Month: January 2013

Documents published online for the first time Thursday indicate that the FBI opened an inquiry into New Jersey Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez on August 1, 2012, focusing on repeated trips he took to the Dominican Republic with longtime campaign contributor and Miami eye doctor Salomon Melgen. The DC reported in November that Menendez purchased the service of prostitutes in that Caribbean nation at a series of alcohol-fueled sex parties. Full Article

CHEYENNE — A Wyoming legislative committee on Monday defeated a bill that would have banned sex offenders from living within 1,000 feet of child care facilities. The House Judiciary Committee voted 7-2 against the bill sponsored by Rep. John Eklund, R-Cheyenne. “The intention of this bill is to have the same protection for under school aged children that we do for school children,” Eklund said. He said there have been instances were sex offenders have moved in next to established day care facilities. Steve Corsi, director of the Wyoming Department…

SAN ANTONIO — Texas Voices, a group dedicated to supporting registered sex offenders and their families, estimates 111 new names hit the sex offenders registry every week in the Lone Star State. “We’ve already put their names and their faces and all of their information on the public registry for the world to see,” said Mary Sue Molnar, who serves as president of Texas Voices. Full Article

Two years ago, Joey Dauben was full-time small-town muckraker, publishing the Ellis County Observer and a string of other small papers, blending investigative stories with vicious gossip and baseless speculation at a rate of speed that thrilled and enraged his target audience. He focused intensely on child pornography and child sex abuse, alleging that child porn rings were rampant on Facebook, which he called “the breeding ground of a massive, global, inter-connected, sick and sadistic, electronic child porn, child-sex trafficking ring.” But in December 2011, Dauben, now 32, became the…

OKLAHOMA CITY – A stunning change involving sex offender laws could be making its way to Oklahoma. “I think it can open up an opportunity but being in prison around other sex offenders, if they want to reoffend, they’re going to find a way,” sex offender _____  _____ said. “If a person want [sic] to do something, they’re going to find it, if it’s the daycare down the street or church or a kid walking home from school.” _____ is a registered sex offender. It is labeled on his driver’s license,…

CONCORD – Supporters of the rights of criminal offenders turned out at legislative hearings on procedural matters Tuesday to complain about the way they are treated after serving their time. The House Criminal Justice Committee heard testimony on bills to study the state’s use of the sex offender registry and to add another means of notifying victims that an offender is up for parole. Offenders complained that the sex offender registry overstates offenses in some instances, while parole advocates said that hearings sometimes amount to a new trial on the…

Montville — The town avoided a potential civil rights lawsuit when it rescinded two ordinances Monday that placed restrictions on where registered sex offenders would be allowed in town. The Town Council voted to repeal the ordinances that created so-called child and senior safety zones. Marked by signs, these zones were designed to keep registered sex offenders from town-owned and town-leased property such as the senior center, senior buses, parks, playgrounds, beaches and sports fields. Since the ordinance was introduced, Councilors Rosetta Jones and Dana McFee have voiced their concerns…