Find Hampshire County Sex Offenders

Hampshire County has roughly 160,000 residents and about 146 Level 2 and Level 3 sex offenders on the state registry. Searching for sex offenders in Hampshire County starts with the SORB online database, which lists all Level 3 and most Level 2 registrants by name, town, or zip code. You can also visit any local police station in Hampshire County to look up offenders in person at no cost. Northampton, Amherst, Easthampton, and Belchertown are the largest towns in this county. The Northwestern District Attorney handles sex crime cases here. This page walks through every tool and resource for checking the Hampshire County sex offender registry.

Hampshire County Sheriff and Sex Offender Registry

The Hampshire County Sheriff's Office is at 19 Gleason Drive in Northampton, MA 01060. You can call them at (413) 584-5911. The Sheriff runs the county jail and house of correction at that same site. While the Sheriff does not run the sex offender registry on its own, the office works with SORB to track offenders who pass through the county's correctional system. When a registered sex offender gets booked or released from the Hampshire County jail, that data goes to SORB and to local police in the town where the offender plans to live.

The Hampshire County Sheriff's Office website has details on inmate records, jail programs, and public safety work. If you need to check on an inmate or find out if someone in the county jail has a sex offender registration, you can contact the Sheriff's Office by phone. They do not have an online inmate lookup tool, so you will need to call or visit in person.

The screenshot below shows the Hampshire County Sheriff's website, which covers correctional programs and community safety efforts in Hampshire County.

The Hampshire County Sheriff's site provides information about jail operations and public safety coordination across Hampshire County.

The Sheriff's Office also plays a role in making sure that sex offenders released from custody comply with all registration rules before they go back into the community.

How to Search Hampshire County Sex Offenders

The main way to search for sex offenders in Hampshire County is through the SORB online portal at sorb.chs.state.ma.us. This database is free. Anyone can use it. You search by name, city, town, or zip code. The portal shows Level 2 and Level 3 offenders who live, work, or go to school in Hampshire County. Each listing has a photo, address, physical traits, and offense details. Level 3 offenders are all in the online system with no restrictions on access.

There is a gap you should know about. Level 2 offenders who got their classification before July 12, 2013, are not in the online database. To find those people, you need to go to a police station in person. Any police department in Massachusetts can look up that information for you. Bring a valid photo ID. There is no fee for this. Most stations can help you right away during business hours.

Level 1 offenders do not show up at all. They are low risk. Their records are not open to the public. You cannot get Level 1 data through the online portal or through a police visit.

For a wider search, the National Sex Offender Public Website lets you check registries in all 50 states at once. This is helpful if you think someone may have a record in a state other than Massachusetts. NSOPW pulls data from each state's registry and shows it in one search tool.

Note: SORB updates the portal on a regular basis, but changes are not instant, so a recent move may not show up right away.

Police Departments Serving Hampshire County

Hampshire County is made up of smaller cities and towns, each with its own police force. These departments are your go-to for in-person sex offender lookups, questions about community notification, and reports about offenders who may not be in compliance. The two largest departments are Northampton PD and Amherst PD.

The Northampton Police Department is at 29 Center Street, Northampton, MA 01060. Call them at (413) 587-1100. Northampton is the county seat and the most populated town in Hampshire County. Officers at Northampton PD can pull up sex offender registry records for you in person. They also handle community notification when a Level 3 offender moves into the Northampton area. If you have a concern about a sex offender living near a school or daycare in Northampton, this is the department to call.

The Amherst Police Department is located at 111 Main Street, Amherst, MA 01002. Their phone number is (413) 259-3000. Amherst is a college town with a large student population, which makes sex offender tracking especially important there. Hampshire College, UMass Amherst, and Amherst College all fall within or near the Amherst PD's jurisdiction. Under the Campus Sex Crimes Prevention Act, these schools must share SORB information with their campus security offices. Students and staff can ask campus police about registered sex offenders near campus grounds.

Other Hampshire County towns like Easthampton, Belchertown, Hadley, and South Hadley each have their own police departments that can assist with registry lookups. Any police station in the state is required by law to help you check the sex offender registry during normal hours. You do not need to live in that town to ask.

Hampshire College and Sex Offender Information

Hampshire College in Amherst provides sex offender registry information to its campus community. The college directs students, faculty, and staff to the Amherst Police Department and the Hadley Police Department for local sex offender data. It also links to the SORB database so that anyone on campus can search the registry on their own.

