If you live in the state of Massachusetts, you may have found yourself wondering if there is a sex offender registry MA. Many people are aware that sexual predators exist in the world, and many tragedies have come from not knowing where sex offenders are in regards to themselves and their families. As a public safety measure at the very least, every state should have its own sex offender registry that the public can easily access. It is a good thing that there are laws in place that make sure that people have access to the facts that they need in order to stay safe.
A Brief History of Sex Offender Registries.
The sex offender registries that we know today got their roots in 1994. Before 1994 very few states required their convicted sex offenders to register their current addresses with local law enforcement. Then the 1994 Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent Offender Act changed that. In 1996 this act had a few amendments made because of Megan’s law, which was inspired by a gruesome incident that involved a New Jersey child.
In 2006 the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Child Safety Act was passed and unified requirements for sex offender registries nationwide, as well as started requiring Washington DC, Native American tribes, and some US territories to also keep up their own sex offender registries. This is the law that gave most of the characteristics of the sex offender databases that we have today and is considered a precedent in cases that have to do with information of this sort.
How to Find the Massachusetts Sex Offender Registry
Of course, there are many ways to find this information online. One new method has begun to rise above others, and this method is certainly a very interesting one. Many people have found that their new preferred way to get information about sex offenders in their area is to first use a website that can connect them to services that provide multiple tools that make keeping their families and themselves safe a lot simpler.
One such website that gets a lot of buzz, is the Registered Offenders List. Maybe you’ve never heard of them or used them before. The way that Registered Offenders List works is by connecting you with a service that has specialized tools for helping with sex offender safety, as well as a large number of useful advice articles for how to deal with sexual predators, how to avoid being targetted, what to do if you’ve been targetted, and what to do if the worst-case scenario happens.
One of the best weapons to have against potential sexual predators is cold hard facts. The best thing that an online registry can do is provide the public with facts, statistics, and laws that concern the state that they live in. Whenever you have facts you have a solid foundation to stand on in the event that there is a potential threat around you or your family.
Massachusetts Sex Offenders Law requires all sex offenders in the state to register with the State’s sex offender’s registry. The law categorizes sex offenders in Massachusetts into 3 levels:
- Level 1 sex offenders
- Level 2 sex offenders
- Level 3 sex offenders
The classification depends on the degree of threat an offender poses to the residents of Massachusetts. Level 1 is the lowest because they do not pose as big as a dangerous threat as a level 3 offender would.
Using Sex Offender Registries for Safety Planning in the Bay State
Families all over the world worry that someone they care about could be victimized by a sexual predator, and knowing how to access the sex offender registry is just one way to ensure that you have the best safety strategy that you can. Knowing who you may need to be on the lookout for can prevent unnecessary tragedies for yourself and those you love.