Samantha Manning, the dumbass-o from El Paso

Where does the Shiitake Awards keep finding these brainwashed twits? Like Visa, they're everywhere. This airhead is Samantha Manning of KFOX-14 out of El Paso, TX. I was expecting a blonde when someone sent me the screenshots.

Typical fearmongering BS, nothing special, until I read the second screenshot:

Another dumb reporter pimping the Adam Walsh Act. Do reporters ever do valid research any more? Apparently not. Below is original fear tactic article. Enjoy:

http://www.kfoxtv.com/news/news/officials-work-correct-sex-offender-law-error/nNJyR/


Officials work to correct sex offender law error
By Samantha Manning

LAS CRUCES, N.M. — A mistake in the law could mean there are child predators in New Mexico who aren't registered as sex offenders. 

Here's where the problem happened: In 2007, the state legislature passed a law making it a crime to solicit sex of a child through electronics. But in that same session, they passed another law amending the sex offender statute and didn't include the new law about soliciting sex from a child through electronics. 

Therefore, people who went after kids on the Internet or with their cell phones weren't always registering as sex offenders even though they should have, according to Gov. Susana Martinez. 

"It's a scary thought," Las Cruces parent Tina Hall said. 

Hall is a mother of five and said that she's appalled at the thought that child predators may unknowingly walk among us. 

"Everyday we just let our kids run around outside and we don't even know who our neighbor is," Hall said. 

"It was just an error, a glitch in the compilation of the law," Martinez said. "It's unclear on the books." 

That's why Martinez said she sent a letter to district attorneys and judges across the state urging them to enforce this law, despite how unclear it may appear. 

"Unfortunately, these circumstances have led many to believe that this crime is not one for which offenders must register in the state," Martinez wrote. "This is not the case, and individuals who commit these crimes must register as a sex offender in New Mexico." 

The crime can include someone trying to lure a child to a meeting place online with the intention of carrying out a sexual act or even texting a lewd photograph. 

"Using any kind of communication device, whether it's texting, email, Facebook," Martinez said. 

Still, Martinez said that some would-be registered sex offenders could have slipped under the radar already. 

"For all I know I could be living right next door to one with my kids," Hall said. "That's kind of a scary thought."

Flogging the Brian Bishop

This is Brian Bishop of WCYB 5 News in Virginia. It must be sweeps week so he decided to pick on a homeless registrant for the sake of ratings.. I must say, I'm glad the interviewee told Bishop off. Hearing Bishop's redneck accent is laughable. I suppose I should be satisfied he stopped short of the "P" word but I'm not.

http://www.wcyb.com/news/30947124/detail.html


Convicted Sex Offender Found Living In Walmart Parking Lot
By Brian Bishop
POSTED: 11:34 am EDT April 24, 2012


BRISTOL, Va. -- A convicted sex offender sounded off after we found him living in a department store parking lot.
We discovered he gave Virginia authorities the address of a local Walmart as his legal residence. We wanted to know how he did that, so we paid him a visit and found out the store management didn't even know he was there.
Parents are always told to keep a close eye in their kids in public. It turns out a man with a criminal past has been living in a very busy place and no one seemed to know.
"You guys don't deserve to be here with your cameras," the man said after we knocked on the door of his RV. "See what I am getting at? Mind your own business, world."
The man's name is Doug Young, and he wasn't too happy to see us. Young is a convicted sex offender found guilty of three counts of child molestation back in 1985 in Georgia.
Young denies those charges to this day. "I don't think it's fair because people point at you and say 'sex offender, you are dirt. Hey everybody, gossip gossip gossip,'" he said.
Young first came to our attention through a news tip. We checked him out on the Virginia sex offender registry and found he listed his address on Lee Highway. We checked that address and confirmed he was living in an RV on the edge of a Walmart parking lot.
We knocked on his door to ask him about it. "If you haven't walked a mile in my shoes, stay out of my shoes. And stay out of my face," he said. "I am sick and tired of people looking at me and saying I am some sort of pervert. You don't even know me, you don't even know the truth. It's all lies. So give us a break will you?"
Virginia officials tell us they knew where he was, but the Bristol Walmart store manager told us he didn’t know he had set up the RV in their parking lot.
Store manager Greg Cunningham told us they do allow some truckers to park and rest there overnight. "We do allow people to stop and get rest and spend the night, both truck drivers and campers," he explained. "We have quite a few who take advantage of that."
Walmart officials say tractor trailers and RVs are welcome to use their parking lots to get a night's rest. However, when we showed them the Virginia state press release regarding Mr. Young, they assured us they will immediately notify authorities and let them know that this is not his permanent address.
Young did admit to living in the parking lot, but said he never asked for permission to live there. He says he did give authorities the correct address because he was living there.
"You don't have to go out there and tell the public and put people on TV just because they made a stinking mistake," he said. "Get off our backs. The people served time for what they did. [I] deserve after 29 years to be off this stuff."
We contacted Virginia officials about why they didn't know Young was living in the parking lot. After we brought it to their attention, they said they're looking into the matter.
Here's another twist -- Mr. Young had moved his RV by the time we'd finished filming. Since our story, Mr. Young has moved to a nearby campground and he was quick to give authorities his new address.
We will have more on this story and examine the laws on where he was living Tuesday evening on News 5 at 6.


