Missouri House Bill No. 1741 will subject out-of-state registrants to a civil commitment evaluation

Missouri HB 1741 is a weird bill that implies a possible constitutional violation. Below is a summary of the bill.

"This bill specifies that a conviction in this state or any other jurisdiction for a sexually violent offense can be considered when determining if a person is a sexually violent predator for purposes of confinement and treatment." 


The full text of the bill can be found HERE:

http://www.house.mo.gov/billtracking/bills141/billpdf/intro/HB1741I.PDF

So, what does this bill mean? Well, if you are convicted of an offense in another state that Missouri considers a sexually violent offense, and if you commit a "recent overt act," and you come to Missouri, you could be detained pending a civil commitment.

What is a "recent overt act"?

5. For the purposes of this section "recent overt act" means any act that creates a reasonable apprehension of harm of a sexually violent nature.

So what is a "sexually violent offense"?

"Sexually violent offense", the felonies of rape in the first degree, forcible rape, rape, statutory rape in the first degree, sodomy in the first degree, forcible sodomy, sodomy, statutory sodomy in the first degree, or an attempt to commit any of the preceding crimes, or child molestation in the first or second degree, sexual abuse, sexual abuse in the first degree, rape in the second degree, sexual assault, sexual assault in the first degree, sodomy in the second degree, deviate sexual assault, deviate sexual assault in the first degree, or the act of abuse of a child involving either sexual contact, a prohibited sexual act, sexual abuse, or sexual exploitation of a minor, or any felony offense that contains elements substantially similar to the offenses listed above...

So the bill is a bit confusing. At first glance, it seems the bill only seems to apply to someone who is currently incarcerated.

But the fact that Missouri is looking to civilly commit ANY registrant, no matter the circumstances, when the conviction is NOT a Missouri conviction is just plain stupid.

Cherokee County Sheriff Roger Garrison compares sex offenders to "serial killers"

Georgia state rep. Sam Moore deserves a medal. Sheriff Roger Garrison deserves a Shiitake. Sheriff Garrison thinks sex offenders (or "sexual predators" as he puts it) feels sex offenders are on the same level as serial killers. Funny, I think uneducated backwater sheriffs are on the same level of KKK members. Yes I went there but I needed a way to incorporate the sheriff's KKK costume mishap somehow.

http://cherokeetribune.com/view/full_story/24620149/article-Bill-would-allow-sex-offenders-at-schools

Bill would allow sex offenders at schools
by Joshua Sharpe February 21, 2014 

CANTON — Brand new state Rep. Sam Moore (R-Macedonia) is pushing a sweeping law that would allow registered sex offenders to go anywhere they want — even to schools.

Moore, in his first week in office, has turned in a bill that would overturn the crime of loitering and make it so registered sex offenders who aren’t otherwise barred from going to schools or places children gather could go to those places freely.

“I am OK with that,” Moore said Thursday, adding that he meant only those who were off parole and not barred from those places. “The reason I’m OK with that is the assumption is they have done their time. If they’re still a danger to society, they should not be free. … Am I saying it’s not creepy? It’s definitely creepy.”

Moore is the sole signer on House Bill 1033, which also prohibits law enforcement officers from forcing residents to identify themselves under any circumstances. Moore said that is a practice that violates Fifth Amendment rights to silence and was the original intent of the bill. 

According to Moore, loitering is the only law on the books that requires people to give their name, and sex offender provisions hinge on loitering.

Cherokee Sheriff Roger Garrison called the bill “simply insane.”

“In my 34 years of law enforcement I have never heard of such an insane law having been introduced,” Garrison said Friday. “Sexual predators are one of this country’s most violent (type of) offenders. If there’s any equal it would be an out-and-out serial killer.”

The sheriff said the thought of allowing sexual predators to “once again lurk around our parks, around our schools, around our swimming pools” is horrifying.

Cherokee Superintendent of Schools Dr. Frank Petruzielo also expressed concerns about the legislation. 

“The School District is strongly opposed to any legislation that would allow predators the opportunity to endanger our students, which it appears this bill would do,” he said in an email Thursday.

But Moore said he isn’t hoping to put anyone in any danger and only wants to protect the Fifth Amendment.

If officers have any other grounds besides loitering to arrest a person, Moore said he has no problem with that and he has no problem with officers questioning people who are suspicious — he just doesn’t think people should be made to talk.

The sheriff said loitering laws can be valuable for law enforcement. 

“It’s insane,” he said. “If you can’t check them, how are you going to know who they are? They could be wanted for murder down the street.”

Garrison gave the example of a woman who was murdered in a few years ago, after her killer had killed others before her. The man was found by police loitering near Lake Allatoona.

