Houston Department of Public Safety creates the Sex Offender Registry Program to keep track of offenders and help Houstonians and students in the third ward area protect themselves.Inside the 610 loop and southeast of downtown Houston, Third Ward has become center of the African American community. With colleges and schools in the area the community is filled with thousands of students who attend and need protection from the not so obvious dangers surrounding them like sexual predators.
Convicted sex offenders are required to register with local law enforcement in the jurisdiction where they live. That information also is provided to the Department of Public Safety, which maintains a public database of names, crimes and addresses.
Sexual offenses happen at or around colleges and universities more often than reported. When sexually based offenses occur, victims often feel ashamed or embarrassed to relive the traumatizing experience.
A helpful defense in protecting oneself against being a potential victim is knowing your surroundings and utilizing tools to familiarize yourself with the neighborhood.
“ I would tell people to be more aware of their surroundings, watch what they are doing and be careful of the people as they approach Greystone or Frenchy’s or anywhere in the campus area and if they have kids make sure they are protecting their children as well” said Curtis, a Junior attending Texas Southern University
The Texas Sex Offender Registration Program has gone viral and access to registered offenders and their location has been granted by this website.
“I do applaud TSU because they do have the extra security and that’s a start, but they could work a little bit harder use more protection behind the dorms because that is where a lot of the problems are” said university housing senior Kimonesha Thomas .
According to TXDPS, all information on individual registrants is based on registration information submitted by Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Texas Youth Commission, or various local criminal justice agencies.
Using this site requires account set up and is free to use to search registered offenders by name, address, county, nationally, and even by zip code.
“I know that there is a website that you can use , but I am also aware that not all sex offenders are registered” said Victoria Lewis , a art major grad student.
TSORP website also provides you with the Top Ten Most Wanted Sex Offenders and a Subscription Service which is a notification system that allows the public to subscribe to e-mail notifications regarding database changes relating to registered sex offenders.This site is open to anyone who has an inquiry about their community and information retained should not be used for malicious intent. Doing so can result in criminal prosecution or civil liability.
