The names of Vermont’s convicted sex offenders available on the Internet jumped from 461 to 1,149 when a new law took effect on Thursday.
Now anyone with Internet access can search for offenders by name, town or county.
The registry includes photographs, offenders’ crimes and conviction dates and treatment status.
There are 240 appeals pending from offenders who don’t want their names moved from the unpublished registry to the Internet list. They argue they have served their sentences.
State Sen. Richard Sears helped write the new law. He tells the Burlington Free Press lawmakers felt more people should be on the list as a way to give the public another tool to deal with sex offenders.
Information for this report came from The Burlington Free Press