Neighborhood on notice: Released sex offender is about to move in!



RACINE (WITI) -- A neighborhood on notice! A sex offender is about to be released into a Racine neighborhood.

Timothy Smith will turn 33 years old on May 20th.

On May 19th, a sex offender release notification meeting was held -- as Smith is set to move into a home in the 1400 block of Washington Avenue on or before May 27th.

Smith has a 2001 conviction for second degree sexual assault of a child, and third degree sexual assault.

He was convicted in 1996 of an aggravated sexual assault in Texas.

Smith was in prison for several years -- and will be on supervised release.

He is required to wear a GPS monitoring device -- and must register on the Wisconsin Sex Offender Registry for life.

"We`ve been here now maybe 15 years and we`ve gone through various phases. We're trying to get the neighborhood upgraded," neighbor Linea Anthony said.

Anthony says having another sex offender placed in the neighborhood is a step backwards.

"I understand that these folks are between a rock and a hard place -- and that is a social issue that we do have to deal with. But on the other hand, we are still trying to upgrade the area," Anthony said.

Anthony attended Monday evening's sex offender release notification meeting.

"We just hope that they gain an awareness of the individual," Racine Police Sgt. Jessie Metoyer said.

Wally Melnyk owns apartments and lives a few doors down from where Smith will be placed.

He says he isn't concerned.

"I don`t have any problems with them because most of them have a PO that keeps an eye on them," Melnyk said.

Melnyk is keenly aware of the situation in the neighborhood, as two registered sex offenders are his current tenants.

"It works out great because they can`t drink. They can`t go out. They can`t party. They can`t have nothing," Melnyk said.

Venice Bass has some concern -- as he had a young son, and he just opened a ministry nearby.

"When (my son's) here, he`s inside with me just because I do know that it is like that you know, and you can`t stop it because they already got it set up where they live in this area. So, you have to be safe," Bass said.

Sgt. Metoyer says Monday evening's meeting was meant to get neighbors prepared for Smith's arrival.

"This way all the community members will be aware of who he is, what his rules are and if they see something that doesn`t look right, they can call us right away," Sgt. Metoyer said.

There are 138 total sex offenders living in the same zip code as where Smith will be placed -- but that includes the Racine County Jail.