Keeping Children Safe:

Parents Reminded About DPS Website

The Connecticut Sex Offender Registry website has averaged just under 850,000 hits per month for the first ten months of 2007. There are currently just over 4,815 registered sex offenders living, working, or attending schools in the state.

Information can be searched on the State of Connecticut Department of Public Safety Sex Offender Registry website (www.state.ct.us/dps) by last name, town, Zip Code, or by viewing an entire list of registrants. The information is provided at no charge and anyone making an inquiry to the website does not have to identify themselves.

The Department of Public Safety (DPS) urges parents to engage their children in ongoing discussions about personal safety. The US Department of Justice has reported that in nearly 93 percent of child sexual assault cases the offender was known to the victim as an acquaintance or family member.

Information on sexual offenders found on the Connecticut Sex Offender Registry website should be used as one tool that parents can utilize to protect their children. Know who lives in your community.

Registered sex offenders on the Connecticut registry are registered as a result of an offense involving adults or children. These individuals listed on the Sex Offender Registry have committed and have been convicted of sexual offenses.

Parents can learn more about sexual safety for their children at the following websites:

*Parents for Megan’s Law, ParentsForMegansLaw.com

*The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, NCMEC.org.

Anyone who has questions regarding the registration of sex offenders in Connecticut or has information on a registered sex offender who appears to be in violation is urged to contact the Connecticut Department of Public Safety, Division of State Police, Sex Offender Registry Unit, at 1111 Country Club Road, Middletown CT 06457-9294, by phone at 860-685-8060, or by e-mail at sex.offender.registry@po.state.ct.us.

Registry records are also available at local police departments for registrants living within that department’s jurisdiction.