“We could not have checked him, because he was loitering,” he said. “He turned out to be serial killer. All the while he had killed people … (This) would have taken away our ability to stop asking who he was.”

Garrison also found fault with Moore’s argument that sex offenders off parole should be able to go anywhere, because a large majority of them aren’t on parole.

Former Cherokee GOP Chair Bob Rugg is another who is outraged over Moore’s proposal.

“I can’t imagine a bill like this even coming out of committee,” Rugg said Friday. “It just doesn’t make any sense to me to eliminate that shield of protection (for children). From the way I read his own comments about it, he (thinks he’s) protecting the Fifth Amendment right to silence. That’s silly.”

State Rep. Scot Turner (R-Holly Springs) read the bill Thursday and said he had no comment. State Rep. Mandi Ballinger, a longtime victim advocate, said she had no comment Thursday, other than that she looked forward to committee discussions.

Moore said he understands the bill will be controversial, but he argued that not all sex offenders are criminals in the classic sense.

“One issue is it’s extremely easy to get on the sex offender list,” he said. “To be a registered sex offender, all you have to do is go pee on a tree.”

Also to be a sex offender, Moore agreed that someone could be a child rapist, but he said “If those people are a danger then they should be locked up.”

Moore also repeatedly stressed the purpose of the bill was only to protect the Fifth Amendment in Georgia, not to give sex offenders a pass.

“My intent wasn’t to help out sex offenders and I didn’t back down because of the political ramifications,” he said. “If that means I don’t get re-elected that’s what it means.”

Moore is up for re-election in the May primary.

In the end, Garrison strongly and repeatedly said Moore’s arguments defending the bill don’t matter.

“At the end of the day, it’s all irrelevant, because the speaker of the House has a little corner for people like Mr. Moore: It’s called the ineffective corner. It’s just an embarrassment he happens to be from Cherokee County,” Garrison said.

Donna Rosele becomes the first tragedy vulture to circle the death of Hailey Owens

First off, I want to remind everyone Hailey Owens was allegedly killed by a man with no prior sex offense jacket, just some petty drug charge from decades ago. Who could have predicted this? No one. Yet that never stops 'Murica for trying to pass crazy laws in reaction to this rare tragedy.

It is bad enough we have a bevy of pols lined up to take advantage of this tragedy. But it didn't take long for the tragedy vultures to circle this case. This is where Donna Rosele comes in. Who is Donna Rosele? She runs some hair salon in Smithville, MO. Her proposal?

"This proposed petition would require an immediate death penalty after they are found guilty and/or castration of the offender."

Of course, the petition is poorly designed, but that's why we don't want hairdressers writing laws. We already elect enough idiots for that job!

http://fox4kc.com/2014/02/20/gladstone-woman-on-a-crusade-for-change-following-hailey-owens-death/

Gladstone woman on a crusade for change following Hailey Owens’ death
Posted on: 9:44 pm, February 20, 2014, by Robert Townsend, updated on: 05:49am, February 21, 2014
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GLADSTONE, Mo. — Donna Roesle is a mother of three adult kids. Hours after the murder of Hailey Owens, she organized an online petition in hopes of getting a law passed that will get tougher on criminals who commit crimes against children.

“It’s just awful that somebody can go out there and grab an innocent baby and do this,” Roesle said.
Roesle has a daughter who is expecting her first child. The outrage she felt after Owens’ sudden death has left a hole in her heart and pushed her into action.

“I just want something done. I want our children to be safe. I want my grandchildren to be safe, their kids to be safe and obviously the laws right now aren’t working,” she said.

Roesle, the owner of a Smithville beauty salon school, is now pounding the pavement and approaching her neighbors. She hopes to get as many people to sign the petition with one goal in mind.

“Sitting around doing nothing is going to do nothing,” she said.

She wants to convince Missouri lawmakers to pass a new law. It would require all convicted offenders who preyed on children to receive the death penalty or castration 30 days after the crime.

“I think anyone who takes a young child, innocent young children, and grabs them for no reason at all and rapes them, murders them or anything, I feel like without a doubt, once they’re convicted of the crime, that they should have a death sentence and castration. Immediately,” she said.

Petition co-organizer Jennifer Kerber said that the proposed punishment may give criminals pause.

“Maybe that offender or the criminal would think twice about what they’re doing if they know they’re gonna die immediately or be castrated,” Kerber said.

So far more than 5,000 people from around the metro, and states all over the country have signed Roesle’s petition.

