3 years for 3 rapes: Wisconsin student absolved of litany of sex offenses after plea deal
A UW-Madison business student was sentenced to three years in prison for raping three female students and choking or stalking two others. The leniency of his sentence has shocked lawyers and observers.
Alec Cook, 22, was initially charged with over 20 crimes against more than a dozen women.
After he agreed to plead guilty to three counts of third-degree sexual assault, as well as strangulation and stalking, Judge Stephen Ehlke dismissed the remaining charges.
Prosecutors were seeking 19 years behind bars for the former business student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, while defense attorneys were looking for probation.
The repeat offender wept in court and apologized to his victims, one of whom described her ordeal in a victim impact statement. "Part of me died in order to survive that night with him and that part of me will never grow back," local media reported her as saying.
"I'm sorry. I was wrong," Cook said. "You told the truth and everyone should believe you. This is my fault. You didn't deserve this. And neither did your families. To them, too, I'm so sorry."
Judge Ehlke said that he hoped the verdict would give Cook’s victims closure, and he credited Cook for pleading guilty and sparing them the stress of a sexual assault trial.
To some, the judge’s verdict was overly lenient. Republican Attorney General Brad Schimel expressed his disappointment.
"At the Department of Justice, we hope that the fact that Alec Cook stands convicted as a felony sex offender and is on his way to prison will give survivors faith that there are people in the criminal justice system who stand ready to fight for justice for them," he said in a statement.
To observers on Twitter, Cook’s sentence was a slap on the wrist. Several saw it as an example of “white male privilege” and “our jaded justice system.”
Cook was first arrested in October 2016 after a woman came forward accusing him of sexual assault. He was charged but released on bail shortly afterward. Several days later, Cook turned himself in to police after a second woman came forward with a similar story.
He was expelled from UW-Madison in 2017.
Two So. Carolina brothers charged with child sex crime
By: Anne Maxwell
SPARTANBURG, S.C. - Two brothers are accused of sexually assaulting a child. 7 News has learned that one of the suspects is a registered sex offender.
Michael Alan Long, 67, and his brother, William Howard Long, 68, are sitting in the Spartanburg County Jail, both accused of sexually assaulting a child under the age of 11. According to the Sheriff's Office, the victim is related to them.
"Last year 71 percent of the cases we were involved with involved offenders who were family members or either a parent's boyfriend or girlfriend," said Suzy Cole, who is the executive director of the Children's Advocacy Center of Spartanburg, Cherokee, and Union Counties.
She says 735 children were referred to the Children's Advocacy Center in 2017.
Warrants show the alleged abuse happened between 2015 and 2017. This isn't either suspect's first run in with the law. In 1975, William Howard Long was convicted of grand larceny. His brother Michael Alan Long has been convicted of malicious damage to property. He is also a registered sex offender with a previous conviction for a lewd act on a minor.
"Pedophiles are looking for kids, and the ones they have the most access to are the ones within their own family," Cole said.
The same alleged victim came forward in early 2017 with allegations against sex offender Michael Alan Long. He was charged with two counts of criminal sexual conduct of a child between the ages of 14 and 16. According to the Sheriff's Office, Long was put on house arrest.
The Sheriff's Office tells us it became apparent that the victim's mother was not ensuring her children stayed away from him during that time. In another interview, the alleged victim said Michael Alan Long had abused them earlier, when they were under 11 years old. The victim also said William Howard Long, another family member, had abused them previously, as well.
"Unfortunately sex abuse is a way of life for a lot of families in our community," Cold said. "So one of our goals is to try to get to these kids and help get them the services they need to hopefully end that cycle in their family."
Cole also wants to make it clear that kids who have been victims of crimes like this can be extremely resilient. She says they can absolutely go on to lead normal lives, especially if they get the support they need.
"We encourage kids, if this is happening to you, find someone you trust like a teacher, a guidance counselor, or maybe a relative...let them know what's going on, so the authorities can intervene and try to help you," she said.
The number for the Children's Advocacy Center is 864-515-9922.
Idaho man charged with sexual abuse of a child
Police fear other children may have been victims
Idaho Falls Police Department
Anyone who is concerned that this man, Eric Kidman, may have had contact with other children and could have taken other recordings or photographs should immediately call Idaho Falls Public Safety Dispatch at (208) 529-1200.
On Thursday, June 21st, Idaho Falls police arrested 23-year-old Eric Kidman on the charge of sexual abuse of a child under the age of 16 by making a photographic or electronic recording.
Kidman confessed to placing a video camera in a 13-year-old girl’s bedroom. The girl found a camera in her room in a potted plant when she went to water the plant. The young girl took the camera to Kidman, who was in the house at the time. Kidman allegedly told the young girl that the camera was probably nothing, and to just throw it away. He then took out an SD card from the slot in the camera. The girl later took the camera to her father, who notified police.
