New York may need to free sex offenders

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12-28-2014 New York:

State mental health officials are trying to decide whether they will have to release civilly confined sex offenders because of a recent ruling from New York's highest court.

The odds are some of the offenders will be freed. The more pressing question may be: How many?

"We are reviewing the diagnoses of civilly confined individuals on a case-by-case basis as to the applicability of this decision," Benjamin Rosen, a spokesman for the state Office of Mental Health, said in an email.

Some judges on the state Court of Appeals have made evident in past rulings their discomfort with the state's civil commitment program, which institutionalizes sex offenders who mental health officials decide are dangerous and cannot curb their sexual urges.

Most of the offenders are institutionalized and treated until a decision is made that they are safe to be released. A judge can also place an offender in a strictly supervised parole program instead of in a mental health facility.

In late October the Court of Appeals ruled that a sex offender, identified only as "Donald DD," could not remain institutionalized based solely on a diagnosis of what is called "antisocial personality disorder," or ASPD.

Lawmakers Pressured To Alter Sex Offender Commitment Law

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12-27-2014 Minnesota:

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota lawmakers who have long put off large-scale changes to the state’s treatment program for sex offenders are under even more pressure to act this session, as a federal judge could soon rule on whether the program is constitutional.

U.S. District Judge Donovan Frank has called the program “draconian” and “clearly broken” and has urged lawmakers to make major changes. They’ve resisted, but they could be spurred to act now, with the trial on the program’s constitutionality set to begin in February. Depending on the trial’s outcome, Frank could also order changes of his own.

Here’s a look at some of the issues:

MINNESOTA’S COMMITMENT LAW

Minnesota allows civil commitment if a person is found to be sexually dangerous or found to have a sexual psychopathic personality. More than 700 people with that designation have been committed to high-security facilities in Moose Lake or St. Peter after their prison terms were completed. Only two residents are currently out on provisional discharge, including one who was placed in the community as recently as this month.

Montgomery County district court judge’s recusal granted in civil commitment cases

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12-24-2014 Texas:

‘Prejudicial comments’

The recusal of a Montgomery County district court judge has been granted in at least eight civil commitment cases since September, according to records at the District Clerk’s office.

Judge Michael Seiler presides over the 435th state District Court — Texas’ only court responsible for handling civil commitment cases of sexually violent predators. Seiler was dismissed from six cases Dec. 11 by Senior Judge Ned Dean for either reasonably questionable impartiality or a personal bias against the subject matter or a party involved in the respective cases, records show.

There are more recusal motions pending, while those already granted call into question whether Seiler can objectively preside over the roughly 50 civil commitment cases heard in the court annually.

Texas law provides that a small but extremely dangerous group of sexually violent predators exists and that those predators have a behavioral abnormality that is not amenable to traditional mental illness treatment modalities, therefore making them likely to engage in repeated predatory acts of sexual violence.

A civil commitment procedure for offenders is necessary for the long-term supervision and treatment of sexually violent predators in the interest of the state, according to Chapter 841 of the Texas Health and Safety Code.

The Texas Legislature created the 435th court in 2007 for the specific purpose of holding jury trials to determine the civil commitment of sexually violent predators released from prison. Seiler was elected to that bench the following year and has been the only judge to preside over the court since its inception.

Legislature must address sex offender program

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12-23-2014 Minnesota:

Why it matters: Legislative solutions needed even as sex offender program lawsuit is going on.

After many legislators have for years ignored the problems in the Minnesota Sex Offender Program, the issue is likely to come to a head as a federal trial gets underway in just over a month.

That should be propelling lawmakers to have the serious debate they’ve so far largely put off. But some legislators continue to hope they can avoid responsibility for tackling an emotionally charged issue.

Based in St. Peter and Moose Lake, the program has been under intense scrutiny after a federal class-action lawsuit was filed arguing that the constitutional rights of the 700 plus clients in the program are being violated. The sex offenders in the program have already served their prison sentences and are indefinitely committed to the MSOP where they are supposed to get psychological treatment with the goal of being released. The lawsuit argues that virtually no one has been released, making it a virtual life sentence for those who’ve already served their time.

A panel of judges reviewing the program have harshly critiqued it and have indicated they may order the release of more people from the MSOP.

Judge orders release of sexually violent predator to Jacumba home

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12-19-2014 California:

A judge Friday ordered the release of sexually violent predator Gary Snavely to a home in the rural East County community of Jacumba Hot Springs.

Judge Louis Hanoian made the ruling after considering emails and other correspondence from residents opposing Snavely's release into San Diego's backcountry. County Supervisor Dianne Jacob also opposed placing Snavely in Jacumba.

