103) Increases penalties for: (1) transportation of minors with intent to engage in illegal sexual activity (and applies such penalties to attempting to do so) and (2) travel with intent to engage in a sexual act with a juvenile. 102) Increases penalties for: (1) coercing or enticing an individual to travel in interstate or foreign commerce to engage in prostitution or criminal sexual activity (and applies such penalties to attempting to do so) and (2) using any means of interstate or foreign commerce to coerce or entice any individual under age 18 to engage in such activity.
Protection of Children From Sexual Predators Act of 1998 - Title I: Protection of Children From Predators - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit, and set penalties for, using the mail or any facility or means of interstate or foreign commerce to knowingly initiate the transmission of the name, address, telephone number, social security number, or electronic mail address of a person under age 16 with intent to entice, encourage, offer, or solicit any person to engage in illegal sexual activity. Title VIII: Restricted Access to Interactive Computer Title VII: Murder and Kidnapping Investigations Title VI: Criminal, Procedural, and Administrative Reforms Title V: Increased Penalties for Offenses Against Children Title IV: Prohibition on Transfer of Obscene Material to Title II: Protection of Children From Child Pornography Title I: Protection of Children From Predators
Please review the Sex Offender Frequently Asked Questions for more detailed information about sex offender registration in Texas.Bill summaries are authored by CRS.
Finally, if a high risk sex offender or a civilly committed sexually violent predator moves into a community, the TXDPS will notify the community by mailing to each residence and business in the community a postcard containing information about the offender or predator. State law also permits local law enforcement authorities to publish some sex offenders in a newspaper, circular, or other periodical that serves the community the sex offender resides in. Some local law enforcement authorities have established local websites the public can access to search for sex offenders living in their community. Like the information in the TXDPS database, state law makes most registration information contained in local registries available to the public. Further, every local law enforcement authority in Texas maintains a sex offender registry that contains information on all sex offenders registered with the authority.
The public may access this information at any time through the TXDPS website located at Texas Public Sex Offender Registry. State law specifically makes most information in this database freely available to the public. This database contains all information provided to Texas local law enforcement authorities by sex offenders required to register. First, the Texas Department of Public Safety (“TXDPS”) maintains a statewide sex offender registration database. Public notification of registered sex offenders is accomplished in several different ways. A sex offender who fails to comply with any registration requirement is subject to felony prosecution. Registered sex offenders are required to periodically report to the local law enforcement authority to verify the accuracy of the registration information and to promptly report certain changes in the information as those changes occur. Registration involves the sex offender providing the local law enforcement authority with information that includes, but is not limited to, the sex offender's name and address, a color photograph, and the offense the offender was convicted of or adjudicated for. This law requires adult and juvenile sex offenders to register with the local law enforcement authority of the city they reside in or, if the sex offender does not reside in a city, with the local law enforcement authority of the county they reside in. The Texas Sex Offender Registration Program ( Chapter 62 of the Code of Criminal Procedure) is a sex offender registration and public notification law designed to protect the public from sex offenders.