Kidman told police that he placed the memory card on the nightstand next to the bed, but when he went to retrieve it, it was no longer there. He claimed that it must have fallen in the floor, and that he searched the room for it, but was unable to locate it.
Police obtained a search warrant and were able to recover some of the evidence. In that search they also found other concerning evidence which involves child pornography. Idaho Falls detectives are working with the Department of Homeland Security to retrieve further electronic evidence.
Kidman claims this is the first time he has done something like this. However, detectives are concerned that other children may have been victimized.
Police are asking the public to contact Idaho Falls Public Safety Dispatch at (208) 529-1200 if they have concern that Kidman may have had contact with other children and could have taken other recordings or photographs.
Texas Child Sex Abuser Given Additional
60 Years In Prison
BROWNSVILLE, Texas - A man already behind bars for sexually abusing a child will stay there for an additional 60 years.
34-year-old Miguel Rodriguez pled guilty to five counts of crimes against children. Including two counts of continuous sexual abuse of a child. The sentence came down in the 138th District Court on June 21.
Rodriguez was a trusted family friend who abused three children. Cameron County District Attorney Luis V. Saenz applauded the bravery of the victims in coming forward and making the outcry.
Ex-priest who abused child when a teen,
allowed access to Chicago schools
allowed access to Chicago schools
In this Sept. 26, 2016 file photo Eric Johnson pauses during a news conference in front of his childhood portrait and a portrait of former priest Father Bruce Wellems at an office in Chicago. Johnson was sexually abused by the priest as a child and was surprised when he saw photographs posted online of Wellems at Chicago Public Schools functions last year. (Tae-Gyun Kim / AP)
Michael Tarm
Associated Press
Chicago Public Schools correspondence provided to The Associated Press shows that the nation's third largest school district gave a former Roman Catholic priest access to its schools for months despite knowing he was forced to leave the priesthood for sexually abusing a boy of 6 when he was around 15.
Only after the victim and the AP asked why the district let former cleric Bruce Wellems enter schools as part of alternative-schooling programs he oversees, did the nation's third-largest school district recently ban him.
Criticism that the district hasn't done enough to protect 370,000 students at nearly 650 schools from sexual misconduct intensified after a June 8 article in the Chicago Tribune, which reported CPS didn't adequately vet its own employees and cited scores of alleged cases of sexual abuse by staffers. Illinois lawmakers held hearings on the issue this week.
Wellems, 61, isn't on the district's staff. But he has worked with CPS as executive director of the a nonprofit Peace and Education Coalition, which runs CPS-sanctioned alternative schools at CPS properties for at-risk kids, including the Peace & Education Coalition High School in Chicago's Back of the Yards neighborhood. The AP reported last year that Wellems has remained executive director even after leaving the priesthood over the abuse. CPS spokeswoman Emily Bolton said in a statement to the AP Thursday that, in addition to the new ban on Wellems, the district was now doing a full review "to determine if an ongoing relationship" with the coalition "remains appropriate."
Wellems' victim, Eric Johnson, now 53, contacted CPS when he saw photos online of Wellems at district schools. He wrote a March 22 letter to district CEO Janice Jackson describing how he was sexually abused by Wellems more than a dozen times over a year starting in 1973 when they were neighbors in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Johnson was in the 2nd grade and Wellems in high school. "I ..... never will forget the horror," Johnson wrote. He said his concern was for the schoolchildren: "I don't want anyone else to go through what I have gone through." Johnson provided all his correspondence with CPS to the AP.
Wellems admitted to the AP in emails and in a 2014 interview that he had inappropriately touched Johnson and described it as "abuse." He said it happened twice. And he said he never again abused a child. Wellems has not returned multiple messages seeking comment over several days. Sister Angela Kolacinski, who answered at a phone number for the coalition, declined to speak about Wellems' role with the coalition. "We aren't interested in talking about those things," she said.
An April 12 response to Johnson's letter from CPS deputy general counsel James Ciesil, who said he was responding on Jackson's behalf, did not heed Johnson's call at the time for a full ban on Wellems, saying only that CPS would "restrict and closely monitor" his contact with CPS students. Johnson was first informed in a letter he received early this month that CPS had reconsidered.
The AP first sought comment from CPS on May 2 and repeated its request over several weeks — but did not receive any comment. Bolton, the CPS spokeswoman, said in her Thursday statement that the April 12 letter to Johnson "was improperly sent on behalf of (Jackson)" and that Jackson "did not review or authorize the policy represented in the letter."
