Sex Offender Information

According to R.C.W. 9A.42.110, it is a misdemeanor offense to knowingly leave a child who is under the age of 18 in the care or custody of a person who must register as a sex offender due to committing a sex offense against a child, unless there exists written documents from a court of law, allowing the offender to have unsupervised contact with children, and/or a family reunification plan approved by the court, the Department of Corrections, or the Department of Social and Health Services.

No.  Neither the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office nor the Lacey Police Department has the authority to direct where a sex offender may or may not live.  Unless court ordered restrictions exist, the offender is constitutionally free to live wherever he / she chooses.

In accordance with R.C.W. 9A.44.130 the following requirements apply to registered sex offenders residing in Thurston County:

1. In custody offenders must register with the incarcerating agency prior to their release and register within 24 hours from the time of release with the county of their residence.
   
2. If the offender moves to a new address within Thurston County, they are required to notify the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office within 72 hours of moving. The notification may be accomplished in person or writing. It is recommend that written changes be sent via certified mail to assure their letter arrives at the Sheriff’s Office. When submitting written changes, they must include:       
   A. The date
   B. Their old address
   C. Their new address (physical address and mailing address and phone number)
   D. Their signature
   
3. If the offender moves to a new county, they are required to send written notice to the county sheriff of the new county 14 days before moving and register in person within 24 hours upon arrival in the new county. They are also required to send Written notice to the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office within 10 days of moving.
   
4. If the offender moves out of state, they are required to send written notice to the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office within 10 days of moving to the new state of foreign country. They are also required to check with the new county or foreign country and follow their registration laws.
   
5. If the offender ceases to have a fixed residence, they shall provide the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office with written notice within 48 hours of ceasing to have a fixed residence.
   
6. If the offender lacks a fixed residence, they must report in person to the county sheriff’s office where they last registered on a weekly basis. The report date for the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office is Mondays between the hours of 8:30 AM to 4:00 PM excluding holidays, where the report date will be the following workday.
   
7. If the offender lacks a fixed residence, on their report date, they will be required to furnish the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office with the address and/or locations they spent the previous seven (7) days. As a transient, regardless of classification level, the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office will be notifying the public at large of their presence in the community.
   
8. As a transient sex offender, if they enter and stay in another county for more than 24 hours, they are required to register in the new county. If they move to another county, state, or foreign country they are required to send notice to the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office within 10 days.
   
9. If the offender is admitted as a student or accepted as an employee at any institution of higher education, they are required to notify the Thurston County Sheriff’s office within 10 days of enrolling or accepting employment, or by the first business day after commencing work or attending classes at the institution of higher education. They are also required to notify the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office within 10 days of their termination of employment or termination of enrollment.
   
10. If an offender applies to change their name, they must submit a copy of the application to the county sheriff’s office of the county of their residence and to the Washington State Patrol no fewer than five (5) days before the entry of the order granting the name change. If they receive an order changing their name, they must submit a copy of the order to the county sheriff’s office of the county of their residence and to the Washington State Patrol within five (5) days of the entry of the order.
    
11. If an offender moves to Washington State from another state or a foreign country and are they are not under the jurisdiction of the Department of Corrections, the Indeterminate Sentence Review Board, or the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services at the time of moving to Washington State, they must register within 30 days of establishing residence, or re-establishing residence if they are a former Washington State resident.
    
12. If an offender meets the qualifications for registration under Washington State laws and they either work or attend school in Washington State, they must register with the county sheriff in the county in which they work or attend school regardless of their state of residence.

Offenders who have committed an offense(s) which requires them to register as a sex offender are required to register with the county sheriff’s office in the county in which they reside. The Thurston County Sheriff’s Office keeps a file on the offender with their current address and other identifying information. The file also usually includes the case report(s) from their prior offense(s). In the case where an offender resides in the City of Lacey, the Sheriff’s Office forwards a copy of the offender’s file to the Lacey Police Department.The Lacey Police Department maintains copies of the files of the offenders who currently reside in the city. The Lacey Police Department assists the Sheriff’s Office by conducting address verifications on each offender, and by performing community notifications on Level II or Level III offenders.

There are three classifications of Registered Sex / Kidnapping Offenders—Level I, Level II, and Level III.

• Level I offenders are considered low risk to the community, and their probability to re-offend is considered low.  They normally have not exhibited predatory-type characteristics and most have successfully participated or are participating in approved treatment programs. Many are first time offenders.

• Level II offenders are considered a moderate risk to the community, and have a higher probability of re-offending than Level I offenders. They are considered a higher risk to re-offend, because of the nature of their previous crime(s) and lifestyle (i.e. drug and alcohol abuse, and other criminal activity).  Offenders in this classification have either refused to participate or failed to complete approved treatment programs.

• Level III offenders are considered a potentially high risk to the community and are a threat to re-offend if provided the opportunity. Most have prior sex crime convictions as well as other criminal convictions. Lifestyles and choices place these offender this this classification.  Some have predatory characteristics and may seek out victims. Offenders in this classification have either refused or failed to complete approved treatment programs.