Hanoian said Snavely, 51, will be closely monitored under the conditional release program.

"I understand the frustrations that people have," the judge said, noting that the home where Snavely will be living is isolated from neighbors and is a mile away from downtown.

The judge said the public will be protected from Snavely, and he will be protected from the public, calling the placement in Jacumba "a placement that will work."

In August, Hanoian determined that Snavely could be safely released in San Diego County as long as he continued to get treatment.

Pressure mounting on legislators to fix Minnesota sex offender program

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12-19-2014 Minnesota:

A looming federal trial and an increase in patients being readied for release from Minnesota’s sex offender program has focused attention back to St. Paul, where lawmakers are again at odds over how to how to fix the state’s controversial program.

Department of Human Services Commissioner Lucinda Jesson says the number of offenders in the final phase of treatment before release at the Minnesota Sex Offender Program (MSOP) in Moose Lake and St. Peter has tripled in the last year. “That says a lot,” Jesson said. “We are seeing people make progress in treatment.”

The department has more than a dozen contracts with various group homes, adult foster care centers and other facilities around the state to house offenders should a panel of judges choose to release any of them from their civil commitment to MSOP. Jesson recently withdrew her opposition to the release of the third person to be let out of the program in its 20-year history.

At the same time, MSOP remains at the center of a legal battle that contends that things at the facility haven’t moved quickly enough. A federal class action lawsuit argues MSOP is unconstitutional because it promises treatment for its more than 700 clients — most of whom have already served their prison sentences — but rarely lets anyone out. The case goes to trial in February, and an expert panel appointed by the court has already recommended the release of at least two more offenders from the program.

Those factors have increased pressure on lawmakers in St. Paul to try and find a legislative fix for the program. But a proposal to address constitutional concerns with MSOP stalled in the middle of a heated election season last year. The release of sex offenders into communities has always been politically dicey, and House Republicans and Democrats couldn’t reach an agreement that would attract bipartisan votes.

"Scorched Earth" sex offender laws burn first jail inmate

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12-17-2014 Florida:

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Thatcher Gates is no stranger to the inside of a Duval County courtroom. The 37-year-old violent sexual predator has faced charges over the past decade of forcible sodomy, false imprisonment, robbery, rape, and impersonating a police officer.

But when Gates showed up to court last Thursday, he was the very first offender ensnared by tough new laws for sex offenders. And he may never walk free again.

The Florida legislature began a massive overhaul of state sex predator laws this year, prompted in part by the abduction and murder of 8-year-old Cherish Periwinkle from a Jacksonville Wal Mart, and in part by a damning series by the Sun-Sentinel that showed hundreds of new crimes committed by previously convicted sex offenders.

Lawmakers said they wanted to make Florida "Scorched Earth" for offenders, and the changes they approved greatly expanded the authority of law enforcement under the state's Jimmy Ryce Act. That law, named for a South Florida boy raped and murdered in 1995, allows the state to permanently detain inmates whom officials believe might re-offend at some time in the future. Because the law anticipates future behavior, rather than past crimes, it is opposed by civil libertarians, but has thus far survived legal challenges.

Tense but civil Le Center sex offender hearing

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12-17-2014 Minnesota:

First release of this type to rural Minnesota; facility will not staff women at night

LE CENTER — The atmosphere was tense but civil Tuesday night as nearly 70 Le Center residents turned out for the public notice hearing for the scheduled placement of Level 3 sex offender Robert Jeno in their community.

Jeno, who has been in the Minnesota Sex Offender Program for more than two decades, is only the third individual to ever receive a provisional release from the program. He is also the first provisional release to be placed in a rural Minnesota community. The last two released individuals were placed in Minneapolis facilities.

The hearing crowd was largely opposed to Jeno moving to Shiloh's Hope adult care facility in Le Center. Many people questioned why he couldn't be housed in other communities, especially since Shiloh's Hope's six other houses were all in St. Peter. Many people indicated they were not concerned with the strict initial 30 day plan for Jeno's move but rather the risk he could pose if he lived long-term in the city.

The most vocal opponent was Stacy Sycks, a Le Center mom of three children under 4 years old. She said she had good reason to oppose the move: Jeno is literally moving into her backyard.

Her home's backyard leads directly to Shiloh's Hope's yard, including the picnic table areas, without any fences. She said she and her husband have lived in Le Center their entire lives, including 10 years at the current house.

Ex-letter carrier indicted

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USA Today has reported that "Spratling died in custody on March 19, 2007, less than two months after he was certified as sexually dangerous." He had been committed to the Federal Civil Commitment program under the Adam Walsh Act.

