Pearl -clutching OpEd by Zach Husted of Victoria, MN claims kids are pissing themselves over Registrant placement

If you want to see the dumbest example of Chicken Little writing, read the last paragraph. If I had to take a guess, he ate every oyster he could find until he got enough pearls to make a necklace so that he may clutch them. 

https://www.swnewsmedia.com/chanhassen_villager/news/opinion/letters_to_the_editor/letter-work-toward-a-better-minnesota/article_bd0aacdd-4259-5def-b449-edceb26aa7ee.html

Letter: Work toward a better Minnesota

Mark Olson Jul 22, 2021 

Editor’s note: The author submitted the following letter on behalf of Wassermann neighbors in response to: “Victoria neighborhood protests level 3 sex offender.”

Minnesota uses a determinate sentencing model, whereby a level 3 child predator is serving his last one-third of his sentence among 700-plus children within a 1.5-mile radius of his residence.

The DOC informed our community they have a “density of victim” factor when reviewing placements, and determined on July 2 that this factor will remain arbitrary. In other words, the DOC does not have any legal responsibility to review the location of a level 3 child predator when it comes to the density of children living near his residence.

This community was given two business days of notice, that a level three child predator, who has a history of “sexualiz[ing] 90% of minor females” and “after three years of treatment is scoring at high risk to reoffend” (according to public court record, county attorney’s summation letter) will be living among their children.

Moreover, the Department of Corrections is minimizing the fact that he was leveled just prior to release — as the highest risk of reoffending — when it states, “… we have an extremely successful record working with this type of clientele.”

Our community appreciates the difficult position the DOC is in when it comes to lack of funding and limited resources for placing level 3 child predators, yet the DOC seems to be villainizing a community when claiming people are not giving him “the opportunity to succeed.” Our community wants nothing more than for the DOC’s “clientele” to be rehabilitated, and that is just the point. Approve a placement that will foster his rehabilitation.

How can the DOC find it ‘acceptable’ to approve a level 3 child predator’s residence surrounded by a high density of children resembling his previous victims, and when the sentencing judge states in a previous publication “The bottom line is this, [y]ou are not allowed to have contact with children period.”

Last week’s article includes a statement to our community, wanting the level 3 child predator to have an “unobstructed opportunity to succeed or fail on his own.”

How can failure be observed and reported without 1:1 supervision of potential non-contact sexual probation violations, or when the residence is allowed to record our children playing in their own backyards? Or, does failure come at the expense of another innocent child? There is no “fail on his own” with those horrifying circumstances, and failure is perpetuated in the lives of his victims indefinitely.

Lastly, our community is aware that only more level 3 child predators will be released this year, the next, and the following. It is our commitment to work with legislators such as Rep. Jim Nash, Rep. Greg Boe, and Sen. Julia Coleman to provide a framework for the DOC when placing level 3 child predators in the future.

As we watch our neighborhood children have night terrors, pee themselves in their own home, start antidepressants, see therapists, are unable to have use, enjoyment, tranquility in their own backyards, we will continue to work towards a better Minnesota that can find a more acceptable process than tormenting our children.

Zach Husted

Victoria

Vigilante scumbag and past Shiitake Award "Winner" Curtis J Hart drops out of local council race "Because Stupidity"

Curtis J(uicy) Fart, seen here campaigning for another
Shiitake Award victory

Imagine that, Curtis Hart, self-professed "open records hound", drops out of council race because he doesn't want anyone seeing his personal records.

How ironic. Or moronic. Or both. Yeah, both. 

https://tdn.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/curtis-hart-pulling-out-of-kelso-city-council-race/article_eddec0a0-c259-5aa5-b857-53026a97a2e5.html

Curtis Hart pulling out of Kelso City Council race

Brennen Kauffman Jul 14, 2021 2

Curtis Hart will appear on the ballot for the Kelso City Council primary, but he is working to suspend his campaign.

Hart said Wednesday that he was no longer planning to move forward due to concerns with years of financial disclosures, for himself and his wife, that are required by the Public Disclosure Commission for political candidates and office holders.

“I’m a public records hound, so I know what can happen once you have those records open to the public, especially if there are people that don’t like you,” Hart said.

His decision to suspend the campaign came after the drop-out deadline for the Aug. 3 primary election. Cowlitz County’s ballots were in the process of being shipped out Wednesday and will list Hart as a candidate for position 1 on the Kelso City Council.

Hart gained notoriety over the last four years for his aggressive vigilante work against sexual offenders in Kelso, often through public records. A record request he made to the Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office for details of every low-level sex offender turned into a three-year lawsuit after a group of “John Doe” offenders sued to stop their release.

