NH- Sex Offender Released After Missed Deadline

4-7-2009 New Hampshire:

Officials Had Sought To Commit Man After Sentence

MANCHESTER, N.H. -- A convicted sex offender who officials wanted to keep behind bars was released from prison Monday, and officials said a glitch in the system could be to blame.

In April 2008, the Hillsborough County Attorney's Office sought to have Richard Hilton, 34, committed for up to five years following the end of his prison sentence. But the Superior Court didn't file the proper paperwork in a timely fashion, so Hilton was released.

Hilton plans to live in Manchester and is required to register with police.

Hilton and Raymond Fournier, both of whom have served their full sentences but their time in prison was extended under a law called the Sexual Violent Predators Act. If a judge determines a sex offender who has finished his sentence is likely to reoffend if not locked up, the offender can be transferred to a secure psychiatric unit in the prison for five years at a time.

Fournier's lawyers challenged his extended sentence, saying the guidelines of the Sexual Violent Predators Act indicate a judge must make that ruling within 10 days. In Fournier's case, the judge took more than 30.

The state Supreme Court agreed and Fournier's sentence was dismissed. Fournier was released from prison on Friday to Mount Vernon.

(Posted by eAdvocate)

Hilton's lawyers also challenged, saying the judge in his case also took too long, and Hilton was also set free.

"The court ordered him released and we had to release him," Department of Corrections spokesman Jeff Lyons said.

Under the Supreme Court ruling, the Department of Corrections had no choice but to let the men go, a representative said.

A spokesman for the state Supreme Court said that on Tuesday, the court will issue a directive making sure that "mandatory time limits are complied with" when it comes to committing a person as a sexually violent predator.

Other than registering with the towns where they live, there will be no monitoring.

"They've reached their maximum sentence, they've paid their debt to society and they can go on and live their lives," Lyons said.

The governor's office also weighed in, with a spokesman saying the issue should have been a priority for the courts. The spokesman said a sexual predator shouldn't be released because the courts missed a deadline, and the governor plans to work with lawmakers to draft legislation to address the situation. ..News Source.. by WMUR9