Web site allowing lookup of New York residents with concealed weapons permits has been shut down

A website listing pistol permit owners in New York state has sparked a debate about constitutional rights, public information and privacy.

Any New Yorker interested in knowing if a neighbor has a pistol permit may check online at www.whospackingny.com, a recently anonymously launched website.
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In New York, the Pistol Permit Bureau, established in 1936, has records of every legal handgun transaction in the state, according to state police website. Current ownership and the legality of a person's possession of the weapon can be determined, the site said, and at the end of 2006, information on 1,200,980 firearms was on file.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sex_offender_registration

Additional restrictions beyond public notice

Sex offenders on parole or probation are generally subject the same restrictions as other parolees and probationers.

Sex offenders who have completed probation or parole may also be subject to restrictions above and beyond those of most felons. In some jurisdictions they cannot live within a certain distance of places children or families gather. Such places are usually schools, churches, and parks. It could also include public venues (stadiums), airports, apartments, malls, stores, shopping centers, and certain neighborhoods.

Some states have Civil Commitment laws, which allow very-high-risk sex offenders to be returned to prison or forced to live under very heavy supervision after the end of their normal sentences. See also: Child Sex Offender penalties.

The State of Missouri now restricts the activities of registered sex offenders on Halloween, requiring them to avoid Halloween-related contact with children and remain at their registered home address from 5PM to 10:30PM, unless they are required to work that evening. Regardless of whether they are at work, offenders must extinguish all outside residential lighting and post a sign stating, "No candy or treats at this residence."<37>

Registration and homelessness

People who are registered in offender databases are usually required to notify the government when they change their place of residence. This notification requirement is problematic in cases where the registered offender is homeless.

The state of Washington is among those that have special provisions in their registration code covering homeless offenders, but not all states have such provisions. A November 2006 Maryland Court of Appeals ruling exempts homeless persons from that state's registration requirements, which has prompted a drive to compose new laws covering this contingency.

News reports in 2007 revealed that some registered sex offenders are living outside or under the Julia Tuttle Causeway in Miami, Florida because Miami-Dade County ordinances, which are more restrictive than Florida's state laws, made it virtually impossible for them to find housing. <3><4><5> The colony at the causeway grew to as many as 140 registrants living there as of July 2009, but eventually became a political embarrassment and was disbanded in April 2010, with the residents moved into acceptable housing in the area.