How to Check for Felons in the Community

Given the range of 21st century media, crimes have become a matter of public record as felons find news of their crimes broadcast on the evening news or on the front page of newspapers. Likewise, the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act passed in 2007, requires sex offenders to register with the police, as well as provide police with their addresses upon leaving prison or after being convicted of a crime. These offenders must update their addresses annually, registering for at least 15 years to life, depending on the crime. Some states, like California, even extend this requirement to offenders like drug dealers and other criminals, ensuring that communities have easy access to who is living next door.

Instructions

• 1

  Go to your local library and search through their archived newspapers for the names of those your suspect to be felons. As crimes and arrests are thought of as newsworthy, felons and the crimes they commit as well as police reports are often recorded in community newspapers. These databases are often computerized and can pull up records using only a name.

• 2

  Go to the National Center of State Courts website. This site list the courts of every state and ways to search their records. Since criminal records are typically held in the courthouse of the county in which the crime was committed, a felon's criminal records can be found through this site and a generally accessible to the public, depending on the state.

• 3

  Go to FelonSpy and enter your street address. FelonSpy, a web site begun by police officers and community activists, uses criminal databases and other sources to provide a map much like Google Maps that lists the felons, their ages, crimes and addresses within a few miles of your address.

• 4

  Go to the National Sex Offender Public Website. Since the passing of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act, sexual predators and other criminals have had to register their addresses with state and local police, all of which are housed in the National Sex Offender Public Website's database and are accessible to the public. The FBI Sex Offender Registry also houses this database, accessible by state.