Sex offenders choose Lewiston as home

LEWISTON – Lewiston residents learned last week that their city is home to more registered sex offenders than any other municipality in Maine.

Now, they have been advised that many of the 48 offenders in their midst are regarded by state officials as especially dangerous.

“Lewiston does have a high rate of what we would describe as high-risk offenders,” said Denise Lord, associate director of the Department of Corrections.

Lord noted, however, that the state has little control over where sex offenders go when they get out of prison.

“There are no requirements from us on where the offender lives,” she said. “They get to choose.”

According to September figures, Lewiston had 48 registered sex offenders and Portland, with roughly twice the population, had 39.

“It surprises me. The percentages are way out of whack,” said Paul Landry, a local parent. “Anyone that has a family, anyone who has kids, is going to be concerned about this.”

Under current law, any adult convicted of a sex crime – or a juvenile convicted as an adult – must register with the state as a sex offender.

Lord indicated that factors beyond the control of corrections or police officials may contribute to the relatively high number of sex offenders in Lewiston.

“There is more affordable housing and there are certainly services available in Lewiston,” Lord said. Simply put, she said, it’s cheaper for someone released from prison to live in Lewiston than in a bigger city like Portland.

Lewiston also has homeless shelters that are rarely filled, officials said.

At least two Lewiston shelters offer space to sex offenders, who usually stay until they can line up a place of their own.

Corrections officials say they prefer to see sex offenders take up residence in a large city with a strong law enforcement presence. Officials deny that offenders are steered to any particular city.

“We don’t actually say, ‘You should live in Lewiston or you should live in Augusta or Portland,'” Lord said, noting that it does not matter where the sex offender is from or where the crime was committed.

The Lewiston Police Department is notified when a sexual offender moves here.

“Officers on the beat become aware of this person in the community and they keep their eyes out,” said Sgt. Michael McGonagle, who pointed out that the city is also home to convicted drug dealers, murderers, robbers and thieves.

“There are many criminals in the city other than sex offenders who need to be watched,” McGonagle said. “It’s a matter of our routine.”