Task force on sex offender laws stalls Panel set up after public outcry over strengthening restrictions
....I don't think anyone is surprised by the so called 'stall'! It's what they do!
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
ALBANY Sex offender pleads innocent to making child pornography Man allegedly sexually abused 6-year-old BY JILL BRYCE Gazette Reporter
A convicted sex offender, arrested last month on charges he sexually abused a 6-year-old, pleaded innocent in federal court on Wednesday to producing and possessing child pornography. Steven Ahders, 29, of Brandywine Ave., Schenectady, told U.S. Judge David Homer that he could not afford an attorney and the court appointed George Baird, a federal public defender. U.S. Attorney Thomas Spina, who is prosecuting the case, said that if Ahders is convicted he faces a minimum of 25 years in prison. Spina said the investigation is continuing. The court proceeding was very short; Ahders, wearing an orange prison uniform, said nothing before he was led away in handcuffs by federal marshals to the Albany County jail. Ahders was indicted by a federal grand jury last week on two counts of producing and possessing images of child pornography. He is accused of abusing the victim between September 2006 and June 2007. Ahders was arrested on Jan. 15 at his home and charged with making child pornography and using a minor to produce sexually explicit pictures. He knew the child after he met the child’s mother through personal ads two years ago, according to Assistant Schenectady County District Attorney Andra Ackerman. Images were allegedly found on Ahder’s cellphone, according to the federal indictment. The phone has been seized. Since the advent of cellphones that take pictures, Spina said, he is seeing more cases involving people using these to produce pornography. Because the cellphone that Ahders allegedly used to produce the images was not made in New York state, the charges are under the jurisdiction of federal court. Ahders had served time in federal prison for a 2001 conviction for possession of child pornography and was on the state sex offender registry as a Level 1 offender, considered the lowest risk. At the time, he admitted he used his home computer to trade nude images of children and others and advertised the service in an Internet chat room. The Immigration and Customs Enforcement office of investigation asks that anyone with information about Ahders contact 431-4030 or call the Schenectady Police Department. Reach Gazette reporter Jill Bryce at 432-4391 or jbryce@dailygazette.net.
By BOB GARDINIER, Staff writer Friday, February 15, 2008
GLOVERSVILLE -- A 25-year-old city man pleaded guilty Thursday to sexually abusing three young girls and will be sentenced in April to 17 years in prison, Fulton County prosecutors said Thursday.
Joshua A. Johnson of Western Boulevard pleaded guilty before Fulton County Court Judge Richard Giardino to two counts of first-degree criminal sex act and two counts of first-degree sexual abuse, District Attorney Louise K. Sira said. Johnson admitted to having inappropriate sexual contact with two girls ages 6 and 8 and another girl whose age was not available, Sira said. Sentencing will be April 21 and Johnson will be certified as a sex offender and have to register with the state Sex Offender Registry, Sira said.
Offender allegedly failed to register SCHENECTADY — A level-3 sex offender was arrested last week, accused of failing to inform officials he had moved, authorities said. Richard Wilson, 45, formerly of Schenectady Street, was charged with one count of failing to register as a sex offender, a felony. Wilson was evicted from his apartment on Schenectady Street in January, then lived in two hotels without updating his address with the registry, according to papers filed in court.
Colonie man, 18, faces sex charge COLONIE — A Colonie man has been arrested, accused of engaging with sexual acts with a child, authorities said. Daniel Roach, 18, was charged this week with second-degree criminal sexual act, a felony. He is accused of committing the acts with a child under the age of 15 in early February, state police said. Roach was arraigned and ordered held on $50,000 bail.
Whitehall woman charged with sexually abusing girl Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Gloria Shovah
A Whitehall woman has been accused by state police of sexually abusing a 12-year-old girl. Troopers said Gloria A. Shovah, 50, of 17 Davis St., was arrested Monday on a felony charge of second-degree course of sexual conduct against a child. Additional charges will be presented to a Washington County grand jury, troopers said. Troopers said Shovah abused the girl of a priod of six months. Shovah was arraigned in Fort Ann Town Court and sent to the Washington County jail on $100,000 cash bail or $200,000 bond.
