Is the information on the Megans Law website accurate?
Many of the sex offender registrants on the website have failed to comply with California’s registration laws, and therefore the zip code listed for some offenders may not be up-to-date. Since the website (and the CD-ROM that preceded it) has been available, the public has helped law enforcement identify offenders who are not registered with the correct address. Thanks to toughened California laws requiring annual registration, and making it a felony in some cases not to do so, it is estimated that the majority of California’s registered sex offenders are in compliance with the registration requirement. This is a dramatic turnaround from a few years ago when a smaller percentage of the offenders in the state were thought to be properly registered. The California Department of Justice, Bureau of Investigation, has agents assigned to Sexual Predator Apprehension Teams (SPATs) to work with local law enforcement to arrest sex offenders who do not comply with registration laws. The SPATs, a
