New search can locate sex offenders in Florida schools

A new search is available on Florida’s Sex Offender Registry allowing citizens to look for sex offenders who are working, living or going to school on college campuses and institutions of higher learning throughout Florida, according to a report received by Historic City News today.

Using the University Search, citizens can obtain a list of all sex offenders at a particular institution or campus. Links are included within the search to display the offender’s photograph, offense, and residential information.

“There are more than 60,000 sex offenders and predators on Florida’s Sex Offender Registry and more than 600 have active registration information involving postsecondary institutions,” Florida Department of Law Enforcement Commissioner Gerald Bailey told local reporters. “The new campus-search function is a valuable source of public safety information.”

Florida’s registration law requires sex offenders and predators to report higher education enrollment, employment or vocational activities to local sheriffs’ offices. Florida Sheriffs’ Offices provide this information to the institution or university and to FDLE for inclusion in the public on-line registry.

To use the UNIVERSITY SEARCH

Find e-mail addresses and instant message names of offenders

Find offenders within a radius of a street address

Find offenders through a variety of other search options

FDLE encourages all colleges, universities and post-secondary institutions to add the sex offender registry link, flsexoffender.org, to their school websites to assist students and parents in taking advantage of this new search, according to an announcement from the Department this morning.