Rochester man accused of trying to solicit sex with child Friday, March 7, 2008
Serdar S. GozGUILDERLAND — A Rochester man has been charged with arranging to meet a 13-year-old child for sex.
State police investigators said Serdar S. Goz, 25, sent sexually graphic online correspondence to the child, then drove from his home to meet the child for sex Thursday at a predetermined location in Guilderland. Instead, he was met by police and taken into custody.
Goz was charged with attempted dissemination of indecent material to a minor and attempted endangering the welfare of a child. He was arraigned in Albany City Court and sent to the Albany County jail on $10,000 bail. He is scheduled to return to court Tuesday.
Another man receives 5 years for child sex crime BY KATHY PARKER Gazette Reporter
In a separate case, a Gansevoort man has been sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to a sexual crime against a child. Saratoga County Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Buckley said Jefferson Bel, 51, was arrested in July for a crime that occurred in 2005 involving a child under age 11. “[Bell] has an extensive criminal history, including a prior conviction for a sex offense,” Buckley said. “He will have to register as a sex offender when he gets out of prison.” Bell pleaded guilty to a charge of first-degree attempted criminal sexual act to avoid a trial.
ALBANY Lawyer known to stir the pot Aretakis’ tactics criticized; attorney defends his aims BY JILL BRYCE Gazette Reporter
A top ranking Albany County prosecutor vowed to sue John Aretakis after the attorney claimed that false testimony was allowed into a murder trial last year. Aretakis, Mark Harris said during the sentencing in Albany County Court last week, is a “disgrace” to the criminal defense bar. It’s not the first time Aretakis has been in the spotlight for his legal maneuvering. To some, Aretakis is a tireless advocate for childhood victims of sexual abuse who has effectively raised awareness about sexual abuse by priests right in our own backyard. Others question the merits of some of the lawsuits he’s filed since the priest sexual misconduct scandal erupted in the Roman Catholic Church. It’s difficult to determine exactly what his legal record is and how many cases he’s won or lost; Aretakis himself didn’t have the numbers. But it’s certain he’s had at least a half dozen lawsuits dismissed and has had his share of other legal problems. “He has not prevailed in a single lawsuit against the Albany diocese,” said diocese spokesman Kenneth Goldfarb. STACK OF COMPLAINTS Aretakis has filed 15 sexual abuse lawsuits that have been dismissed by a judge or withdrawn by Aretakis or his client, according to Goldfarb. The first was filed in 2003 against the diocese or diocesan officials. “We would not comment or make any observation on his skills as an attorney,” said Goldfarb. In September 2007, Aretakis was sanctioned by a federal court judge and ordered to pay more than $24,000 for filing a “baseless lawsuit” against a Catholic diocese and the U.S. government. The lawsuit alleged that the church broke its agreement to provide charitable housing to a woman who was forced out of her New Orleans apartment because of Hurricane Katrina. He has had more than 15 complaints filed against him, more than half of them from the state Committee on Professional Standards, which oversees the conduct of attorneys in the state. One complaint, filed in November 2004 by Mark S. Ochs, chief counsel of the Committee on Professional Standards, said Aretakis “engaged in conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice and conduct tending to bring the legal professional into disfavor and disrepute.” Ochs said last week he could not disclose how many complaints are filed against an attorney or even confirm or deny if a complaint is filed. He also would not comment on Aretakis. NUMEROUS SETTLEMENTS Aretakis, of North Greenbush, who is married and has a young son, brushes aside any criticism. “I’m waging a very public battle with the diocese, “ he said. He said he has a total of 250 clients around the state who have been sexually abused as children or teenagers. Most of them hired him as adults, years after they were abused. Aretakis said that out of 125 clients he represents in the Albany diocese, he’s filed lawsuits in 15 to 18 cases. He said he didn’t know how many of his lawsuits have been dismissed, adding that “99 percent of his cases settle.” “The one thing that has happened with the Albany diocese on clergy cases is that they don’t want to settle on a case for $50,000, $100,000 or $200,000. They don’t want to be in a case of feeding the enemy. They will all settle together or wait till the statute of limitation ends,” said Aretakis. He said he’s settled 25 to 30 