D I S G R U N T L E D S T A T E of S H O C K

I am in a disgruntled state of shock!

I've been receiving a lot of phone calls lately from different 

government officials about my unique situation. Apparently, 

they are preparing for Mr. Smith's civil confinement trial that 

is scheduled to take place in the middle of May 2010. A 

psychiatrist has evaluated him and has deemed him to have a 

mental illness that causes him to be a sexual offender. He has 

been moved to a mental health facility near Utica, NY so he can 

start his treatment for his mental illness. The trial in May will 

be where the final decision is made by the NY Supreme Court 

about whether or not he does indeed have a mental illness. If 

they agree that he does have a mental illness that causes him to 

be a sexual offender then 1 of 2 things could happen. 

1. They could decide that, although he has a mental illness, he is 

safe to live in the public as long as he is supervised by parole. 

He might even be made to wear a GPS ankle bracelet but that is 

a pretty slim chance. Who will pay for it? 

2. They could decide that he is too dangerous to live amongst 

the public and be sent back to the mental health facility for 

further treatment.

These are the only two options that are ok with me. The third 

option is, the Judge / Jury doesn't agree with the earlier 

psychiatrist and they think he does NOT have a mental illness, 

which is totally probable. I was told that he has always received 

a "clean bill of health" for mental illness while in prison so why 

would they change it now?

3. They disagree and declare he does NOT have a mental illness 

that causes him to be a sexual offender. Then, he walks free. 

Well, almost. He still has to register as a violent sex offender, 

right?

W R O N G ! ! ! 

Since he was convicted in 1991, he does not fall under Megan's 

Law.  Megan's Law is named after seven-year-old Megan Kanka, 

a New Jersey girl who was raped and killed by a known child 

molester who had moved across the street from the family without 

their knowledge. In the wake of the tragedy, the Kankas sought to 

have local communities warned about sex offenders in the area. 

All states now have a form of Megan's Law. 

There are three levels of sex offenders under Megan's Law. 

Level 1means the court has determined there is a low risk that 

the offender will commit another sex crime.

Level 2 means the court has determined there to be a moderate 

risk of the offender committing another sex crime.

Level 3 means the court has determined there to be a high risk 

for the offender to committ another sex crime.

If a level 2 or a level 3 sex offender moves into your 

neighborhood, you will be notified, but if a level 1 offender 

moves into your neighborhood you won't be. If you want 

information about a level 1 offender, you have to go down to 

your local police station and request it. As required by law, the 

DCJS, Division of Criminal Justice System, can only provide 

information on level 2 and level 3 offenders on their website.

Since Mr. Smith was convicted before Megan's Law was passed 

he can only be made to register as a level 1 sex offender. That 

means that he could move in right next door to me and I would 

never know it. No one would. Even if I did know it, I could do 

nothing about it. There will be no restraining order against him.

I feel violated all over again!