WI Gov. Scott Walker helps to get man fired with assistance from FloriDUH pol Matt Gaetz

 There is a meme known as Godwin's Law which states that an argument is officially over when someone invokes a Nazi reference. Maybe I should invent my own meme, Logue's Law. It goes something like this-- if you are a politician and you use sex offender issues as a platform for publicity, that politician must be trying to distract from some kind of political scandal. This tactic has been around a long time. Mark Foley, Elliot Spitzer, Rod Blagojavich and Anthony Weiner all tried this tactic. Add embattled Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker to this list.

You see, Scott Walker has been in the news for a series of scandals, including racist emails and a campaign finance probe is just the tip of the iceberg. What better way to distract voters than with sex offender topics? Enter Daniel Montaldi, the scapegoat for last year's Cherish Perrywinkle fallout. Montaldi was head of FloriDUH's civil commitment program, until the Sun-Slantinel's Shiitake-worthy article accused Montaldi of being too "sympathetic" to registered persons and **gasp** stating sex offenders have low recidivism rates. So he was sacrificed as a scapegoat.

So Montaldi moved on to find a job in Wisconsin. But then a Floridiot legislator commented on the hire, and Gov. Walker added his two cents in. I sincerely hope Montaldi sues both of these individuals for this unnecessary interference in a hire of an individual who happens to believe in rehabilitation and low recidivism.

http://www.jsonline.com/news/statepolitics/scott-walker-looking-to-fire-new-sex-offender-administrator-b99209079z1-246164901.html

Madison — Gov. Scott Walker's administration Wednesday dropped a controversial new hire charged with evaluating sex offenders for release back into Wisconsin communities, a move that came only hours after Walker said he opposed the psychologist.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel first reported on the hire of Daniel Montaldi as "evaluation director" at the Sand Ridge Secure Treatment Center, a state facility for sex predators. Montaldi, who was to evaluate sex offenders and recommend to court officials which ones should be released, resigned from his post running Florida's sex predator program six months ago because he was seen as being too sympathetic to offenders.

"The Department of Health Services has rescinded the verbal offer of employment made to Daniel Montaldi for the Psychologist Supervisor-Chapter 980 (Evaluation Unit Director) position at Sand Ridge Secure Treatment Center," agency spokeswoman Stephanie Smiley said late Wednesday.

Smiley said Montaldi hasn't received any salary or payment from the state.

"The department will continue to protect the public by operating the program with existing resources as it has during this vacancy. Next steps for recruitment of this position have yet to be determined," she said.

Only hours before on Wednesday morning, Walker told reporters he wasn't happy about the hire of Montaldi and said it would be tricky firing him since he wasn't a political appointee under his direct control.

"I wasn't pleased with it. It's a civil service hire so ... the last two days we've been looking at what legal means we have to try to seek an alternative there," Walker said. "My hope is we'll have an answer by the end of today to do that."

Walker made that statement just as Wisconsin lawmakers began to look critically at the Montaldi hire.

Rep. Joel Kleefisch (R-Oconomowoc), chairman of the Assembly Committee on Criminal Justice, said late Tuesday that he hadn't researched Montaldi and didn't know him or his record beyond news accounts.

But "what I have read about him would give me extreme pause about whether he's the right person to ensure serious sex offenders are kept off the streets and away from our children," Kleefisch said.

Florida state Rep. Matt Gaetz said this week that he admired Walker but didn't think much of the Montaldi hire.

"This is a guy who has a catch-and-release approach to violent sexual predators," said Gaetz, a Fort Walton Beach Republican and chairman of the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee. "Mr. Montaldi is a bad egg. We're just glad he's out of Florida."

Smiley said earlier this week that the governor and his staff weren't involved in the selection of Montaldi and that he was chosen as part of a civil service hiring process.

Montaldi came under fire from Gaetz and other Florida lawmakers last year when the Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel wrote a three-part series examining problems in the state's sex predator program.

The newspaper found the number of potential predators identified by the state dropped by more than 50% under Montaldi's leadership. The paper also publicized an essay that Montaldi wrote in which he said he believes sex offenders as a group are "statistically unlikely to reoffend."

Wisconsin officials at first defended their decision to hire him, referring to the problems in Florida as "an aberration that resulted from factors beyond his control." Initially, Walker's office referred questions about Montaldi to the state Department of Health Services.

Montaldi has not returned calls to his Florida phone number and didn't immediately return a phone call Wednesday.

On Monday, Gaetz — whose father is president of the Florida Senate — said Montaldi resigned shortly after his chief of staff was informed that Montaldi was being called before the Criminal Justice Subcommittee to answer for recent failures in the state's violent sex offender program.

Montaldi does have an impressive résumé, Gaetz said. But Montaldi's track record should be apparent to anyone interested in hiring him, the Florida lawmaker said.