Wellems was a popular, high-profile priest when he served in the 1990s and 2000s at Holy Cross Immaculate Heart of Mary in the poor, heavily Latino Back of the Yards, often praised for programs to help teenagers stay out of street gangs. He retains some support, including through a website, www.ISupportBruceWellems.com. Backers say he shouldn't be ostracized for something that happened so long ago. Wellems belonged to the Claretians Roman Catholic order and resigned from the priesthood early last year. It was one of Johnson's conditions to settle a lawsuit against the order for $25,000.
A letter on the ban was hand-delivered to Wellems, said Bolton. And all principals were notified "that they must not permit Wellems on school property."
Tough call. If he has indeed been clean since he was 15, this would seem a bit unfair and a waste of an apparently talented man.
New Orleans Archdiocese addresses sexual abuse allegations against former deacon
Archibishop Gregory Aymond released a public statement Friday (June 22) acknowledging accusations that a former deacon and teacher raped an alter boy in the 1970s and 1980s and condemning such behavior.(Eliot Kamenitz / The Times-Picayune)
By Hanna Krueger hkrueger@nola.com,
NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune
Days after reports that the Archdiocese of New Orleans paid more than $500,000 to resolve a lawsuit accusing a local deacon and teacher of repeatedly raping an altar boy in the 1970s and '80s, Archbishop Gregory Aymond released a public statement acknowledging the accusations and condemning such abuse.
The statement chronicles George F. Brignac's removal from the ministry in 1988 and role as as a teacher at St. Francis Cabrini School, St. John Vianney Prep, and St. Matthew the Apostle before his ordination as a deacon. By 1988, Brignac had been criminally charged at least twice with sexual misconduct -- in 1977 in Jefferson Parish and in 1988 in Orleans Parish -- but was never convicted.
A lawsuit, filed earlier in the year, in Orleans Parish Civil District Court, claims the deacon, Brignac, now 83, abused an altar boy for several years beginning in 1979, when the child was 8. The statement claims the recent allegations were only reported to the Archdiocese four months ago.
The archdiocese settled the suit May 11, paying out more than $500,000, according to a report by the New Orleans Advocate.
Aymond said in his statement that "no one should suffer abuse and especially not by a church leader."
Hawaii nudist resort investigated for child sex crimes
BY TOM PORTERA rental home in Honolulu where nudists hold yoga parties is at the center of an investigation into prostitution, sexual assault and child sex crimes.
The Freedom House in Upper Nuuanu advertises itself as a “clothing optional” space where naked yoga gatherings are held.
Waikiki Beach, Hawaii. A nudist resort is the centre of sex crimes investigations. GETTY IMAGES
“We here at ‘The Freedom House’ believe in having no negative judgment of others and living your life on your own terms, while respecting others completely,” the website reads. “We are not a business. We are just a place where like-minded people can gather.”
But investigations are underway by police and child protection services after a woman claimed her five-year-old daughter witnessed sex acts taking place at the house.
“She was sad, mad and confused why everybody has to be naked,” the unidentified woman told Hawaii News Now, adding that her daughter even drew a detailed picture of what she saw at the home.
Unfortunately, this report has some holes in it, like, what was the girl doing at the house in the first place?
The news outlet obtained a copy of a Department of Human Services report which found the girl showed signs of sexual abuse.
I presume they mean psychological signs, not physical signs.
Shay Bonds, who went to Freedom House parties at a different home in Kahala, told the network she saw people paying money for sex, and was herself sexually assaulted.
"I was confused. I felt violated. I had no idea how to handle something like that," she said.
It would be nice to know how old Shay was when she attended these parties.
Amy Highmoor, the renter who hosts the parties and who is facing eviction, denied the allegations.
She said that what occurs inside the home is legal, and that though nudists gathered at the home the child never witnesses sex acts taking place.
"I'm saddened. I'm disgusted. It makes me sick," said Highmoor, of the allegations.
New Jersey man charged with sexual assault of a child
Nick Muscavage, Bridgewater Courier News SOMERVILLE – A Manville man has been arrested and charged with sexual assault relating to alleged crimes against a 12-year-old girl.
Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson stated that on April 27, a 12-year old female told detectives from the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Sex Crimes/Child Abuse Unit that she had allegedly been sexually assaulted on three occasions in 2017, by defendant Felipe-Lopez while residing in Raritan Borough.
On June 21, 2018, detectives from the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Sex Crimes/Child Abuse Unit and Special Agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation located the Felipe-Lopez at his residence on North 4th Avenue in Manville. He was arrested without incident, according to a news release.
Felipe-Lopez was charged with first-degree aggravated sexual assault and third-degree endangering the welfare of a child. Felipe-Lopez was lodged in the Somerset County Jail pending a detention hearing.
