Scott County Sex Offender Registry
The Scott County sex offender registry is maintained by the Scott County Sheriff's Office and is available to the public at no cost through the statewide iCrimeWatch portal. Indiana law requires all registered sex and violent offenders in Scottsburg and the rest of Scott County to keep their information current, reporting any address, work, or school change within 72 hours, so residents can rely on the registry to reflect where offenders actually are at any given time.
Scott County Sex Offender Registry
How to Search the Scott County Registry
The main place to search Scott County sex offenders is iCrimeWatch Indiana. The site is free and does not require an account. You can search by name, street address, city, or ZIP code. Each result includes the offender's photo, home address, offense description, and current registration status.
The Scott County Sheriff's Office registry page links directly to the offender search tool and includes a disclaimer about appropriate use of the information. The sheriff's office encourages residents to use this data only for lawful purposes and not to harass anyone listed.
You can also use the National Sex Offender Public Website run by the U.S. Department of Justice. NSOPW pulls data from all participating state registries, so it covers Scott County alongside every other Indiana county and all other states. This is useful when you want to check someone who may have lived in multiple states.
The Indiana Department of Correction also provides information on how the statewide sex and violent offender registry works, including who must register and how long registration lasts.
Scott County Sheriff Contact Information
The Scott County Sheriff's Office handles all sex offender registration in the county. Sheriff Jerry Goodin oversees the department. The office is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week for registration matters.
Office address: 111 South First Street, Scottsburg, IN 47170. Main phone: (812) 752-8400. Non-emergency line: (812) 752-7898. Fax: (812) 752-5751.
If you need to register for the first time, call ahead to confirm what documents to bring. A deputy will walk you through the process, take your photo, collect your fingerprints, and enter your information into the statewide OffenderWatch system. All registration happens in person at the sheriff's office in Scottsburg.
The Scott County Sheriff's Office website has more details on the registry, including the disclaimer page you must read before accessing offender search results. The sheriff's office serves the full county, which includes Scottsburg, Austin, Lexington, and other communities in the area.
Indiana Sex Offender Law and Zachary's Law
Indiana's sex offender registry is governed by IC 11-8-8, commonly called Zachary's Law. The law took effect January 1, 2003. It was named for Zachary Snider, a ten-year-old from Cloverdale, Indiana, who was killed by a man who was a registered sex offender at the time.
Zachary's Law requires anyone convicted of a qualifying sex or violent offense to register with the sheriff in the county where they live. The law covers a wide range of offenses, including rape, child molestation, sexual misconduct with a minor, and certain other crimes involving force or a minor victim.
Offenders must register within 72 hours of release from custody, 72 hours of moving into Indiana, or 72 hours of any change to their registered address, workplace, or school enrollment. This 72-hour window applies every time something changes, not just at the start of registration.
Failure to comply is a Level 6 felony under Indiana law. A Level 6 felony carries a sentence of six months to two and a half years in prison and a fine up to $10,000. A second or subsequent failure to register is a Level 5 felony, which is more serious and carries a higher sentence range.
Who Must Register in Scott County
Not every criminal conviction requires sex offender registration. Indiana law lists specific offenses that trigger registration. These include rape (IC 35-42-4-1), criminal deviate conduct, child molesting (IC 35-42-4-3), sexual misconduct with a minor, and exploitation or voyeurism offenses involving minors.
People convicted of crimes in other states who move to Scott County must register here too. If your out-of-state offense would require registration in Indiana, you must go to the Scott County Sheriff's Office within 72 hours of establishing residence in the county. This applies even if you completed your registration obligations in the other state.
The Indiana Sheriffs' Association publishes a resource page that explains the statewide registration system in plain language. It covers who must register, for how long, and what offenders are required to report. The sheriffs' association works closely with all 92 county sheriffs to keep the registry consistent across Indiana.
Registration Duration and Verification
How long an offender must register depends on their offense. Most sex offenders register for 10 years from the date of release from incarceration or from the date of conviction if they served no prison time. The 10-year period can extend if the offender re-offends or violates registration rules.
Sexually violent predators must register for life. This category includes people who commit certain aggravated offenses or who are designated as SVPs by a court. SVPs must also verify their registration every 90 days rather than annually.
People who are homeless or transient and have no fixed address must report to the Scott County Sheriff every seven days. This more frequent check-in requirement helps the sheriff track offenders who do not have a permanent home address on file.
Annual verification means the offender must appear at the sheriff's office each year to confirm that their information is still correct. The sheriff's office will schedule this appointment and take an updated photo. Missing a verification appointment is treated as a failure to register.
Residency Restrictions and Movement Rules
Indiana law restricts where registered sex offenders can live. Under IC 35-42-4-11, sex offenders cannot reside within 1,000 feet of a school, a public park, or a youth program center. This distance is measured from the property line of the restricted facility to the offender's residence.
Offenders also cannot live within one mile of their victim. This rule applies in Scott County the same as everywhere in Indiana. If a qualifying facility opens near an offender's home after they register there, the offender may need to move. Local rules can sometimes vary, so it is worth checking current county policy if you are unsure.
Scott County is a smaller county in southern Indiana near the Kentucky border. Offenders who cross into Clark or Jefferson County must also report to those sheriffs if they work or go to school there, even if they continue to live in Scott County. Registration follows the person, not just the address.
Email Alerts and Community Notification
The OffenderWatch system used by Scott County offers free email alerts for community members. You can sign up to get notified when a registered offender moves into or out of a defined area around your home, your child's school, or any other address you choose.
To set up alerts, go to iCrimeWatch Indiana and create a free account. Once you are logged in, you can enter an address and set a notification radius. The system will email you when offender data changes within that area. You can set alerts for more than one address at a time.
This alert system is a useful tool for parents, school administrators, and anyone who wants to stay aware of registry changes in their area. The alerts are based on real-time updates to the OffenderWatch database, so you get notified quickly when something changes.
The Scott County Sheriff registry portal shows the current list of registered offenders in the county. The screenshot below is from the statewide Indiana sex offender registry maintained by the Indiana State Police and DOC.
All Scott County offender data feeds into this statewide system, which is updated continuously as registration information changes across all 92 Indiana counties.
What the Registry Listing Shows
Each offender listing on the Scott County registry includes key details that help residents make informed decisions. The standard entry shows the offender's full name, current address, date of birth, physical description, and a photo. It also lists the offense that triggered registration, the conviction date, and the offender's current registration status.
The listing will note whether the person is classified as a sexually violent predator. SVP status is visible on the public record. The listing also shows the offender's compliance status, which tells you whether they are current with their registration obligations or in violation.
You will not find every detail of the criminal case in the registry listing. For full court records related to a specific case in Scott County, contact the Scott County Circuit Court or Scott County Superior Court in Scottsburg. The clerks there can provide case history, charging documents, and sentencing records for public cases.
Reporting Violations and Non-Compliance
If you believe a registered sex offender is not complying with their registration requirements, contact the Scott County Sheriff's Office. Call the main line at (812) 752-8400, which is staffed 24 hours a day. You can also report tips through the non-emergency line at (812) 752-7898.
You can also file a report with the National Sex Offender Public Website, which has a tip submission feature. Tip information is forwarded to the appropriate local law enforcement agency.
Anonymous tips are accepted. You do not have to give your name when calling in a compliance concern. The sheriff's office will investigate and, if needed, file charges for failure to register. Unregistered sex offenders are a priority enforcement matter for the Scott County Sheriff.