Round Lake Park launches upgraded sex offender website
Round Lake Park police have gained upgraded technology allowing residents and others to be better informed about registered sex offenders.
Police Chief George Filenko said a new sex offender registration and public notification website went live Wednesday. The OffenderWatch system, which the village received through an Illinois attorney general’s office grant, is part of a nationwide network.
Filenko said the technology upgrade is particularly important to Round Lake Park because of the high number of sex offenders — including a 92-year-old man — in a town of about 6,500 residents. He said there were 15 registered sex offenders as of Wednesday, but that number at times has eclipsed 25.
“Citizens have a right to know who may be living near them and could potentially pose a threat to their families,” Filenko said.
Filenko said Round Lake Park may be attractive to registered sex offenders in the erroneous belief it’s a place where they can live unnoticed.
Residents or others may enter addresses into the system and receive free email alerts from Round Lake Park police if a sex offender moves to a home within a specified radius ranging from a quarter-mile to 2 miles away.
Filenko said an unlimited number of addresses may be registered confidentially. He said email alerts also will be distributed if a sex offender moves out of town.
Police now will receive automated notification when a sex offender is due for an annual address registration. Maps will show where Round Lake Park’s sex offenders live.
In addition, OffenderWatch’s website listings will be updated immediately as addresses or other information changes. Filenko said the system will automatically calculate an address’ distance to a school, park or day-care center. Under state law, sex offenders may not live within 500 feet of a school, day-care facility or park.
“Part of the problem is tracking these guys,” said Filenko.
More than 5,000 law-enforcement agencies nationwide have joined OffenderWatch. About half of Illinois county sheriff’s offices and police departments are linked to the system, so the Round Lake Park website allows access to data from the other agencies. Vernon Hills and Lake Villa police joined OffenderWatch in December. The Lake County sheriff’s police became part of the system last April.