criminal court records

Records are available online about people convicted of sexual offenses who are released from custody, usually on parole.

This is the result of so-called "Megan's laws" adopted in states across the country so the public can know about sex offenders living in their communities.

State Sex Offender Databases

The U.S. Department of Justice operates a website you can search to locate convicted sex offenders in all 50 states. Go to the:

National Sex Offender Public Website

The information on an offender usually includes a photograph and physical description, aliases they have used, their current address, offenses they were convicted of and their past criminal history.

California Sex Offender Database

The California Attorney General's Office has an online database of registered sex offenders:

Megan's Law Web Site

You can search by the name of an offender or by a city, county, zip code, school, park or specific address.

Information available on sex offenders includes their last know address, what they were convicted of, their photograph and physical description, their date of birth and any aliases they have used.

Local Sex Offender Databases

Some county sheriff's offices have online databases or maps with information on sex offenders in their jurisdictions. See for example the Contra Costa County Sheriff's Office OffenderWatch site.

Check the website for a county sheriff's office or police department to see what's available.

The Community Notifications website also has a map you can use to locate local police agencies that have sex offender databases online.