The latest attempt by Nushawn Williams to be released from custody has been denied.

Williams, 46, had appealed a state Supreme Court order continuing his civil confinement to a secure treatment facility. His appeal followed an annual review hearing under the state’s Mental Hygiene Law that found he remains a dangerous sex offender.

A native of Brooklyn and former resident of Jamestown, Williams reportedly learned he was HIV-positive when he was 19 years old. He is alleged to have had unprotected sex with dozens of women in the mid-1990s without disclosing he had the human immunodeficiency virus.

His case in Chautauqua County, which made national news, came to light after numerous women began testing positive for HIV at local health clinics.

Williams, who changed his name to Shyteek Johnson, pleaded guilty to charges of second-degree rape and first-degree reckless endangerment.

While his 12-year prison sentence concluded in 2010, he has remained in confinement after a review determined he was still a danger to society.

On Friday, the Appellate Division of state Supreme Court, Fourth Department, affirmed an order from July 2021 that Williams remain in a secure treatment facility. The court found that the state “presented legally sufficient evidence that petitioner has serious difficulty controlling his behavior within the meaning of the Mental Hygiene Law.”

Further, their ruling noted: “Respondents’ expert testified that petitioner had not made sufficient progress in treatment; that he failed to address his sexual deviance, which included a desire to have sex with underage girls; and that he failed to recognize how his substance abuse was related to his sexual offenses.”

Williams contended the state Supreme Court erred in denying his motion for a change of venue; the evidence was legally insufficient to establish he is a dangerous sex offender requiring confinement; and that ongoing confinement is against the weight of the evidence.

He was represented in his latest appeal by the Sage Law Firm Group of Buffalo.