As a parent, I want to do everything possible to protect my daughter from any type of danger. The fact that children go missing each and every day terrifies me.

I hear and read the horror stories about children being abducted and abused, only to be found dead days later. It shocks me that some of the predators are repeat offenders or registered sex offenders that just find it necessary to continue to harm children. It makes me ill.

What really bothers me is that there are sex offenders living in our neighborhoods and most of us aren't even aware of it. Every parent should be aware of how to conduct a sex offender search so that they know who might pose a threat and where the offender resides.

We have the right to know. In 1994, Megan’s Law was signed into effect after a little girl, named Megan, was attacked and killed by a prior sex offender. No one had a clue as to the fact that a sex offender was living nearby. Now, there are specific guidelines to how, where and when sex offenders must register with local law enforcement.

By registering, their name and locations are made public information if people want to conduct a sex offender search. Until I became a parent and decided to do my own sex offender search, I had no idea that the conservative area that I lived in had such predators out there. Unfortunately, I found more than I would have even dreamed of finding.

I had been under the false impression that local authorities would go door to door and make the community aware of any new sex offenders that move into the area. However, federal laws do not require that form of action.

Instead, their names go into a database for the public to access, should they desire. Many people don’t even know that it is possible to conduct a sex offender search and don’t know of the potential dangers that could be lurking on their own streets. Some of the sexual predators don’t just seek children, they’ve offended adults as well.

By knowing how to conduct a sex offender search and where to find the information, you might be saving your own life or your child’s.

If you have access to the internet, it is incredibly easy to conduct a sex offender search. Most websites will have recent photos of the offenders, but not list their exact addresses. The sites will tell you what community they live in, what community they work in, and some states will tell you what their crime actually was.

Apparently, exact addresses aren’t given because it would violate the offenders’ privacy. I’m not even going to comment on that statement. I urge every parent, and every citizen, to be aware of the offenders that are living in your community.