Island County Prosecutor Greg Banks said he will fight a request by a convicted child molester who doesn’t want to have to register as a sex offender anymore.

Gary Woodroffe, a former Clinton resident, petitioned Island County Superior Court this summer for relief from the duty to register as a sex offender. He is currently in a custody battle for his son, court documents show.

“Requiring Woodroffe to register is a small price to pay,” Banks said, “compared to the potential harm sex offenders like him can cause.”

Under state law, a person convicted of a sex-related crime must register with the sheriff’s office in the county where he or she resides. But a sex offender can also ask a judge to relieve him of the registration requirement.

“I am a very low risk to reoffend, low risk to the public,” Woodroffe wrote in his petition for relief, “and my registration will not serve the public good.”

In this case, Woodroffe was convicted of molesting both his stepdaughter and his biological daughter.

Woodroffe pleaded guilty in 1988 to four counts of indecent liberties and two counts of communicating with a minor for immoral purposes.

According to court documents, Woodroffe molested one girl countless times for eight years, beginning when she was in elementary school.

The judge sentenced Woodroffe to 34 months in prison.

While he was incarcerated, Woodroffe pleaded guilty, by way of an Alford’s plea, to indecent liberties and first-degree incest for molesting his daughter. An Alford’s plea means that Woodroffe does not admit the act, but admits that the prosecutor has enough evidence to convict him.

In his petition, Woodroffe denies that he molested his daughter, even with the guilty plea.

Woodroffe wrote that he requested sexual deviancy treatment on Twin Rivers Correction Center while he was in prison.

“I gained valuable skills in the area of personal responsibility, sexual boundaries between deviance and appropriateness, family of origin issues, dynamics of addiction, critical thinking, anger management, communication skills, empathy skills … and more practical living skills,” he wrote.

In addition, he wrote that he has built a successful career in California and then Florida, and has “lived a productive life over the last 14 years.”

Banks, nevertheless, opposes Woodroffe’s petition.

“We have sex offender registration laws for an extra level of protection, especially for our children,” he said. “I see nothing exceptional in this case that warrants any different treatment, so I will not agree to his request.”

You can reach Jessie Stensland at jstensland@whidbeynewstimes.com or 675-6611.