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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Sheriff faults judge for letting sex offender out of McNeil Island lockup to settle in Spokane

David McCuistion (Spokane County Sheriff’s Office)

A high-level sex offender has been released from a state correctional facility and now lives two blocks away from Lewis and Clark High School.

During a news conference Wednesday, local law enforcement officials said they are “extremely concerned” about the release of David William McCuistion, who was deemed a sexual predator and civilly committed to McNeil Island Corrections Center in 2000.

McCuistion, 55, now lives in the 300 block of West Second Avenue.

Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich said the release is particularly concerning because McCuistion showed no signs of behavioral improvement during his 18 years at McNeil Island.

“This individual was released against the will of this community, our state attorney general, the Department of Corrections and the (Department of Social and Health Services),” Knezovich said. “This is very much a major concern for our community.”

Between 1980 and 1993, McCuistion was convicted several times for crimes including third-degree rape, attempted indecent liberties, phone harassment and second- and third-degree assault. According to the Sheriff’s Office, his victims included a 5-year-old girl and women who were strangers to him.

McCuistion was committed to McNeil Island after his most recent conviction in Clark County. The lockup houses sex criminals who have completed their prison terms but are deemed likely to attack again due to mental illness. That’s made possible by Washington’s civil-commitment law, which has faced numerous legal challenges since its passage in 1990.

One of those challenges came from McCuistion, who argued that the state was violating his constitutional rights by requiring him to engage in mental health treatment – and, by extension, admit guilt for all of his crimes.

The state Supreme Court ruled on his case in 2012, saying in a 6-3 decision that sexually violent offenders must show progress in treatment to be granted a new trial aimed at seeking their freedom.

His attorney in that case, Nancy Collins, said that although McCuistion refused to participate in treatment, he rarely had to be disciplined at McNeil Island.

“He was actually well-behaved, but he didn’t want to take part in treatment,” Collins said. “The staff who guarded him actually spoke very highly of him in court, which is unusual.”

Knezovich on Wednesday blasted the Pierce County judge who ordered McCuistion’s release, saying, “This is probably one of the most egregious things I’ve ever seen a judge do.”

In an email, however, Judge James Orlando said he’s confident in his decision.

“After five days of testimony I found that he could be released to a less restrictive placement that provided adequate community safety,” Orlando wrote.

McCuistion is ordered to wear a GPS tracking device, travel only on approved routes, participate in treatment and register as a sex offender. Additionally, he’ll be supervised by a Department of Corrections officer for two years, and a Spokane police detective will verify his address every three months.

In a 1986 report, a mental health expert described McCuistion as “sociopathic, narcissistic, distrusting (and) devoid of conscience, with a severe deficit in empathy.”

Earlier this year, the Department of Social and Health Services argued against his release, saying he “has essentially shut off any window into his internal world, refusing to interact with clinical staff members. He has not made any effort to understand the constellation of attitudes, behaviors and environmental factors that place him at risk for committing another sexually violent offense.”

But Orlando, who ordered that McCuistion be civilly committed in 2000, said he has recently shown a willingness to cooperate in community supervision.

“Long-term treatment is in Mr. McCuistion’s best interest and his willing participation is likely to make it successful,” the judge wrote.

An attempt to reach McCuistion at his residence was unsuccessful Wednesday afternoon. Attempts to reach his current attorney also were unsuccessful.

Earlier this year, a sex offender with an extensive history of breaking into women’s homes in Spokane was released from McNeil Island after a state psychologist said he was no longer dangerous. Like McCuistion, Charles Sean Tillman is a Level III sex offender, the category deemed most likely to reoffend.

Community supervision programs have been shown to reduce recidivism rates among most criminals, but the U.S. Department of Justice says “it is not known whether findings from these studies are generalizable to sex offender populations.”

Knezovich called for stricter sentencing.

“I am a firm believer that there are certain crimes that you only get one shot at,” he said. “And at that point society should have the right to make sure that you never commit that crime again.”

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly identified the state agency that produced reports on McCuistion’s psychological state. It is the Department of Social and Health Services.