National Registered Sex Offender Laws

California Sex Offenders

The California sex offenders law is also known as California’s Megan Law. Established in 1996, the Penal Code § 290.46. protects the public from sex offenders.

The law makes sure the general public are aware of registered sex offenders.

The name "California's Megan Law" is from a victim of rape and murder Megan Kanka. Megan, age 7, died at the hands of a convicted child molester living across the street. Her parents did not know that a child molester lived across the street.

Megan’s parents had the local authorities inform the public about sex offenders.

The parent's efforts lead other states to adopt this measure. Now “Megan’s Law” helps protect the public from sex offenders.

Identify Nearby Sex Offenders in California ⮕

California Sex Offender Registry

The California Sex and Arson Registry manages the primary source of information for sex offenders.

The registry updates the sex offender database with information from local law enforcement.

The registry also informs the general public of registrants that are violating registration. You can aid the registry by reporting any information you may have on a sex offender to your local law enforcement.

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California Sex Offender Infographic

California Sex Offender Infographic

Learn and share vital facts and figures about California sex offenders with this convenient infographic.

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California Sex Offender Facts

Facts

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Top Offenses
  • LEWD OR LASCIVIOUS ACTS WITH A CHILD UNDER 14 YEARS OF AGE
  • POSSESS OR CONTROL OBSCENE MATTER DEPICTING MINOR IN SEXUAL CONDUCT
  • LEWD OR LASCIVIOUS ACTS WITH A CHILD 14 OR 15 YEARS OF AGE AND OFFENDER 10 OR MORE YEARS OLDER THAN VICTIM
  • RAPE BY FORCE OR FEAR
  • PRIOR CODE: RAPE BY FORCE
Counties in California with the highest number of offenders:
  • Los Angeles County
  • San Bernardino County
  • Riverside County
  • San Diego County
  • Sacramento County
Zip Codes in California with the highest number of offenders:

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Nearby States:
California Sex Crimes Requiring Offender Registration

Offenses Requiring Registration and Community Notification Under CA Penal Code § 290 (2020):

Tier 1 Sex Offender Registration

  • Sexual Battery
  • Enticing a Child into Prostitution
  • Sex by Fraud
  • Sodomy
  • Non-consensual Oral Copulation
  • Meeting a Minor with Lewd Purposes
  • Penetration with a Foreign Object
  • Child Pornography
  • Indecent Exposure
  • Annoying a Child

- Tier 1 charges require registration as a sex offender for at least 10 years if convicted.

Tier 2 Sex Offender Registration

  • Rape
  • Incest
  • Sodomy with a Minor or When the Victim Cannot Give Consent
  • Non-consensual Oral Copulation When the Victim Cannot Give Consent
  • Lewd Acts with a Minor
  • Contacting a Minor to Commit a Felony
  • Penetration with a Foreign Object When the Victim Cannot Give Consent
  • Annoying a Child for a Second or Subsequent Time

- Tier 2 charges require registration as a sex offender for at least 20 years if convicted.

Tier 3 Sex Offender Registration

  • Murder Committed During a Sex Act
  • Kidnapping During the Commission of a Sex Crime
  • Assault with Intent to Commit a Felony
  • Sex Trafficking
  • Sexual Battery
  • Rape
  • Spousal Rape
  • Aiding a Rape
  • Pimping and Pandering a Minor
  • Transporting a Minor for Lewd Purposes
  • Taking a Minor for Prostitution
  • Aggravated Sexual Assault on a Minor
  • Lewd and Lascivious Conduct
  • Sodomy
  • Oral Copulation by Force
  • Lewd Acts with a Minor
  • Sending Harmful Material to a Minor
  • Contacting a Minor to Commit a Felony
  • Arranged to Meet a Minor
  • Continuous Sexual Assault of a Child
  • Sex Acts with a Child Younger than 10
  • Sexual Penetration with an Object
  • Soliciting Someone to Commit a Sex Crime

- Tier 3 charges require registration as a sex offender life if convicted.

Information maintained in California Sex Offender Registry

CAL. PENAL CODE § 290.015

(a) A person who is subject to the Act shall register, or reregister if he or she has previously registered, upon release from incarceration, placement, commitment, or release on probation pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 290.

