Sacto 9-1-1

From David Richie and Niesha Lofing:

Roseville police are taking unprecedented steps to notify residents about the presence of convicted murderer and sex offender Michael Charles Etchison, who moved into the city last week.

On Tuesday morning Roseville police distributed fliers with photographs of Etchison and the car he drives around his neighborhood. They also released fliers to the local news media. Etchison, 53, is the subject of a community meeting scheduled Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Roseville Sports Center, 1545 Pleasant Grove Boulevard.

"This is the first time we have done a community-wide notification," said Dee Dee Gunther, Police Department spokeswoman. "His offenses were violent and unlike the vast majority of sex offenders, he targeted strangers."

The Police Department's Megan's Law Public Notification indicates that during the late 1970s and early 1980s Etchison committed four sexual assaults on young women in San Mateo County. He attacked one woman at knifepoint after offering her a ride home in his car. He also assaulted three other women in the restroom at a drive-in movie theater, officials said.

Etchison's juvenile record includes the sexual assault and murder of young woman in 1972, when he was 17-years-old. Elaine Tipton, supervising deputy district attorney for the San Mateo County District Attorney's office confirmed that Etchison was first sent to California Youth Authority for murder.

Then, as an adult, he was convicted of sexual assault in 1979 and again in 1981 while out on parole. He was sentenced to 26 years in state prison, Tipton said.

From 1981 through 2006 Etchison was held in either state prison or a state mental institution in Atascadero.

"In December 2006, we aggressively sought a finding that he remained a sexually violent predator," Tipton said.

Her office lost that fight and a judge ordered Etchison released from custody.

Etchison answered the door at his house on Marblethorpe Drive, off Woodcreek Oaks Boulevard, early Tuesday afternoon. He opened the door just enough to look outside, while restraining a dog that seemed anxious to be outdoors. A copy of the Roseville police flier was still under the welcome mat on the front porch.

"I think it's best that I wait until things die down a little," Etchison said. "I really don't have any comment."

The Bee also contacted the American Civil Liberties Union office in San Francisco but representatives did not return a call for comment on the situation.

Roseville police who prepared the Megan's Law release on Etchison are limited to discussion of the crimes that led to Etchison's status as a registered sex offender, Gunther said.

He has served his entire prison sentence. He is not on parole or probation and he is not wanted for any offense, Roseville officials stated.

Megan's Law requires that Etchison notify local police when he moves into a new community. "He did everything he is supposed to do," Gunther said.

The law also allows local officials to alert the community about the man's presence. "Our intention is not to create fear. Megan's Law is a notification law. We also are not going to tolerate any harassment of him," Gunther said.

There are 147 registered sex offenders living in Roseville. Not all of them are listed on the Megan's Law Web site because they have successfully petitioned to get off that list or local police do not consider them a high risk to the community, Gunther said.