Man is charged with failure to register as sexual predator

By TIM YOVICH
and JOHN W. GOODWIN JR.
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- A court order failed to keep convicted sexual predator Charles Gorham from a Weathersfield house near a McDonald school, and he didn't tell authorities where he is living, so now he is facing a felony charge.
Gorham, 37, appeared Tuesday before Judge Thomas P. Gysegem of Warren Municipal Court on a charge of failure to register filed by the Trumbull County Sheriff's Department. Predators are required to make their whereabouts known; schools are then notified by the sheriff.
Predators are prohibited from living within 1,000 feet of a school.
Judge Gysegem set bond at $25,000 surety. No preliminary hearing date was scheduled, though Gorham said he wanted a court date soon.
If convicted, Gorham faces up to five years in prison and a fine of $10,000.
Gorham was convicted June 6, 2001, in Virginia of taking indecent liberties with a 6-year-old girl.
Gorham had informed officials of his move to the home at 700 McDonald Ave. on two separate occasions in the past. The first time, he moved before court action could be taken. The second time, officials filed court action leading to the judge's order barring him from the house. Gorham's sister Phyllis Gorham and her fianc & eacute; reside in the McDonald Avenue home.
Judge Andrew D. Logan issued an injunction last week ordering Gorham to leave the home permanently.
In the public interest
The judge said the public interest is served by issuing the injunction, especially for those living and attending school in close proximity to Gorham.
The court order also forbids Gorham to live within 1,000 feet of any school in Trumbull County.
Police had been looking for Gorham to notify him of the court's order. A warrant had also been issued for Gorham after he failed to appear for the hearing when the judge issued the order.
Gorham asserted that he didn't know there was a warrant for his arrest.
Neighbors had been keeping a watch for Gorham after the court order and warrant were issued.
Lark Young, who lives near the McDonald Avenue home, said she saw Gorham once Friday then again Monday before police converged on the house and Gorham was escorted out in handcuffs.
"I was ecstatic, literally dancing around upstairs with my kids," she said. "We just want him to stay away. It's getting really discouraging."
Denies he lives there
Phyllis Gorham said, after her brother's Tuesday court appearance, that he hadn't been living with her for a while and was going to be at the house only momentarily.
Phyllis Gorham said her brother had just stopped off at her home Monday to take a shower and get on the road when he was arrested. She said her brother was returning to Virginia to clear his name.
She said the victim had recanted her story of abuse and he was returning to Fredericksburg, Va., to get his record expunged.
She said her brother told her that his wife had thrown him out of their mobile home near Mosquito Reservoir.
Gorham remains in the county jail. His sister said she can't afford to post his bond.