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New law used in attempt to hold rapist from city
Attorney General Jerry Kilgore is asking a Fredericksburg court for civil commitment of a convicted sex offender from the city.
Kilgore filed a civil commitment petition with the city Circuit Court yesterday. It asks that George Syrkes remain incarcerated after his release date, currently set for this November.
Syrkes, 43, was convicted of rape in Fredericksburg in 1991, and sentenced to 20 years in prison. While incarcerated, he has committed 10 infractions, including six that were sexual. He has been cited for "inappropriate sexual behavior" toward a female corrections officer, according to information from Kilgore's office, and was kicked out of the Sex Offender Residential Treatment Program for his poor performance and for "inappropriate behavior to female staff."
A statement from Kilgore's office also said Syrkes has been diagnosed with paraphilia, a sexual behavior disorder, and that a mental health examiner concluded Syrkes is likely to commit sexual crimes in the future.
Syrkes is the 32nd sex offender to have a civil commitment petition filed against him. Nineteen of those cases are still pending; nine others have been civilly committed, and three were given conditional release.
"Each time we use this law, we are making our streets and neighborhood a little bit safer," Kilgore said in the statement. "These are the types of criminals that will commit their crimes over and over again."
Civil commitments are part of the state's Sexually Violent Predators Act, and the General Assembly appropriated money to pay for civil commitments during its 2003 session.
Under the civil commitment program, sex offenders who are deemed to still be a threat to the community can be held past the end of their sentences. A seven-member review committee evaluates prisoners who have been convicted of sexually violent crimes, and makes a recommendation to the attorney general's office as to whether the prisoner should be civilly committed, put in a conditional release program, or released altogether.
The attorney general can then file, as was done in Syrkes' case, a petition with the court which tried the original offense. A judge then schedules a probable cause hearing. Such a hearing has not yet been set for Syrkes.
If, after a trial, the prisoner is civilly committed as a sexual predator, the case is reviewed annually for up to five years, and every two years after that.
Syrkes was 30 years old when he was convicted of rape, breaking into his victim's house, assault and battery, and petty larceny.
Evidence showed he entered the house just before sunrise, climbing upstairs to her room, and holding a pillow over her head to muffle her screams.
To reach CHELYEN DAVIS: 804/782-9362 cdavis@freelancestar.com