BRISTOL — On Wednesday, Bristol police arrested Yvonne Marie Devoid, 48, of Bristol and cited her for failing to notify the state’s Sex Offender Registry of an address change within 36 hours.
Bristol police received a tip on Sunday, July 31, that Devoid had moved to Bristol from Vergennes. Devoid is a registered sex offender, described by Bristol police as high risk.
Police investigation found that Devoid had moved from Vergennes to Bristol approximately two weeks earlier and had failed to notify the Vermont Sex Offender Registry as required by law.
According to the Vermont Crime Information Center’s website, sex offenders who have been “discharged from supervision by the Department of Corrections” must notify VCIC within three days of any change in address. Failure to do so within five days results in a “felony charge that can include” five years incarceration and/or a fine of $5,000. Sex offenders still under probation must notify VCIC within 24 hours.
Devoid was lodge at the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility for lack of $2,500 bail.
In March, Bristol Police Chief Kevin Gibbs learned that registered sex offender Mark Hulett had been living in Bristol for months without police notification. State law requires that offenders notify the Department of Public Service and the Sex Offender Registry when they move but not local law enforcement. Hulett was subsequently moved out of Bristol. But Gibbs has begun advocating for a change in statute so that both offenders and the state must notify local law enforcement when a sex offender moves into their community.