Tonto Apache records management project

The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 (AWA) (Pub. L. 109-248, 42 U.S.C. § 16901, et seq) authorizes the Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking (SMART) to administer sex offender management grants. These grants assist states, the District of Columbia, U.S. principal territories and tribal jurisdictions in developing and/or enhancing sex offender registration and notification programs that support substantial implementation of Title I of the AWA, known as the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). SORNA was enacted to protect the public from convicted sex offenders and offenders against children by establishing a comprehensive national system for the registration of those offenders.

The Tonto Apache Tribe aims to ensure continued compliance with SORNA by addressing their challenges and deficiencies, including understaffing within the Police Department, the absence of a computerized records system, and lack of training in records management. The Tonto Apache Tribe will address these deficiencies by (1) purchasing a records management system, which will allow the police department to effectively track and capture sex offenders who are working, going to school, or passing through the area; (2) training departmental staff in the use of the system; (3) upgrading communication lines to improve speed and security of data to police headquarters; and (4) entering new and existing information into the records management system. ca/ncf