Police: Process before sex offender's name put on registry

WEDNESDAY’s order by a judge for a 37-year-old man to be registered as a sex offender was the first under the amended Sexual Offences Act, which establishes the National Sex Offenders’ Registry.

Supt Claire Guy-Alleyne, head of the police Gender-Based Violence Unit, confirmed on Thursday that the order of Justice Hayden St Clair-Douglas was the first made by a court for a convicted sex offender to be put on the registry.

In a telephone interview with Newsday, she said there was a process before Everton Joseph’s name is registered. He first has to serve the nine-year prison term imposed by the judge.

On Wednesday, St Clair-Douglas ordered Joseph to register at the police station in his district seven days after he leaves prison. He has to report to the station every year for ten years

The judge also ordered the information on the prisoner to be published on the registry by the Commissioner of Police. The registry is to contain "the names, photographs, address and biographical details of registered sex offenders.”

St Clair-Douglas’s order was sent to the commissioner on Wednesday.

Guy-Alleyne told Newsday the prisoner would have to serve out his sentence and the Prisons Commissioner will contact the Police Commissioner before the date of release.

Joseph has a right to appeal his sentence and conviction, and section 50 of the Sexual Offences Act provides for the court to determine if the convicted sex offender should register or report pending the completion of the appeal.

Guy-Alleyne said when the prison contacts the police, officers will visit the prison to get information on the convicted sex offender, as provided for in the act.

She also said when the person is released from prison, he must report to the police station in the district pursuant to a court order to register as a sex offender. Once the person reports, the act allows the police to take his or her photograph, fingerprints and DNA sample, even without consent.

Failure to report to a police station after release from prison will attract a fine of $150,000 on summary conviction and a 15-year jail term. There is also a penalty of $75,000 and ten years’ imprisonment on summary conviction if the person fails to report for the duration of the period set out by the court.

Seven days after the information on a sex offender is provided, the police will verify the information before it is entered into the register.

On Tuesday, at a police briefing, Guy-Alleyne clarified the procedure for someone to be put on the registry.

“Looking at social media for the last couple of days, persons feel that once a person is charged for a sex offence, they can automatically be registered on the sex offenders’ registry," she said. "That is not the case.”

She explained that the offender must be charged and convicted and a judge must make an order.

On Thursday, Guy-Alleyne said when she spoke of the registry on Tuesday it was not to chastise the Judiciary but to point out the procedure in response to a question from the media.

However, she said she was pleased with the court’s order on Wednesday, describing it as serendipity.

She said the website for the registry was already available – https://sexoffenders.gov.tt/ – and since Wednesday’s order was the first, once the process set out in the legislation is complete, it will be populated with its first name.

On Tuesday, acting Deputy Commissioner of Police Mc Donald Jacob said even though the registry is not available to the public, the database is designed so that the police would be aware of all the people convicted of various sexual offences, to help them with their investigations.

Guy-Alleyne said only certain information will be available to the public on the website, including the name, address and photograph of the convicted offender.

“Certain ‘private’ information, only the police will have access to.”

In the past, the police kept their own database of convicted sexual offenders and she admitted it was suggested that the police use this to populate the registry.

However, she said advice was sought from the Office of the Attorney General and it was decided they would not do so.

“We’re talking about two different laws, so we have to be very careful how we operate.”