As it irons out the inevitable wrinkles in the maintenance of its sex-offender registry, the state must focus on keeping the list up to date without making the offenders generalized targets of law enforcement.

The registry was established through a new law this year. A publicly posted list presents its own set of ethical concerns.

These are people who served time for their offenses and whose indefinite loss of privacy represents an add-on to their punishment. Indeed, some people were erroneously included on the initial list before the first set of revisions.

Still, lawmakers created the registry with considerable support from voters, many of them concerned that children and other family members will be at risk if sex offenders simply "blend in" with a neighborhood.

So the state is duty-bound to keep it functional.

The Wai'anae Neighborhood Board rightfully felt concerned that too many people will slip through the cracks. Its members complained vehemently that too many addresses are missing or incomplete. But members also proposed that the registry update be coordinated with the task of catching up with people with outstanding bench warrants. That approach shifts away from the original purpose of the registry.

The focus correctly should be placed on keeping the registry as complete and accurate as possible, not on compounding the burden of being on the list. The public needs to know where sex offenders released from prison are living, but care should be taken to keep from further expanding their separate and unequal treatment under the law.

It's heartening to hear that the attorney general's staff is working on ways of keeping the list updated. Clearly the county police departments lack the workforce to chase down all those who fail to file regular updates on where they are living, as the law requires.

The best strategy would be to crack down on those who flout the law — earning themselves another violation. This would do more to encourage compliance than policies that simply move offenders to the top of other law-enforcement to-do lists.

The public rightly should be vigilant in keeping neighbors informed. Let's not let this slip into vigilantism.