Tennessee Code 40-39-206 – Centralized record system – Reporting – Violations – Confidentiality of certain registration information – Immunity from liability – Public information regarding offenders
(a) Using information received or collected pursuant to this part, the TBI shall establish, maintain and update a centralized record system of offender registration, verification and tracking information. The TBI may receive information from any credible source and may forward the information to the appropriate law enforcement agency for investigation and verification. The TBI shall promptly report current sexual offender registration, verification and tracking information to the identification division of the federal bureau of investigation.
Terms Used In Tennessee Code 40-39-206
Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
Code: includes the Tennessee Code and all amendments and revisions to the code and all additions and supplements to the code. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
Institution of higher education: means a public or private:(A) Community college. See Tennessee Code 40-39-202
Offender: means sexual offender, violent sexual offender and violent juvenile sexual offender, unless otherwise designated. See Tennessee Code 40-39-202
Offender against children: means any sexual offender, violent sexual offender or violent juvenile sexual offender if the victim in one (1) or more of the offender's crimes was a child of twelve (12) years of age or less. See Tennessee Code 40-39-202
Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
Record: means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in a perceivable form. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
Register: means the initial registration of an offender, or the re-registration of an offender after deletion or termination from the SOR. See Tennessee Code 40-39-202
Report: means appearance before the proper designated law enforcement agency for any of the purposes set out in this part. See Tennessee Code 40-39-202
sex: means a person's immutable biological sex as determined by anatomy and genetics existing at the time of birth and evidence of a person's biological sex. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
Sexual offender: means a person who has been convicted in this state of committing a sexual offense or has another qualifying conviction. See Tennessee Code 40-39-202
Sexual offense: means : (A) The commission of any act that, on or after November 1, 1989, constitutes the criminal offense of: (i) Sexual battery, under §. See Tennessee Code 40-39-202
SOR: means the TBI's centralized record system of offender registration, verification and tracking information. See Tennessee Code 40-39-202
State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
Student: means a person who is enrolled on a full-time or part-time basis in any public or private educational institution, including any secondary school, trade or professional institution or institution of higher learning. See Tennessee Code 40-39-202
Violent juvenile sexual offender: means a person who is adjudicated delinquent in this state for any act that constitutes a violent juvenile sexual offense. See Tennessee Code 40-39-202
Violent juvenile sexual offense: means an adjudication of delinquency, for any act committed on or after July 1, 2011, that, if committed by an adult, constitutes the criminal offense of: (i) Aggravated rape, under §. See Tennessee Code 40-39-202
Violent sexual offense: means the commission of any act that constitutes the criminal offense of: (A) Aggravated rape, under [former] §. See Tennessee Code 40-39-202
(b) Whenever there is a factual basis to believe that an offender has not complied with this part, pursuant to the powers enumerated in subsection (e), the TBI shall make the information available through the SOR to the district attorney general, designated law enforcement agencies and the probation officer, parole officer or other public officer or employee assigned responsibility for the offender’s supervised release.(c) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, officers and employees of the TBI, local law enforcement, law enforcement agencies of institutions of higher education, courts, probation and parole, the district attorneys general and their employees and other public officers and employees assigned responsibility for offenders’ supervised release into the community shall be immune from liability relative to their good faith actions, omissions and conduct pursuant to this part.(d) For any offender convicted in this state of a sexual offense or violent sexual offense, as defined by this part, that requires the offender to register pursuant to this part, the information concerning the registered offender set out in subdivisions (d)(1)-(16) shall be considered public information. If an offender from another state establishes a residence in this state and is required to register in this state pursuant to § 40-39-203, the information concerning the registered offender set out in subdivisions (d)(1)-(16) shall be considered public information regardless of the date of conviction of the offender in the other state. In addition to making the information available in the same manner as public records, the TBI shall prepare and place the information on the state’s internet home page. This information shall become a part of the Tennessee internet criminal information center when that center is created within the TBI. The TBI shall also establish and operate a toll-free telephone number, to be known as the “Tennessee Internet Criminal Information Center Hotline,” to permit members of the public to call and inquire as to whether a named individual is listed among those who have registered as offenders as required by this part. The following information concerning a registered offender is public:
(1) The offender’s complete name, as well as any aliases, including, but not limited to, any names that the offender may have had or currently has by reason of marriage or otherwise, including pseudonyms and ethnic or tribal names;(2) The offender’s date of birth;(3) The sexual offense or offenses or violent sexual offense or offenses of which the offender has been convicted;(4) The primary and secondary addresses, including the house number, county, city and ZIP code in which the offender resides;(5) The offender’s race and gender;(6) The date of last verification of information by the offender;(7) The most recent photograph of the offender that has been submitted to the TBI SOR;(8) The offender’s driver license number and issuing state or any state or federal issued identification number;(9) The offender’s parole or probation officer;(10) The name and address of any institution of higher education in the state at which the offender is employed, carries on a vocation or is a student;(11) The text of the provision of law or laws defining the criminal offense or offenses for which the offender is registered;(12) A physical description of the offender, including height, weight, color of eyes and hair, tattoos, scars and marks;(13) The criminal history of the offender, including the date of all arrests and convictions, the status of parole, probation or supervised release, registration status and the existence of any outstanding arrest warrants for the sex offender;(14) The address of the offender’s employer or employers;(15) The license plate number and a description of all of the offender’s vehicles; and(16) Whether the offender is an offender against children, as defined by § 40-39-202.(e) For any violent juvenile sexual offender who is adjudicated for a violent juvenile sexual offense, the information concerning the violent juvenile sexual offender set out in (d) shall be confidential, except as otherwise provided under § 40-39-207(j) and any other provision of law.(f) The TBI has the authority to promulgate any necessary rules to implement and administer this section. These rules shall be promulgated in accordance with the Uniform Administrative Procedures Act, compiled in title 4, chapter 5.
