Missouri Sex Offender Registry Removal

How long must someone be on the sex offender registry?

For Tier I offenders, their names must remain on the registry for 15 years unless the following terms have been met:

• The offender has not committed any crimes resulting in imprisonment of a year or more
• The offender has not committed any sexual crimes
• The offender has successfully completed a period of supervised release, probation, or parole
• The offender has successfully completed a sex offender treatment program

Only then can the offender be removed from the registry after 10 years if those terms have been met.

For Tier II offenders, they must remain on the sex offender registry for 25 years.  There are no terms to be met that would give them the opportunity to have their name removed from the registry any earlier.

Tier III offenders must remain on the registry for life unless their conviction was as a juvenile and they have met the same terms as the Tier I offenders listed above for 25 consecutive years.  At that point, they may petition to have their name removed from the registry.

There is an exception called the Romeo & Juliet exception.  This exception states that if a person 18 or younger committed a crime against someone 12 or younger, they may petition the court to have their name removed after two years on the registry if the crime did not involve the use of force.

What is the process to get a name removed?

To remove a name from the sex offender registry, after the time period outlined above, the offender may file a petition to the county circuit court (or St. Louis circuit court) of the county where the crime took place.  The petition must name the Missouri State Highway Patrol and county sheriff (or St. Louis police chief if residing in St. Louis) as respondents to the petition.  The petition must also provide notice to the prosecuting attorney of the county where the crime took place (or of St. Louis if the crime took place there).

The petition must contain the following:

• The offender’s name, sex, race, date of birth, last four digits of social security number, address, and place of employment (or school or volunteer work)
• The offense and associated sex offender registry tier
• The date the offender was convicted
• The date the offender was required to register
• The case number, court, and location that initially tried the case
• The offender’s fingerprints on an applicant fingerprint card
• An authorized copy of the order if there was a pardon or reversal

Then the original prosecutor will have the ability to present evidence, contact the victim, and view the applicant’s recent criminal records.  The prosecutor must demonstrate why the petition should possibly be denied.

The offender will be responsible for any charges that result from the Highway Patrol for verifying the fingerprints on the application.

What happens if the court denies the petition?

The offender may not apply for removal from the sex offender registry for another five years.