DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE LINKS MAINE TO NATIONAL SEX OFFENDER PUBLIC REGISTRY WEB SITE

Three Additional States Linked to Web site 

     WASHINGTON - The Department of Justice today announced the addition of Maine, Massachusetts, and Missouri to the National Sex Offender Public Registry (NSOPR) Web site, which provides real-time access to public sex offender data nationwide with a single Internet search. The Department of Justice-sponsored Web site allows parents and concerned citizens to search existing public state and territory sex offender registries beyond their own states.

     The Department of Justice announced the activation of a national registry Web site on July 20, and initially linked 22 states to the site. With today's announcement, the registry connects 37 states, the District of Columbia and a territory to the site. Remaining states and territories are expected to be linked by the end of the year. The list of the states and territory currently available through NSOPR follows.

     "With the addition of each state to the registry, the capacity grows for parents and communities to be informed and aware of sex offenders residing in their neighborhoods. Maine's efforts to further extend this invaluable tool nationwide are commendable," said Regina B. Schofield, Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice Programs. "The coordination among states, private organizations and the Department of Justice moves us closer to making information about all registered sex offenders available to parents and concerned citizens."

     The NSOPR provides an opportunity for all states and territories to participate in an unprecedented public safety resource by sharing comprehensive, free-of-charge public sex offender data with citizens nationwide. With a single query from any web-capable computer, NSOPR searches public state and territory sex offender registries to deliver matched results based on a name, state, county, city/town or zip code. The site is located at www.nsopr.gov.

     The technology for NSOPR is both time and cost-effective. Web services and DOJ's Global Justice eXtensible Markup Language (XML) common computer language establishes a link between existing state and territory public sex offender registries. The link allows data from different hardware and software systems to be recognized and shown through the national search site.

     With more than 500,000 registered sex offenders nationwide, access to public registry information nationwide is essential for citizens to help identify sex offenders beyond their own streets or neighborhoods.

     States/Territories Linked to the National Sex Offender Public Registry:

     The Office of Justice Programs provides federal leadership in developing the nation's capacity to prevent and control crime, administer justice, and assist victims. OJP is headed by an Assistant Attorney General and comprises five component bureaus and two offices: the Bureau of Justice Assistance; the Bureau of Justice Statistics; the National Institute of Justice; the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention; and the Office for Victims of Crime, as well as the Office of the Police Corps and Law Enforcement Education and the Community Capacity Development Office, which incorporates the Weed and Seed strategy and OJP's American Indian and Alaska Native Affairs Desk. More information can be found at: www.ojp.usdoj.gov.

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