UPDATE: The news station was later schooled by the State Police. Bishop had to eat crow:

http://www.wcyb.com/news/30954270/detail.html


Sex Offender Registry Rules Explained
By Brian Bishop
POSTED: 12:36 pm EDT April 25, 2012


BRISTOL, Va. -- On Monday we found convicted sex offender Doug Young living in his RV in a Walmart parking lot.
As the story unfolded, it turns out Virginia State Police and state statutes have no problem with that; police say Young has done nothing wrong.
Doug Young was not happy to see us when we showed up at his RV parked at the Walmart on Lee Highway. We had received a tip from a concerned viewer who said a sex offender was living there.
We went to check and found the RV. He was convicted in 1985 of child sex abuse. He told us he served his time, but denied the crimes.
A Walmart manager told us he had no idea Young was living there. He wondered how a registered sex offender could end up living in such a public place with so many people around.
While it may be surprising to you, it is perfectly legal. We spoke to Public Relations Manager Corinne Geller of the Virginia State Police, and she explained nothing was wrong. "It does happen from time to time. We have a sex offender living under an overpass in the city of Richmond so we have the nearest physical address listed on the website," she said. "We also have one offender who has taken up residency in the national forest and as long as we have the address, he can do that."
Geller says the state did know where he was living and a trooper had been checking on him twice a year. Young was located just where he listed on the state registry -- at the address on Lee Highway. It doesn't matter that it is a parking lot.
"The Virginia Sex Offender Registry is regulated by the legislature," Geller explained. "The legislators are the ones who dictate what is on there for the registrants and for state police to maintain the registry."
Virginia law, and a similar one in Tennessee, says sex offenders can live where they want with restrictions on places where children gather like schools, parks and churches.
We spoke with Commonwealth's Attorney Jerry Wolfe about the matter. "As long as that person reports a valid address, that is all that is required by the statute," he said. "It is my understanding from your report that it had been done in this case. It just happened that the individual gave and address that is a business. The business did not know he was there, but the state knew. That's exactly where you found him."
Now Young has another address, as he's moved to a campground. We're told he was quick to notify authorities of his address change.
Perhaps there, he'll get what he told us he wants -- just to be left alone.
Here's another fact we found out from the state police: troopers don't have any responsibility to inform a business if a sex offender is living in their parking lot.

West Virginia forces man convicted in 1976 of ADULTERY to register

That man banged some dude's wife! I think he's one of dem dar "secks O-fendurs."

At least the man is suing the state. The law was abolished in the 1980s, yet this man was forced to register for cheating on his wife.

http://wvgazette.com/News/201204210060


W.Va. State Police sued over sex offender listing
Logan man told to register because of 1976 adultery
By Travis Crum




CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- A Logan County man is suing the West Virginia State Police, claiming he was required to register as a sex offender for a crime abolished in the 1980s.


