Now, questions linger about why Missoula authorities didn't tell school or Ravalli County officials about the man's living situation in the first place.
Jerry Jerome Little is designated by the state as a sexually violent predator.
Little's registry form on the site said he was a Level 3 offender with a high risk to repeat a sexual offense.
Florence-Carlton School Superintendent John McGee said the district learned about Little's presence from a bus contractor.
“He was living right off the edge of school property,” McGee said. “It was probably just 10 or 15 feet off school property right behind the scoreboard.”
The district alerted its staff about the man's presence, sent home a letter to parents, and ordered its teachers to perform “age-appropriate” training about strangers to its student body. McGee said he was happy with the response from both district staff and Ravalli County officials.
“We were very fortunate to have a school resource officer who could, at a moment's notice, do what was necessary to make sure our students were protected,” McGee said. “Chuck (Gividen) handled the situation very well.”
McGee said he heard from a number of parents worried about their children.
“It was more than a concern here in the community - it was an uproar,” said Beth Lindquist, a Florence-area parent of a first-grader and a preschooler. “There were a lot of people concerned here about their children's safety.”
McGee said he also contacted law enforcement, the Ravalli County Attorney's Office and a local legislator to express his concerns that a Level 3 sexual offender could move so close to school grounds without any notification.
Kelly Norton is the Missoula juvenile probation officer assigned to Little's case.
The original court order on Little's probation did not include stipulations on where he could live following his release from Pine Hills Youth Correctional Facility in Miles City, Norton said.
Typically, a juvenile is not required to register as a sexual offender if he doesn't reoffend, Norton said. Little's was a “unique case” because he didn't have enough time to complete a sexual offenders program at Pine Hills before he turned 18.
On Wednesday, a Missoula judge changed Little's probation conditions to include a requirement he could not live within 1,500 feet of a school or day care center, nor frequent a place where children congregate.
Norton said Little has moved from Florence. Little could not be reached for comment.
The court order followed a request from the Ravalli County Attorney George Corn to the Missoula County Attorney's Office for conditions on Little's release.
“Having a Level 3 sexual offender with no conditions of release is risky in either Ravalli or Missoula counties,” Corn wrote. “Further, I recommend that Mr. Little move residences to a more secure location ASAP.”
On Thursday, Corn said he was very concerned that a Level 3 sexual offender was placed in Ravalli County without any notification.
“We could have identified where his residence was located and prevented him from living so close to a school,” Corn said. “That's just not right that a Level 3 offender doesn't have any conditions to his release. There needs to be a better system in place.”
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Jennifer wrote on Sep 12, 2008 8:08 AM: