Lewes Delaware Sex Offender Registry

Lewes residents can search for registered sex offenders in the city using the Delaware Sex Offender Central Registry, the state's official database run by the Delaware State Police. With 31 registered sex offenders listed in Lewes as of April 2026, the registry lets you search by name, address, or zip code and sign up for email alerts when an offender registers near you. This page covers how to use the registry, where Lewes residents go to register, what role Delaware State Police Troop 7 plays in the coastal area, and what local public safety resources are available.

Search Lewes Sex Offenders Online

The Delaware Sex Offender Central Registry is the first place to look when searching for sex offenders in Lewes. The State Bureau of Identification, a unit of the Delaware State Police, manages the site. It costs nothing to use. No account or login is needed. You can search by name, by city, or by street address with a set radius. Type "Lewes" into the city field and the results will show all registered offenders who have listed a Lewes address. The site also has an interactive map that pins offender locations, which works well for checking a specific neighborhood or street.

Only Tier II and Tier III sex offenders are visible to the public through the registry portal. Tier I, the low-risk level, is restricted to law enforcement use only. This is set by state law and cannot be worked around. The database updates nightly. Because Lewes sex offenders must report any move or address change within 3 business days, the registry stays reasonably current. Each result shows the offender's name, photo, address, offense type, and tier level. You can sign up for free email alerts through the portal to get notified when a new sex offender registers in your zip code or when an existing registrant's information changes.

For a search that goes beyond Delaware, the National Sex Offender Public Website pulls registry data from all 50 states. It is run by the U.S. Department of Justice and Delaware participates in it. Use it when you want to check whether someone who has recently moved to Lewes from another state carries a prior sex offense record. The search is free and open to anyone.

Delaware State Police Troop 7 in Lewes

Delaware State Police Troop 7 is based in Lewes and serves the coastal Sussex County area. The troop covers a wide stretch of coastal Delaware, including the beaches and resort communities that draw large seasonal populations. That geographic footprint makes sex offender compliance monitoring a meaningful part of the workload for Troop 7 investigators. When registrants in the coastal area miss verification deadlines or move without updating their records, Troop 7 takes the lead on locating those individuals and bringing them back into compliance.

The Delaware State Police retirement announcement for Major Sean E. Moriarty provides background on Troop 7 leadership and the scope of the troop's responsibilities in the coastal Sussex County region. Major Moriarty oversaw Troop 7 operations, which included criminal investigations units handling sex offender compliance. Troop 7's commander oversees the full range of criminal investigations in the coastal area, including cases where registered sex offenders have failed to meet their reporting obligations.

The screenshot below links to the Delaware State Police announcement about Troop 7 leadership, which shows the structure and scope of the coastal troop serving Lewes and the surrounding Sussex County coast.

Troop 7 in Lewes is the front-line Delaware State Police presence for sex offender monitoring across coastal Sussex County.

Sex Offender Registration for Lewes Residents

Lewes is in Sussex County, so sex offender registration takes place at the State Bureau of Identification office at 546 S. Bedford Street in Georgetown, Delaware. That office is the designated registration site for all of Sussex County, including the coastal communities along the shore. The SOAR unit hours page on the Delaware State Police website lists current operating schedules. The Georgetown office is open Monday through Thursday from 8:30 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. A lunch break runs from 11:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The office is closed on Fridays. Cash is not accepted at this location. Bring another form of payment.

Lewes residents with a prior sex offense conviction who are new to Delaware must register within 3 business days of setting up residence in the city. This rule covers people coming from other Delaware towns as well as those arriving from other states. If you are visiting Delaware for 7 or more days in a row, or for 30 or more cumulative days in a calendar year, you must also register within 3 business days of your arrival date. These are not optional deadlines. Missing the 3-day window is a Class G felony under 11 Del. C. § 4120. For questions about registration, call the State Bureau of Identification SOAR unit at (302) 739-5882.

The Georgetown SBI office is about 20 miles west of Lewes. That distance is worth planning for, especially for registrants who must appear on a fixed schedule. Tier III registrants verify every 90 days. Tier II registrants verify every 6 months. At each check-in, fingerprints and a current photo are taken. Any change to a phone number, email address, internet username, vehicle, or employer must be reported within 3 business days of that change occurring.