Criss Alan Heston of Logan appeared on the registry next to alleged sexual predators and pedophiles about six weeks after the State Police was ordered to remove him, the lawsuit claims.


The lawsuit, filed in Kanawha County Circuit Court, seeks damages for humiliation Heston says he suffered during his time on the registry. It also requests the State Police to revaluate how troopers are trained to maintain and understand sex offender laws.


According to the lawsuit, Heston was indicted on June 1975 on a charge of felony forcible intercourse with a female without consent in Marion County.


Robert Kuenzel, Heston's attorney, said the charge arose after Heston had sex with another man's wife near Eldora.


"He had a relationship with a married lady," Kuenzel said, "and the bottom line is, her husband found out and pushed the button."


After prosecutors went through the evidence, they allowed Heston to plead no contest on Oct. 27, 1976, to the lesser charge of misdemeanor sexual misconduct -- or adultery. He spent eight days in jail.



Sometime in the 1980s, the West Virginia Legislature abolished the crime of adultery, according to the lawsuit.


Heston lived the next 35 years in West Virginia without any problems and moved to Logan County, where he lived and worked, Kuenzel said. Heston even earned top security clearance to operate Ham radios for the U.S. Coast Guard, he said.


On Aug. 30, 2010, though, Heston received a letter from State Police Sgt. J.E. Skidmore requiring him to register as a sex offender or face imprisonment.


"Our records indicate that you were convicted of 1 Count of Sexual Misconduct on October 27, 1976, thus subjecting you to registration as a sex offender for life," Skidmore wrote in the letter.


Heston responded to the letter and registered as ordered.


Kuenzel said that, soon after, Heston's image, age, height, weight and home address were posted to the websites of the State Police and countless watchdog groups.



"Here you got a guy whose who now has been branded a child molester for life," Kuenzel said.


The Legislature enacted the Sexual Offender Registration Act in 1998. The act enumerates 11 offenses in which a person must register.


"His is not even a crime anymore," Kuenzel said.


Kuenzel said Heston filed action in Marion County Circuit Court, requesting to be removed from the registry. Circuit Court Judge Michael Aloi ordered that Heston be removed from the list on Dec. 2, 2011. Aloi sent a copy of his order to Trooper Skidmore to ensure Heston would be removed immediately.


According to the lawsuit, Heston was not removed until a month later.


"This is another one of those cases where they [State Police] needed some better training on the law," Kuenzel said. "I think they were negligent in what they've done."


Kuenzel cited a recent state Supreme Court ruling, West Virginia vs. Judge, as reason for the State Police to review its own procedures regarding the registry.


In that case, a Tyler County man was arrested for failing to register as a sex offender following an unrelated jail sentence. The Supreme Court ruled that a person can be arrested, "only upon being convicted of a 'qualifying offense.'"


"I think they were negligent in their training," Kuenzel said, "and this is coming from a guy who was a state policeman for 10 years. I like the organization. They are very professional, very upstanding. In this case, they dropped the ball."


Heston's image can be found on at least five sex offender websites, according to an Internet search of his name. Heston's image also appeared in print publications without retraction.

Secret Service scandal: nothing to see here, move along

At least we know what kind of secret service our fine Secret Service agents do. When in Colombia, do as the Colombians do. What I've noticed is the media isn't calling it a "sex trafficking" scandal but a "prostitution" scandal. Weird, huh? Yet some local yokel pokes a streetwalker and he's a "sex trafficker." Your tax dollars at work! And look, all of our Armed Forces are represented-- Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines! 

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-sex-scandal-20120417,0,816419.story

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon is investigating 10 U.S. military members in a widening inquiry into whether an advance team led by the Secret Service hired prostitutes or engaged in other misconduct before President Obama visited Colombia for a weekend summit, U.S. officials said Monday. The Pentagon investigation is focusing on five Army Special Forces soldiers, two Marines, two Navy personnel and one member of the Air Force, a U.S. military official said.

