By Brian Zanzonico and Dana Williams
The bill, cosponsored by Assemblymen Rob Walker, Bob Barra and Tom McKevitt, would prevent sex offenders from taking up residence in hotels and motels within 3,000 feet of schools, playgrounds, day care facilities, houses of worship or senior care facilities.
Standing before a podium adorned with an image of the house from the horror film "Psycho" and the message "No sex offenders/No Bates-like motels," Alfano, Walker, school officials and parents gathered outside the Capri Motor Inn in West Hempstead in the rain on May 18 to release details of the bill. The motel is two blocks from the West Hempstead School District's George Washington School and just up the road from Franklin Square's John Street School.
Alfano said the presence of sex offenders in motels near schools "places a clear and present danger to children." He added, "This is common-sense legislation."
According to the New York State Sex Offender Registry, the Capri is now home to Donald Lockwood and James McKee. Lockwood, 61, was convicted in 2003 of sexually abusing a 51-year-old woman. According to the registry, he physically overpowered the woman, threatened her life and beat her with his fists and a club. He served time in state prison, and is categorized as a Level Two sex offender, meaning he poses less of a threat to repeat a similar crime than would a Level Three offender.
McKee, 48, is a Level Three offender who was convicted in April of 2005 of sexually abusing two boys, ages 6 and 7. According to the registry, McKee knew the victims, and was guilty of sexual contact and deviate sexual intercourse. He served two years.
A Capri office manager who identified himself only as George said that the two moved out about three weeks ago.
"They shouldn't be out in the first place," said Franklin Square parent Liz Dilemme. "They'll do it again. There's not enough time [in prison] for people like that to do."
Dr. Tara Keenan-Thomson, executive director of the Nassau County chapter of the New York Civil Liberties Union, said such a bill is not without its problems. She cited what has happened in Iowa, where sex offenders convicted of crimes involving children are barred from living within 2,000 feet of a school or day care center. Since the law was enacted in September of 2006, many registered sex offenders have gone missing.
"If you restrict people from living in entire localities by making restrictions too stringent, you turn them away from treatment and monitoring and drive them underground and away from rehabilitation, increasing the likelihood of reoffending," Keenan-Thomson told the Herald. "[The bill] seems like it should help, but can actually exacerbate the situation."
Rosalie Norton, president of the West Hempstead Civic Association, said that when protecting children is the goal, nothing else matters. "It at least makes some attempt to focus on this sex offender issue, and focusing on that issue brings it out in front of everyone, so they realize that they have to get on board to push and stress this," Norton said of the bill. "We have to be more concerned about the children being victimized than we are about the people who perpetuate these crimes."
Franklin Square parents have been especially sensitive to the presence of sex offenders. They learned from a local newspaper report in December 2005 that a Level Two sex offender had moved to 3rd Avenue in Franklin Square, and they wondered why the Franklin Square School District failed to notify the community about it, which is common practice among neighboring districts. Then-Superintendent Tim Lafferty and the school board came under fire for not informing parents, and Lafferty's successor, Dr. Tom Dolan, said the onus should be on local law enforcement, not school districts, to spread the word. "The school district has had a criminal justice responsibility pushed on us," Dolan said. "We shouldn't be the ones informing neighbors about this."
Since the Capri is not in the Franklin Square School District, school officials were never told by authorities about the two sex offenders living there, and John Street School parents were left in the dark as well. Said John Street School PTA President Veronica Goldberg, "The notification process has not worked for us. Don't put this on the school districts."
Alfano was expected to call Gov. Eliot Spitzer's office after press time, seeking his endorsement.
Matthew McGevna contributed to this story. Comments about it? FSeditor@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 240.