Sex Offenders in Lewes

As of April 2026, City-Data reports 31 registered sex offenders in Lewes. That count reflects people who have listed a Lewes address as their primary residence with the Delaware State Police. The number can shift as registrants move, complete their registration term, or have their tier status changed. Not all 31 show up in public searches. Tier I offenders are not visible in the online portal. Only those classified as Tier II or Tier III appear when you search the registry by city.

The screenshot below links to the City-Data sex offender statistics page for Lewes, which tracks registered sex offender counts and provides a breakdown of offense types in the city.

City-Data draws its Lewes sex offender counts from Delaware's public registry, which is updated nightly by the State Bureau of Identification.

For context, Georgetown, the Sussex County seat, has 103 registered sex offenders according to City-Data's Georgetown page. Georgetown's count is higher, in part because it is the county seat and has a larger resident population. Lewes, as a smaller coastal city, has a lower total but the same state registration rules apply to every registrant regardless of location. Sussex County as a whole carries 23 homeless registrants, which is 19.2% of the statewide total for homeless sex offenders, according to research published in the National Library of Medicine.

Wanted Sex Offenders and Public Safety in Lewes

Delaware State Police have actively sought public help to locate non-compliant sex offenders in the Lewes area. The Town Square Delaware report on a Delaware State Police public assistance request shows how DSP reaches out to the community when a wanted subject is being sought in the coastal Sussex County region. These cases often involve registrants who have missed verification deadlines, moved without updating their address, or otherwise failed to meet their registration obligations under state law.

The screenshot below links to the Town Square Delaware article, which covers a case where Delaware State Police sought public assistance to locate a wanted sex offender in the Lewes area.

DSP regularly posts wanted sex offender notices at dsp.delaware.gov, including cases from coastal Sussex County served by Troop 7 in Lewes.

If you have information about a sex offender in Lewes who may be out of compliance, there are several ways to report it. Call the State Bureau of Identification SOAR unit at (302) 739-5882. You can also contact Delaware Crime Stoppers at 1-800-TIP-3333. To send a text tip, text the word "DSP" to 274637. Anonymous tips are also accepted through the Delaware Sex Offender Central Registry website directly. All tips are taken seriously and you do not have to give your name to submit one.

Sex Offender Law and Notifications in Lewes

Delaware's sex offender registration law is set out in Title 11, Section 4120 of the Delaware Code. The statute requires the Delaware State Police to maintain a public online registry of Tier II and Tier III sex offenders. It also sets registration lengths, verification schedules, and penalties for non-compliance. Failure to register is a Class G felony. The law applies to everyone in Delaware, including Lewes residents, visitors who stay long enough to trigger the rule, and people who work or go to school in the state.

Delaware uses three tiers to classify registered sex offenders. Tier I is the low-risk level. Tier I offenders register for 15 years and verify once a year. Their records are not public. Tier II is the moderate-risk level. Those registrants stay on the list for 25 years and verify every 6 months. Schools and daycare centers near a Tier II offender's address get notified when that person lives, works, or attends school nearby. Tier III is the high-risk level. Tier III offenders register for life and verify every 90 days. When a Tier III sex offender moves into a Lewes neighborhood, the state is required to notify nearby residents directly. That is the most intensive level of community notification in the system.

In 2023, Delaware passed Senate Bill 66, which changed how schools handle sex offender notification requirements. Schools no longer keep physical binders of sex offender notices. Instead, they must post the registry URL on their website and provide parents and staff with information about how to sign up for community notifications. Schools without a website must send this information in writing each year. The idea was to push notification to law enforcement agencies, which are better positioned to keep that information current, rather than leaving it to school staff to maintain.

Lewes residents who want ongoing updates can sign up for free email alerts through the sex offender registry. Alerts go out when a new offender registers in your zip code or when an existing registrant's address or status changes. This is one of the most direct ways to stay informed about changes in the Lewes sex offender registry without checking the site manually.

Nearby Cities and County Resources

Lewes is in Sussex County. The Sussex County page covers the Georgetown SBI registration office, the Sussex County court system in Georgetown, and other law enforcement contacts for sex offender monitoring across the county. For other nearby cities with their own registry pages, see the links below.