4-5-1988 North Carolina:

A federal grand jury in Houston indicted a former Galveston letter carrier on child pornography charges involving the U.S. mails.

Wallace Spratling, 51, was charged with two counts of using the mails Sept. 10 to receive a child pornography magazine and videotapes.

Another two counts charge him with causing the delivery of the same items, and a fifth says Spratling placed an advertisement seeking to buy sexually explicit material depicting minors.

Spratling of the 1400 block of Hutchings in Galveston has been suspended without pay, and administrative action to fire him has begun, according to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.

The indictment follows a yearlong investigation that also involved the U.S. Customs Service and Galveston Police Department, ending in a raid on his home. If convicted he could be sentenced to 40 years in prison and fines of $1.25 million. ..Source.. by .Houston Chronicles.

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Coralville prison inmate dies of cancer

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6-8-2012 Iowa:

An inmate serving a 25-year prison sentence in Coralville’s Iowa Medical Classification Center died Thursday at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

Danny Lee Beason, 64, died of lung cancer that had spread to the liver, according to Iowa Department of Corrections officials.

Beason was convicted of second-degree sex abuse in Mahaska County, and he began serving his 25-year term on April 2, 2004.

According to court documents, Beason was charged in October 2002 with one count of second-degree sexual abuse, and his first trial to the court resulted in a guilty verdict. The court, however, overruled its own findings of fact and ordered a new trial.

Beason’s second trial to a jury ended without a verdict, and the jury in his third trial found him guilty. Beason appealed that conviction, claiming he had ineffective counsel because the attorney didn’t inform Beason that the offense carried a mandatory minimum sentence, the attorney didn’t call additional witnesses at trial and he didn’t adequately communicate with Beason.

The Iowa Court of Appeals affirmed his conviction. ..Source..

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Iowa Medical and Classification Center inmate dies

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5-23-2012 Iowa:

An inmate at the Iowa Medical and Classification Center has died at University Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City.

Charles Ray Parker, 73, died of natural causes due to complication from COPD and congestive heart failure.

Parker was serving a 25-year sentence for second-degree sex abuse and lascivious acts with a child from Benton County, two counts of indecent exposure and dissemination of obscene material to a minor from Iowa Coutny. His sentence began on Sept. 3, 2010. ..Source..

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Texas sex offenders not freed under state program

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12-14-2014 Texas:

HOUSTON None of the more than 300 convicted sex offenders ordered into Texas halfway houses under a little-known program since 1999 have ever successfully completed treatment and been freed, a newspaper reported Sunday.

Texas is among 20 states with civil commitment programs, which keeps some convicted sex offenders off the streets after their release from prison. The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld civil commitments on grounds that the involuntary confinements are used to administer treatment, not punishment.

But a Houston Chronicle investigation published Sunday (http://bit.ly/1wweHea ) found that dozens of offenders have severe mental illnesses or developmental delays that leave them unable to succeed in the programs. Critics say offenders with mental disabilities are more vulnerable to criminal penalties because they can't comply with rules or court orders.

Nearly half of the 350 men ordered into the program since it was created by the Texas Legislature in 1999 have been sent back to prison or jail for violations of program rules, some as simple as being late to treatment, court records show.

"For years, offenders with a variety of disabilities have been assigned to this program with no programs to address their needs," said Marsha McLane, executive director of the state's Office of Violent Sex Offender Management. "Keeping a lot of these people in halfway houses, where they are now, is not a solution. This is a problem we have to fix."

Investigators: "Clear evidence" of arson in Cottage Grove fire

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12-13-2014 Wisconsin:

COTTAGE GROVE (WKOW) -- Authorities say they found clear evidence that a fire was intentionally started in a town of Cottage Grove house that was to become home to a convicted sex offender.

Friday night, the Dane County Sheriff's Office sent a news release stating that, in addition to the arson evidence, $90,000 damage was done to the house at 4721 Gaston Circle on Monday night, December 8.

Residents of the neighborhood were notified last week that convicted sex offender Howard Nyberg would be moving into the house under supervised release.

Anyone who may have witnessed suspicious activity near the home between the hours of noon and 8:00 pm on December 8th, or may know who is responsible for this crime, is asked to call the state's Arson hotline at (800) 362-3005. Tips leading to the arrest of the responsible person(s) could result. ..Source.. by Greg Jeschke

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NJ report: Hundreds of civilly-committed sex offenders earn minimum wage

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12-10-2014 New Jersey:

In a state where nearly a third of its operating budget goes to paying for prisons, hundreds of dangerous sex offenders have been earning the same $8.25 hourly wage as many fast-food and retail employees.

