How safe are children at school?

The answer might surprise parents.

A KCTV5 News Investigation started with a look into the laws regarding juvenile sex offenders, and it didn't take long to find a case in the Kansas City metropolitan area that will leave parents wondering who is sitting next to their children?

A 12-year-old girl, a sixth-grader at Fire Prairie Middle School in the Fort Osage School District, was forced to see a 13-year-old boy who sexually assaulted her.

The boy molested the girl while she was at a friend's house.

She kept it secret for months.

"He committed rape and sodomy and forced oral sex and forced her to perform it on him," said Renee, the girl's mother.

She and her daughter went to police and filed a report. Prosecutors filed charges, and the boy later pleaded guilty to two counts of molestation.

But the girl's ordeal didn't end there.

She was forced to see her attacker everyday at school.

"They're in the same lunchroom," Renee said. "She does tell me, 'Today he gave me such an evil look.'"

If a juvenile is not required to register, then there is no way for parents to find out about that person's conviction.

Renee said, "This puts other children in danger. Juvenile offenders have got to be somewhere away from the main population."

Children forced to walk past sex offenders’ homes

Mother concerned for safety of her kids

Mistie Meadows wants her children to be safe. But their short walk from the bus stop to their front door has Meadows worried.

Meadows lives on Devinney Road in Waco. Her children, a daughter, 14, and son, 7, must walk down the road to their house every afternoon. Meadows drives her children to the top of the road in the mornings to wait for the bus. But by the time her children are coming home from school, Meadows is at her second shift job in Charlotte.

The walk is short. The road isn't busy with cars. But Meadows is concerned because two registered sex offenders live on the path her children take home.

The two men, one on South Main Street and the other on Devinney Road, have been convicted of taking indecent liberties with a minor in unrelated cases. One man in particular on Devinney Road has called attention to himself, Meadows said.

"The only time you ever see him out is when the kids are walking home," Meadows said.

Search For Unregistered Sex Offender Puts School On Lockdown

A Scottsdale school was placed in lockdown as police search for an unregistered sex offender, officers said Wednesday afternoon.

The man was identified as Evaristo G. Saucedo.

Scottsdale police received a tip around 10:30 a.m. that Saucedo was doing construction work in the area of 9600 E. Becker Road just north of Shea Boulevard, officers said.

The nearby school, Shepherd of the Desert Lutheran Church at 9590 E. Shea, was placed in lockdown.

Police believed Saucedo was hiding inside the home but after a search officers came up empty-handed.

The offender is described as Hispanic and about 40 years old. He has dark black hair in a ponytail and was last seen wearing blue jeans and a short-sleeved white T-shirt.

Police said Saucedo has an extensive criminal history with local law enforcement for various violent crimes and has been deported twice.

April awareness, prevention, educational and Make a Difference Month

April is a month that brings new starts, new commitments and blossoming awareness of what is happening in our lives and our community.

April is the month for Prevention of Sexual Assault/Domestic Violence, Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect, Autism Awareness and Volunteer Appreciation month.

We honor all volunteers from all groups who continue to give freely of their time and energy to make a difference. If you know a volunteer, thank them. If you are a volunteer pat yourself on the back.

Sex offender loitered at day care

The supervisor of a Bloomington day care facility discovered a man related to a child at the center who was spending an unusual amount of time talking to other children there was on a sex offender list, McLean County state’s attorney’s prosecutors said in documents.

Clarence Embry, 57, of Bloomington was charged with child sex offender/loitering, arrest records said. He posted $5,000, according to McLean County jail records.

Girl Scout Officials investigate continued sex offender allegations

Southern Oregon Girl Scout leaders are once again investigating whether or not a sex offender attended their functions.

The most recent allegations surfaced at a girl scout meeting Wednesday night. Medford police started looking into the case on Thursday.

Police have learned that several girl scouts may have spent the night at the home of registered sex offender Barry Register.

Register has several warrants out for his arrest for allegedly exposing himself to children around Washington Elementary School.

Fighting for tougher sex offender laws

North Andover - In 1995, Debbie Savoia was deeply disturbed to find out, via an anonymous letter from out of state, that a convicted child sex offender was moving to her neighborhood.
Even more troubling was the fact that the offender’s criminal information could not be released to the public because there was no law mandating dissemination of those details.
“I didn’t understand who he was after in particular ‑ little boys, girls?” Savoia said. “My son was riding his bike to his friend’s house, and I was worried.”
Her son’s welfare sparked Savoia to write her lawmakers and local newspapers, and to participate in media interviews. She told people they had a right to know if a sex offender was moving to their neighborhood and said the laws had to be changed.

