SEATTLE MAN SENTENCED TO 5 YEARS IN PRISON FOR FAILING TO REGISTER AS A SEX OFFENDER
First Use of Adam Walsh Act in Western District of Washington
WESLEY CLINTON GRAY, 50, of Seattle, Washington, was sentenced yesterday in U.S. District Court in Seattle to five years in prison and 15 years of supervised release for Failure to Register as a Sex Offender. GRAY is the first person convicted in the Western District of Washington of the crime articulated in the Adam Walsh Act enacted July 27, 2006. Chief U.S. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik ordered GRAY to have extensive sexual deviancy testing and treatment during his supervised release.
At sentencing Assistant United States Attorney Susan B. Dohrmann told the court GRAY was “dangerous and unpredictable....(He) put children at great risk.”
GRAY pleaded guilty May 25, 2007. According to the plea agreement, GRAY was convicted of Rape of a Child in Pierce County Superior Court in 1990. GRAY registered as a sex offender at various addresses in King County between 1990 and 1999. GRAY moved to California in 1999 and registered in the San Diego area as a sex offender. In December 2003, GRAY moved back to Washington State. He obtained a Washington Drivers’ License in 2004, but failed to register as a sex offender as required by law. In March of 2007, GRAY was arrested at his residence near Lake Union in Seattle.
U.S. Attorney Jeffrey C. Sullivan hailed the use of the Adam Walsh Act in this case. “Protecting children is a top priority of the Department of Justice and of the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” Sullivan said. “Today’s sentencing ensures that a potentially dangerous offender will have close supervision and treatment for the next 20 years.”
In February 2006, the Department of Justice launched Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov/.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Marshal Service and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Susan B. Dohrmann.
For additional information please contact Emily Langlie, Public Affairs Officer for the United States Attorney’s Office, at (206) 553-4110.