Miami pulls ultimate dick move to prevent Bookville II camp

Miami has been in the news lately for the new sex offender camp at Shorecrest. They are already trying to sue the state, but the came up with an even better idea-- to create a makeshift park to prevent RSOs from moving in. Check out these pictures from the park-- would you send YOUR kids there to play? I bet even Lenore Skenazy from Free-Range Kids would be reluctant to let her kids play there.

I'm willing to guess the "little river" is a drainage ditch. I guess there ARE rednecks in Miami after all.

I've seen inner city parks better than this.

http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/04/13/2746967/miami-creates-pop-up-park-to-stanch.html

Miami creates pop-up park to stanch flow of sex offenders to Shorecrest sidewalk  

With sex offenders on a Shorecrest sidewalk, Miami opened a new park just a few hundred feet away to stop more from showing up.

BY CHARLES RABIN

CRABIN@MIAMIHERALD.COM

Only a few hundred feet from the latest encampment of sexual offenders, who were banished to a sidewalk in Miami’s Shorecrest neighborhood, is a little piece of mostly barren city-owned land, about 100-by-40 feet, filled with a couple of old rusted toys and a metal carport frame.

Welcome to Miami’s new “Little River Pocket Park,’’ a sod-challenged pop-up park never envisioned in any master plan, but created by City Commissioner Marc Sarnoff in a clever bid to keep more offenders from moving to the area.

“I can’t dislodge those who are there,’’ Sarnoff, who represents the district, told The Miami Herald. “But this is to prevent any further sexual offenders from being put there by the state.”

Sarnoff learned of the vacant land from nearby homeowners concerned about at least 13 sexual offenders who have set up camp nearby. County and state law prohibit sex offenders from living near parks where children gather, though the state allows offenders already living somewhere to stay if the park is created after they’ve moved in, the city said.

The new park, at the southern end of Northeast 10th Avenue on the Little River, is about 300 feet from the relatively new encampment of sex offenders, who gather at 10 every night on a small piece of sidewalk just north of the park near 79th Street, and who generally leave before dawn.

The restrictive county law doesn’t allow offenders within 2,500 feet of schools or any place children might gather, leaving the men few places in Miami-Dade County where they can spend evenings.

Several of the men told The Miami Herald that their probation officers handed them pieces of paper suggesting they go to Shorecrest after they were released from prison. State correction officials deny that, saying they can only tell released inmates where they are not allowed to live.

Either way, the group has been at the spot for several months now, prompting Sarnoff to take action.

In March, commissioners voted to take legal action demanding that corrections stop the men from congregating in Shorecrest, a neighborhood in the city’s northeast corner. Nothing has been filed yet.

The city seems to have met the minimum requirements to create a park. Deputy City Attorney Maria Chiaro said the city has to declare the spot a park, then maintain it. At Sarnoff’s request, City Manager Johnny Martinez wrote Maria DiBernardo, the state corrections circuit administrator, two weeks ago to inform her of the new park.

“This new park should necessarily preclude the placement of any sex offenders in the area of 79th Street and 10th Avenue,’’ the letter said.

Corrections officials did not respond to requests for comment.

Sarnoff tried a similar tactic almost three years ago to remove about 100 sexual offenders who made national headlines when they created an encampment under the Julia Tuttle Causeway.

Back then, he had the city manager write Gov. Charlie Crist demanding the offenders be moved because a spoil island named Picnic Island #4 was only 1,200 feet from the encampment, which was inside the county’s 2,500-foot boundary.

But the attempt backfired when state officials argued that the island was neglected, children didn’t congregate there, and was well outside the less-restrictive, 1,000-foot limit required by state statute.

Like Picnic Island #4, Little River Pocket Park could use some work.

Its front entrance, where 10th Avenue turns to the east, is protected by a two-foot-high steel rail that prohibits entry. Just over the rail is a sewer grate surrounded by mounds of mud. The park could benefit from plenty of new sod. There’s a giant, old ficus tree that has seen better days, the carport frame and two kids’ riding toys — a plastic horse and dinosaur on large coils.