Note to DAVID J. NEAL of the Miami Herald: Stick with SPORTS writing

In the world of potential Shiitake Award winners, I should never have to add a sports writer to the list of nominees. However, when said sports writer makes it a point to embarrass an individual being honored because he is a registered citizen, that is Shiitake-worthy.

David J. Neal is a Miami Herald sports writer. He should be writing stuff about LeBron James's latest crying fit or about how the Jacksonville Jaguars will likely go 0-16 next season. Instead, he gives us a very scary story about a registered citizen who-- gasp-- throws out a first pitch at a college baseball game! I know, run for the hills, right?

So far, the state of FloriDUH is having quite a monopoly in this year's Shiitake awards. I have a feeling we're not through picking on FloriDUH, America's wang.

http://www.miamiherald.com/2014/02/17/3942688/former-fiu-baseball-star-who-threw.html

Former FIU baseball star who threw out first pitch for 2014 season is registered sex offender 

BY DAVID J. NEAL
DNEAL@MIAMIHERALD.COM

Dennis Wiseman, a former FIU pitching ace, received the honor of throwing out the first pitch of FIU’s baseball season Saturday afternoon. That’s also Dennis Wiseman, registered sex offender since 1997, when he was charged with unlawful sexual activity with a minor.

An FIU spokesman told the Miami Herald the decision to have Wiseman throw out the first pitch was made by FIU baseball coach Turtle Thomas, and Thomas would only answer questions Monday about the 4-0 Panthers.

A source close to FIU told the Miami Herald that Wiseman also has gone on the team plane during football road trips, something with which Thomas has no connection.

An FIU spokesman said director of sports and entertainment Pete Garcia was not available for comment.

Wiseman pitched at FIU from 1986 to ’89, winning 32 games, which is still the second most in school history, and set a still-standing school record of 464 innings pitched. His four career shutouts rank second in FIU history.

After Wiseman graduated from FIU with a degree in criminal justice, the St. Louis Cardinals selected him in the 30th round of the 1989 Major League Baseball Draft.

Wiseman bounced around the minor leagues for seven seasons, peaking at the Triple A level in 1993 when he went 7-9 with a 5.06 ERA for Louisville.

In May 1997, North Miami police arrested Wiseman, then a teacher and assistant baseball coach at North Miami High, and charged him with three counts of unlawful sexual activity with minors, the charge when the adult is 24 years old or older and the minor is 16 or 17. It’s a second degree felony.

Wiseman, who was 29 at the time, was accused of having sexual encounters with a 16-year-old student. Wiseman paid his $22,500 bond and later entered a plea of not guilty.

In August 1997, however, Wiseman changed his plea on all three counts and the case ended with a finding of guilt with an order withholding adjudication that included probation with special conditions.

Wiseman’s five-year probation ended in 2002, but he’s still required to keep law enforcement abreast of his residences as a sex offender.

According to his LinkedIn profile, starting in 1999, he spent 4 1/2 years with Florida United Radiology as project manager, then nine years with Radiology Associates of South Florida as chief operating officer.

Attempts to reach Wiseman by phone Monday night were not successful.

Addendum: If this article wasn't silly enough, David Neal himself responded in an email defending his idiotic article: 

 "Because it was adjudged to be of news value when a large public university gives even the minor honor of throwing out the first pitch to someone with that crime on his record.  Some very vocal people had the same reaction as you. Others had the "What were they thinking?" reaction."

Actually, what was the Miami Herald thinking hiring this mediocre sports writer in the first place?

Shana Rowan's "I Love a Sex Offender" blog has modified the headline to more accurately depict the angle David J. Neal was really trying to imply with this article:

Courtesy of Shana Rowan's "I Love a Sex Offender" Blog

FloriDUH State Rep. Matt Gaetz wants us to forgive his past while condemning others

FloriDUH state rep Matt Gaetz has a mugshot online from a 2008 DUI arrest. Of course, he got off without enduring the same sanctions as the rest of us would for refusing a breathalyzer.

And yet, while Gaetz wants us to ignore his own past, he is using sex offenders as his platform for his reelection campaign.

