Coronavirus worries affecting efforts to track homeless sex offenders in North Sound

SNOHOMISH COUNTY, Wash. — Coronavirus worries are impacting the efforts to track homeless sex offenders in the North Sound.

In normal times, homeless sex offenders are required to come to the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office once a week to check-in.

During those meetings, they’re required to detail where they’ve slept and stayed in the seven days prior.

In the aftermath of COVID-19, though, all administrative offices at the Sheriff’s Office are closed, and in-person meetings with homeless sex offenders are now on hold.

"Currently homeless registered sex offender check-ins have been delayed until April 6, and at that time, we will determine if this needs to be pushed out further due to Gov. Inslee’s stay home, stay healthy order,” said Courtney O’Keefe, Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office.

According to authorities, there are approximately 100 homeless sex offenders in Snohomish County, which is out of approximately 1,900 sex offenders overall.

Given that this is an issue of public safety, KIRO 7 News reached out to the Sheriff’s Office for comment.

They insisted homeless sex offenders are not off the hook. Far from it.

When in-person check-ins do happen again, authorities say they’ll still require homeless sex offenders to provide proof of where they’ve stayed for the past two weeks, instead of just the past week.

If any information is left out, authorities say a sex offender could be considered as ”non-compliant" and then be arrested.

“It’s important for the community to know that the Sheriff’s Office takes public safety very seriously. During this time, we are continuing address verifications for the 1,800 sex offenders in Snohomish County who live at fixed residences, we are continuing to file failure to register, and searching for people with warrants for failure to register.” OKeefe said.

She added that the Sheriff’s Office is still making home visits to the 1,800 sex offenders who actually have registered addresses.

In a sign of the changes caused by coronavirus, those visits are done outside of the residence and six feet away from a sex offender.

© 2020 Cox Media Group