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SLEEPY HOLLOW, N.Y. Tarrytown resident Jaime Valencia questioned Tarrytown trustees about whether sex offenders can live close to schools during a recent board meeting.
Valencia had received a letter from police informing him that a sex offender was living across the street from Winfield L. Morse Elementary at 30 Pocantico St.
This sexual offender is feets away from my son's school, Valencia said.
Valencia told trustees to "get a policy together if you can," telling them they needed to put something into place to protect children.
The offender, 64-year-old John Altman, is a Level 3 offender, meaning he has a high risk of repeat offense and a threat to public safety exists, according to the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services.
The NYSCJS sex offender database says Altman was convicted in 1993 on a non-New York State felony offense of promoting/posessing sexual performance by a child with two 17-year-olds.
Reports have indicated that Altman has moved away from Sleepy Hollow and back to White Plains. Sleepy Hollow Police Chief Gregory Camp could not officially confirm that Altman was returning to White Plains. Camp also noted that the database lists Altman under a White Plains address.
Sex offenders have 10 days within moving to notify the local division that they have changed their address.
Including Altman, Sleepy Hollow currently has four sex offenders living within the village according to a database search. This number does not include other sex offenders who may not have registered with the Sleepy Hollow Police Department yet or offenders who are involved in litigation in federal court to determine their risk level. This number also does not include Level1 sex offenders.
Camp said the Sleepy Hollow Police Department follows the Sex Offender Registration Act (Correction Law 6-C). This law requires sex offenders to register with local agencies and requires information to be sent to the public about sex offenders living in the area. Parole and probation may place restrictions on where individual sex offenders live, but the Sex Offender Registration Act does not, Camp noted.
Links to individual sex offenders registered in Sleepy Hollow plus Altman: Michael Geier, Donald McInnes, Jesus Rodriguez, John Altman.
Click here to view an interactive map of sex offenders in Sleepy Hollow.
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