Arkansas sex offender laws are strict and complex. Sex offenders need to undergo an assessment process and get a level of risk assigned, further determining which restrictions they will face. The applicable laws in The Land of Opportunity still leave opportunities for lower-level offenders to lead decent lives, as their names are not publicly disclosed on the registry. Scroll down for more details on the sex offender laws in Arkansas, including registration requirements, community notification, and other restrictions.
*This article is for informational purposes only and is not meant to serve as legal advice. Please consult an attorney if you need to obtain legal advice.
Arkansas is one of the states with the most sex offenders, counting 596 offenders per 100,000 residents. Arkansas sex offender laws are governed by the Arkansas Code Annotated & 12-12-901 et. seq, known as the Arkansas Sex and Child Offender Registration Act, also known as “Megan’s Law.” Offenders found guilty of the following crimes are required to register:
Sexual offenders in Arkansas are required to submit the following information upon registration:
There are four Arkansas sex offender levels of risk. Each offender is assigned a level of risk depending on the crime, offense history, personal and social characteristics, and other factors. The sex offender levels and laws in Arkansas are as follows:
Level 1 sex offenders
Level 1 offenders typically have no prior criminal sexual history and don’t show signs of anti-socialism, sexual disorders, or mental issues. They are usually on the sex offender registry in Arkansas for less severe crimes that don’t involve penetration, which could be the possession of child pornography and public indecency, among others. Their name is not available to the public, although they are required to register. They are considered low-risk offenders.
Level 2 sex offenders
Level 2 sex offenders usually have some type of criminal sexual history and show mild antisocial or predatory behavior. According to level 2 sex offender laws, their name is available to the public on the sex offender registry AR if they were 18 years old when they committed the crime and the victim was 14 or younger. They are typically convicted for attempting or engaging in sex acts involving pubescent minors and for illegally creating and distributing pornography. They are considered moderate-risk offenders.
Level 3 sex offenders
Level 3 sex offenders are individuals with a history of reoffending or have strong antisocial, predatory, or violent traits followed by sexual compulsions, which may be kept under control with adequate treatment. They are convicted for offenses that involve violence and prepubescent minors and are considered high-risk offenders. Their sex offender registration information is available to everyone who decides to perform an Arkansas sex offender search through the registry. This level is also automatically assigned to anyone who fails to comply with the Arkansas sex offender registry laws.
Level 4 sex offenders
Level 4 offenders are also known as sexually violent predators. These individuals are mentally ill and/or have either a sexual or personality disorder. They have little to no control over their sexual or violent urges. They are subject to electronic monitoring for ten years and must register for a lifetime. Their information is available to everyone.
Level 1, 2, and 3 offenders must report to the local law enforcement agency every six months, while level 4 offenders are obligated to do so every three months. If an offender is registered as homeless, they must update their information every 30 days. Every change in information must be reported within five working days.
Sex offender registration laws in Arkansas require lifetime registration in the following cases where the offender:
Sex offenders that don’t fall in the above categories can file a petition to terminate the obligation to register on the Arkansas sex offender registry at least 15 years after the date of first registration. If the offender was incarcerated, the imprisonment period doesn’t count—only the time from release and first registration counts.
Juveniles in Arkansas are also subject to risk assessment. After they have been assigned a sex offender level, they must respect the laws and requirements that come with it. According to Arkansas sex offender laws for youth, they can petition the court for removal from the Arkansas sex offender registry at any time while the court has jurisdiction over the juvenile sex offender or when the individual turns 21 years of age, whichever comes later.
The juvenile division of circuit court judge can permit the juvenile’s name to get removed if they receive evidence that the juvenile is not a threat to society. In case the juvenile doesn’t get approved for removal, he/she must stay on the registry for another ten years from the last date when the juvenile was found guilty as an adult for a sex offense or adjudicated delinquent or until the juvenile turns 21 years of age, whichever is longer.
Not all sex offender levels are subject to community notification in Arkansas. Level 1 offenders are excluded from community notification because they are considered low-risk offenders. Only law enforcement agencies, the Department of Children and Family Services, the Department of Human Services for juvenile offenders, adult members that reside with the offender, and victims or their guardians should be notified of the presence of Level 1 offenders. Level 2, 3, and 4 offenders in Arkansas are subject to community notification.
According to sex offender level 2 Arkansas laws, law enforcement agencies are in charge of deciding who in the community should be notified. Since pedophile statistics are on the rise in Arkansas, making it the state with the highest child sex abuse victims (254 per 100,000 children), law enforcement agencies are focused on notifying schools of the presence of sex offenders in their areas.
Note, however, that if a Level 2 sex offender has previously targeted secondary schools, law enforcement may choose to notify only the secondary schools in the area without informing the elementary schools. The State Board of Education and the State Board of Workforce Education and Career Opportunities set guidelines on how schools should notify parents and students. Level 2 offenders are excluded from further notification, meaning that the informed schools can’t automatically share the information with other schools and organizations, the press, parents, and students. Adult members of the offender’s household and organizations that cater to individuals likely to interact with the offender are notified, but the community at large won’t get notified.
For level 3 and 4 offenders, law enforcement agencies notify schools, but parents and students are also not automatically notified. Law enforcement may ask schools to assist in the notifications of parents and students. The principal or program director of the school should share the notification with staff members who are in charge of monitoring unauthorized people on or near the school’s property. These members could include teachers, teachers’ assistants, coaches, bus drivers, security personnel, and other employees.
