KHTS just updated its Santa Clarita sex offender database and map, a community service the station publishes throughout the year to inform residents.

The list only includes registrants who have their address listed with the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station, which tracks all offenders who are required to register as sex offenders in the Santa Clarita Valley.

Santa Clarita station officials constantly maintain the list to track the addresses of those who register. The most recent count this week indicated there was 205 registered sex offenders, although that figure changes regularly due to the regular maintenance. The previous count in September of 2016 indicated there was 190.

The KHTS sex offender map has closer to 300 addresses, because it was put together using the zip codes surrounding the Santa Clarita Valley, as well, which are outside the station’s jurisdiction.

Megan’s Law sex offender registry and potential changes

There are several different degrees of registry for sex offenders, which are categorized based on the severity of the crimes for which they were convicted.

Currently, the system requires all sex offenders to register for life.

Within the category of what’s also known as a 290 registrant (named after the applicable section of the penal code, there are several different categories of registration: Offenders of the most serious sex crimes are listed with their picture and address; there’s a lesser tier for less serious offenses, which only discloses photo and zip code; and another level that requires registry with the station only, however, those addresses are not mapped or publicly disclosable.

A legislative effort is currently under way to change the law, SB 421, authored by Senator Scott Weiner, D-San Francisco, which was supported by Senator Henry Stern and Senator Scott Wilk, when it passed the Senate floor vote at the end of May.

According to LegInfo:

This bill would instead establish 3 tiers of registration based on specified criteria, for periods of at least 10 years, at least 20 years, and life, respectively, for a conviction of specified sex offenses, and 5 years and 10 years for tiers one and two, respectively, for an adjudication as a ward of the juvenile court for specified sex offenses, as specified.

The bill would establish procedures for termination from the sex offender registry for a registered sex offender who is a tier one or tier two offender and who completes his or her mandated minimum registration period under specified conditions.

The bill would require the offender to file a petition at the expiration of his or her minimum registration period and would authorize the district attorney to request a hearing on the petition if the petitioner has not fulfilled the requirement of successful tier completion, as specified. The bill would also authorize a tier three offender who meets specified criteria to petition the court for placement in tier two, as specified.

The bill would also revise the criteria for exclusion from the Internet Web site. The bill is currently headed to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, and expects to be taken up when the Legislature resumes its session in August.

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