Then in 1996, the Minnesota Legislature passed the Community Notification Act in 1996, which gave law enforcement the responsibility to inform the public about where sex offenders are living.
Sex offenders are graded into three levels after they are released from prison, according to how likely a committee of experts believe they are to re-offend. Level 3 sex offenders are considered to be the most likely to commit another crime and the most likely to commit a crime against someone who is a stranger to them. Level 3 sex offenders pose the greatest potential risk to the community.
Minnesota Department of Corrections maintains an online database of level 3 sex offenders who live in Minnesota. The database contains the names, photographs, addresses and known aliases of level 3 sex offenders living in Minnesota.
The database can be searched by zip code, or by city, or by county.