sexual abuse cases with the Catholic Church, which includes the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany, and he estimates that this amounts to $2.5 million in church-related settlements. He’s had some outright wins as well. In 1996, Aretakis won almost $1 million in a clergy abuse case he filed against the Albany diocese, even though the statute of limitations had passed. Aretakis told diocesan attorney Michael Costello at the time that his client was going to go public with his case against the Rev. Mark Haight, and eventually, the diocese paid nearly $1 million. It was the largest such settlement in New York state. Aretakis received roughly $300,000; the victim received $600,000. The Rev. Kenneth Doyle, chancellor of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany, declined to comment for this article. A CRUSADE FOR SAFETY “I know where the argument goes,” Aretakis said. “I know I have not made judges happy, and here’s why. You know more than 90 percent of my clients were molested 10 to 20 years ago. When I go to police, they refer to the statute of limitations.” Aretakis said he will continue to fight for victims. He said he’ll urge the state to impose harsher sentencing guidelines in child molestation cases and stricter monitoring of accused offenders free on bail. He also plans to fight to remove the statute of limitations on past child sex offense crimes. Aretakis said he has to figure out “innovative, creative ways to get pedophiles’ ” names out in public. He’s said he’s been told by news outlets that if there is no civil action or criminal action, a story cannot be done. “I have done everything to get names of these pedophiles into the newspapers so parents and others can protect their children,” he said. “I haven’t made a dime in clergy cases in the last four years. “What are we to do when I know there is a 50-year-old priest who molested children? Should I try to get the name in the newspaper so he will be pulled from ministry so parents can help their children?” he asked. Aretakis said he’s not doing this for money but so “your children, my 9-year-old son and children in Schenectady, Albany, Schoharie are not molested.” He said that because of his work, 24 pedophiles have been removed from ministry. COURTROOM BLOWS How many of his lawsuits have been dismissed? He said he doesn’t know. A lawsuit filed in Suffolk Superior Court on behalf of Joseph Woodward that named the Albany diocese and Bishop Howard J. Hubbard was dismissed in Jan 2005. In 2006, a judge ordered him to stay away from Holy Cross Parish when he and member of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests protested at Holy Cross and sought the ouster of the Rev. Daniel Mahar. A judge dismissed a $450,000 lawsuit that Aretakis filed against former priest the Rev. John Bertolucci, ruling that there was no factual support for the claims that the priest tried to intimidate the parents of a man he was accused of molesting. Recently, when one of his clients, Christopher Oathout, was being sentenced for murder in Albany County Court, Oathout told the judge that Aretakis wasn’t looking out for his best interests. And when Aretakis accused Harris of allowing false testimony into a murder trial last year, Harris vowed to sue Aretakis during an explosive courtroom scene. “I’m researching it, and I will leave it at that. I won’t say anything beyond what was said in the courtroom,” Harris said on Friday. “I welcome and look forward to the day he sues me. The problem with Mark Harris is he doesn’t know the law and he is not allowed to sue me, and if he did, his case would be tossed out,” said Aretakis. Aretakis said a person can’t be a public official, perform public duties, sue and win personal money. In a Schoharie County courtroom, attorney F. Stanton Ackerman, representing convicted child molester Patrick D. Cascanet, asked County Court Judge George R. Bartlee III to stop Aretakis from attacking him. Another Albany attorney said that Aretakis is close to violating the code of ethics and that legal cases filed by Aretakis do not fall within the state’s statute of limitations. END JUSTIFIES THE MEANS? Mark Lyman, co-director of the Albany chapter of the Surviviors Network of Those Abused by Priests, hired Aretakis in 2004 to represent him when he filed a lawsuit alleging that he was abused by a priest as a child. “He’s had legal battles in courtrooms,” said Lyman. “Yes, he’s been sanctioned, fined, hammered by a significant number of judges in the area, but at the same time, I don’t see anyone else who is out there trying to bring forth cases for their clients the way John is,” said Lyman. The overwhelmingly majority of the members of SNAP respect Aretakis, said Lyman. (There are 73 members.) “Is he a rabble rouser? A troublemaker? Does