Members of the general public that reside nearby the offender or the areas where they work and travel should be notified. Schools must respect the guidelines of law enforcement agencies when it comes to the notification process. For instance, copies of notices can be handed to specific employees and mailed to parents, but they shouldn’t be given to students or placed on the school’s bulletin board.
According to Arkansas sex offender level notification laws, the same notification rules apply to sex offenders who are students or parents/guardians of students, depending on their level of risk. These offenders are not prohibited from attending school or engaging in activities typical for parents or guardians, like dropping their children off or attending a parent-teacher conference, unless such limitations are imposed as part of probation, parole, or judicial restraining orders.
Level 1 and 2 offenders don’t face residency limitations. Arkansas limits level 3 and level 4 sex offenders from living within a 2,000 feet proximity to schools, daycare facilities, parks, school bus stops, youth centers, playgrounds, libraries, and other places where children gather. Level 4 sex offenders are not allowed to live within 2,000 feet of places of worship and their victim. The sex offender manager can even deny a residence that respects the 2,000 minimum distance.
The concept of “pocket parks” is becoming increasingly popular in Arkansas, where city officials establish such areas to limit sex offenders’ residence options further. Even with these harsh residency restrictions, sex offender statistics are not favorable for Arkansas — it’s the state with the second highest rape rate, with 74 victims per 100,000 people.
The residency restrictions have created a roadblock for registered sex offenders to finding stable housing in central areas. Landlords in middle-class to high-income areas typically perform tenant screening which further limits their housing options and creates clusters of offenders in certain lower-income regions.
Homeless sex offenders, on the other hand, are the worst-case scenario. They are mad, blame the world for living on the streets, and are prone to developing addiction, increasing their chances of reoffending. Not only would these individuals have hardships in passing a pre-employment drug screening, but they have zero chance to secure a job without a roof over their heads. This way, they are not in a good mental state, hard to track, jobless, and homeless, which isn’t favorable for anyone.
You can search sex offenders in your area through the sex offender registry Arkansas map. If you need more details like full criminal history, past and current addresses, vehicle records, and other records, you can use people’s search sites to get the full story about anyone.
When it comes to working sex offender laws, Arkansas doesn’t restrict level 1, 2, and 3 offenders in any way. But the absence of limitations doesn’t mean they can get a job. Most employers conduct pre-employment background checks, and when they see a sex offender status, they typically move on to the next candidate.
Level 4 offenders or dangerous sexually violent predators are subject to work restrictions. They are prohibited from working in positions that involve children younger than 16 years of age. They are not allowed to run their daycare center or work for someone who does. Although these rules are not very limiting, hiring statistics show that they can hardly find any job.
Non-resident workers in Arkansas must be assessed for their risk level and respect the Arkansas sex offender laws and restrictions that come with the assigned sex offender tier.
When it comes to sexual offenders, Arkansas allows them to travel to other states, and they often do so out of necessity. Due to limited job opportunities, offenders often bounce from state to state to make ends meet. Employers in high-turnover industries like Construction, Food Service, and Trucking, to name a few, may not perform criminal background checks, making it easier for sex offenders to get employed. Sex offenders traveling in and out of Arkansas must respect the sex offender laws in their state or temporary residence. If they come to Arkansas for work, they must pass a risk assessment test, get assigned a sex offender risk level, and respect the rules that go with it.
Arkansas sex offenders can get a passport and travel internationally, but they must report in person to the local law enforcement agency at least 21 days before the date of departure. They must provide the dates of departure and arrival and all the destinations the offender intends to visit during his travels. The local law enforcement agency will pass this information to the Arkansas Crime Information Center, which will report it to the National Sex Offender Public Website and the United States Marshals Service.
Level 4 offenders face additional restrictions on top of the registration requirements and the residency, work, and travel limitations. They can’t:
Failure to respect these Arkansas sex offender laws is a Class D felony punishable by up to six years or up to $10,000 in fines. Possession of an ID card or driver’s license with incorrect information is a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to a one-year jail term or up to $2,500 in fines.
Failure to comply with the Arkansas sex offender registry laws is a Class C felony. If an offender fails to appear for the scheduled risk assessment test, they will automatically get a level 3 assigned or level 4, depending on the crime.
Arkansas sex offender regulations require either 15 years of registration or lifetime registration. The following cases need offenders to register for life:
The rest of the sex offenders can petition for removal from the AR sex offender registry after 15 years from the day of the first registration. Time spent in correctional facilities doesn’t count.
Level 4 sex offenders or offenders who have committed an aggravated sex offense, rape by forcible compulsion, second or subsequent sex offense under a separate offense, or failed to register three or more times can never get off the registry. Offenders that don’t fall into these categories can petition for removal after 15 years of registration in Arkansas.
Tier 2 sex offenders are considered moderate risk. They can petition the court for removal from the registry after 15 years of registration.
According to the Facebook policy and terms of use, convicted sex offenders are not allowed to use the platform no matter where they reside. If you see a convicted sex offender on Facebook, you should report the account to the social network’s support center.
Even with online predators statistics on the rise, sex offenders are not officially banned from using social media in Arkansas. Arkansas sex offender laws don’t limit sex offenders from having social media accounts, but they must report any changes in their online identifiers within five working days. Some social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok promise to delete accounts that belong to convicted sex offenders, but they don’t always notice their presence on the platforms unless reported and further investigated.