The Iowa laws requiring convicted sex offenders to register have been expanded. They now require convicted sex offenders who are enrolled, employed or have volunteered at an Iowa college or university to register in the county in which the institution is located.

Under previous state code, convicted offenders were required to register only in the county of their permanent address.

Iowa State’s Department of Public Safety received an updated list of sex offenders from the Iowa Department of Public Safety in late November and will continue to receive updates from the Story County Sheriff’s Office about every month, said Jerry Stewart, DPS director.

“The transiency of the university makes it more difficult to track who is in our community, who is going where and when, be it sex offenders or not,” he said.

Stewart said students need to be aware of the presence of sex offenders on the ISU campus and in the Ames community.

“It’s important that students, staff and even potential students be aware of crime on campus. For many years, this department has made statistics available for people to search for information,” Stewart said. “It’s important for everyone to be aware of their surroundings and what occurs [in Ames]. This new law helps raise awareness of fellow community members.”

According to the Iowa Sex Offender Registry Web site at www.iowasexoffenders.com, the Megan’s Law, which exists in every state, “requires states to release relevant information within five days of being released or after changing residence.”

According to Iowa Code, upon the first conviction of sexual assault, a person is required to be on the sex offender registry for a period of 10 years. A second offense or subsequent conviction requires a second registration and the person must be registered on the list for the rest of their life.

The Iowa sex offender registration requires the person’s name, address, telephone number, conviction record, risk assessment and any other identifying factors, such as scars or tattoos.

Jerry Stewart, director of the ISU Department of Public Safety, said it is important for everyone to be aware of their surroundings and who their neighbors are.

“Virtually every community has convicted criminals residing in it,” he said. “Ames and the Iowa State community are no different.”

Stewart said DPS wants students to be aware of sex offenders who may be living near them.

“We make that information available and hope that people make use of it appropriately,” he said.

Julie Roosa, supportive services manager for DPS, said Megan’s Laws have been criticized as unconstitutional.

“A constitutional argument can be made based on privacy interests, but I believe that most of the state courts believe in the validity of the registries,” she said. “[The law] allows people to have access to information so that they can make good decisions. It’s just another tool for the community to use to find out information.”

Victims of sexual assault believe Megan’s Laws help prevent someone else from being victimized, Roosa said.

“Many feel it may help prevent future crimes from occurring,” she said.

Ben Stone, executive director of the Iowa American Civil Liberties Union, disagreed.

Stone said he believes the registry gives people a false sense of security, which renders it ineffective. Stone said four out of five sex crimes are committed by people who know their victims, not by strangers who may live nearby.

“The people who really follow the list have the perception that if they keep their eye on only those on the registry, then nothing bad could happen,” he said. “You need to be aware of the people you know [as well].”

Barbara Mack, associate professor of journalism and mass communication, said by publishing sex offender lists, the government is now doing what public groups could have been doing all along.

“We are talking about information that the government is maintaining and making available to the public,” she said.

“The government is taking information in an already open record and publishing it. The argument for privacy is interesting because what we are really looking at is something that is not private: arrest records, sentencing records, incarceration lists — all of that is public record.”

Community members can find only the “at-risk” offenders in Internet searches and in searches such as the registration site at www.iowasexoffenders.com, said officials at the Story County Sheriff’s Office.