12-7-2014 New York:ALBANY, New York — The state's placement of six convicted sex offenders at adjoining group homes for the disabled in suburban Buffalo a year ago upset neighbors to the point that many marched in protest.
Now their assemblyman is suing his own government for an explanation why the men are living in a residential neighborhood near a park frequented by children.
Assemblyman Michael Kearns said he's been unable to get sufficient answers personally or formally under New York's Freedom of Information Law, leading to the lawsuit.
"We have a right to know why the placements are happening," Kearns said. "Why did you move them to a neighborhood near a park and what are the policy decisions to support that?"
The Office for People with Developmental Disabilities told Kearns the men were transferred last December from a Rochester institution that was closing as part of the statewide plan to move people from institutions to community-based programs.
The OPWDD said its clients have mental or other developmental disabilities, while declining to disclose individual clinical records considered confidential. People getting its services account for "a very small fraction (0.29 percent)" of New York's more than 36,000 registered sex offenders, spokeswoman Jennifer O'Sullivan told The Associated Press.
OPWDD ensures compliance with the community notification requirements for sex offenders, O'Sullivan said.
West Seneca's town website displays the photographs of 36 sex offenders, six with addresses at the group homes. They also generically list their victims: young girls in four cases, boys in two.
Kristine Pittner, who lives a few blocks away, said about 300 people marched in protest last February after they learned about the men. Some smaller marches have followed, as well as signs erected on lawns.
There's a wooded area with hiking and running trails that backs up to the group homes, and girls' softball fields nearby. Some parents have told their children to avoid the park.
"We're not getting out our pitchforks and running them out," Pittner said. "That's not our mission at all. It's wanting answers and how this was thought through, and whether it was without regard to the children in the community who are kind of put in harm's way."
Their questions include whether placements are allowed near a playground, the precise security precautions in effect, whether any of the men were released early because the Rochester institution was closing, whether other sex offenders will follow and why the residents and community weren't notified.
Kearns said the police had been notified, though he was unaware of any other local officials who were. Calls to West Seneca Police Chief Daniel Denz were not returned.
This community has been supportive for years of homes for the disabled, Kearns said, but the silence and surprise placements in this case may make other communities more cautious about welcoming them.
The two group homes are run by the nonprofit Community Services for the Developmentally Disabled.
Executive Director Mark Foley said the homes are owned by the state, staffed by his group, and the number of residents has dropped from eight to six with two transferred elsewhere. There have been no crimes or serious incidents since they moved in last year, he said.
"The only time they're not being watched, eyes-on supervision is the term we use, is when they're alone in their bedroom," Foley said. Chimes go off when a door or window is opened. One resident walked away from the yard, down the road and into the trees after becoming upset because neighbors had been calling him names, and police were called and brought him back, he said.
Foley acknowledged they've had many 911 calls to police, including automatic calls from one resident who liked to pull the fire alarm for attention and who has been transferred.
"We want to find alternate housing for them elsewhere, somewhere there are fewer neighbors," he said. They're waiting for an answer from the state. The disabilities are lifelong, but the individuals can learn, grow and become better people, and to do that they need to be in a normal living situation and not an institution," he said. ..Source.. by MICHAEL VIRTANEN
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