The People of the State of New York are the plaintiffs in this case. The defendant of the case is W.F.. The County Court of the City of New York in Madison County is the location where this case is being heard.
The defendant was convicted based on a guilty plea, to rape in the second degree, which is a class D felony. He was sentenced on the 5th of September, 2002 to an indeterminate period of 1 to 3 years. He is scheduled to be released to parole on the 25th of April, 2004. The court is being called upon to assess the risk of the defendant.
Defendant’s History
The defendant has a criminal history that dates back to 1989. This includes a conviction of sexual misconduct in 1993 when he was 20 years old, convictions of criminal contempt in 1993 and 2000 and criminal trespass in 2000. The most recent criminal case against the defendant involves a sexual relationship with the 13 year old daughter of his ex-girlfriend. The defendant was accused of having sex with the minor on numerous occasions from August through December in the year 2000. However, he only admitted to having sex with her on one occasion. He described their relationship as one of a father and daughter.
In February of 2003, the defendant received a disciplinary report while in prison for masturbating in front of a nurse.
Case Discussion
A Manhattan Criminal Lawyer said the Board of Examiners of Sex Offenders has provided the court with a summary of their discovery in this case and they have recommended that the defendant be labeled a level 3 risk of re-offense. This level is based on risk factor score of 145 points. The District Attorney agrees with this recommendation.
The defendant argues that his points should be lower as the board improperly scored a total of 40 points. He states that it was improper for him to be assessed with 20 points in factor number 4 because he had only admitted to a single instance of sex with the victim. He also objects to the 20 points issued in factor number 6 on the grounds that he was unaware that the victim suffered from a disability.
Factor number four is designed to reflect the fact that some offenders, especially ones who prey on young children, typically cannot control their compulsive behavior and continue to engage in sex with the same victim. A defendant that engages in sexual activity with the daughter of his girlfriend over a 20 week period falls into the 20 point category.
In regard to the argument for factor number 6, the factor is in regard to offenders who prey on those with physical helplessness or mental incapacity are a greater risk to public safety because their crimes are harder to detect and prosecute.
Court Decision
The Court has reviewed the risk assessment instrument that was used by the Board to come up with the risk factor score of 145. After reviewing the case it is found that the defendant has been correctly assessed by the Board. The defendant is considered to be a Risk level 3 or high risk sex offender.
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