Access Jefferson County Sex Offender Records

Jefferson County sex offenders and sexual predators register with the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office in Monticello, and all active registrants in the county appear in the Florida Department of Law Enforcement statewide database that the public can search for free. Jefferson County is a small rural county in the Florida Big Bend region with a population of roughly 15,000, and the same Florida registration requirements that apply in large urban counties apply here in full.

Jefferson County Sheriff's Office Sex Offender Registration

The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, located at 171 Industrial Park in Monticello, is responsible for all sex offender and sexual predator registrations in the county. Any person with a qualifying sexual conviction who lives, works, or spends regular time in Jefferson County must register in person at the sheriff's office. That obligation exists regardless of where the conviction occurred. A conviction from another state triggers the same registration requirement in Florida if the offense would be registerable under Florida law.

Registration happens in person only. There is no way to register by mail or online. When you appear at the sheriff's office, staff will record your full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number, current address, physical description, vehicle information, all phone numbers, and every email address and online account you maintain. A photograph and fingerprints will be collected. Bring a valid ID and all court documents related to your conviction. If you are coming from another county or state, bring your prior registration paperwork so the office can determine the correct tier and re-registration schedule for your situation.

After registration is complete, the sheriff's office submits your record to the FDLE, and it appears in the public statewide database. Any changes to your address, phone, vehicle, email, or workplace must be reported to the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office within 48 hours of the change. That 48-hour window does not pause on weekends or holidays. It runs continuously from the moment the change occurs.

Registration Requirements in Jefferson County

Florida Statute § 943.0435 establishes sex offender registration requirements for all of Florida. Jefferson County operates under that statute without local modifications. The law defines who must register, what information they must provide, how often they must appear in person, and what penalties result from non-compliance. The small size of Jefferson County does not reduce or change any of these obligations.

Re-registration frequency is tied to your category. Standard sex offenders must re-register twice per year. The first required visit falls during your birth month. The second comes six months after that. Sexual predators must re-register four times per year, once every three months. The higher frequency for predators reflects the elevated risk assessment that the predator designation represents under Florida law.

Transient registrants, those without a fixed address, must report to the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office every 30 days. Living without a stable home does not cancel registration. It shifts you to a monthly check-in cycle where you must provide your current location at each visit, even if it differs from the prior month.

The 48-hour rule covers more than just address changes. A new vehicle, a new phone number, a new email address, or a change in employment all trigger the 48-hour reporting requirement. You cannot save those updates for the next scheduled visit. Registration in Florida has no expiration date for most registrants. The obligation is for life, and failing to comply is a third-degree felony under Florida law.

Sexual Predators and Sexual Offenders in Jefferson County

Florida law divides registered individuals into two distinct categories. Both appear in the FDLE public database, but they face different obligations and different levels of state-initiated notification.

Sexual offenders are people convicted of qualifying sexual crimes in Florida, or people convicted in other states of offenses that would require registration if they had occurred in Florida. They must re-register twice per year, report changes within 48 hours, and follow all residency restrictions. Their records are publicly available in the FDLE portal. However, the state does not run a formal active notification program for this group. Anyone can search for their records, but no system automatically alerts neighbors when a standard offender moves nearby.

Sexual predators hold a separate, court-assigned designation. A court must make a specific finding under the criteria in Florida Statute § 775.21 before someone can be labeled a predator. That designation applies to a smaller, higher-risk subset of registrants. Predators must re-register four times per year. Active community notification applies to them, meaning the sheriff may contact residents and community organizations directly when a predator moves to a new address in Jefferson County. Both offenders and predators appear in the same FDLE database. Predator profiles are labeled to make the distinction clear during a search.

Search Jefferson County Sex Offenders Online

The FDLE sex offender search portal is the main resource for finding registered sex offenders and predators in Jefferson County. The tool is free and does not require an account. You can search by county, city, ZIP code, or registrant name. A radius search option lets you find all registrants within a certain distance of a specific address, which can be useful when checking an area around a home or school.

Results show each registrant's current photo, physical description, registered address, offense history, and whether they carry a predator designation. The database is updated on an ongoing basis as the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office submits new registrations and address changes. Jefferson County is small, so search results for the county will show fewer records than larger counties, but the information available for each record is the same throughout the state.

For lookups on people arriving from outside Florida, the National Sex Offender Public Website at nsopw.gov provides free cross-state searches across all participating registries. Once a person establishes residence in Florida, they must register here, and their record will then appear in the FDLE database.

The FDLE registry homepage provides access to all public sex offender and predator records in Florida, including every registered individual in Jefferson County.

Residency Restrictions in Jefferson County

Under § 775.215, registered sex offenders and sexual predators cannot live within 1,000 feet of any school, childcare facility, park, playground, or place where children regularly gather. That measurement runs from property line to property line. The restriction applies across all of Jefferson County, including Monticello and all rural and unincorporated areas.

The restriction applies to both permanent and temporary housing. A registrant cannot stay at a location inside the protected zone, even briefly. The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office verifies addresses against these limits as part of the registration and update process. Any address that falls inside the 1,000-foot zone cannot be accepted. The registrant must find and secure a compliant address before the registration update can be completed.

Local governments in Jefferson County may adopt ordinances that go beyond the state's baseline requirement. Monticello or other communities can set stricter buffer zones or add restrictions to additional types of locations. Anyone selecting a new address in Jefferson County should confirm local rules before moving, not after. A move made in good faith to a non-compliant address still constitutes a legal violation.

The FDLE search portal allows you to filter results by county, city, or ZIP code to find registered sex offenders and predators in Jefferson County.

Florida Offender Alert Notifications for Jefferson County

Jefferson County residents can set up free email notifications through Florida Offender Alert. The service tracks the ZIP codes you choose and sends an email whenever a registered sex offender or sexual predator moves into or within that area. Each alert includes the registrant's photo and their registered address.

There is no cost to sign up or receive alerts. You can monitor multiple ZIP codes at once, which lets you keep track of your home area and other locations you care about from a single account. The service removes the need to check the FDLE portal manually and sends updates directly to your inbox when something changes in a ZIP code you are watching.

Cities in Jefferson County

Monticello is the county seat and the only incorporated city in Jefferson County. With a population of roughly 2,500, it does not meet the threshold for a dedicated city page on this site. All sex offender and sexual predator registrations for Monticello and every other area of Jefferson County are handled through the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office at 171 Industrial Park in Monticello.

Nearby Counties

Registrants who move out of Jefferson County must notify the sheriff and register in their new county within 48 hours of relocating. Surrounding counties in North Florida each have their own registration office under the statewide framework.