Wheatfield Town Board to notify residents about high-risk sex offenders

by Ralph Schwarz
Niagara Wheatfield Tribune, June 24, 2004

The recent arrival of two high-risk sex offenders into residential neighborhoods within the town boundary lines have prompted the Wheatfield Town Board to take action to protect its residents.

During the June 14 work session, the Town Board unanimously approved a resolution that will require a written notice mailed to all town residents who live within a 1.5-mile radius of a registered offender’s residence. The town will send the notice to the affected residents as soon as it receives notification from government authorities.

“Parents have a right to know,” Demler said during a press conference held June 18 in his office. “They have the right to take extra care when it comes to their children, while neighborhoods should at least understand what’s going on nearby as children go to school or play in our local playgrounds.”

According to Demler, two convicted sex offenders recently moved into the boundaries of the Starpoint and Niagara Wheatfield school districts.

“Two weeks ago, my wife and I received by mail a notice from the Starpoint School District that a Level 3 sex offender had moved in the area,” the father of three said. “We both appreciated the notice as it made us aware of any potential dangers posed on all children.”

During the same period, another Level 3 sex offender moved into the hamlet of Bergholz. Although local law enforcement agencies notified the Niagara Wheatfield School District as soon as they received notification by the Division of Criminal Justice as required under New York state’s interpretation of Megan’s Law and the New York State Sex Offenders Registration Act, the school district did not inform district families or the town of Wheatfield.

“The Sheriff’s Department did its due diligence by notifying the school districts,” Demler said. “This process at the Niagara Wheatfield school level seriously broke down, causing much panic and lack of communication in our neighborhoods.”

Megan’s Law

Megan's Law arms the public with certain information on the whereabouts of dangerous sex offenders to help families to may protect themselves and their children. The law, which is not intended to punish the offender and specifically prohibits using the information to harass or commit any crime against said offender, authorizes local law enforcement to notify the public about high-risk and serious sex offenders who reside or are employed in the community. It does, however, not explicitly require institutions, like school districts, to forward the information to its residents.

“My staff and I inquired about the rule governing the notification process for the state’s Megan’s Law and found, much to our surprise, there is no notification process,” Demler said.

Under the Sex Offenders Registration Act, local law enforcement agencies have the discretion to notify any "entities with vulnerable populations" concerning moderate risk (Level 2) and high risk (Level 3) offenders. The state also provides public access, regardless of risk level, through a 900 telephone line and monthly publishes a subdirectory of Level 3 offenders that is distributed to local law enforcement agencies, which then make it available to the public. The subdirectory is also available on the Division of Criminal Justice Web site www.criminaljustice.state.ny.us.

Pro-Active Approach

Since New York state does not mandate organizations other than local law enforcement agencies to notify the public living within 1.5 miles from a high-risk sex offender, the Town Board considered it as necessary rather to take a pro-active approach than wait from the state Senate and Assembly to amend Megan’s Law to give a clear information on how to distribute this information.

“We all know how slow the state of New York can be,” said Demler, who also called upon the state legislature to enforce the 1.5-mile rule and disallow a high-risk offender to move within that range of either a public or a parochial school. “We as a town are not simply going to wait for the state to take action. That’s why we adopted a resolution requiring the written and mailed notice to all residents – not just the ones with children – who live within a 1.5-mile radius of an offender’s residence when in fact the town is notified by the Sheriff’s Department, as per guidelines set forth by Megan’s Law.”

Demler added that the resolution will restore the residents’ confidence into the local government and also make up for the missed action by the Niagara Wheatfield School District.

“You’re not comfortable living near a Level 3 sex offender, no matter what,” he said. “At least, there is some confidence there when the government, meaning the school district takes the time to let you know what to look out for.

“But when you are not made aware of it, it complicates the whole process because people are saying ‘how many others are there we don’t know about because nobody was notified.’ There were a lot of issues unnecessarily brought up because they just didn’t simply take the option to notify. I think it’s an obligation of the schools to notify the families in the area. If they don’t, we will.”