Sex offender set for Monday release
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Thomas Degraff, whom Vermont State Police call a high-risk sex offender, is expected to be released Monday. |
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By Cristina Kumka Staff Writer - Published: March 6, 2009
A high-risk repeat sex offender with family ties to Proctor is scheduled to be released from the Rutland jail Monday after serving his maximum sentence and police are asking town residents to get to know his face for the sake of their own children.
Thomas Degraff, 45, who has spent more than 10 years behind bars for committing multiple lewd acts against children in Vermont, will be living in Whitehall, N.Y., but has a wife in Proctor and it's likely he'll be spending time there, authorities said Thursday.
"This guy is not wanted by anybody," said Rutland County Sheriff Stephen Benard. "We feel he is high risk and we're letting residents know so nobody is surprised when he shows up."
This weekend, deputies from the county Sheriff's Department will begin distributing Degraff's photo and information on his criminal past to residents who live in the area of Meadow Street where Degraff's wife lives, Benard said.
Degraff has been behind bars since 1998 — with the exception of a short period of time in 2004 when he was on furlough — after being convicted of two charges of lewd and lascivious conduct with a child, resisting arrest, driving under the influence and other offenses dating back to the early 1990s, according to Michael O'Malley, district manager of Rutland Probation and Parole.
Degraff also has a record in New York, O'Malley said.
Although there's no telling if Degraff will commit another offense, he did not complete sex offender treatment offered to him while in jail — an option that could have shortened his jail sentence, according to Lt. David Notte of the Vermont State Police.
The lack of treatment, combined with the severity of the crimes Degraff committed against children he didn't know, means there's a high probability he'll offend again, authorities said.
Police cannot restrict Degraff's travel because he did the time for the crimes committed, police said.
But, according to Notte, "we want parents to know that if they see him, they have to do their part in knowing where their kids are at all times."
To keep track of Degraff when he is out of state and out of custody, his face and information will be posted on the Vermont Sex Offender Registry, a listing of less than 20 percent of all Vermont sex offenders, according to the registry's Program Coordinator Sheri Englert.
Not all sex offenders are posted, according to Englert, because they have to meet certain criteria to be eligible for posting, including the likelihood of recidivism.
Degraff is required to notify police in New York of his residence within 10 days of his release so his image can be recorded on that state's registry as well, Notte said.
"If I'm a parent, I would like to know that because my kid could potentially be a victim," he said.
Dick Norris, chairman of the Proctor Select Board, said town officials and police "went as far as they could."
"Fliers will go home with kids, but beyond that, you get into an infringement on their rights," Norris said, referring to released offenders.
Degraff is described by police as a white male, 5 feet 11 inches tall, 220 pounds, with gray hair and blue eyes.
The Vermont Sex Offender Registry can be found at http://www.dps.state.vt.us/cjs/s_registry.htm
cristina.kumka@rutlandherald.com
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