Category: National

AR: FCSO warns parents against trick-or-treating certain addresses

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Source: thecabin.net 10/26/22 The Faulkner County Sheriff’s Office is placing door hangers on the doors of sex offenders warning “No Trick-or-Treat at this Address.” The community effort, led by Sex Offender Coordinator Chelsea McDaniel and FCSO Reserve Commander Brian Tyner, is designed to help community members stay safe this Halloween, FCSO spokesman Sherry Skaggs said. Commander Tyner said: “This was an opportunity for the Reserve Unit to take on a mission to improve community safety.” While signs have traditionally been placed on the doors of sex offenders on active probation…

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FL: Florida sheriff’s deputy arrested for sex with teen in youth cadet program

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Source: nypost.com 10/19/22 A Florida sheriff’s deputy was arrested Tuesday for having sex with a teen he supervised in the department’s youth cadet program, including several trysts while on duty, officials said. Bay County Sheriff’s Deputy Matthew _____, 21, admitted to sexual relations with the 17-year-old a total of seven times. The agency said _____ acknowledged having illicit contact with the victim while on active police duty. “The Bay County Jr. Deputy and Explorer Program is a program for youth that are interested in law enforcement,” Bay County Sheriff Tommy…

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Polly Klaas’s murder fueled the 90s crime panic. Her sisters fear ‘we’re repeating history’

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Source: theguardian.com 10/22/22 Jess and Annie Nichol want to undo the harsh criminal laws passed after their sister was abducted: ‘We don’t want our pain to be used to punish anyone else’. Annie Nichol was seven years old on 19 March 1994 when she was brought to the White House to talk to Bill Clinton. With a stuffed dolphin by her side, the girl spoke to the president about her 12-year-old sister, Polly Klaas, who had been abducted five months earlier from the family’s home in Petaluma, California, while Annie…

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LA: Lutcher Man Sentenced to for Failure to Report International Travel as a Sex Offender

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Source: justice.gov 10/21/22 NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA  U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that WILLIE WALKER, age 56, was sentenced on October 14, 2022 by Chief United States District Judge Nannette Jolivette Brown to a probationary term of five years for failure to report international travel as a sex offender under the federal Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). According to court documents, WALKER was convicted in Washington State in 2002 of a sex offense that required him to register as a sex offender for life.  In addition to registering as a sex offender, WALKER was…

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PLF Files Two Motions in SORNA Regulations Case

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The Pacific Legal Foundation (PLF) this week filed two motions in the pending federal lawsuit challenging SORNA regulations that became effective earlier this year.  One of those motions asked the court to approve the use of pseudonyms for four individuals identified as John Doe #1, John Doe #2, John Doe #3 and John Doe #4.  The court granted that motion one day after it was filed. The second motion is a request for preliminary injunction which would, if granted, stop enforcement of some SORNA regulations.  A hearing for this motion…

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WI: Wisconsin Supreme Court considers dispute over ‘repeat offender’ law

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Source: captimes.com 10/20/22 The Wisconsin Supreme Court heard oral arguments last week in a case challenging the state’s interpretation of its repeat offender law as it pertains to crimes including sex offenses. At issue is whether multiple convictions stemming from the same criminal complaint warrant classifying someone as a repeat offender. The state argues that should be the case. Its argument relies heavily on a 2017 legal interpretation, issued by then-Attorney General Brad Schimel, of a 2006 state law requiring the state Department of Corrections to place certain sex offenders…

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FL: Jacksonville won’t require sex offenders to post ‘no candy’ signs outside home for Halloween

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Source: news.yahoo.com 10/19/22 A warning to parents planning trick-or-treating routes: The City of Jacksonville will not require registered sex offenders or predators to post a sign outside their home indicating no trick-or-treaters allowed. Typically, on Halloween, registered sex offenders and predators have to post a sign saying “no candy.” The requirement is being challenged by two registered sex offenders who filed a lawsuit against the city, saying the ordinance violates their constitutional rights. Some neighbors Action News Jax spoke with said, they agree. “I think the sign — it’d be…

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Federal Prisons Are Discounting Inmates’ Sexual Assault Allegations Against Officers

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Source: govexec.com 10/13/22 The federal Bureau of Prisons is regularly excluding credible inmate testimony making or corroborating allegations of sexual assault and misconduct against agency employees, according to a new report, which found the informal policy could embolden bad actors to continue their inapprorpiate behavior.   The bureau’s Office of Internal Affairs will only consider inmate testimony when a case is accepted for criminal prosecution or if it is substantiated by video, conclusive forensic evidence or a confession. If a sexual assault allegation against an employee depends on an inmate’s account,…

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FL: Police cameras show confusion, anger over DeSantis’ voter fraud arrests

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Source: tampabay.com 10/18/22 TALLAHASSEE — When police went to arrest Tony Patterson outside his Tampa home in August, he couldn’t believe the reason. “What is wrong with this state, man?” Patterson protested as he was being escorted to a police car in handcuffs. “Voter fraud? Y’all said anybody with a felony could vote, man.” Body-worn camera footage recorded by local police captured the confusion and outrage of Hillsborough County residents who found themselves in handcuffs for casting a ballot following investigations by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ new Office of Election Crimes…

