National and Statewide Sexual Offender Searches

Notes:  Each state has a different policy and procedure when it comes to maintaining sexual offender databases. States can vary in terms of the start date of the data, the information released and the frequency of updates.  Most states indicate that they update monthly or quarterly.  However, as with all databases, there is the possibility of error.  The fact that a name is NOT in the database does not mean a person is "clear."  Conversely, just because a name is a match does not mean that the applicant/employee being searched is the same person listed in the database. A databases search is a secondary research tool.  On-site court searches in each relevant county is needed for the most accuracy.  All database matches should be confirmed by on-site court search.    In many state, there are look-up available on-line at no cost and employers and citizens can do the searches themselves on-line.  Use a search engine to locate numerous sites that list state sexual offender databases.  However, ESR offers this as an outsourced service when done in conjunction with other pre-employment screening services.  All searches are returnable within 24-48 hours. 

The US Department of Justice has made available a National Sex Offender Public Registry.  It is available to the public for free at http://www.nsopr.gov/

However, keep in mind that the site is subject to Conditions of Use and is only as good as the information maintained by the states  The other difficulty is that there are a number of states that do  not list offenders by date of birth.  Those states typically use name only or year of birth or age.  That means if there is a common name, results may appear that have no relationship to an applicant.  That will require additional research to determine if a person on the list is the applicant.

For the most accurate search, ESR recommends that each relevant state be searched. Although multi-jurisdictional databases do contain sexual offender information from most states, not ALL states provide date of birth, which can create issues in determining if a name match belongs to a particular applicant.   Searching based upon name match only through a national database can provide a high number of false positives. Please see note at the bottom of this chart as to the states that are limited when it comes to a national database search.

In addition, even for those states that do provide a Data of Birth in a database, there is an issue as to how often the databases may be updated.

For increased protection, any "national" databases searches should be supplemented with a state specific search as well. 

Subject to change without notice - Updated April . 2006--Information not provided or intended as legal advice and is provided for general information only.  ESR does not guarantee the accuracy or applicability of the information below. 

Teh following is subject to change wihtout notice:

The following states do not provide DOBs and are not included in any national searches: AZ-GA-HI-IN-LA-MA-MD-MO-MT-NV-OK-PA-VA-WA-WI. In order to receive results from these states, an individual Statewide Database Search must be run with the search criteria set to "name match" with "no DOB".

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For additional resources on sexual abuse databases, the following sites that are not affiliated in any way with ESR may be useful:

http://www.prevent-abuse-now.com/register.htm
http://www.sexoffender.com/search.html

http://www.littleleague.org/common/childprotect/states.asp