Andra Byrd, 63, was arrested by Washoe County Sheriff’s Office Patrol Deputies for being a non-compliant sex offender on February 9, 2022, after responding to a disturbance at the Nevada CARES Campus. Byrd is a Tier III sex offender previously convicted in both Reno, Nevada and Houston, Texas for sexual assault.
Deputies were first called to the emergency shelter at about 7:45 p.m. Wednesday evening on a report of a resident causing a disturbance. Deputies made contact with the resident, identified as Byrd. During a routine records check at the scene deputies learned Byrd was a sex offender, and Byrd was not in compliance. Detectives with the Regional Sex Offender Notification Unit (RSONU) investigated and verified Byrd was no longer living at his registered address, and he had been living at the CARES Campus off and on since November. Byrd is charged with one felony count of being a sex offender who failed his required verification.
The RSONU was formed in 1998 to be in compliance with federal law passed in 1997. At that time Washoe County, the City of Sparks and the City of Reno all agreed there was a need for coordination in law enforcement in the tracking, monitoring, investigation, public notification, and the arrest and prosecution of non-compliant sex offenders. The RSONU operates as a regional, multi-jurisdictional and collaborative entity to carry out the requirements of community notifications as set forth in Chapter 179D of the Nevada Revised Statutes. The RSONU’s jurisdictional boundaries encompass all of Washoe County, including the Cities of Reno and Sparks.
In addition to the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office investigator, investigators from RPD and SPD are sworn in as Deputies with the WCSO in order to carry out the mission of the Unit. The WCSO also provides an Administrative Office Support Specialist to help with clerical functions.
Currently, there are about 1400 registered sex offenders in the Reno, Sparks and Washoe County area. Each of the three investigators are assigned over 400 offenders to monitor.
The RSONU is open Monday through Friday, 7am to 5pm, excluding holidays, and can be reached at 775-325-6483.