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UT: Utah Court of Appeals reverses sex offender’s conviction, claiming state failed to prosecute case for 2 years

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Source: fox13now.com 10/17/22 SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Court of Appeals has reversed a sex offender’s conviction after they say prosecutors failed to notify him they’d charged him or were prosecuting him. In to a 74-page document filed by the Utah Court of Appeals on Friday, Judge Ryan Harris said the appellant, Chad Hintze, wasn’t made aware of a charge against him for two years. The charge, according to the documents, stemmed from an incident in June of 2016 in which Hintze and a teenage girl were eating and…

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MS: George, Greene counties recognized for keeping sex offenders 100% compliant

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Source: wkrg.com 10/14/22 GEORGE COUNTY, Miss. (WKRG) – Employees from the Sheriff’s offices in both George and Greene counties were recently recognized for their work to keep all registered sex offenders in their jurisdictions compliant with state law. “[Citizens] should definitely be proud of these counties. They are really working hard to ensure that their communities are as safe as possible and everyone is aware of the registered offenders in their area,” said registry director Megan Costilow. Most sex offenders must re-register and update their address every three months. Each…

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WA: U Washington students defend themselves from potential sex offender threat following assaults near campus

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Source: foxnews 10/13/22 Students at the University of Washington are sounding the alarm on the handful of registered sex offenders who live near the Seattle campus, which has recently been plagued by crime.  “I ordered two things of pepper spray, and my parents keep texting me asking about how my individual room locks, and if there is bars on my basement window,” student Jacqueline Niles told Fox 13.    The University District of Seattle, which surrounds UW’s campus, has seen repeated instances of crime in recent weeks, including a shooting…

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NY: No jail time for Cuba Gooding Jr. in forcible touching case

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Source: nbcnews.com 10/13/22 Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. resolved his New York City forcible touching case Thursday with a guilty plea to a lesser charge and no jail time after complying with the terms of a conditional plea agreement reached in April. Prosecutor Coleen Balbert said Gooding has stayed out of trouble and completed six months of alcohol and behavior modification counseling, allowing him to withdraw his misdemeanor plea and plead guilty to a harassment violation. Balbert said she has received “positive reports for the last six months” from Gooding’s therapist. The actor…

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MI: Jury Convicts Man For Vile Act With Elmo Doll

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Source: thesmokinggun.com 10/12/22 A jury yesterday convicted a Michigan man of aggravated indecent exposure for using a Tickle Me Elmo doll to masturbate while he was inspecting a residence on behalf of a potential purchaser. Kevin ____, 60, was found guilty of the misdemeanor following a one-day trial in Oakland County Circuit Court. The jury acquitted ____  of malicious destruction of property, also a misdemeanor. Judge Phyllis McMillen scheduled ____’s sentencing for December 2. The indecent exposure count carries a maximum penalty of two years in prison and a $2000…

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Amended Complaint Filed in SORNA Regulations Lawsuit

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Source: ACSOL An amended complaint was filed in federal district court yesterday in the lawsuit challenging SORNA regulations which became effective in January 2022.  The amended complaint adds three plaintiffs using the pseudonyms “John Does 2, 3 and 4.”  The amended complaint also includes the two original plaintiffs —  John Doe 1 and ACSOL.  According to the amended complaint, John Does 1 through 3 are no longer required to register in the states in which they currently reside, however, they are required to register under SORNA.  John Doe 4 is…

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FL: ‘Nationally-recognized’ teacher arrested in Fort Lauderdale for sex assault on minor after Tinder meet

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Source: local10.com 10/10/22 FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – A teacher who has worked in schools in Miami-Dade and Broward and who received a presidential award is facing charges in Broward County Court for allegedly sexually assaulting a 16-year-old boy who went on to write a college entry essay about it in school, police said. Fort Lauderdale police officers arrested Carlos _____, 46, on Oct. 3, Broward Sheriff’s Office corrections records show. The case started in Connecticut after a school counselor’s report, police said. Faced with the evidence, _____ surrendered to FLPD,…

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How vigilante ‘predator catchers’ are infiltrating the criminal justice system

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Source: washingtonpost.com 9/22/22 It began with a live-streamed shaming in an Olive Garden parking lot. It ended with an Indiana cop on trial for child solicitation. By Jessica Contrera DANVILLE, Ind. — The jury was waiting. They’d cringed when they learned what kind of case they’d hear in this Indiana courthouse. Child solicitation. But don’t worry, the county prosecutors assured them. There would be no graphic pictures. There would be no testimony from an abused child. Because in this case, there was no child. The man charged with the crime…

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Sexual crime conviction in 1999 cancels out 29 years of service to country

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Source: narsol.org 10/7/22 By Captain Charles Munsey . . . Today, October 5, I started out as I routinely do — cup of coffee, morning devotions, a quick breakfast, and then on the road to take care of chores. First, I stopped by my daughter’s home in Rockledge to drop off something for her and converse with her and my grandson for a while. Then I set off for Patrick SFB (Space Force Base) to take care of chores there — pick up prescription meds, get a haircut, and then…

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