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CHICAGO (CBS) — Outraged Englewood residents cannot understand how a paroled child murderer ended up in their community, and when they found his address it revealed there are more than 20 registered sex offenders in the same building.
In the Englewood community there is a sense of pride. Nicole Vaughn is a lifelong resident who chooses to stay.
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“I live here. I have children here. I’m vested,” she said.
That’s why she was blown away to learn Cayce Williams, a newly released Illinois Department of Corrections parolee convicted of killing and sexually assaulting a toddler in the 90s, is now living in Englewood.
“He was placed somewhere in our community where we call home,” Vaughn said. “This is a safety concern, and things should be done properly.”
Vaughn and other members of the Not in Englewood organization held a virtual town hall Friday night. The group formed after it was revealed Williams was originally paroled in Crystal Lake in late February, but within days the registered sex offender’s address moved to Englewood with no community alert.
“What upsets us is that he went back to his community, and they didn’t receive him and they dumped him here. We won’t be a dumping ground,” she said.
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It turns out Williams was not the only sex offender living in the building. Twenty-eight registered sex offenders currently have apartments in the same building.
“If this case never came out we wouldn’t know how many people were in the building,” Vaughn said.
“I ask for understanding and compassion from the community for people who are striving to do better,” said civil rights attorney Adele Nicholas.
She said Illinois laws and limited house zones force paroled offenders, including sex offenders, to live like this.
“All these discredited laws, they put so much of the state off limits that people have almost no option other than to live in the few places that are in legal zones,” she said.
“Now that we know, what are we going to do about it today?” said Vaughn.
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The Not in Englewood group is owrking to get laws requiring all residents be notified by mail when an offender moves in, while Nicholas is working for better and wider housing options for released offenders.
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