The “John Does” argued they would suffer severe harassment and harm if Hart went through with plans to publicly release their information. In March, the Washington State Court of Appeals issued a decision in favor of Hart obtaining the full list of records.

Hart said he had initially entered the City Council race because of discussions around limiting the number of sexual offenders who can live in one residence in Kelso. The city staff began drafting an ordinance to establish limits for registered sex offenders in May and Hart said that progress was another reason he was happy to exit the race.

Cowlitz County Auditor Carolyn Fundingsland said if candidates miss the initial withdrawal deadline, there was no process for them to be removed from the ballot any other time before the November general election.

“There is no leeway in state law,” Fundingsland said. “Those candidates, if voted for they will advance to the general election and can be elected to office.”

Hart said Wednesday that he would refuse the position if he did end up winning the race in November.

The other two candidates on the ballot for position 1 in Kelso are incumbent Jeffrey McAllister and Brian Wood. The two candidates with the most votes in the August primary will go on to the general election in November.

Justin Lundy intentionally inflames and misreads viewers by claiming trailer park is becoming a "sex offender sanctuary"

The article misleads people believe the entire trailer park is going to become a haven for "sex offenders" and of course, the internet gangsters on social media are in full force. This isn't just a one-off story either, judging by Justin's Facebook account. 

Maybe he should spend less time working on bringing that MC Hammer hairdo into the 21st century and less time inciting hatred and ignorance in his viewers. 

https://wcyb.com/news/local/neighbors-concerned-about-plans-for-a-registered-sex-offender-sanctuary-in-wise-county

Neighbors concerned about plans for a registered sex offender sanctuary in Wise County

by JUSTIN LUNDY | WCYB Staff

Monday, July 5th 2021

WISE COUNTY, Va. (WCYB) — An East Stone Gap community is concerned after learning a sanctuary for registered sex offenders might be intentionally relocated to their neighborhood.

Longtime resident Vernon Porch Jr. has an 8-year-old daughter. Porch says he plans to leave the mobile home park.

"Most of the time we have eight kids here just playing at my house and we can't live here anymore if it's going to be like this," Porch said.

According to Virginia state law, registered sex offenders must live more than 500 feet from a church, school or daycare.

East Stone Gap Baptist Church is about 1,000 feet away from the mobile home park. Head pastor Lonnie Brooks says that's still too close for his own comfort.

"I know the state police came and measured all of that to check that they were within those boundaries," Brooks said. "But it still seems very close."

Wise County Commonwealth's Attorney Chuck Slemp says he's also concerned about the safety of the East Stone Gap community.

"Obviously we're looking at it from every angle to determine what law enforcement or our county can do," Slemp said. "We're ready to step up enforcement and step up additional patrols. We'll do whatever we need to do for the safety of the community and residents in that community."

We reached out to Inby Home Trailer Park LLC for comment and have not yet received a response.

A public meeting about the proposed sex offender sanctuary is scheduled to take place on July 20 at 6:30 p.m. at the Taylor-Lewis Baptist Community Center.

Biased Marion Co IN Sheriff Kerry Forestal justifies harassment campaign by claiming high reoffense rates

It is obvious here that Sheriff Forrest-Gump is trying to pressure Registered Persons to leave his county. He should be investigated for abusing his position. Lying to the public about reoffense rates is also a disservice to the community. 

He thinks we're all telling registrants to go to Indianapolis. Hello, big city means more people snd thus Registered Persons. What a putz!

https://fox59.com/news/sheriffs-office-ramps-up-efforts-to-educate-crack-down-on-noncompliant-sex-offenders-in-marion-county/

Sheriff’s office ramps up efforts to educate, crack down on noncompliant sex offenders in Marion County

by: Courtney Spinelli

Posted: Jul 7, 2021 / 11:21 PM EDT / Updated: Jul 7, 2021 / 11:22 PM EDT

INDIANAPOLIS — The Marion County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) shared it has reallocated resources to put an emphasis on proactively tackling the issue of non-compliant sex offenders in the community.

Right now, Marion County has 1,815 registered sex offenders that live in it, which the MCSO said is by far the most in any county in Indiana.

“Before I was the sheriff, I was the division commander and had the sex crimes unit under me and it continued to have more people from other counties come to Marion County,” said Sheriff Kerry Forestal. He told FOX59 he hoped to discourage this as he ran for Sheriff but said several contributing factors have made it difficult to control a growing number of outside offenders coming to the county.

Data provided by the MCSO reveals a growth in the percentage of registered sex offenders living in it, who were not convicted in the county, but instead moved after their release.

In 2018, the MCSO said 39% of registered sex offenders in Marion County were convicted elsewhere. That number rose to 42% by January of 2021, and in just six months, it moved to 45% by June.

“My issue isn’t the percentage increase, it’s when those increases come,” said State Representative Mitch Gore.

