Sexually Violent Predator Notifications

SVP Definition

A Sexually Violent Predator (SVP) is defined under Colorado Revised Statutes 18-3-414.5. According to research, the SVP assessment indicates that designated SVPs are more likely to commit a new sex or violent crime post-release. SVPs are subject to community notification under CRS 16-13-901 and must register with law enforcement quarterly for life.

How SVP is Determined

SVP designation is determined in two ways:

1. 1.
   Assessment and Court Finding: A risk assessment is conducted by probation/DOC staff and an approved evaluator. If criteria are met, the court or parole board makes a finding designating the offender as an SVP.
2. 2.
   Interstate Equivalency: An offender moves to Colorado from another jurisdiction where they were ranked as the highest risk/registration level, and the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) makes the equivalency finding.

Assessment Criteria

An offender must meet all of the following criteria before undergoing the SVP assessment:

• Must be age 18 or older at the time of the offense (or tried as an adult)
• Offense committed on or after July 1, 1997
• Conviction on or after July 1, 1999
• Qualifying crime: Sexual Assault, Unlawful Sexual Contact, Sexual Assault on a Child, or Sexual Assault on a Child in a Position of Trust (including attempts, solicitations, and conspiracies)
• Victim was a stranger or a person with whom the offender established a relationship primarily for the purpose of sexual victimization

Talking to Your Children

• Avoid scary details. Use language that is honest and age-appropriate.
• Teach your children not to visit the offender's home or yard, but also not to harass them.
• Teach your children to tell a safe adult if anyone acts inappropriately towards them — including being overly friendly, threatening, or not respecting their boundaries.

Child Abuse Prevention

• Pay attention to your child's thoughts and feelings
• Role play with your child: act out scenarios of dangerous situations and teach them how to respond
• Avoid high-risk situations and be observant of your surroundings
• Teach correct names for body parts
• Teach children that adults are not always right
• Teach the importance of honesty and the danger of keeping secrets

Personal Space

• Makes others uncomfortable by ignoring social, emotional, or physical boundaries or limits
• Refuses to let a child set any of his or her own limits; uses teasing or belittling language to keep a child from setting a limit
• Insists on hugging, touching, kissing, tickling, wrestling with, or holding a child even when the child does not want this contact
• Frequently walks in on children or teens in the bathroom

Relationships with Children

• Turns to a child for emotional or physical comfort by sharing personal or private information normally shared with adults
• Has secret interactions with teens or children (e.g., games, sharing drugs, alcohol, or sexual material) or spends excessive time emailing, text messaging, or calling children or youth
• Insists on or manages to spend uninterrupted time alone with a child
• Seems "too good to be true" — frequently babysits different children for free; takes children on special outings alone; buys children gifts or gives them money for no apparent reason
• Allows children or teens to consistently get away with inappropriate behaviors

Sexual Conversation or Behavior

• Frequently points out sexual images or tells dirty or suggestive jokes with children present
• Exposes a child to adult sexual interactions or images without apparent concern
• Is overly interested in the sexuality of a particular child or teen (e.g., talks repeatedly about the child's developing body or interferes with normal teen dating)