Thirty-three sexual assaults were reported on campus in 1999, according to the Wisconsin Coalition Against Sexual Assault. Due to a 2000 Federal law that took effect this fall, The Campus Sex Crimes Prevention Act, these sex offenders and those on college campuses nationwide may bear the burden of their crime more conspicuously.
Though not forced to wear a scarlet letter around campus, sex offenders do live their lives with the knowledge that any day, anyone could go online, type in their name and discover that they have been convicted of a sexual crime.
“The department of corrections is required to report to us people who were on the Sexual Offender Registry,” said University of Wisconsin Police Captain Steven Rogers.
The UW Police Department is required to list the names of sex offenders enrolled or employed by the university. Furthermore, the UWPD web site provides a link to the Department of Corrections Sexual Offender Registry where, after a name or zip code search for the offender, one may find a picture and crimes committed by any sex offender.
According to the registry’s background, the SOR is supposed to contain a physical description, offense information, and location information for the offender, although the location information of one of two offenders listed on the UW Police site was missing from the Department of Corrections registry. Registrants are required to register while on supervision and for a minimum of 15 years following expiration of their sentence or committal.
Depending on the person’s living situation, a meeting will occur between the UWPD, University Housing or a fraternity, who will pull together and evaluate the situation in order to figure out what limitations, if any, should be placed on the person.
There is a wide range of circumstances that can lead to a person being termed “sex offender.” For example, a 17-year-old who had sex with his 17-year-old girlfriend may be given this moniker if he is prosecuted, but might not be deemed as a threat by UW.
“We would work very closely with University Police to identify each unique situation,” said Kevin Helmkamp of University Housing.
In such cases, it is important to seek a balance between the needs of the campus community and the needs of the individual offender, who may be working hard to find a new start to his or her life.
“They have served the sentence so they are trying now to get on a different road,” said Lori Berquam Associate Dean of Students. “The sex offenders are, by and large, pretty embarrassed about what happened and feel like it was a mistake.”