“It took three years to get to 42%, an increase of 3%, but it only took six months to get to 45%,” he said, “What I think we’re seeing is an exponential increase in the number of out-of-town sex offenders and I want to know, are they talking to each other? Why are they coming here? Is the state dumping sex offenders in our county?”

FOX59 reached out to the Indiana Department of Correction, who said each release of inmates is planned with the offender by members of its Re-Entry Division and Transitional Healthcare Services team.

“Each release includes an approved placement for the releasing citizen, which is determined based on a multitude of factors, including education, employment opportunities, family support, housing, transportation, resources and any restrictions or requirements put in place by the sentencing court,” a spokesperson for IDOC told FOX59.

Still, Forestal said he feels there are programs in Marion County he believes could be moved elsewhere, making it less convenient for sex offenders to move within county limits after their release.

“It’s easier to mix into to a population of 900,000 so they’ll move their post-release housing into our county,” said Forestal. “I want Hoosier hospitality to be people that we want in our community. Now, they want to go back in their community, that’s where they need to be.”

Forestal said he wants to encourage parents to keep an extra watchful eye on their children and the MCSO is working to increase its social media awareness on the community’s non-compliant sex offenders as part of this effort.

“We want our kids safe. I think parents should be able to feel they can send their kids out to the parks without having to look over their shoulders, but we’re in reality. We do need to look over the shoulders,” Forestal said.

“We feature, every Monday, a sex offender and if you notice, they’re always somebody who’s from out of town and it’s always somebody who’s failed to register,” said Gore. “We are seeing more and more that the people that come here are failing to register.”

To make his message clear that MCSO is cracking down more than ever on sex offenders that are not complying with rules, Forestal said he placed a sign in the lobby where they are required to register, which reads, “You’re welcome in Marion County as long as you follow the law.”

“The law allows you to be here and if you follow that, fine. I don’t like the programs that encourage them to come to Indianapolis,” he said. “Some of the smaller communities they may be recognized as being what they did and they’re choosing to avoid that detection by coming here.”

Last session, Gore introduced a piece of bipartisan legislation, House Bill 1556, co-authored by State Rep. Mike Speedy, which sought to allow a county’s legislative body to restrict the ability of a sex offender to move into a community, unless they were coming for legitimate reasons like employment or treatment programs.

“It did not get a hearing, but I’m hopeful when we explain this issue to other state legislators that they see the need and they allow it to move forward,” said Gore.

He said he is meeting with other state legislators and certain stakeholders to get a firm grasp on the factors surrounding the issue, and to have firm information so they can hopefully move forward and re-introduce the legislation in next session.

“It’s a problem that the state has helped create and so it’s one that we all have to get together and try to fix going forward,” said Gore. “It’s an issue in red counties and blue counties, which don’t really exist when we talk about this issue.”

Gore shared that he is glad to see Sheriff Forestal and the department taking an increased focus on proactivity when it comes to keeping an eye on the sex offenders living within county lines.

“What it really helps us do, is it gives us much better data and a much better idea of how pervasive this issue is so I can go to my colleagues at the Statehouse, give them hard data, say ‘this is how it affects my county; I can help you get the data for your county, and can we show you, is this happening in your county to the same extent.'”

Gore said Marion County is in a unique position, where it has to deal with this problem in a greater volume than any other in Indiana.

“There are other counties that don’t have to deal with this, so they’re able to allocate resources to their jail and their warrant teams and they’re able to go out and arrest, you know, violent offenders that are on the run,” he said. “We have to dedicate a great amount of time and resources to the sex offender issue, when almost half of them shouldn’t even be here.”

Gore hopes a bipartisan piece of legislation on this would keep the issue at the forefront of Marion County residents’ minds, and to know there are things they can do, and law enforcement is doing, to keep their kids safe.

Forestal said, “We keep the eyes on the people who want to keep their eyes on the children. Sex offenders have a very high recidivism rate and to make that very clear, they do it again.”

“They’re getting a second chance. The fact that they’re out on the streets and not in jail, a judge somewhere has made the decision to allow them to do that,” Forestal said.

He said all is he asking them to do is follow the rules, and because he knows some out there are not doing that, he and his department are committed to conducting unannounced sweeps and focusing resources on the issue, as needed.

MCSO said so far, year to date, they have conducted 3,600 in-person compliance checks. Additionally, the department has launched 195 criminal investigations, which is a 49% increase from the same time period in 2018.

Also up 35% from the same time period in 2018 is the number of warrant applications made due to registered sex offenders failing to comply. So far this year, the department has made 42 applications.

This year, 36 non-compliant sex offenders have been arrested in Marion County, which the MCSO said is a 140% increase from the same time period in 2018.

