East St. Louis man pleads guilty to sexual abuse
of 11-year-old girl
BY ELIZABETH DONALDCOLLINSVILLE
A man accused of sexually assaulting an 11-year-old child pleaded guilty as a Madison County jury prepared to hear his case.
DeMarco Neal, 37, of East St. Louis, was about to go to trial on two counts of predatory sexual assault of a child younger than 13 and one count of aggravated sexual abuse of a child. Jury selection began Monday afternoon, but shortly thereafter, Neal opted to plead guilty, averting the trial.
Neal pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated sexual abuse, a class 2 felony. The other two counts were dismissed. He will serve an extended-term sentence of 14 years, of which he must serve at least 50 percent, and he will be required to register as a sex offender for life.
“This was a challenging case from the start, and there were serious concerns about the well-being of the victim if she were forced to testify at trial,” Madison County State’s Attorney Tom Gibbons said. “With this sentence, we are glad to see a sexual predator put behind bars for harming a child — and, fortunately, without causing any further victimization to this very young girl who has already suffered so much.”
So 7 years behind bars less any time already served. Let's pray for his victim and for his next victim.
Illinois man sentenced to 12 years in prison for sexual abuse of 6-year-old girl
TONY REID Herald & Review
DECATUR — Todd A. Brown of Decatur was sentenced to 12 years in prison Tuesday in Macon County Circuit Court for the predatory criminal sexual assault of a 6-year-old girl.
Brown had earlier pleaded guilty to the Class X felony in a plea deal before he was set to go to trial on two counts of predatory criminal sexual assault and two counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse.
Brown, 48, apologized to the court, but Judge Thomas Griffith told him what he had done to the child was “absolutely despicable” and would forever cause her emotional pain.
Speaking after the hearing, the girl’s mother said the plea deal could have seen Brown sentenced to 18 years, and she wished he had gotten that. But she also said no sentence would have been long enough to punish him properly.
So for all those charges, 'predatory, aggravated' he gets a 12 year sentence. Will he be eligible for parole after 6 years? His victim will barely be a teenager then, as if becoming a teenager wasn't hard enough. If it was so 'absolutely despicable', judge, why the soft penalty?
In the UK, people have the right to challenge a soft penalty and have it reviewed. Maybe all countries need that.
Ex-teacher's aide gets 190 more years on child sex charges in Maryland
By The Associated Press
LA PLATA, Md. — An HIV-positive former teacher's aide and track coach has been sentenced to an additional 190 years in prison on child sex charges.
Carlos Bell of Waldorf had already been sentenced to 105 years on federal child pornography charges. On Tuesday, a judge in Charles County sentenced him to 190 years on state charges, including child sex abuse.
WTOP-FM reported that prosecutors put forward evidence to support charges involving 42 boys between the ages of 11 and 17.
Bell worked as an assistant at Stoddert Middle School in southern Maryland, where investigators say many of the crimes took place. He also worked as a coach at various schools in Charles County between 2014 and 2016.
Investigators have said they don't believe Bell transmitted the HIV virus to any of his victims.
Abilene police push for change after working
36 child abuse cases in 30 days
By: Erica Garner
ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) - Abilene police are pushing for change after working 36 child abuse cases in one month.
The Abilene Met. area has a population of about 170,000 people. This is not a big city!
During a press conference to kick-off Child Abuse Awareness Month Tuesday, Chief Stan Standridge announced the "Loose Change for Change" program designed to educate Taylor County 3rd graders and their families on the impact of child abuse while raising money toward prevention efforts in Abilene.
photo 3rd-grade students are asked to bring loose change to school throughout the month of April to put in piggy banks donated to each campus by First Financial Bank.
The campuses from Abilene ISD, Wylie ISD, and Taylor County that raise the most money will be treated to an obstacle course, meal, and other entertainment at PrimeTime on April 20.
Staggering statistics released during the press conference show the dire need for programs like "Loose Change for Change."
Chief Standridge revealed the Abilene Police Department conducted 36 child abuse interviews over the past 30 days involving 1 attempted abduction, 3 witnesses to violent crime, 10 physical abuse cases, and 22 sexual abuse cases.
9 of the victims were ages 0 to 5 years, 20 victims were between ages 6 to 12 years, and 7 victims were over the age of 13. The offenders were mothers, boyfriends, fathers, brothers, sisters, stepmothers, neighbors, school employees, cousins, and other individuals known to the victims.
"The paradigm of 'we need to be mindful of stranger danger' has shifted. The reality is these offenders are typically in the home or in the immediate context of the neighborhood and we are seeing almost 100% of the time our child abuse victims know their offenders by name," Chief Standridge said.
Child abuse cases Abilene police are working right now include a preschool child whose hands were under hot water so long, the skin fell off, a preschool child who was hit in the face with a belt, a child who was forced to have oral sex with a family member, and a child sex crime offender with multiple victims spanning 20 years.
Chief Standridge stresses that "we can no longer ignore this and expect it's going to go away" and hopes the community will get behind him to tackle the growing issue of child abuse.
Man who allegedly sexually abused Montana child is in custody in California
By Tarvarious Haywood
GREAT FALLS, Montana
On the evening of March 19, 2018 police in Roseville, California arrested Joseph Eugene Garcia, age 37, at his home in the 1700 block of Blackbird Street.
The officers arrested Garcia at the request of our agency based on a warrant charging him with four felony crimes related to the sexual abuse of children. It is alleged Garcia “groomed” and abused his victim(s) over a long period of time. Garcia is in police custody and is expected to return to Montana soon.
Garcia, who also goes by “BJ,” has lived in Roseville, California, at the residence on Blackbird Street, since August of 2017. Based on GFPD investigation, Roseville detectives also executed a search warrant on Garcia’s house and seized potential items of evidence.