The neglected property was brought to Sarnoff’s attention by Shorecrest homeowners who said they were upset the commissioner had ignored their pleas to open up several water-access points that had either fallen into disrepair over the years, or had been taken over by adjacent property owners.

Whatever the reason for creating the new park, Shorecrest resident Richard Laird, who has an 8-year-old son named Jack, is glad the property is now open to the public. Even better, he said, “It stems the growth of the sex offenders.’’

How many pigs does it take to verify an address? In Alabama, a seven car caravan with K9 units

I always wonder why sex offenders, the LEAST likely to be violent, are seen by cops as so scary they need the redneck SWAT team to make a show of force. Plus they need to turn it into a sport by giving stupid Operation names. These pigs should be a part of my own Operation Kiss My Ass:

http://blog.al.com/breaking/2012/04/madison_county_spring_cleaning.html


'Madison County Spring Cleaning' is huge operation to verify sex offenders
Published: Thursday, April 12, 2012, 7:00 AM     Updated: Thursday, April 12, 2012, 9:37 AM
  By Chris Welch, The Huntsville Times 

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- It seemed like something straight out of the movies or one of the "Cops"-type reality TV shows.
On Tuesday afternoon, a caravan of seven vehicles from the Madison County Sheriff's Office turned onto Ariel Drive into a Harvest subdivision.
One by one, the cars stopped in front of a house, the deputies spilling out of their cars and taking their positions - two on the left side of the house, four on the right, another in a black SUV that held K-9 Rambo and two others who approached the front door.
Some were in the foliage green, Army-like uniforms of the sheriff's SWAT team, others in the gray uniforms of the sheriff's reserve volunteers and one, Deputy Johnny Daversa, in the all black K-9 uniform.
When Deputy Cody Davis knocked on the door, the adrenaline started rushing and the heart started pumping just a little bit faster.
Would the suspect come out peacefully and surrender, start firing or head out the back door?
Nobody really knew.
These officers were among 65 taking part in "Operation Madison County Spring Cleaning" to verify 400 registered sex offenders are compliant with local and state sexual offender laws. The roundup included the U.S. Marshal's Office in Birmingham, Huntsville and Madison police, Madison County Sheriff's Office, Alabama State Probation Office and Madison County District Attorney's Office.
Madison County Sheriff's Office Investigator Brent Patterson said five of the sexual offenders have been arrested so far for noncompliance of the state and local sex offender laws.
"We've been planning this for 8 1/2 months," said Sheriff's Investigator Shawn McClure.
At the house in Harvest, a man came to the door and chatted outside with deputies and investigators. But he was not the sexual offender registered at the address. He told deputies, including Investigator Forrest Edde, in charge of this group, he had met the sexual offender in question once but he had never lived there. The homeowner told deputies he had been getting the offender's mail for two years and showed them a stack he was keeping inside.
"Deputy (Cody) Davis didn't see any evidence he had lived there," Edde said.
Because sexual offenders only have to report in to law enforcement every three months, and because of the shortages in law enforcement, it's not always easy to verify the address, officials say. Thus, the need for yearly roundups like these.
Satisfied the sexual offender wasn't at the Harvest address, the deputies got back in their cars and headed off to plan their second attempt at an arrest. Stopping on the side of the road near a grain mill in Harvest, the deputies went over the sexual offender's history, called up his address via Google Maps on their car-mounted laptops, made their plan and piled back into their cars.
The caravan headed to Sam Thomas Road in Huntsville and deputies again got out and took their positions near a dilapidated wooden house. There were no cars outside or signs of life until the deputies knocked on the door. It opened and a little dog came running out, barking.
The registered sex offender, thin and frail-looking with glasses, walked outside, chatted with deputies for a few minutes and then sat down on the steps. As it turned out, Edde said, the man was the sexual offender in question, but the person on a harrassment warrant the deputies had planned to serve was actually the man's son of the same name, who was at work.
As deputies looked around the house to make sure the sexual offender was compliant, his grandchildren got off a yellow school bus and walked through the maze of police. Law enforcement officials aren't very sympathetic toward sexual offenders, but deputies said it was sad the children had to go through this, especially since their classmates on the bus had driven by.
Children aren't normally allowed in the homes of sexual offenders, but if they're relatives and list in the court order it's OK, Edde said. The offender's son and his family had moved into the home to help his dad, who has been out of work for three years, keep the electricity on. Now, the son and means of support are in danger of going to jail.
As for the Madison County Sheriff's deputies and investigators, Edde said they'd done their jobs -- making sure sexual offenders are where they're supposed to be, and when they're not, reporting it.