Matt Gaetz already has a nomination for dumbest quote, but now that he is blatantly using sex offenders as a political platform, in addition to a recent article criticizing Wisconsin's hire of the former director of FloriDUH's SVP program, who was forced out after last year's Shiitake-worthy Sun-Slantinel article. Matt Gaetz should probably focus on not drinking and driving, or maybe his support of medical marijuana. I can see FloriDUH being the next state to legalize pot. They're obviously high down there.

http://www.wxow.com/story/24745692/2014/02/17/florida-lawmaker-says-dhs-should-face-tough-questions-about-its-new-sex-offender-evaluation-director#.UwPqZa8At_k.blogger

Florida lawmaker says DHS should face "tough questions" about its new sex offender evaluation director

Posted: Feb 17, 2014 4:00 PM EST
Updated: Feb 17, 2014 4:12 PM EST


MADISON (WXOW) -- The man hired to be the new sexual offender evaluation director for the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) resigned from a similar position in Florida last September, after defending the rights of sex offenders and allowing the number of offenders tagged as "sexual predators" to drop by more than half under his watch.

A DHS spokesperson says the agency has selected Dr. Daniel Montaldi to head up sex offender evaluations at Sand Ridge Secure Treatment Center in Mauston, but notes that the "hiring process is not complete."

Sand Ridge specializes in treatment services for offenders committed under Chapter 980, Wisconsin's sexually violent persons law.

Dr. Montaldi last served as the lead administrator for Florida's Sexually Violent Predator Program.

He resigned that position one day after the Florida Sun-Sentinel newspaper wrote an article raising questions about is views and record.

As in Wisconsin, Florida law allows the state to keep sexual predators locked up after their prison sentences end.  Dr. Montaldi was in charge of the staff that would evaluate those offenders before they were released and recommend those likely to re-offend for continued confinement.

According to the Sun-Sentinel, the number of sex predator recommendations dropped considerably under Dr. Montaldi.  In the year before he became director, the program flagged 213 offenders as potential predators.  In the year under Dr. Montaldi's direction, that number dropped to 86.

"We learned that Florida had been releasing violent sexual predators under Mr. Montaldi's watch and that those violent sexual predators were re-offending, sometimes even the day or the same week they were released," Florida State Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-District 4) said on Monday.

Rep. Gaetz is the Chair of the Florida House Sub-Committee on Criminal Justice, who says he found not only Dr. Montaldi's record troubling, but also his comments on the civil rights of sex offenders.

The Sun-Sentinel reported that in an August 2013 email to members of the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers, Dr. Montaldi wrote:  "The value of liberty in a free society must also extend to society's most feared and despised members.  The civil rights of even sex offenders is still an important moral value."

"I think the people of Wisconsin should have a lot of questions about somebody that was essentially run out of the State of Florida because he used a position as an administrator with our sexually violent predator program to increase the propensity for releases for some very, very dangerous people," said Rep. Gaetz.

But in its statement, DHS downplayed those concerns.

"Dr. Montaldi has experience, expertise and philosophies that align with the Department's role under Chapter 980 with regard to the treatment and supervision of sex offenders as well as sex offender re-offense risk assessment.  He is widely recognized as a content expert in risk assessment and we are eager to have him join our staff," wrote DHS Spokesperson Stephanie Smiley. 

Smiley said that because the hire is not yet complete, she cannot confirm a start date or salary for Dr. Montaldi, but says the starting salary for the position was listed to go as high as $122,316 annually.

Who is exploiting who here? David Jolly for CON-gress gets endorsement from greasy Mark Lunsford

Between a pandering politician and Mark Lunsford, it is hard to tell who is the biggest leech. Florida lobbyist (my how the Shiitakes LOVE those wacky FloriDUH lobbyists) David Jolly is seeking your vote for US Congress. And he's already pulling out the sex offender trick to bring attention to himself. We all know that when a politician runs on this platform, that means he had little else to offer.

The link has the political ad embedded in the article. Keep the TP handy.

http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/the-buzz-florida-politics/mark-lunsford-weighs-in-for-david-jolly/2165123

Mark Lunsford weighs in for David Jolly 
Adam C. SmithAdam C. Smith, Times Political Editor
Tuesday, February 11, 2014 5:09pm

Mark Lunsford, whose nine-year-old daughter Jessica was murdered in 2005, stars in a new TV ad for Republican congressional candidate David Jolly, who helped Lunsford in his efforts to protect children.

Jolly explains his involvement in a email to supporters and would-be supporters: "Most of us know the tragic story of Mark’s loss.  His nine-year-old daughter Jessie lost her life at the hands of a child predator who lived in the neighborhood.  I’ll never forget my first conversation with Mark.  I approached him to express my condolences and to offer my encouragement for the good work he was doing to enact Jessica’s Law in states across the country and to fight for increased federal law enforcement resources through passage of the Adam Walsh Act.  When I asked Mark what he was doing in Washington that week, he replied simply, “I’m up here lobbying for some appropriations.”  Mark was referring to his efforts to secure funding for the U.S. Marshals Service to go after absconders from the sex offender registry."