Court documents said a child from Great Falls was sexually abused for nearly 5 years. The Great Falls Police Department said due to the nature of Garcia's crime, there may be more victims in cities like Billings, Bozeman, Cutbank and the Fort Belnap Reservation.
Anyone with information about Garcia, or his contact with children, is asked to contact Detective Cunningham at 406.455.8561 or kcunningham@greatfallsmt.net
Montana man accused of sexual intercourse without consent with a 6-year-old
By Blake Simonson
GREAT FALLS - Montana
Joseph Allan Counts is accused of having sexual intercourse without consent with a 6-year-old girl.
Of course, a six year old cannot consent to sexual intercourse so the 'without consent' is redundant.
On March 29th, a woman came to the Great Falls Police Department to report that her ward, only identified in court documents as E.B., had said Counts had touched her vagina and had asked her to touch his penis. E.B. is 6-years-old. She said this had happened on multiple occasions when her non-custodial mother brought her to Counts' house. E.B. would play video games there and her mother would fall asleep. Court documents state when E.B.'s mother woke up, the child would be in Counts' bedroom with him.
Counts was arrested and brought to the Great Falls Police Department and he asked to speak with his mother before he would waive his rights. He then asked officers what the investigation was about and when the officers told him it concerned E.B., he reportedly stated he has a problem and he needs help. He also reportedly told officers "It's true," but claimed it was a one-time thing so he does not need to be put on the sex offender registry.
Court documents state Counts told a detective he had a crush on the child's mother and thinks of E.B. as his daughter, but her mother doesn't have the same feelings for him and the child started reciprocating the feelings towards him. He then requested to speak to his mother, so the detective stepped out of the room so Counts could make his phone call.
According to the police report, Counts then called his father and told him, "I molested E.B." When the detective returned to the room, Counts' mother called him and he again said, "I molested E.B." When his cellphone was collected, Counts reportedly told the detective he would find a lot of things he just fantasized about on it.
The State has requested his bond be set in the amount of $50,000.
Alabama man arrested in connection with
sex abuse of a child
by James Franklin
ETOWAH COUNTY, Ala. —
A 22-year-old Gadsden man is charged with one count of first degree sex abuse.
The Etowah County Sheriff's Office says Kenneth Dewayne Blackwell allegedly sexually abused an 11-year-old girl on March 23.
Blackwell is being held at the Etowah County Detention Center on $25,000 bond and is not allowed any contact with the victim or victim's family.
Stepdad charged with killing 3-year-old girl after brutal beating in Queens apartment
BY NOAH GOLDBERG, NICOLE HENSLEY
JOHN ANNESE, NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
The 3-year-old girl who died after cops found her unconscious in her Queens apartment suffered a fatal beating by her stepdad, prosecutors said Tuesday.
The Queens District Attorney’s office hit Mark Jenkins — the stepfather of little Bella Edwards — with murder and assault charges, after an autopsy showed the tot died Monday from blunt force trauma to her stomach.
Other medical tests on Bella’s body are still pending, and police have not ruled out the possibility of sexual abuse, cop sources said.
Bella’s mom Shamika Gonzalez said on social media that she’ll most miss her little girl’s hugs and kisses. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t there to protect you,” Gonzalez said in an emotional Facebook post to the child.
“Bella was a friendly, beautiful, affectionate, smart and loveable and the best daughter anyone can ask for,” Gonzalez said in a message to the Daily News. “She ... was (a) very affectionate sister to her baby brother Logan. She was loved by many who came to know her.”
Bella Edwards, 3, may have been the victim of child abuse. (COURTESY SHAMIKA GONZALEZ)
Gonzalez left the apartment at about 9 a.m. She returned about 5 p.m. and found Bella unconscious in her bed about a half-hour later, sources said.
A frantic 911 call around 6 p.m. brought cops to Gonzalez’s Rockaways apartment, where officers frantically tried to revive the unconscious toddler.
Cops rushed Bella from the family’s Beach 105th St. apartment near Shore Front Parkway to St. John’s Episcopal Hospital, where she died, police said.
The girl showed signs of trauma consistent with abuse, sources said. The NYPD Special Victims Unit is investigating her death, as are detectives from the 100th Precinct, where a number of family members gathered in grief.
“Keep my family in your prayers,” said Quintina Thorne, 28, a cousin. “Justice for Bella! Justice for Bella!”
Mark Jenkins. (DOCCS)
The 32-year-old stepfather was the only adult with Bella for most of the day, police sources said. Jenkins, according to records, has four previous arrests. Three of them are sealed but he was convicted of attempted murder, in the Bronx and served 5 years in prison before he was conditionally released by the state Board of Parole in Sept. 2011.
“This is a terribly disturbing case. The victim here is an innocent little girl, whose body revealed traumatic abuse injuries,” Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said.
Neighbor Laura Cabrera, 36, said she had just seen Bella on Easter Sunday. Jenkins was holding her hand, she said. “I just told (Bella) how beautiful she was,” Cabrera said, crying, as she recalled the happy memory. “She said 'thank you' in the sweetest little voice. She was such a beautiful kid. You focused on her.”
The city’s Administration of Children’s Services has never investigated complaints of abuse against Bella, until now, sources with knowledge of the case said. Bella died Monday in the Rockaways apartment after police said she was found unconscious.
“As soon as this family came to our attention last night, we immediately launched an investigation with the NYPD,” ACS spokesman Eric Ferrero said.
Gonzalez said a vigil outside their home was slated for 6 p.m. Wednesday.
Police said a 3-month-old baby was also found in the apartment. Medics took the infant to a hospital for evaluation.
The child won’t be returned to Gonzalez until after the investigation is concluded, officials said.
Queens, NY
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