Suspicious’ Man Actually Was Looking For Puppy

The other day I shared a similar story-- a man was cast as suspicious for driving a white van. Well apparently there was a second story in Boston. Some guy in a white van was looking for a puupy. So what was the guy REALLY doing? He was... LOOKING FOR HIS LOST DOG! Moral of the story, if you are a man who loses a dog, let the mutt stay lost.

http://boston.cbslocal.com/2012/04/07/webster-police-suspicious-man-actually-was-looking-for-puppy/


Webster Police: ‘Suspicious’ Man Actually Was Looking For Puppy
April 7, 2012 4:06 PM


Attempted Abduction, Christina Hager, Kim Tunnicliffe, Officer Steven Cacciapouti, Puppies, Webster
WEBSTER (CBS) – Police in Webster have solved the case of what was initially suspected as an attempted abduction. It turned out to be a man who was actually looking for his dog.


On Friday, officers warned residents about a suspicious man in a white pick-up truck who appeared to have attempted to lure a six-year-old girl as she played in her yard.


“He pulled up and told the young lady that he was out looking for his dog, and asked if she’d seen it,” Officer Steven Cacciapouti said on Friday. “The mother was watching, saw what was going on, and stepped out, and when she did that, he took off at a high rate of speed, circled around and drove up Route 16.”


On Saturday morning, police received a phone call from their suspect.
“The gentleman saw it in the newspaper came right down this morning,” Sgt. Thomas Reynolds said on Saturday.


As it turns out, the man in question, who lives down the street, had his dog, which police described as a high value specialty dog, jump from his truck and take off.




“(He) was kind of in a panic looking for the dog. He says he never saw the mother. He pulled up asked the girl real quick ‘did you see a dog?’ She said ‘no,’” Sgt. Reynolds said. “He saw somebody jogging up the street so he sped off to catch up to them.”


Police say the man’s story checks out. They also noted that despite the misunderstanding, the mom did the right thing.


“Mom sees the car pull in real quick, it only takes a second, that exchange between the driver and the daughter. She steps out and the gentleman takes off real quick,” Sgt. Reynolds said. “When you look at it from her perspective she’s thinking you know what, this isn’t right. We hear it and think you know what this is not right; why would you take off when mom steps out? But in fact he never saw mom. He’s not even thinking about talking to a young girl, he’s just thinking about the dog.”




The man in question, police say, did eventually find his dog unharmed. And police say, that despite the scare that the incident may have caused residents, they’d rather be safe than sorry.


“We prefer to be cautious and put that type of information out and find out later on that we were over reacting rather than not put that information out and find out it was in fact an actual attempted abduction,” Sgt. Reynolds said.

Operation Retard: Louisiana to pass bill banning RSOs from driving tow trucks

This just sounds perverted.

What is the reasoning behind this law? I think Bobby "The Exorcist" Jindal doesn't want his car impounded after passing an increasing number of dumb laws against registrants.

http://www.dailycomet.com/article/20120403/WIRE/120409907/1223?Title=Bill-seeks-to-ban-La-sex-offenders-from-driving-tow-trucks&tc=ar


Bill seeks to ban La. sex offenders from driving tow trucks


The Associated Press
Published: Tuesday, April 3, 2012 at 5:30 p.m.
Last Modified: Tuesday, April 3, 2012 at 5:30 p.m.
Convicted sex offenders would be banned from driving tow trucks in Louisiana under a bill backed in a 94-0 vote today by the state House.


