3monkeys

Just as any good parent, I am very cautious about my daughter. While browsing the web some time ago, I ran across a resource that every parent should have at their disposal, MapSexOffenders.com. The site is a Google Maps mash-up, that locates sex offenders in 45 of the 50 states.

The purpose of this site is to inform the general community of sex offenders in their area in a straightforward way. Sex offender registries have been on the Internet for many years, but they are hard to find and even more difficult to use. MapSexOffenders.com is simply a map so that the data can be easily viewed. Each sex offender is highlighted on the map and you can zoom in to view the offender, address, and other information. The map also links to the state registry for additional information such as the vehicles offenders drive and their convictions. Parents concerned about their neighborhood or those who are moving can use this free service to make sure they are in a safe neighborhood.

Parents can use this tool not only to check their neighborhood, but those of ex-spouses, the child’s friends, school and daycare areas. Some areas will also allow you to view additional details of the sex offenders case such as:

• Weight
• Height
• Eye Color
• Hair Color
• Pseudonyms
• Dates of Birth
• Detail of Offenses
• Recent Photos

Here is a link to a random example from Dallas, TX. Please share this site with your friends with children.

Update

HardSide on digg provided an additional resource http://www.familywatchdog.us, which shows not only offender home address but work address as well. The site also allows you to sign up for alerts.

Related story: Seven sex offenders arrested with MySpace data

Until next time.

-3Monkeys

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This entry was posted on Friday, January 5th, 2007 at 10:03 pm and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.