Parents Notified About Sex Offender

Superintendent of Schools David Abbey has alerted parents that a registered sex offender has moved into New Canaan following notification by the Connecticut Department of Public Safety pursuant to a new state law. Disgraced former Norwalk police officer Ray DeCamillo is listed in the Connecticut Sex Offender Registry as living at 51 Summer St as of Sept. 11.

Camillo served nine months of a two-year jail term on unlawful restraint and sexual assault charges dating back to a 2006 incident. Now 38, Camillo was convicted of pinning a 20-year-old Norwalk woman he had stopped for a traffic violation inside her car and then fondling her, according to a Norwalk Hour report.

The paper says that during the trial, another woman testified that DeCamillo had assaulted her when she was 17 following a law enforcement stop by DeCamillo and other officers outside Norwalk High School before the homecoming dance on Nov. 10, 2005. DeCamillio was not charged in that incident but was fired by Norwalk police in May 2007 following a department investigation into the woman's complaint.

A new law went into effect on Sept. 1 requiring that the state Department of Public Safety e-mail the Superintendent of Schools whenever a registered sex offender is released into the district and provide the superintendent with the same information available to the public through the online registry. The Department of Public Safety does not make any assessment of the risk of re-offense.

While the new law does not require it, Abbey sent a letter to parents Thursday saying that he had been notified that DeCamillo had moved into town.

"Of course, we will continue to take all appropriate measures so that our schools remain healthy and safe environments," he wrote.

The superintendent did not name DeCamillo in the letter.

DeCamillo is described in the sex offender registry as a black male, 5'9", and 185 lbs.

Though DeCamillo is the only registered sex offender living in New Canaan, Sgt. Carol Ogrinc is reminding concerned residents that there are numerous individuals on the list who are living in the surrounding area.

Furthermore Ogrinc says DeCamillo "is not deemed to be a danger. The actual incident (for which he was convicted) did not involve a minor."

The sergeant says New Canaan Police can keep in touch with DeCamillo's probation officer. "We've already been in contact with him," she said.