he stir up problems for sexual predators? Yes, he surely does, and I am thankful for that, and I think many people are. “Does everyone agree with John’s tactics? Not necessarily. I know I don’t.” Lyman said that predators have been exposed and the truth has been disseminated because of what Aretakis has done. “He exposed these men and he stood up and spoke out for his clients, and those priests were removed, and they will not continue that pattern of sexual abuse. These are issues where the public has been protected, and from SNAP’s perspective, it’s a major accomplishment,” said Lyman. Aretakis often tells Lyman that he wears the sanctions as a “badge of honor.” Lyman said that as far as he knows, Aretakis has not made any money from the church since the abuse scandals began.
Sex offender isn’t allowed to see his girlfriend’s son Annie’s Mailbox Annie’s Mailbox is written by Kathy Mitchell and Marcy Sugar, longtime editors of the Ann Landers column. 118190, Chicago, IL 60611.
Dear Annie: Last year, my boyfriend was caught soliciting a 16-year-old girl over the Internet. “John” was drunk and high on cocaine at the time. He was an addict, and I was aware of it. I chose to stay with him anyway. John has to register as a sex offender and the felony will never be erased from his record. I have three children — two older teenagers and a 9-year-old boy. I don’t have custody of my son, and although the boy saw John weekly for the first three months he was in rehab, that’s over now. My son is no longer allowed to see John at all, and he misses his “second dad.” My son hasn’t been able to stay overnight with me or even visit unless John is somewhere else. I’ve barely seen my child in seven months. Do I have to choose between them? My kids matter, but I also love John dearly. I’ve never been treated so well. He is a different person now that he is sober. What should I do? — Torn
Dear Torn: We’re glad John is sober, but your child’s welfare must come first. We are assuming your ex has custody of your son, but he cannot legally keep the boy away unless it is court mandated. Have you spoken to your lawyer? If there is nothing you can do to change the visitation setup, we recommend you arrange to see your son as often as you can, without John. Your child needs to know you will not abandon him.
Released sex felon arrested Man tried under civil confinement law not deemed a threat accused of rape First published: Thursday, March 13, 2008 Georgia
DENNIS YUSKO Staff writer An Albany man who was tried but not held under the state's Sex Offender Management and Treatment Act has been charged with raping and kidnapping a woman in Georgia, officials said Wednesday. Douglas P. Junco, the first person tried under the state's civil confinement law, was arrested Feb. 4 for allegedly kidnapping and sexually assaulting an unidentified female in the Savannah area, Savannah-Chatham Police Sgt. Michael Wilson said. "It was a heinous crime," Wilson said in an interview, refusing to elaborate. Junco, 40, finished serving nearly 15 years in a New York prison last year after a jury convicted him of attempted first-degree rape. In that 1992 case, Junco attacked a woman who offered to drive him home from a bar in Albany. Two men heard her screaming in a Madison Avenue lot and stopped the attack. Under New York's civil confinement law, enacted last April, the state could have further confined or monitored Junco after his release if mental health experts and a jury found him to have a psychological abnormality that would likely cause him to commit additional crimes. But Junco went free in August when a 12-person jury in state Supreme Court in Washington County ruled he did not suffer from a mental problem and wasn't a threat. Conflicting testimony from mental health experts played a big part in the decision, observers said. Now, just more than six months later, Junco is being held in the Chatham County Detention Center without bail. He faces life in prison for the latest felony charges, Wilson said. The investigation continues, and Junco could face additional charges in the case, police said. "Typically, we don't discuss rape cases," Wilson said. "Our chief concern is protecting the victim." The alleged victim was not a child, Wilson said. Junco had been arraigned, but had not yet made a plea, police said. State officials late Wednesday could not provide the number of civil confinement trials that have been heard in New York within the last year. In Junco's case, Georgia police were not confident that New York's system of dealing with sex felons had worked. "If he was a test product of that program, then obviously, the decision to release him was probably not examined closely," Wilson said. Yusko can be reached at 454-5353 or by e-mail at dyusko@timesunion.com.