Rep. Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, said the prohibition was sought by the Louisiana State Police. His bill would prohibit the issuance of a tow truck license plate to anyone convicted of a felony related to vehicle theft or to anyone required to register as a sex offender. The proposal heads to the Senate.

Read Louisiana House Bill 839 text HERE.

Virtual Predator Panic: NY Atty Gen wants to ban RSOs from Online Games

Any good sex offender video game would
have The Gropinator as a playable character.

Lets go down the checklist. Isolated incident? Check. Insane level of panic? Check. Novel feel-good law that will get some dipshit re-elected but doesn't prevent anything? Check. Question, If I approach EA to make a Sims sex offender expansion pack, would I be allowed to play online? Just a thought.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/davidthier/2012/04/05/new-york-city-attorney-general-annouces-sweeping-purge-of-sex-offenders-from-online-games/


New York State Attorney General Announces Purge of Sex Offenders From Online Games

New York State[/entity] Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced a sweeping purge of registered sex offenders from online worlds Thursday. In what’s being called Operation: Game Over, his office is cooperating with entertainment giants Microsoft, Disney, Apple, Blizzard, Electronic Arts, Warner Bros. and Sony.


“We must ensure online video game systems do not become a digital playground for dangerous predators. That means doing everything possible to block sex offenders from using gaming networks as a vehicle to prey on underage victims,” said Schneiderman in a statement. “I applaud all the companies participating in this first-of-its-kind initiative for taking online safety seriously and purging their networks of sex offenders. Together we are making the online community safer for our children, not allowing it to become a 21st century crime scene.”


Predation can be a serious problem in online games, and stories where pedophiles have used Xbox Live or games like World of Warcraft to meet children come up with alarming regularity. Making these spaces safer will be a difficult task, but Schneiderman’s office has assembled an impressive coalition of major entertainment companies for the project.


“Our partnership with the Office of the New York Attorney General helps further this cause. By leveraging the online identity information all registered sex offenders are required to provide, we are able to help reduce potentially harmful situations,” said Microsoft Vice President and Deputy General Counsel. “We’re supportive of Attorney General Schneiderman’s efforts to make the Internet, including online gaming environments like Xbox LIVE, safer for everyone.”


New York State requires sex offenders to register their email addresses and other online identifiers. Operation: Game Over has purged 3,850 accounts of New York State registered sex offenders, though hey could be using other aliases to interact online. Expanding the program with other states’ cooperation would extend its reach, as well.

Man serves 9 years because his daughter falsely accused him of "molestering" her

Kyle:	They're evil! I WISH I DIDN'T HAVE ANY PARENTS!
Cartman:	[smoothly] Well, you… could make them… go away for a while.
Kyle:	How?!
Cartman:	Well, I mean, you… could… call the police and have them take your parents away.
Stan:	The police?
Cartman:	Yeah, I saw it on TV. All you gotta do is call the police and say that your parents both molestered you.
Kyle:	What's that?
Cartman:	I don't know, but it works. When I wanted to get rid of my mom's last boyfriend, I just called the police, and said he was molestering me, and I haven't seen him for three months.
Kyle:	[awed] Wow! Three months without parents!
Kenny:	(Wow, that is awesome!)
Stan:	But what do the police do to them?
Kyle:	Who cares? My parents deserve whatever they get. They're liars and cheats.

*From South Park's "The Wacky Molestation Adventure" episode

Predator Panic, South Park Style

Imagine serving NINE YEARS for a crime you did not commit. The liar finally admits she was lying, motivated by anger over whatever 11 year old girls get mad over. What do you get for your troubles? "Oops, sorry, we were just doing our jobs." They should give him a 9 year credit towards punching the face of the people involved as far as I'm concerned. Read the story and it sounds eerily like the South Park episode on false allegations.

http://www.katu.com/news/local/Woman-recants-rape-father-set-free-after-9-years-in-prison-145791935.html


Father freed after 9 years; daughter says rape didn't happen
By Associated Press Published: Apr 2, 2012 at 10:20 AM PDT Last Updated: Apr 2, 2012 at 2:20 PM PDT

LONGVIEW, Wash. (AP) — A woman who said she lied as an 11-year-old when she said her father raped her won't be prosecuted for her testimony that sent him to prison for more than nine years.


