Be aware of who moves in
Published: January 30, 2006 11:11 pm

Sex offenders are everywhere.Have you checked out your neighborhood online? It’s scary.There are 6,335 sex offenders registered in Indiana. Who is living near your child’s day care or school? Do you really know the person next door?Two Web sites have popped up in the last six months that are helping parents be more aware of their child’s surroundings. Check out www.indianasheriffs.org, which will guide you through Indiana’s sex offender list in a more comprehensive way than ever before. You don’t have to know the person’s name to look them up. You just have to type in your home, work, day care, school or whatever address you choose. Also, www.familywatchdog.us maps out almost every state in the U.S. when it comes to sex offenders.A mapping tool on both sites allows users to locate sex offenders living near schools, child care centers and parks. The registry may also be searched by city, county or ZIP code. The site maps the offender and returns a profile including a recent photograph, home, work address and conviction. More than 10,000 registered sex offenders move to a new address or new job every single day across the U.S. Web site users can preregister to be notified by e-mail when registered sex/violent offenders move near them. Numerous bills are facing the Indiana Senate and House that would further limit a convicted sex offender’s ability to live in certain neighborhoods and to escape the statute of limitations.A bill that passed through the Indiana Senate last week would change the exception to the statute of limitations for Class B, C and D felonies. A person could be charged with a sex crime no matter how long ago it was if DNA analysis provides sufficient evidence.The bill could also limit even more where sex offenders can spend their time. If it passes through the House, sexually violent predators will push them farther away from their victims.n If the offender is 18 or older and the child is younger than 12,n If the offender has certain prior convictions,n And if the offender used deadly force, a deadly weapon or caused serious bodily injury in the commission of the sex act:They will be prohibited from living within 1,000 feet of a school, public park or youth program center and one mile with their victim’s residence.Indiana is working on protecting its citizens from sex offenders, but it’s a parent’s job too. Log onto the Web sites with your kids. Talk to them. Educate them. Make them aware of what is going on so close to home.