A report by the state auditor said Wednesday that it is costing taxpayers nearly $2 million last year, and most of that money could be saved if the state switched from paying civilly-committed sex offenders from minimum wage to the much lower rate of about $2.33 a day it pays all other prison inmates.

The audit also detailed the high cost of keeping inmates at the Adult Diagnostic Treatment Center in Woodbridge, which is $59,900 a year per person, the second highest such cost in the state prison system.

The audit also found “liberal” use of sick time and loose enforcement of its regulations cost $1.1 million last year, or more than half the estimated total $2.1 million paid in overtime to correction officers of the center.

Paying for sick leave is a “universal” problem in corrections, said the state auditor, Stephen Eells.

And the corrections system itself is the costliest of New Jersey’s state services, accounting for nearly $1 billion of this year’s $3.5 billion executive branch budget.

Officials investigate arson at future home of sex offender

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12-10-2014 Wisconsin:

Utility worker reports fire at Cottage Grove residence Monday night

COTTAGE GROVE, Wis. - A fire that broke out late Monday night in a home into which a registered sex offender was supposed to move is being investigated as possible arson.

The Dane County Sheriff’s Office said the registered sex offender was scheduled to move in next week.

The fire, which was reported around 10 p.m. by an Alliant Energy worker, was at a home in the 4700 block of Gaston Circle, officials said. The house was empty at the time of the fire.

The fire damaged the lower part of the home, according to a news release. No one was injured.

Cottage Grove police said the cause of the fire is undetermined, and damage estimates are not yet known. ..Source.. by Channel3000.com

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Sex offender to move into group home

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12-6-2014 Minnesota:

A southern Minnesota man who has spent more than two decades in the state's treatment program for sex offenders is expected to move into a group home in Le Center later this month, after a state Supreme Court appeal panel granted him a provisional discharge.

According to court documents obtained Friday by The Associated Press, the judicial panel ruled Nov. 12 that Robert Jeno, 50, had no further need for treatment and supervision through the Minnesota Sex Offender Program. The panel ordered his release, with provisions, and approved a plan that includes several conditions to protect the public, including placing Jeno on constant GPS monitoring and placing alarms on his windows.

"From MSOP's perspective, Appellant has completed sex offender treatment. All that remains is maintenance and management of his mental illness," the order reads.

Le Center Police Chief Bob Pfarr said in a statement provided to the AP Friday that Jeno would be released "later this month." A community notification meeting is scheduled for Dec. 16.

Attorneys say he will live at Shiloh's Hope Inc. in Le Center. Staff answering the phone at the home Friday had no comment.

Appeals Court panel orders provisional discharge for Faribault man at MSOP

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12-5-2014 Minnesota:

The Appeals Court panel has issued an order of provisional discharge for a Faribault man who has been held in a state secure facility for 30 years, and will soon reside in an adult foster care facility in Le Center.

Robert William Jeno will be the third man released from custody in the history of the state's sex offender program.

Jeno, now 50, was convicted of first-degree criminal sexual conduct in 1984 in a Rice County courtroom and sentenced to 130 months in prison.

After serving his prison term, Jeno was civilly committed by the state and placed in the Minnesota Sex Offender Program in Moose Lake. The process for release from the program is convoluted — filled with hearings, screenings, reports and yet more hearings — with little chance of freedom for the offender.

The state Department of Human Services reports that the process takes on average nine months to a year. Minnesota now confines more sex offenders per capita than any other state, and has the lowest rate of release from civil commitment of any state.

Since the program was created in 1995, three sex offenders have been released, two of whom were later returned to custody for either non-compliance or self-admittance.

Panel sees 'red flag' in handling sex offenders

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12-4-2014 Massachusetts:

BOSTON — Many sex offenders who are civilly committed end up getting released without supervision, officials at a state treatment center said Wednesday, calling it a “red flag” during a presentation to a special commission studying recidivism.

Better communication needs to occur between state agencies like the Department of Correction and the Sex Offender Registry Board, the officials said.

Brooke Berard, director of treatment assessment at the Massachusetts Treatment Center, and Kaitlyn Peretti, the center’s supervising psychologist and director of training, made the presentation to the commission, which is chaired by Sen. William Brownsberger, D-Belmont, and Rep. Paul Brodeur, D-Melrose.

The center, a medium security facility, is located next to Bridgewater State Hospital and houses inmates convicted of sexual offenses, temporarily committed offenders, and civilly committed sex offenders who are held for a period of time after they’ve been incarcerated.