# Sex offender registries - a yellow pages for budding pervs? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 26, 2010, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864 "2010-03-26T12:56:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Tilty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3bc359/32.png) [@Tilty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tilty)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2010, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/1 "2010-03-26T12:56:22Z")
From what I understand, Megan’s Law, Sarah’s Law and lots of state and local laws in the US - they all allow you to identify if there are sex offenders in the local area. Is it not like the yellow pages for sex offenders? If you are a budding kiddie fiddler, with a prediliction for x, y and z … what is to stop you looking for similar, convicted pervs in your area and trying to hook up with said perv to find out more about how they groom, how they got caught, what to avoid, what to do etc? Are there any instances of people doing this? Or am I missing something? If so what 😕 I’m not sure this has a purely factual answer - so it may be in the wrong place. Moderators, please feel free to move as appropriate. ---
**Author:** ![Telcontar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3bc359/32.png) [@Telcontar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telcontar)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2010, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/2 "2010-03-26T14:53:07Z")
It’s a good question. I don’t have an informed answer, but one possibility is that many people on the sex offender rolls may be looking to score points with the police/DA. The budding sex offender would be making himself very vulnerable by seeking that kind of advice. ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2010, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/3 "2010-03-26T14:56:20Z")
I know for a fact that there is a sex offender on my block, but I don’t know his exact address (the IL Sex Offender Registry just says “3600 block of North Grand Avenue East”). Even if someone did, if a sex-offender-in-training were to just walk up to him and ask for advice, he’d be inclined to regard it as a trap. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2010, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/4 "2010-03-26T15:19:51Z")
> [@HeyHomie](#): > > I know for a fact that there is a sex offender on my block, but I don’t know his exact address (the IL Sex Offender Registry just says “3600 block of North Grand Avenue East”). Even if someone did, if a sex-offender-in-training were to just walk up to him and ask for advice, he’d be inclined to regard it as a trap. Yeah, I would imagine that such people are not going to be very welcoming or looking for a protégé. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2010, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/5 "2010-03-26T17:48:05Z")
Do you really think that perverts feel the need to study how to be a pervert? ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2010, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/6 "2010-03-26T18:07:39Z")
You know, the Internet makes it more than easy for these guys to find each other, and it has nothing to do with the sex offender registry. How would that even work? Call up a random dude and say “I see you were convicted for raping a child. That’s pertinent to my interests. Would you like to meet for coffee?” Far easier to just find a message board or whatever dedicated to the topic and get their kicks by talking about it in an anonymous environment. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2010, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/7 "2010-03-26T23:36:45Z")
> [@njtt](#): > > Do you really think that perverts feel the need to study how to be a pervert? Yeah, I can’t really imagine a long drawn out mentorship type deal. “Wax on…wax off.” ---
**Author:** ![Rumor\_Watkins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@Rumor\_Watkins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rumor_Watkins)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2010, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/8 "2010-03-26T23:45:03Z")
It’s also a yellow pages for budding vigilantes. ---
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2010, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/9 "2010-03-26T23:54:00Z")
Then doesn’t going to jail just open up whole new worlds of crime to people? Oh, yeah… I think pedophilia’s mostly a solo activity, though. ---
**Author:** ![fuzzypickles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/9d8465/32.png) [@fuzzypickles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fuzzypickles)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/10 "2010-03-27T00:20:11Z")
> [@Alice\_The\_Goon](#): > > I think pedophilia’s mostly a solo activity, though. [Not always.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeffrey_Curley) ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/11 "2010-03-27T00:58:30Z")
Most of the dudes on the list are harmless- the 19yo who slept with his 17 yo GF, the dude arrested for urinating in public, the flasher, the streaker, and the gay guys caught having sex in their car. ---
