NKAPC’s GIS staff recently completed a visual aid to help Campbell and Kenton County parents view where convicted predators live. Previously, parents could only view a long list of the offenders’ addresses which often proved difficult for many to comprehend.
“Our new service allows residents to see where sex offenders live in relation to their homes, daycare centers, schools, and so on,” said Christy Davis, Senior GIS Specialist. “We’ve made the information available on both the NKAPC and LINK-GIS websites.”
There are numerous sites where the public can obtain this information, but Davis hopes the Search tool made possible by NKAPC’s GIS will allow parents to type in their address and view where—if at all—an offender lives in their neighborhood. It will also allow them to view neighborhood streets that their children might walk on the way to school, to the park, or to a friend’s house and whether an offender lives close by.
Parents will also be able to see the offense for which the person was convicted and the laws that govern that type offense. That information is provided through a link to the Kentucky State Police Sex Offender Registry.
“This is good information for the public to have,” said Davis. “We’re not trying to single anyone out but people need to be aware of these things, especially if they have children.”
The GIS Department plans to update the mapped information the first of every month. The maps the department uses are sent first to the state for review and are believed to be as accurate as possible.
“So far we’ve mapped the addresses of 148 sex offenders in Kenton County and right around 100 in Campbell County,” said Davis. “You have to keep in mind that some of these may be in jail already, or they may simply own property in these counties.”
Tracking local sex offenders in Campbell and Kenton Counties is possible through the NKAPC website at http://www.nkapc.org/ and LINK-GIS site at http://www.linkgis.org/.