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http://www.omniture.com --> Email Story to a Friend July 1, 2006 Oregonians log on to investigate sex offenders The Associated Press SALEM — A Web site letting Oregonians check for predatory sex offenders in their neighborhoods is an instant hit. A day after the information went on the Internet, the State Police reported Friday the site had logged more than a million page views, and the number was climbing sharply. It is impossible to say how many users were on the site. Each user is likely to generate multiple page views in the process of searching from screen to screen. The site has a searchable database that provides names, addresses, physical descriptions, pictures and conditions of release of high-risk sex offenders. Users can search by name, city, county, address or ZIP code. About 700 registered sex offenders in Oregon are classified as predatory or sexually violent. They are required to register for life under Oregon law and their information will be available on the Web site. Until now, such information was available online only through a patchwork of county sites. The new site will consolidate information from the 36 counties. By today, about 85 percent of Oregon's predatory sex offenders will be listed, officials said. The complete list should be online within a week or two, they said. "Oregonians finally have a place to look up predatory sex offenders in their neighborhoods. Hopefully, this will give parents one more tool to help protect their children," said Rep. Jerry Krummel, R-Wilsonville. Oregon was the next-to-last state to launch such a site. South Dakota, which launches its site today, will be the last. Linda Eaton, manager of Lane County's Supervision and Treatment Services, said that to the extent the registry can be used as an education tool, "that's a good thing." Research has not shown that such registries reduce re-offense rates, but they do increase reports of concerns to authorities, she said. But the registry has limitations. Most children are most likely to be abused not by a stranger but by someone he or she knows — a relative, neighbor or family friend, she said. "This really gets at only a small part of that risk," she said. The sex offenders on the site represent a fraction of about 14,500 registered sex offenders in Oregon. Some are not considered predatory. Because of a separate legal dispute, the list initially will not include serious sex offenders released from prison in the past 16 months. In February 2005, the Oregon Supreme Court ruled that convicted sex offenders may challenge the "predatory" label and ordered the parole board to devise a new system for arriving at that designation. The board is to meet Aug. 1 to consider new procedures. In the meantime, about 75 offenders who would have been labeled predatory have been released without that designation, board officials said. Advertisement s Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker Custom Build Computers Discount Hotel Reservations --> online casinos news Ashley Furniture HomeStore Send Flowers California Casinos GMAT Prep Windermere Van Vleet Sports Equipment Entertainment Guide --> Online Casino Fundraisers Sudoku Online Casinos Canada Online Casino Reviews