WESTLAKE, Ohio (WOIO) – Neighbors in Westlake were horrified to learn that a registered sex offender lives just a block from a preschool.
19 Investigations revealed that the city is trying to remove the man from his home, but the process is taking longer than usual.
Kennith Hyatt, 41, was convicted last year of sex crimes against children. The city claims he lives just 1,000 feet from Best Beginnings Preschool on Hilliard Boulevard in Westlake and because he is a registered sex offender, it is against the law. Neighborhood residents are concerned their children are in danger.
“It’s very, very scary that something like this is happening in a community,” said neighbor Madhurima Banerjee. “We couldn’t believe this was happening to our community. It can happen anywhere, so the system needs to be more vigilant.”
Banerjee lives on Queens Court in Westlake. She has a child in 3rd and 7th grade.
“I was a little surprised because we have two small children and the kindergarten is right next door.”
Since finding out that 41-year-old Kennith Hyatt lives on her street, she has stopped letting her children play outside and picks them up from school so they don’t have to walk home from the bus stop.
“That was a game changer for them, to make them understand why? Because when you have a young, 7-year-old child, they’re constantly asking why,” Banerjee explained. “It was difficult. But we had to find a way to make them understand, and yes, all summer they are literally forbidden to go anywhere without informing us.”
Tom Bohan also lives in Queens Court. He alerted the city when the sheriff’s department told him that a registered sex offender lived on his street.
“I don’t think they were aware of it at all,” Bohan said.
In April, the city issued a temporary restraining order demanding that Hyatt be evicted from his apartment.
According to court documents, he was convicted in December 2023 of attempted sexual abuse of a minor and distribution of content harmful to minors.
The city says his home is just 1,000 feet from Best Beginnings Preschool. Mike Maloney, Westlake’s legal director, said the process is taking longer than usual because Hyatt was late in receiving notice of the complaint in the mail.
“I know with court cases it takes a while for things to get resolved, but it seems like there were a lot of delays, I wasn’t notified right away and had to figure it out myself,” said neighbor Abbey Samide. “That’s the frustrating part.”
The neighbors believe that the district and the city should have recognized the problem earlier.
“I think the system seems pretty flawed there,” Bohan said. “There’s a reason the state has this law, and I think it needs to be addressed somehow.”
The city says that since the Cuyahoga County Sheriff’s Office is responsible for the sex offender registry, they should have noticed.
19 Investigations reached out to the county to find out how Hyatt was able to register at that address without being noticed. The county said its offender monitoring system does not show Hyatt violating social distancing requirements. They said in this case there is a discrepancy between the address and the property lines.
19 Investigates reached out to Hyatt to get his side of the story.
“I live 1,584 feet away,” Hyatt said.
Hyatt claims that Google Maps shows that he lives more than 300 meters away, but the city apparently disagrees.
“I’m not moving,” Hyatt said. “I’m not giving them their way. I’m paying my taxes. We bought this house for $230 and it’s worth about $700,000. If they want me to move, I’m more than happy to make a $500,000 profit.”
The next hearing in the case is scheduled for September 11.
Westlake Mayor Dennis Clough said they want the man out of the house and hope they can work with the sheriff’s department and the courts to make that happen.
19 News will keep you updated on the progress of the case.
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