This section shall not apply to a person who is incarcerated for less than 30 days if he or she has registered as required by the Act, he or she returns after incarceration to the last registered address, and the annual update of registration that is required to occur within five working days of his or her birthday, pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 290.012, did not fall within that incarceration period. The registration shall consist of all of the following:

  1. A statement in writing signed by the person, giving information as shall be required by the Department of Justice and giving the name and address of the person’s employer, and the address of the person’s place of employment if that is different from the employer’s main address.
  2. The fingerprints and a current photograph of the person taken by the registering official.
  3. The license plate number of any vehicle owned by, regularly driven by, or registered in the name of the person.
  4. A list of all Internet identifiers actually used by the person, as required by Section 290.024.
  5. A statement in writing, signed by the person, acknowledging that the person is required to register and update the information in paragraph (4), as required by this chapter.
  6. Notice to the person that, in addition to the requirements of the Act, he or she may have a duty to register in any other state where he or she may relocate.
  7. Copies of adequate proof of residence, which shall be limited to a California driver’s license, California identification card, recent rent or utility receipt, printed personalized checks or other recent banking documents showing that person’s name and address, or any other information that the registering official believes is reliable. If the person has no residence and no reasonable expectation of obtaining a residence in the foreseeable future, the person shall so advise the registering official and shall sign a statement provided by the registering official stating that fact. Upon presentation of proof of residence to the registering official or a signed statement that the person has no residence, the person shall be allowed to register. If the person claims that he or she has a residence but does not have any proof of residence, he or she shall be allowed to register but shall furnish proof of residence within 30 days of the date he or she is allowed to register.
  8. (b) Within three days thereafter, the registering law enforcement agency or agencies shall forward the statement, fingerprints, photograph, and vehicle license plate number, if any, to the Department of Justice.
  9. (c) (1) If a person fails to register in accordance with subdivision (a) after release, the district attorney in the jurisdiction where the person was to be paroled or to be on probation may request that a warrant be issued for the person’s arrest and shall have the authority to prosecute that person pursuant to Section 290.018.

Community Notification and Websites

CAL. PENAL § 290.45-46 (2020)

CAL. PENAL § 290.45.

(a) (1) Notwithstanding any other law, and except as provided in paragraph (2), any designated law enforcement entity may provide information to the public about a person required to register as a sex offender pursuant to Section 290, by whatever means the entity deems appropriate, when necessary to ensure the public safety based upon information available to the entity concerning that specific person’s current risk of sexual or violent reoffense, including, but not limited to, the person’s static, dynamic, and violence risk levels on the SARATSO risk tools described in subdivision (f) of Section 290.04.

(2) The law enforcement entity shall include, with the disclosure, a statement that the purpose of the release of information is to allow members of the public to protect themselves and their children from sex offenders.

CAL. PENAL § 290.46.

(a) (1) On or before the dates specified in this section, the Department of Justice shall make available information concerning persons who are required to register pursuant to Section 290 to the public via an Internet Web site as specified in this section. The department shall update the Internet Web site on an ongoing basis. All information identifying the victim by name, birth date, address, or relationship to the registrant shall be excluded from the Internet Web site. The name or address of the person’s employer and the listed person’s criminal history other than the specific crimes for which the person is required to register shall not be included on the Internet Web site. The Internet Web site shall be translated into languages other than English as determined by the department.

Limitations on Residency or Employment

CAL. PENAL § 290.95 (2020)

(a) Every person required to register under Section 290, who applies for or accepts a position as an employee or volunteer with any person, group, or organization where the registrant would be working directly and in an unaccompanied setting with minor children on more than an incidental and occasional basis or have supervision or disciplinary power over minor children, shall disclose his or her status as a registrant, upon application or acceptance of a position, to that person, group, or organization.

(b) Every person required to register under Section 290 who applies for or accepts a position as an employee or volunteer with any person, group, or organization where the applicant would be working directly and in an accompanied setting with minor children, and the applicant’s work would require him or her to touch the minor children on more than an incidental basis, shall disclose his or her status as a registrant, upon application or acceptance of the position, to that person, group, or organization.

