08-28-18

Deputies with the Cass County Sheriff’s Office are conducting a compliance check of registered sex offenders living in Cass County this evening. Currently Cass County has approximately 167 offenders registered. New Missouri laws that go into effect today bring the state in-line with the federal system. It also included the updating of more current registration forms and restructures the registry list to place offenders in one of three tiers specified in the statute.

The new tier system allows some to seek expungement from the registry, it also sets new guidelines in place for check-ins. Those in Tier I will have to meet in-person with the Sheriff’s Office once a year, those in Tier II twice a year and those in Tier III every 90 days.

“This sex offender compliance operation requires a significant amount of people. Tonight we had more than 50 Cass County Deputies, dispatchers, and volunteer staff working to complete the checks in one day. This is more than just checking forms and information. This is about making sure people are following the law and keeping our community safe,” said Sheriff Jeff Weber.

Follow up investigations will be conducted on offenders who are not compliant and referred to the Cass County Prosecutor’s Office for charges if possible. They could also be given an opportunity to come into full compliance with registration requirements.

The operation concluded around 11:00 pm this evening. A preliminary review of the compliance operation shows the following results:

• 78 Compliant
• 39 Non-Compliant (minor violations)
• 22 Referred for follow-up investigations (criminal violations)
• 24 Offenders Not Contacted
• 3 Determined to be Homeless

Deputies will continue to make contact with those offenders who were not interviewed.