East Hampton, Montauk 2018 Halloween Sex Offender Safety Map

EAST HAMPTON, NY — Before kids go out trick or treating on Halloween, fall is a good time to take an inventory of who is living in your neighborhood. East Hampton and Montauk currently have eight registered sex offenders as of October, 2018, according to the New York State Sex Offender Registry.

Markers on the map represent addresses of offenders convicted of sex crimes. Click on the markers to learn more information about the offender's name, age and offense. The state's registry does not include information on Level 1 sex offenders, who are considered to have a low risk of a repeat offense.

More than half of rape/sexual assault incidents happen within a mile of the victim's home, according to the United States Department of Justice. About 75 percent of victims know their attacker and 45 percent of victims are under 12-years-old.

The New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services maintains the registry and updates information regularly, but information can change quickly. Information is often provided by offenders themselves as required by law.

According to Operation Halloween, during the annual Halloween celebration, the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision imposes special conditions on sex offenders under its supervision. These special conditions are a proactive measure designed to protect New York's children and the community during trick-or-treating, the site says.

Halloween conditions require that sex offenders remain indoors at home on Halloween, not wear Halloween costumes, not open their doors to trick-or-treaters, and not have Halloween candy in their possession. Operation Halloween was implemented in 2006, the page said.

You may want to avoid trick or treating at these houses and apartments on Halloween, or merely be aware of who's living in your neighborhood during the rest of the year.

Law enforcement officials and researchers caution that the registries can play only a limited role in preventing child sexual abuse and stress that most perpetrators are known to the child. The U.S. Department of Justice, which oversees the National Sex Offender Public Website, estimates that only about 10 percent of perpetrators of child sexual abuse are strangers to the child.

The Justice Department estimates 60 percent of perpetrators are known to the child but are not family members but rather family friends, babysitters, child care providers and others, and 30 percent of child victims are abused by family members. Nearly a quarter of the abusers are under the age of 18, the department estimates.

Patch file photo.