Notorious sex offender Alan Horowitz will return to court later in April to hear whether he will continue to be confined or whether there is any form of strict and intensive supervision that can protect the public from him.
State Supreme Court Justice Vincent J. Reilly, Jr., recently decided the first part of Horowitz’ civil confinement case, finding that Horowitz has the disorder that predisposes him to commit sex offenses and has “serious difficulty in controlling” that.
Next is a hearing Reilly scheduled for April to essentially decide what to do with Horowitz.
Horowitz’ appointed attorney argued last fall that Horowitz could control his impulses. The attorney representing the state argued that he has repeatedly reoffended or put himself in positions to do so.
Reilly issued his ruling on the first part of the civil confinement proceedings after a multi-day hearing last fall that saw testimony from doctors who had examined Horowitz and supported the state’s case.
“The court has concluded that the respondent indeed presently has serious difficulty in controlling his pedofilic disorder,” Reilly wrote.
Horowitz admitted earlier to having a disorder that predisposes him to commit sex offense.
The state wants to keep Horowitz in custody as a danger to society, saying he is among the “worst of the worst” sex offenders. He completed his 10- to 20-year prison sentence in 2012, but remains in state custody. One prosecutor previously called Horowitz a prime example of the type of offender lawmakers had in mind when they passed the 2007 civil confinement law.
His long-delayed civil confinement proceedings are also giving a glimpse into the process of how a sex offender can be civilly confined.
At the end of March 2015, the state had 311 offenders confined. Of those, 109 had consented to confinement and 202 took their cases to trial. After annual review hearings, 65 of those have been released under strict intensive supervision and treatment.
Horowitz’s sex-offense convictions date back more than 30 years to Maryland. Working as a psychiatrist there, Horowitz abused two boys in his care. He received probation and lost his medical license.
He made his way to Schenectady County by 1990, where he admitted to raping a 9-year-old boy. His plea covered 40 other charges alleging Horowitz sodomized three boys and sexually abused a girl locally between December 1990 and May 1991.
His case gained renewed prominence in 2006 when he fled state parole supervision, sending his parole officer a defiant letter postmarked in Israel. He vowed never to return to the U.S.
A worldwide manhunt followed, leading authorities to capture Horowitz in India, where they said he had started befriending children. He has remained in state custody since.
Categories: -News-, Schenectady County
