinking that it serves any "public safety purposes"?
@Derive Progress I don't need data, I read the news all the time, worked in the Criminal Justice system for 40 years. Why would anyone defend someone who preys on others for their own satisfaction. Bad DNA cells sucking good air off this planet.
@Rawdeal @souptonuts I would suggest that you are ill and need to seek treatment. Having a job and earning a decent honorable living is not preying on other people. As for the rest of your post it is too sick to even respond to. Please seek help.
@souptonuts There are a million different ways a person can prey for thier own satisfaction. Wether it be sexual, emotional, or finacial. You for instance preyed on other human beings to make your life wages. You may call it your job etc..only because it is an acceptable form of preying. Heck I would lay odds that you too at some point in your life did a sex offensible act..like back n the 60's? or even to your own wife. That day she said No, but felt obligated to satisfy you..
 The people on these data bases are not innocent people charged with a crime. They are convicted criminals who have proven beyond a reasonable doubt that they have committed one or more sexual crimes. I prefer to protect possible victims rights as opposed to "Sex offender rights". List them all. I can figure out if they are a threat or not.
"...the current system can give families a false sense of security."
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Listing ALL of the sex offenders would also give a false sense of security because there are still people in your neighborhood who have committed other crimes (assault, robbery, theft, DUI, etc) who are not on any free public web site.Â
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 @Tod Being a DUI robbery assault all of those are close but no were near stealing the innocents from a child - the sex offenders are scum low life that prey on the weaker - they do not deserve to be treated with dignity not at all - they cannot stop either they will do it again. IMO I feel they should be neutered like a dog, wont happen - but a RFID Chip would be a nice start.
 @colorowdy Sex offenders are among the least likely to repeat their crimes. Most of the dozen or so studies, including those performed by the US Department of Justice, put their recidivism rates at or below 5%. Also most child molesters' victims are not strangers. They are family members and friends. About a third of child molesters on the registry are also children as young as eight years old.Â
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Regardless of how we may feel about them, they have been sentenced and served their time. They have the constitutional right to return to being private citizens. You can still hate them and want them neutered and all that. But it doesn't change their constitutional rights. Â