Prosecutor Robertson and Chief Fodor request anyone with information to contact the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Unit at (908) 231-7100, or via the STOPit app by downloading the STOPit app to your smart phone at Google Play or at the Apple iTunes Store and enter the access code SOMERSETNJ. Tipsters can also call the Somerset County Crime Stoppers’ Tip Line at 1-888-577-TIPS (8477) or go online at www.888577tips.org or www.scpo.net and click on either “Crime Stoppers” or “TIPS HOTLINE.” All anonymous Crime Stopper tips will be kept confidential.
Victim testifies in against step-dad in Colorado
child sex assault case
In the courtroom
Tatiana Flowers and Megan WebberPost Independent
A 16-year-old girl testified in Garfield County District Court Friday that her former stepfather had sexually abused her on multiple occasions beginning in her childhood.
The victim testified with a therapy dog present and said when the assaults would occur at a residence, Diamond would lock the door.
Police say the alleged abuse, which spanned four years, occurred when the girl was approximately 9 to 13 years old.
According to police, Diamond was the owner of GreenBuild Roofing LLC in Basalt from 2011 to 2015, at the time of the alleged abuse.
Police said in reports the alleged abuse occurred at multiple locations, including at Missouri Heights, Diamond's office in Willits Town Center, a house near Carbondale and a residence in Basalt.
Over the course of four years, Diamond would allegedly entice the victim with fast food, Ebay items, video games and playing cards, the victim told police. He would also buy her food, flowers, necklaces, knives and other items, according to another witness.
The victim also said in court that, at one time, he offered her $500 to have intercourse with him, and on two other occasions allegedly asked her to watch adult pornography.
In court Friday, the victim told District Attorney Jeff Cheney that she denied the alleged abuse during a forensic interview in 2011 because she wanted to protect Diamond from trouble. She testified that he told her to tell authorities that he only touched her on the leg.
She said Ms. Diamond, his ex-wife at the time, had told her to say the same. They both testified that Mr. Diamond had touched the victim on the leg with Ms. Diamond in the room to prove that the victim was willing to let a man touch her.
He allegedly did this to prove to Ms. Diamond that the victim had previously been sexually assaulted by her biological father.
The victim told the courtroom she had seen the assaults as something that would "help get the truth out of me. I saw him as someone who helped me release the truth about what my biological father had done," she said of the previous alleged assaults. "He kinda tricked me into telling him."
According to the victim, in the moments before Ms. Diamond entered the room was the first time Mr. Diamond allegedly sexually assaulted her.
According to court documents and the victim's testimony, Mr. Diamond had also allegedly threatened to kill her, her family, responding officers and himself if she told anyone about the abuse.
In court Wednesday, Ms. Diamond said the suspect exposed himself to the victim and other children, and she said she felt threatened in one instance when he carried a gun in the house.
Presiding Judge Denise Lynch said she expects to hear testimony until June 26, but that the trial could run longer. Court will resume on Monday at 8:30 a.m. at the Garfield County Courthouse.
Diamond is currently free on $503,000 bond and is charged with three counts of sexual assault on a child less than 15 years of age and four counts of sexual assault on a child less than 15 years of age as a pattern of abuse, class 3 felonies.
Perv coach deported for child abuse returns
to molest a child in Brooklyn
By Tina Moore and Stephanie Pagones A soccer coach who had been deported from Texas as a child molester in 2009 has returned to allegedly molest another child — this time in Brooklyn, The Post has learned.
Pablo Pineda, 39, was arrested Thursday at the Friends Field on East Fourth Street in Midwood, officials confirmed Friday.
Pineda allegedly groped the genitals of a 10-year old boy repeatedly over the course of four months, between June and September of 2017, police sources said.
He also texted the boy in an attempt to get the kid to meet him at the movies, the sources said.
The alleged abuse was first reported to cops Wednesday.
Pineda’s record includes a 2005 arrest in Texas on charges of sex abuse of a child, an offense that led to him becoming a registered sex offender, the sources said.
He was deported in 2009 but it remains unclear what his country of origin is or when and how he returned to the United States.
Pineda was awaiting arraignment Friday night at Brooklyn Criminal Court.
Alabama man arrested on child sexual abuse charge
By: Tonya Pruitt DOTHAN, Ala. (WDHN) - Dothan police responded Wednesday to a report of sexual abuse of a child at the 700 block of North Range Street.
Officers arrested 53-year-old Joseph Earl Poke of Dothan for allegedly making sexual contact with a child who was 8 years old.
Poke was charged with one count of sexual abuse of a child less than 12 years old. His bond was set at $30,000.
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