Ohio Valley Facebook Page Works to Raise Awareness About Sex Offender Cases
OHIO VALLEY — A growing Facebook page is working to bring greater public attention to sex offender information and criminal cases involving alleged sexual misconduct across the Ohio Valley.
The page, “Ohio Valley Exposure,” has grown to more than 4,000 followers and focuses on communities throughout Eastern Ohio and the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia, including Bellaire, Martins Ferry, Bridgeport, Shadyside, Wheeling and Moundsville.
The person behind the page says the goal is to raise awareness and encourage residents to pay closer attention to cases involving sexual offenses and issues involving the safety of children and families in their communities.
Posts on the page share information about criminal cases, court proceedings and allegations involving individuals throughout the region. The page also directs followers to resources where they can search publicly available sex offender information.
An important distinction remains when viewing information shared on social media: an arrest, criminal charge or allegation does not establish guilt. Individuals accused of crimes are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court. Information posted online should be compared with official court records, law enforcement information and state registries when available.
It is also important to understand what a sex offender registry does — and does not — show.
Ohio significantly overhauled its sex offender registration laws in 1996, with major provisions taking effect in 1997. Those laws and registration requirements have changed several times in the decades since. Ohio law has also applied registration requirements to some offenders whose crimes occurred before the modern system took effect, meaning there is no simple rule that everyone convicted before 1997 is excluded from today’s registry.
For perspective, someone who was just 18 years old in 1995 would be about 49 years old today. Older convictions can involve different registration requirements and circumstances, which is why the public registry should not be viewed as a complete historical list of every person who has ever been convicted of a sex offense in Ohio.
In simple terms, not finding someone’s name on the current public registry does not prove that person has never been convicted of a sex offense. Residents researching an individual’s history can use the registry as one resource while also checking official court records and other public records, particularly when looking into older cases.
Ohio Valley Exposure provides followers with links to the State of Ohio Sex Offender Search and Family Watchdog for residents who want to search publicly available information.
The broader purpose of Ohio Valley Exposure is awareness — bringing publicly available information to the attention of Ohio Valley residents and encouraging people to stay informed about cases and issues affecting their communities.
The page can be found on Facebook by searching Ohio Valley Exposure.
