Bavaria creates sex offender database

The Bavarian government had been discussing such a database, the case of a convicted sex offender who had raped and murdered a 39-year-old woman only a few weeks after his release from prison where he had served five years of an eight-year sentence speeded the debate and has now led to a tangible result.

Yesterday, the Bavarian Secretary of Justice Beate Merk presented the Bavarian sex-offender registry HEADS (Haft-Entlassenen und Auskunfts-Datei-Sexualstraftäter – database containing information on released sex offenders). The data of so-called risk persons is centrally registered in this database. When an offender is released under probation the information is forwarded to the HEADS headquarters in Munich, reviewed by specialists and either entered in the database or not, depending on the evaluation regarding the likelihood of a relapse.

Sex offenders who did not cooperate during their prison term, who did not take part in therapy sessions and who did not deal with their crime and its consequences will be entered in the registry due to the high risk of repeated offenses. At the moment there are 280 entries, according to the police it should be complete by the end of this year, then containing 800 entries. The data is to be stored for ten years; if the offender remains inconspicuous and does not commit further crimes it will be deleted. If, however, the offender does relapse or shows tendencies to do so the data will remain in the registry.

If a sex crime is committed the police will use the information in the registry to compare the method with prior convictions and to verify if any known sex-offenders are registered in the area where the crime was committed. The police can also verify if a person is entered in the registry and is permitted to move freely or is under special probationary measures, and they can evaluate movements of known pedophiles, for example if they frequent playgrounds or other areas where they can watch or attack children.

The registry is not public, only 130 police personnel from 30,000 are authorized to view it. Changes can only be made by 15 employees in the Munich headquarters. A police officer who receives information about a registered offender, for example during a routine traffic check, is not authorized to divulge this information unless the concrete suspicion of a crime or endangerment is evident.

Unlike California where anyone can access the sex offenders registry created under Megan’s Law neighbors of convicted sex offenders will not be notified, the government does not want persons who have served their time to be stigmatized. This is a very passive approach towards sex crimes but still the most progressive of all of the German states. Merk has been urging other states to cooperate and join forces to create a nationwide registry.

Source: Deutsche Welle - German Politicians Propose Internet Registry for Sex Offenders

Further source: Süddeutsche Zeitung on-line - Nur 130 Polizeibeamte haben Zugriff; Die Datei der Sextäter
Bayern erfasst alle Sexualverbrecher, die nach der Haftentlassung weiterhin als Risikopersonen gelten (22 May 2007)

The Munich police are still looking for one guy who, if he's alive and they catch him, could end up on this database too.

There's an award for information leading to his arrest and conviction.