(c) No person who is required to register under Section 290 because of a conviction for a crime where the victim was a minor under 16 years of age shall be an employer, employee, or independent contractor, or act as a volunteer with any person, group, or organization in a capacity in which the registrant would be working directly and in an unaccompanied setting with minor children on more than an incidental and occasional basis or have supervision or disciplinary power over minor children. This subdivision shall not apply to a business owner or an independent contractor who does not work directly in an unaccompanied setting with minors.

(d) For purposes of this section, “working directly and in an unaccompanied setting” includes, but is not limited to, providing goods or services to minors.

(e) A violation of this section is a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for not exceeding six months, by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both that imprisonment and fine, and a violation of this section shall not constitute a continuing offense.

Duration of Registration

CA Penal 290 (1) (A) (2020)

  1. (1) (A) A tier one offender is subject to registration for a minimum of 10 years.
  2. (2) (A) A tier two offender is subject to registration for a minimum of 20 years.
  3. (3) A tier three offender is subject to registration for life.
  4. (g) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2021.

Timeframe for Registration

Within 5 working days of release from jail, prison, or institution. If sentenced from outside of an institution within 5 days of the sentence.

Applies to Offenders Convicted in another State?

Yes, including federal and foreign convictions.

Verification of Address

Offenders update registration info annually with local law enforcement within 5 days of birthday; verify address with the Department of Justice.

Penalties for Non-Compliance

If guilty of a misdemeanor, failure to register or update is a misdemeanor. If guilty of a felony or have a prior failure, failure is a felony which results in state prison incarceration.

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How to Access the California Sex Offender Registry

Sex offender registries exist all over the United States as a public safety measure. Not only to protect communities nationwide but also to make it a lot more difficult for offenders to recommit.

There are laws in every state as well as on the federal level that dictate how this information is handled, and the sex offender registries are very useful tools for those that know how to access them. The Califonia sex offender registry is no exception to this, and locating and accessing the California sex offender registry is a relatively simple task.

Finding the California Sex Offender Registry

As it’s been mentioned, sex offender registries are a matter of public safety. The more easily the public can identify sex offenders in their community the more they’ll be able to avoid potential threats.

That being said, this registry being easily accessible to the public is of the utmost priority. If you have an internet connection, finding and accessing this data is now available online. Simply search for California Megan’s Law in your favorite search engine, the registry should appear high in the search results.

Once on the website, you’ll need to agree to the disclaimer on the website. It essentially says that you won’t use the information to harm the sex offenders, and states that using the registry to hurt sex offenders can be considered a charge in itself. Once you’ve made it past the screen that asks you to agree to their conditions all you have to do is search by your preferred search criteria. The California sex offender registry allows you to search by name, city, or zip code so it’s very easy to find all of the information you need at this point.

Where Sex Offender Registries Came From

Sex offender registries didn’t always exist. They haven’t even been around for 30 years at the time of writing this article. In 1994 the tragic death of a young New Jersey girl made people realize that such a registry would be necessary. The young girl’s name was Megan Kanka, and she was raped and murdered by her known pedophile neighbor. This neighbor was exactly the kind of person that would have been required to register as a sex offender in New Jersey had there been any sex offender registration laws.

Shortly after, in 1996, lawmakers pushed through a bill called Megan’s Law that started the push towards sex offender registries nationwide, and many states began adopting their own version of the law and establishing their own sex offender registries. These were considered to be very important for keeping the public safe because sex offenders tend to have a very high rate of recidivism. Since these laws were passed law enforcement agencies all over the United States have been keeping a close eye on sex offenders that live in their jurisdictions. In most cases, law enforcement will go so far as to verify the information provided by sex offenders to be sure that they really live where they say they do.

California Sex Offender Information Accessibility

There’s no shortage of information about the sex offenders that live in California. All sex offenders are required to register for life, and that means that for life anyone can find out their status by simply accessing the California Megan’s Law website. As long as you know how to navigate the internet this information is always just a search away, 24 hours a day 7 days a week. Whether you’re trying to ensure your own safety or the safety of your family, knowing how to look out for, can make this task significantly easier.

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