Understanding The Sexual And Violent Offender Registry In Montana

The Montana Department of Justice has excellent online tools for you to stay informed about all registered sexual and/or violent offenders living in Montana towns, big and small. This Sexual and Violent Offender Registry (SVOR) will display in map form, or you can look up very specific neighborhoods.

IMPORTANT NOTE, PER THE MT DOJ: "Anyone who uses this information to injure, harass or commit a criminal act against any person may be subject to criminal prosecution."

Photo by Scott Rodgerson on Unsplash

Basically, we have a right to this information - but don't do anything stupid with it. Knowing that you have neighbors with a serious criminal past is OK, but harassing said neighbors will get YOU in big trouble.

On the MT SVOR, you can search for sexual offenders, violent offenders, and violet sexual offenders who may be living near you. This information is for your knowledge and safety only.

There is an Interactive Dashboard, Offender Alerts, educational tools, non-compliant offenders, and other resources.

You may be shocked by the number of offenders in your neighborhood. I personally found TWO registered sexual offenders in close proximity to my house. But knowledge is power in itself, right? There are various levels of offenders:

Level 1 Sexual Offenders: These offenders are considered to pose a low risk of re-offending.
Level 2 Sexual Offenders: These offenders are assessed as having a moderate risk of re-offending.
Level 3 Sexual Offenders: This is the highest risk level, indicating a high likelihood of re-offending and a potential threat to public safety. Offenders in this category may also be designated as sexually violent predators.
Sexually Violent Predator (SVP): This classification is reserved for offenders deemed to have a high risk of re-offending and a significant threat to public safety, particularly those who have committed sexual offenses against minors.

The are important limitations to the Montana Department of Justice's SVOR. Those limitations include:

The Registry contains identifying information and information about the offense for which the sexual or violent offender is registered.
It does not reflect the entire criminal history of a listed sexual or violent offender.
The unit does not independently verify the registration information provided by the various registering agencies.

CHECK THE MONTANA SVOR HERE

From Absarokee, to Colstrip, to Livingston, to Missoula, to West Yellowstone - you can focus on specific towns in Montana to search for sexual and/or violent offenders. OR, you can search a specific radio around an address.