Sec. 54-257. Registry. Suspension of registration. Verification of address. Retake of photographic image. Change of name.
Sec. 54-257. Registry. Suspension of registration. Verification of address. Retake of photographic image. Change of name. (a) The Department of Public Safety
shall, not later than January 1, 1999, establish and maintain a registry of all persons
required to register under sections 54-251, 54-252, 54-253 and 54-254. The department
shall, in cooperation with the Office of the Chief Court Administrator, the Department
of Correction and the Psychiatric Security Review Board, develop appropriate forms
for use by agencies and individuals to report registration information, including changes
of address. Upon receipt of registration information, the department shall enter the information into the registry and notify the local police department or state police troop
having jurisdiction where the registrant resides or plans to reside. If a registrant notifies
the Department of Public Safety that such registrant is employed at, carries on a vocation
at or is a student at a trade or professional institution or institution of higher learning in
this state, the department shall notify the law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over
such institution. If a registrant reports a residence in another state, the department shall
notify the state police agency of that state or such other agency in that state that maintains
registry information, if known. The department shall also transmit all registration information, conviction data, photographic images and fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of
Investigation in such form as said bureau shall require for inclusion in a national registry.
(b) The Department of Public Safety may suspend the registration of any person
registered under section 54-251, 54-252, 54-253 or 54-254 while such person is incarcerated, under civil commitment or residing outside this state. During the period that such
registration is under suspension, the department is not required to verify the address of
the registrant pursuant to subsection (c) of this section and may withdraw the registration
information from public access. Upon the release of the registrant from incarceration
or civil commitment or resumption of residency in this state by the registrant, the department shall reinstate the registration, redistribute the registration information in accordance with subsection (a) of this section and resume verifying the address of the registrant
in accordance with subsection (c) of this section. Suspension of registration shall not
affect the date of expiration of the registration obligation of the registrant under section
54-251, 54-252 or 54-253.
(c) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, the Department of Public
Safety shall verify the address of each registrant by mailing a nonforwardable verification form to the registrant at the registrant's last reported address. Such form shall require
the registrant to sign a statement that the registrant continues to reside at the registrant's
last reported address and return the form by mail by a date which is ten days after the
date such form was mailed to the registrant. The form shall contain a statement that
failure to return the form or providing false information is a violation of section 54-251,
54-252, 54-253 or 54-254, as the case may be. Each person required to register under
section 54-251, 54-252, 54-253 or 54-254 shall have such person's address verified in
such manner every ninety days after such person's initial registration date. In the event
that a registrant fails to return the address verification form, the Department of Public
Safety shall notify the local police department or the state police troop having jurisdiction
over the registrant's last reported address, and that agency shall apply for a warrant to
be issued for the registrant's arrest under section 54-251, 54-252, 54-253 or 54-254, as
the case may be. The Department of Public Safety shall not verify the address of registrants whose last reported address was outside this state.
(d) The Department of Public Safety shall include in the registry the most recent
photographic image of each registrant taken by the department, the Department of Correction, a law enforcement agency or the Court Support Services Division of the Judicial
Department and shall retake the photographic image of each registrant at least once
every five years.
(e) Whenever the Commissioner of Public Safety receives notice from a superior
court pursuant to section 52-11 or a probate court pursuant to section 45a-99 that such
court has ordered the change of name of a person, and the department determines that
such person is listed in the registry, the department shall revise such person's registration
information accordingly.
(f) The Commissioner of Public Safety shall develop a protocol for the notification
of other state agencies, the Judicial Department and local police departments whenever
a person listed in the registry changes such person's name and notifies the commissioner
of the new name pursuant to section 54-251, 54-252, 54-253 or 54-254 or whenever the
commissioner determines pursuant to subsection (e) of this section that a person listed
in the registry has changed such person's name.
(P.A. 98-111, S. 8; P.A. 99-183, S. 8, 13; May 9 Sp. Sess. P.A. 02-7, S. 84; P.A. 03-202, S. 19; P.A. 06-187, S. 40; 06-196, S. 292.)
History: P.A. 99-183 amended Subsec. (a) to delete the Board of Parole from list of agencies cooperating with the
department in the development of forms to report registration information, added new Subsec. (b) re suspension of registration while a person is incarcerated, under civil commitment or residing out of state, redesignated former Subsec. (b) as
Subsec. (c) and amended said Subsec. to add exception to address verification requirement when registration is suspended
under Subsec. (b), to add reference to Sec. 54-253 in provision requiring the form to contain a statement that failure to
return the form or providing false information is a violation of the specified statutes, to delete provision establishing an
affirmative defense in a prosecution for failure to return the address verification form and to make technical changes for
purposes of gender neutrality, and added Subsec. (d) to require the retaking of the photographic image of each registrant
at least once every five years, effective July 1, 1999; May 9 Sp. Sess. P.A. 02-7 amended Subsec. (a) to add provision that
if a registrant notifies the department that such registrant is employed at, carries on a vocation at or is a student at a trade
or professional institution or institution of higher learning in this state, the department shall notify the law enforcement
agency with jurisdiction over such institution and amended Subsec. (c) to require verification of address of a person required
to register under Sec. 54-251 or 54-254 "every ninety days after such person's initial registration date" rather than "annually
on the anniversary of such person's initial registration date" and to require verification of address of a person required to
register under Sec. 54-253 "every ninety days after such person's initial registration date" rather than "either annually on
the anniversary of such person's initial registration date or every ninety days after such person's initial registration date
depending upon whether, after such initial registration, such person is subject to the requirements of section 54-251 or
section 54-252, respectively", effective August 15, 2002; P.A. 03-202 added Subsec. (e) re revision of registration information upon notice of court ordered change of name; P.A. 06-187 amended Subsec. (d) to require department to include in
registry most recent photographic image of each registrant taken by department, Department of Correction, law enforcement
agency or Court Support Services Division and added Subsec. (f) re development of protocol for notification of other state
agencies, Judicial Department and local police departments whenever commissioner is notified or determines that person
listed in the registry has changed such person's name, effective July 1, 2006; P.A. 06-196 changed effective date of P.A.
06-187, S. 40 from July 1, 2006, to October 1, 2006, effective June 7, 2006.
Because statute imposes strict liability, actual notice to the defendant and mens rea are not elements of the offense and
therefore trial court's instructions were not constitutionally deficient. 286 C. 191.