Prosecutor Sue Baur said charging Cassandra Ann Kennedy of Longview might discourage other girls from reporting sexual assaults.


"This is the kind of thing that shouldn't happen," Baur said.


She noted, however, that it was simply a case of a person withdrawing their story — not an indictment of the system.


"Unfortunately, a man spent 10 years in prison before that happened," the prosecutor said.


Now 23, Kennedy said guilt prompted her to tell police that she lied in 2001 when she lived in Kalama,The Daily News reported Sunday.


"I did a horrible thing," Kennedy told detectives in January, according to a police report. "It's not OK."


Her father, Thomas Edward Kennedy, denied the rape allegation but was sentenced in 2002 to more than 15 years in prison. Now 43, he was released last week and all charges against him were dismissed. Reached Friday by the newspaper, he declined to comment, saying he's simply trying to get on with his life.


In recent months, Cassandra Kennedy has been staying at Mountain Ministries, a Christian addiction treatment center. Gary Miller, the organization's director, said she was in Mexico doing missionary work and couldn't be reached.


She told detectives this year that she wanted to talk about her father's conviction, according to investigative reports.


Kennedy told police her father never touched her. For nearly a decade, she said, he had been sitting in prison based on her lies.


"I just want him to be out and freed," Kennedy said in her interview with detectives. Then, she said, "I will be free on the inside."


Kennedy said she got the idea of setting up her father from a friend whose stepfather was sent to prison for a child sex crime.


"I thought that is what I would do to make my dad go away," she told police.


Thomas Kennedy and his wife divorced around 1991, and their daughters, Cassandra and her older sister, began spending one weekend a month with their father, according to court documents. The girls slept on foam mattresses in the living room of Kennedy's home.


"I wanted him to love me, and I didn't think he did at that time," she told the detectives.


Kennedy said she made up the rape story largely because her father disappointed her. "I took my own vengeance," she told police


The jury convicted Thomas Kennedy of three counts of first-degree rape of a child and the conviction had been upheld on appeal.

Minneapolis cop hit by friendly fire going after wanted RSO

Andy Taylor: What are you doing? 
Barney Fife: Gun-drawing practice, ten minutes every day. If I ever have to use this baby, I want to teach it to come to papa in a hurry. 
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053479/quotes?qt=qt0143920

Cops have a habit lately of going after registrants with guns blazing, a trend that started with that Shiitake-Worthy Dateline NBC show. The guy wasn't home but the cops ran into some dogs. This led to a real Barney Fife situation:

http://www.twincities.com/ci_20297842/minneapolis-police-officer-wounded-by-stray-bullet-hunt

Stray bullet wounds Minneapolis police officer during hunt for sex offender

A member of the Minneapolis Police Department was hit by a fellow officer's stray bullet Friday night as he assisted the Minnesota Department of Corrections in a search for a wanted Level III sex offender. The raid was ultimately unsuccessful, and the fugitive, Roosevelt Montgomery, remains on the loose.

Minneapolis Police Sgt. Steve McCarty said state corrections personnel asked for police assistance about 9:45 p.m. Friday. They were reporting to the 1600 block of 22nd Avenue North in an attempt to locate Montgomery.

Montgomery, 42, was released from a facility March 6 and is supposed to be on Intense Supervised Release, a program that requires monitoring seven days a week and four weekly face-to-face visits. He was wanted for violating the terms of that release program.

When officers arrive at the scene, they had to fire on several aggressive dogs that ran at them. Montgomery evidently slipped away during the episode. McCarty said the injured officer, a six-year veteran of the force, was "definitely" hit by a stray police bullet.

"There were no nonpolice people firing up there," he said.

The officer, whose name has not been released, was taken to North Memorial Medical Center in Robbinsdale, where he reportedly is doing well.

The Minneapolis Police Department will conduct an internal affairs investigation into the incident, McCarty added.

- Will Ashenmacher