A registered sex offender charged with falsely listing himself as homeless while having a residence in a prohibited location made an appearance in Baxter County Circuit Court/Criminal Division last Monday.
Thirty-eight-year-old Chad Vincent Douglas pled not guilty to violating registration/reporting requirements and with living in a prohibited area during an earlier court session.
Registered offenders at a certain level are not permitted to live near a school, public park, youth center, daycare, church or other places of worship.
Douglas was living in a mobile home park located along State Highway 5 South near the Dr. Ray Stahl Soccer Complex which is a listed city park.
Douglas’ living situation came to light when a Baxter County sheriff’s deputy went to the mobile home park to serve a legal paper.
He reported seeing Douglas whom he knew to be a sex offender and telling him that if he was living in the mobile home park, he was in violation of registration requirements because of its location near the soccer complex.
According to the probable cause affidavit, Douglas had listed himself as homeless since 2022.
In early July, the deputy contacted management at the mobile home park and was told that Douglas had been living there for at least two years.
A search warrant was obtained for the trailer in which Douglas was suspected of living. It was served July 9 and Douglas was found sleeping in a bedroom in the rear of the trailer. Multiple personal items belonging to Douglas – including clothing and medication – were found.
Douglas was arrested and booked into the Baxter County Detention Center. His bond is set at $15,000.
Douglas ran into the same problems in late May 2013. He is a Level 3 offender, meaning he has a high risk of re-offending. He was convicted of 2nd degree sexual assault involving a 12-year-old girl.
Douglas asked the court to consider lowering his $15,000 bond, but Circuit Judge John Putman denied the request.
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