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/12 "2010-03-27T01:07:49Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Most of the dudes on the list are harmless- the 19yo who slept with his 17 yo GF, the dude arrested for urinating in public, the flasher, the streaker, and the gay guys caught having sex in their car. Somehow lumping flashers (and possibly streakers depending on the specific circumstance of where exactly they went streaking) in with the others is not sitting too well with me, as a flasher seems to have a nefarious intent that the others mentioned do not… ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/13 "2010-03-27T01:43:07Z")
> [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](#): > > Somehow lumping flashers (and possibly streakers depending on the specific circumstance of where exactly they went streaking) in with the others is not sitting too well with me, as a flasher seems to have a nefarious intent that the others mentioned do not… True, he’s a pervert. But he’s a _harmless_ pervert, not one who is going to rape your child. People having sex is semi-public is also a problem, but again, they are more or less harmless. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/14 "2010-03-27T01:51:08Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Most of the dudes on the list are harmless- the 19yo who slept with his 17 yo GF, the dude arrested for urinating in public, the flasher, the streaker, and the gay guys caught having sex in their car. Is this really the case? Dopers seem fond of trotting out the, “A guy could be totally innocent and on the sex offender list,” but is it really true that most of them are just misunderstood guys who committed a harmless crime? Or is that wishful thinking? ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/15 "2010-03-27T02:05:14Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Most of the dudes on the list are harmless- the 19yo who slept with his 17 yo GF, the dude arrested for urinating in public, the flasher, the streaker, and the gay guys caught having sex in their car. Odd, because my local registry lists only level 2 & 3 offenders and describes their crimes. NONE are of the types you’ve listed. Most are child rapists. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/16 "2010-03-27T06:59:10Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Is this really the case? Dopers seem fond of trotting out the, “A guy could be totally innocent and on the sex offender list,” but is it really true that most of them are just misunderstood guys who committed a harmless crime? Or is that wishful thinking? Well, what’s harmless? Is a 18 yo adult having sex with a 17yo child harmless? It’s certainly a crime. Urinating in public? I hate those assholes, and wish a huge fine and months of community service on them. But sex offender? Flashers? Not innocent at all, but harmless. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/17 "2010-03-27T07:04:51Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > Odd, because my local registry lists only level 2 & 3 offenders and describes their crimes. NONE are of the types you’ve listed. Most are child rapists. In CA they just restructured the workload for Probation officers with sex offenders. 80% of the case load is not considered “high risk”. In fact, they are doing this as several high risk sex offenders got away with crap (Dugard) as they weren’t being monitored closely enough, as the probation officers could not spend enough time on the High risk offenders as they had too many low risk offenders to watch. Now sure, those I listed are at the bottom of the low risk, there are others who are real criminals who are still not “high risk”. True “Child rapists” are very rare. Very dangerous, however. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/18 "2010-03-27T07:13:28Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > Odd, because my local registry lists only level 2 & 3 offenders and describes their crimes. NONE are of the types you’ve listed. Most are child rapists. Find out if it lists the ages of the victim and the offender at the time of the offense, and try to find out if the rape was forcible. Cases where there’s a very small age gap and there was no force are the ones that get talked about here. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/19 "2010-03-27T15:12:48Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Well, what’s harmless? Is a 18 yo adult having sex with a 17yo child harmless? It’s certainly a crime. Urinating in public? I hate those assholes, and wish a huge fine and months of community service on them. But sex offender? Flashers? Not innocent at all, but harmless. I don’t think those things are harmful, but are the majority of people on the sex offenders list really just statutory rapists or public urinators? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2010, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864/20 "2010-03-27T15:15:41Z")
> [@Derleth](#): > > Find out if it lists the ages of the victim and the offender at the time of the offense, and try to find out if the rape was forcible. Cases where there’s a very small age gap and there was no force are the ones that get talked about here. Right. What’s Rape? Non-consensual sex. Who is a child? Anyone under 18. No minor can consent to sex. Thus if a girl give her BF a blow job for his 18th birthday, totally her idea, and she’s a week younger than him- we have a adult having non-consensual sex with a minor. Aka “child rape”. In some areas there may be variations on this, ymmv, ianal. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sex-offender-registries-a-yellow-pages-for-budding-pervs/533864.md?page=2)