How to Report a Sex Offender

Written by Jennifer Mueller, JD

Last Updated: April 11, 2024 References

If someone is convicted of a crime, such as rape or sexual assault, that requires them to register as a sex offender, they must provide their information to local law enforcement to be added to the registry. These registries are accessible to the general public. If you know of someone who is violating the registration laws, report them to the local registry office.^{[1]
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United States Department of Justice
Official website of the U.S. Department of Justice

Go to source} Beyond law enforcement, the private companies that run social media platforms typically restrict convicted sex offenders from using their sites. If you find a sex offender on social media, contact the site directly to have the person banned.

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Verifying Sex Offender Registration

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1
Gather information about the person. At a minimum, you'll need the person's full legal name to find them on the sex offender registry. If they have a relatively common name, you may also want additional information so you can distinguish them from others with similar names. It's also a good idea to have an approximate age range for the person, even if you don't know exactly how old they are.^{[2]
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- Search on the internet to see if you can find any news reports related to their conviction. Those might give you more information about the person and the crime they were convicted of.
2
Search for the person on your state's sex offender registry. Go to https://www.nsopw.gov/ to search on the national sex offender public website provided by the federal government. This website includes the sex offender registries for all 50 states, the District of Columbia, US territories, and Indian Country.^{[3]
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- Your state or territory may also have its own website that you can search. However, the national site could potentially give you more information, since it will show if the person is listed on more than one registry.
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Find contact information for your local registry office. That national sex offender website provides links for the registry of every US state, territory, and participating Indian tribe. Go to https://www.nsopw.gov/en/Registry/AllRegistries and click on the name of the place where you live.^{[4]
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- The link will take you to the website for your state, territory, or tribe's registry office. Apart from basic contact information, this page may include additional details on how to report registry violations.
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Report registry violations to the local registry office. Registry violations include not only failing to register but also participating in certain activities or being in certain areas. The specifics regarding what a registered sex offender is allowed to do vary depending on where they live and what crime they were convicted of.^{[5]
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- For example, if the person was convicted of a sexual crime and their victim was under the age of 16, they may not be permitted to work around children. If they were working in a daycare, you could report that as a violation. You might also want to notify their employer and local law enforcement.^{[6]
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- You can also report a failure to register to the US Marshals Service by emailing iod.nsotc@usdoj.gov. However, keep in mind that violation of a state registration law is not necessarily violation of the federal registration law.^{[7]
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  United States Department of Justice
  Official website of the U.S. Department of Justice
  
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Tip: Most local registry offices provide a method that allows you to submit your report and also remain anonymous if you're concerned about your own safety or don't want the person to know that you reported them.
5
Notify other authorities if the person failed to disclose their registration. Some registered sex offenders are required to disclose their registration when applying for a lease, starting a new job, entering a school, and in other circumstances. The circumstances that require disclosure vary depending on the state where you live and the crime the person was convicted of. If you believe someone was required to disclose their registration and failed to do so, contact the person they were required to disclose to.^{[8]
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- For example, suppose you've learned that someone who lives in your apartment building is a registered sex offender. Your lease clearly states that registered sex offenders cannot live in your building. In that situation, you could talk to your property manager and let them know that the person is a registered sex offender.

Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Filing a Report on Social Media Platforms

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1
Confirm that convicted sex offenders are not allowed on the site. Each social media platform has its own policies regarding who is allowed to open an account on the site. Typically, you'll find details about this in the platform's help pages.^{[9]
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- If you can't find the information in the help pages, use a contact form to contact the platform directly and ask if convicted sex offenders can have accounts on the site.
- As of 2020, states are constitutionally barred from enacting laws that ban sex offenders from using social media websites.^{[10]
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  Research source} However, as private companies, the platform itself is free to restrict access to sex offenders.
Tip: Even if the platform doesn't have a universal policy, it may take action on a case-by-case basis if you provide information about the person and the threat they present to others.
2
Gather documentation of the person's conviction or registration. The platform won't act to remove the person's account from the website unless you can prove that the person has been convicted of a sex crime and is required to register as a sex offender. Examples of documentation you could provide include:^{[11]
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- A judge's final order or other court document
- A news report about the person's conviction and sentencing
- The person's listing on the sex offender registry
Tip: If you happen to have a paper document that proves the person's conviction or registration, scan it so you can upload a digital file to attach to your report. You can also provide links to documents and information you find online.
3
Complete a report form on the site. Provide the person's full legal name, their user name on the site if it differs from their legal name, and documentation of the person's conviction and registration. You may also have to provide your own username on the site, if you have one, and a valid email address.^{[12]
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- If the platform does not have a specific form for reporting a sex offender, use a blank contact form to report the person, providing the same information.
- Include any other information you may have about the person's activity on the platform. For example, if you have evidence that a convicted sex offender is trying to talk to teenaged girls through the platform, you might include that information.
4
Ask local law enforcement to help if you can't complete your report. If the conviction was fairly recent or you can't find the information you need to document the conviction, contact local law enforcement using a non-emergency number. Explain that you need help to report a convicted sex offender who is using a social media platform in violation of the platform's policies.^{[13]
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- The officer you speak with may insist that there's nothing they can do because it's not against the law for the person to have social media accounts. Acknowledge that you understand that, then say that the platform recommended that you get local police involved if you couldn't complete the report on your own.

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Tips

If you become aware of a sex offender in your neighborhood, try not to panic. Report them to the appropriate authorities if they aren't properly registered and make sure your children know what to do if they're approached by a stranger.^{[14]
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When you look up a person on the sex offender registry, check their conviction to determine the threat level they pose. Some people who are required to register have been convicted of crimes such as indecent exposure or public urination, which may not necessarily be cause for concern.^{[15]
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Warnings

This article discusses how to report a sex offender in the US and is based on US sex offender registry laws. If you live in another country, the laws and processes may be different. A local law enforcement officer or victim's advocacy organization will have more information.

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