Current numbers show in the county jail, there are 212 people charged with some kind of sexual or sexually violent crime. The crimes range anywhere from rape to child molestation.

Sheriff Forestal said his message for registered sex offenders in the county is clear: “Another sweep will be coming and as we mentioned before we don’t tell you when, but for the sex offenders, we will be coming for you again, so follow the rules or move out.”

“Those sweeps call it to attention that we will be knocking on your door. If you tell us this is your address, it better be current and we’re gonna take action against you.”

Rittenhouse attorney wants to show victim was a "Sex Offender"

Allow me to correctly dissect the events surrounding this shooting. Then 17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse grabbed a gun and joined a group of rabblerousers looking to start a fight, and he did indeed find a fight. When he couldn't handle the fight, he pulled out his gun and started shooting. As it turns out, one of Rittenhouse's victim was a Registered Person, so he thinks that somehow absolves him. 

https://www.dailyunion.com/news/nation_world/rittenhouse-attorney-wants-to-show-victim-was-sex-offender/article_a491ae56-0178-5101-ae40-1057c699e9b5.html

Rittenhouse attorney wants to show victim was sex offender

Kyle Rittenhouse's attorney wants a judge to allow him to argue that one of the men his client killed during a protest in Wisconsin last year was a sex offender, in hopes of showing the man was trying to steal Rittenhouse's gun because he couldn't possess one

By TODD RICHMOND - Associated Press Jul 6, 2021 Updated 2 hrs ago

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Kyle Rittenhouse's attorney wants a judge to allow him to argue that one of the men his client fatally shot during a Wisconsin protest was a sex offender, saying it supports a defense theory that he attacked Rittenhouse and intended to take his gun because he couldn't legally possess one.

Mark Richards maintained in court filings Thursday that Joseph Rosenbaum was convicted of having sex with a minor in Arizona in 2002 and was prohibited from possessing firearms. Rosenbaum started the altercation with Rittenhouse in hopes of making off with his assault-style rifle, which only bolsters Rittenhouse’s self-defense argument, Richards wrote.

Kimberley Motley, an attorney representing Rosenbaum's estate, rejected Richards' theory but declined to comment further since the case against Rittenhouse remains open.

“We believe strongly that Mr. Rittenhouse was the aggressor and his actions were not lawful,” she said in a phone interview Tuesday.

Richards also filed a motion to dismiss a charge that Rittenhouse couldn't possess a gun because he was too young under Wisconsin law, arguing that statutes prohibit minors from possessing short-barreled shotguns and rifles, and Rittenhouse's assault-style rifle doesn't meet that definition.

Rittenhouse, who is white, traveled to Kenosha from his home in Antioch, Illinois, on Aug. 25 to answer a call from local militia to protect businesses from protesters. The demonstrations began after a white Kenosha police officer shot Jacob Blake, who is Black, during a domestic disturbance, leaving Blake paralyzed from the waist down.

The protests turned chaotic that night. According to prosecutors, Rittenhouse opened fire on Rosenbaum, Anthony Huber and Gaige Grosskreutz. He killed Rosenbaum and Huber. Grosskreutz was hit but survived.

Rittenhouse was 17 years old at the time. Now 18, he maintains he fired in self-defense but prosecutors have charged him with a litany of counts, including reckless homicide, recklessly endangering safety, attempted first-degree intentional homicide and being a minor in possession of a dangerous weapon.

Black Lives Matter supports have painted him as a trigger-happy white supremacist. Conservatives have made him into a symbol for gun rights, generating $2 million for his bail. His trial is scheduled to begin Nov. 1.

Prosecutors filed motions last week asking a judge to allow a video from July 2020 which they said shows Rittenhouse striking a teenage girl in the back on Kenosha's waterfront. They also want to argue that Rittenhouse is affiliated with the Proud Boys, a far-right extremist group.

Photos taken in January show Rittenhouse drinking in a Mount Pleasant bar and gesturing with what appeared to be a white power symbol. Prosecutors said in their motions they have learned the people Rittenhouse was with included the leader of the Proud Boys' Wisconsin chapter and several of its high-ranking members.

Richards filed another motion on Thursday arguing evidence related to the altercation between Rittenhouse and the teenage girl is irrelevant.

He also argued that there's no indication Rittenhouse knew any of the Proud Boys before that night in the bar or that he has associated with the group. What's more, nothing supports the argument that race was a factor in the shootings, Richards said.

Huber and Grosskreutz were part of a “mob” that was chasing Rittenhouse, Richards wrote in the motion. Huber hit Rittenhouse with a skateboard and tried to grab his gun, and Grosskreutz pointed a pistol at him, Richards wrote.

Kenosha County Circuit Judge Bruce Schroeder has scheduled a hearing on the motions for Sept. 17.