By Anthony Varriano
Ranger-Review Staff Writer
You might be under the impression that sexual and violent offenders aren’t allowed to live with children or with each other, but that’s not always the case. Sexual and violent offenders are required to register with the Sexual or Violent Offender Registry for life, updating their address periodically and whenever it changes, but the level at which they’re designated determines their residential restrictions.
Two registered sex offenders reportedly live together raising a 10-year-old girl near a public school — a living arrangement that’s been approved by Montana Probation and Parole. While one offender was recently convicted, the other has been a registered sex offender for 11 years, and both are designated as low-risk offenders.
There are three tiers of sexual and violent offenders, and only level three offenders are not allowed to live within 300 feet of schools, parks, playgrounds, daycares and other places children frequent unless sentencing orders otherwise designate at conviction.
Level three offenders tend to be sexually violent predators and must submit their address verification in person every 90 days. Level one sexual offenders are at low risk to repeat a sexual offense and must update their residential information every year, while level two offenders are described as moderately risky and must update their registration every 180 days.
Sue Drivdahl of Glendive’s Probation and Parole Office said sexual and violent offenders’ living situations are approved by both a sex offender treatment provider and the offender’s probation officer.
Since there are no sex offender treatment providers in Glendive, all 27 offenders have to travel to either North Dakota or Miles City. Alice Hougardy, a Montana Sexual Offender Treatment Association provider in Miles City, has served all of Eastern Montana since 2012, with clients from Wolf Point, Sidney, Miles City and Glendive.
“Just because someone has been designated a sex offender, that does not mean they cannot parent,” Hougardy said. “When people hear the designation ‘sex offender,’ they immediately think of the guy in the van down by the river luring children, and we know that is not the case.”
Hougardy and other offender treatment providers use a psycho-sexual evaluation to get information about offenders’ pasts, which helps them determine a risk level and whether the offender goes to prison or stays within the community. A treatment program tends to run three years, Hougardy said, and offenders have to follow program rules similar to probation, which could include being chaperoned when in the presence of children.
“There are sex offenders in every town in Montana, so people need to realize that they’re everywhere and not just concentrated in certain areas,” she said.
According to the Montana Sexual and Violent Offender Registry, there are 49 offenders living in Dawson County. Custer County is home to 63, and Richland County has 68 sexual or violent offenders within its borders.
According to Homefacts.com, Dawson County has slightly fewer sexual or violent offenders per capita than many surrounding counties, with 32.14 offenders per 10,000 residents. Wibaux County has 44.49 offenders per capita, Richland County is home to 42.16 offenders per capita, and McCone County houses 33.19 offenders per 10,000 residents. Roosevelt County has the highest concentration of offenders in the state with 70.63 per 10,000 residents.
In Glendive, there are two sexual offenders living less than a block from Whipkey Park. Three violent offenders live just west of Eyer Park on West Bell Street. Another sexual offender is within three blocks of Lloyd Square Park — right across the street from the high school.
Four sexual and/or violent offenders live within a two block radius of Lincoln Elementary School, one sexual offender is a block from Washington Middle School, while the closest violent offender to Jefferson Elementary is well north of the school but non-compliant, meaning the individual’s address verification is overdue.
Offenders with no tier designation or level one designation can petition the Court to be removed from the registry after 10 years, and level two offenders can petition after 25 years of registration.
Visit MSOTA.org for more information on sexual offender treatment and resources. The Montana sexual or violent offender registry can be accessed at http://app.doj.mt.gov/apps/svow/default.aspx.