This is an email we received regarding Junco, the accused in the previous post. We don't know how credible it actually is, but we though we would post it here for your viewing anyway. It is definitely not an easy read:
Quoted Text
I just want to say that i knew Douggy before all this happen and i feel he is definitely not being treated fairly. Im not denying what he did was wrong yes definitely hes has completed his time and should be given the chance I dont know all the facts, but I know Dougy didnt rape any children I know that.and that right should be taken into consideration, for his mental state I hung out with Dougy days before this happen regularly we had a crack habbit that both were ashamed to expose to the people we were around I know that coming off cocaine can lead to feelings of sexuality which could lead to worse things masturbating rape ect also can lead people to rob or steal and dougy had a few run ins before with the law and beat some of the cases maybe some people feel he had it coming coincidences are not on heard of but lets just say he did it which would tell me that he would of coming off of cocaine which would mean he had a drug problem and that would be the root of the problem and thats what needs to be worked on because drugs obviously lead to bigger things stop the drugs.its not like he wakes up and says well what little boy can i touch today.not the case here at all Dougy had a kid a nice girl that he was having prob ems with definitely but with all the people that were around him no signs dougy was a good friend like to party hang out very outgoing person keep the conversation going all the time never a dull moment around him acted no differently than any bodyelse i knew. I think doing all that timein prison with Dougies attitude a very rebellious person but just wanted to be treated fairly like anybody else but sometimes people cross paths and some people are able to express it and some peolple hold it in nothing out the norm trust me and i only new this because i was molested by albany couny sherrif 20 years ago named Brian Rowe ,now he had a compulsion for kids and he was just recenly convicted and release after 5 years i beleive im very close to one of the family members ,now that tells hes ben doing this for all that time. Im 37 years old now hes someone that should not be given the chances he has. Kids can not defend themselves in this case but take Dugies case most adults can defend themselves which makes a little bit different of case and I think Dougy is being treated like straight child molester and hes not one and I think there should beother things that need to be looked into before a group of people might just be having a bad day and Dougies life depends on that very day. Life as we know it isnt all that it appears to be im seeking out religion and im scared for my family because all here when it comes to religion now is child molester's and thats sad it makes you want to back away the flaws in the justice system is endless crooked police the worst drugs alcohol soiciety say this and society says that The everydaypressures, of high ranking officials some can, be trusted will it ever be right.Our country is in turmoil nothing that cant be fixed but weve been trying for a long time and it doesnt seem like its getting bette, thanks to the wonderful media who keeps up to date if it was me I would be mentally ill to. And partially becouse of your wonderful correctionfacilties to and thats a whole differnt story. See Dougy for a person and not what you think he is and youll see theres not much wrong with him. and cant imagine living in prison for 15 yaers hoping for that day that the judge told you I think I would be f the system and show you where the sun dont shine not to mention the judged lied to him and commited perjury himself so you tell me i think you took a person with a problem and sent him to your not correction facilties and i think youve created yourselve a bigger probem and what you think a monster. So maybe the state should take resonsibilty for their actions and meet him half way let him out and give him the rope and watch and learn!!!!! "thelonius fitzgerald"
Logged