The screenshot below shows the Hampshire College sex offender registry page, which tells students how to access SORB data and where to go for in-person lookups.

This resource matters because Hampshire County has a large college population. Students who are new to the area may not know how the Massachusetts sex offender registry works or where to go for help. The college page fills that gap by pointing people to the right agencies.

Community Notification in Hampshire County

Massachusetts law requires active community notification for Level 3 sex offenders. When a Level 3 offender moves into a Hampshire County town, local police must tell neighbors, nearby schools, and community groups. Each town's police department handles this on its own. Northampton PD runs notifications in Northampton. Amherst PD covers Amherst. There is no single county-wide system for this.

Level 2 offenders get a different treatment. Police can notify organizations like schools, daycares, and youth programs about a Level 2 offender in the area. The general public can still look up Level 2 offenders online or in person, but officers do not go door to door for Level 2 cases. The notification is targeted at groups that work with children or other vulnerable people.

Level 1 offenders get no public notification. Their information is sealed. You cannot find it through the SORB portal or at a police station. If you have a specific concern about someone, you can call SORB at (978) 740-6400 or toll-free at 1-800-93-MEGAN to report it. SORB will not disclose Level 1 records, but they will take your concern and follow up if needed.

Registration Rules for Hampshire County Offenders

Sex offenders who live, work, or attend school in Hampshire County must register with SORB under Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 6, Sections 178C through 178Q. The duty to register is in Section 178E. It does not matter where the conviction took place. If someone was convicted in another state or in federal court and now lives in Hampshire County, they must register with SORB within two days of setting up residence here.

Level 2 and Level 3 offenders must verify their registration once a year, in person, at a police station. This rule comes from MGL c.6, Section 178F1/2. They cannot mail it in or do it online. They have to show up, bring ID, and confirm their current address and other details on file. If an offender's address, job, or school changes at any point, they must notify SORB within two days of the change. This applies to moves within Hampshire County and moves out of the county or state.

Note: Offenders with no fixed address must register with the police department in the town where they spend the most time.

Failure to Register Penalties in Massachusetts

Not registering as a sex offender in Massachusetts is a crime. Under MGL c.6, Section 178H, a first offense can mean six months to two and a half years in a house of correction, or up to five years in state prison. There can also be a fine of up to $1,000. These penalties apply if an offender fails to register, fails to verify their address each year, or gives false information during the registration process.

A second offense is much worse. Section 178H sets a mandatory minimum of five years in state prison. There is no probation or suspended sentence for that mandatory portion. The Northwestern District Attorney's Office prosecutes these cases in Hampshire County. The DA's Victim Witness Assistance unit also supports victims of sex crimes through the court process. You can reach them at (413) 584-5911.

Police in Hampshire County do compliance checks. Officers go to the addresses on file for registered sex offenders to make sure they still live there. If the address does not match, the case gets sent to the DA for possible charges. These checks happen on a regular basis but are not on a set public schedule.

Hampshire County Sex Offender Laws and Resources

Massachusetts has some of the more detailed sex offender registration laws in the country. The full text of the registration statute is in MGL Chapter 6, Sections 178C through 178Q. These sections cover who must register, how long they must stay on the registry, classification levels, and penalties for noncompliance. The Massachusetts law about sex offenders page on mass.gov gives a plain-language summary that is easier to read than the raw statute.

The Sex Offender Registry Board is the state agency that runs the whole system. SORB classifies offenders, manages the database, and handles appeals. You can reach SORB at (978) 740-6400 or toll-free at 1-800-93-MEGAN. Their mailing address is P.O. Box 4547, Salem, MA 01970. If you have questions about how classification works or want to request records that are not in the public portal, SORB is the right place to start.

For Hampshire County residents who want to stay informed, local police departments will answer questions about sex offenders in their towns. The SORB portal is the fastest way to check, but an in-person visit gives you access to records that may not be online yet. Both options are free and open to any member of the public.

Cities in Hampshire County

Hampshire County does not have any cities that meet the population threshold for a dedicated page on this site. The largest communities in the county are Northampton, Amherst, Easthampton, and Belchertown. Each of these towns has its own police department that can help with sex offender registry lookups. Use the SORB online portal to search for offenders in any Hampshire County town by name or zip code.

Nearby Counties

Hampshire County borders several other Massachusetts counties, each with their own sex offender registry pages and resources.