“At that time, I found we had tougher laws for animal abuse than sex offenders,” Savoia said.
Her advocacy paid off, and in August of 1996, she stood with Gov. William Weld as the federal Megan’s Law was officially brought to Massachusetts. The law says that neighbors, schools and daycare places must be notified by the local police department if a Level 3 sex offender moves into their vicinity. Since the adoption of Megan’s Law, Savoia has continued her advocacy work, helped victims and has stayed involved in sex offender legislation.

In recognition of her commitment, she was recently honored as North Andover’s Unsung Heroine of 2008. The award, presented by the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women (MCSW), recognizes women who “quietly, without fanfare or recognition, make their communities and the commonwealth better places.”

The Fifth Annual Unsung Heroine Celebration will be held May 14 at the State House to honor the commonwealth’s 286 Unsung Heroines. A state Unsung Heroine will be chosen at the event.
Chelmsford resident Laurie Myers nominated Savoia, with whom she works on Community VOICES, an organization that aims to strengthen laws to protect children and communities from child predators.

“She’s one of the most amazing women I’ve ever known,” Myers wrote in the nomination letter. “…she’s passionate about the issue of child safety, and her unselfish efforts to keep children safe do not stop with her own children; she cares about all children…”
Coincidentally, Savoia nominated Myers, who is now Chelmsford’s Unsung Heroine.
“We sent our letters on the same day,” Savoia said. “We sometimes joke we share one brain.”
Before forming Community VOICES in 2005, Savoia was a volunteer for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. In 2001, she requested and received the first proclamation from Gov. Jane Swift for National Missing Children’s Day in Massachusetts. She also worked with state Sen. Bruce Tarr, who filed two bills for her in 2002 — one that requires offenders to be classified before they leave prison, the other posting Level 3 sex offenders on the Internet.

Savoia has also advocated for and befriended murder victims’ families, including Maureen Kanak, Bob Curley, John and Magi Bish and the Presti family. She was involved in drafting the Joanna and Alyssa [Presti] Act, named after a Woburn mother and daughter who were murdered by a Level 3 sex offender staying in their city but registered in Lowell. The law would require sex offender backgrounds be listed on criminal records.

In 2004, Savoia met Myers, a former rape crisis counselor, at a court hearing about posting Level 3 sex offenders on the Internet. Savoia was there with the Presti family.
After sharing notes, the two women saw a clear need for advocates to help average citizens be heard, and to provide education about child sexual abuse and Internet predators. They brought on board fellow advocates Sandy DiBacco and Rachel Eaton to join them as the Community VOICES organization.

Community VOICES has quickly become a major volunteer resource for state officials and other groups. With Myers and Savoia acting as president and vice president, the organization provides information and attends court hearings with victims, and advocates for legislation at the state level. In 2006, Savoia and Myers were asked by Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey to sit on the Governor’s Commission on Sexual and Domestic Abuse.
“We’re the only volunteer organization in the state acting as a resource like this,” Savoia said.
And, all of the organization’s work is done without earning a single penny.

Savoia is also working on Jessica’s Law, named after 10-year-old Jessica Lunsford of Florida, who was abducted, raped and murdered by a neighbor and repeat sex offender in 2005.
“The sex offenders are doing no time for raping kids,” Savoia said. “The minimum mandatory first offense is five years, with a second offense at whatever the judge decides. I’m not into three-strike laws. Why should we wait for the person to harm another child?”
Jessica’s Law would set the minimum prison sentence at 10-years-to-life for the first offense and 20-years-to-life for a subsequent crime.

In the midst of her extensive advocacy work, Savoia is feeling grateful to have been chosen as an Unsung Heroine, calling it a true “honor.” But you won’t find her resting on her laurels. For Savoia, every day’s a chance to tighten laws and make Massachusetts a safer place for families.
“I’m going to fight like hell to do all I can,” she said.

School system would check visitors against offender list

The Chandler Unified School District plans to test a new security check-in system that requires school visitors to present driver's licenses at a school's front office, then screens the information to find potential sex offenders.

The Web-based computer software, called V-soft, scans the license then cross-checks the information against several databases and can notify officials within 30 seconds if there's a match. It also prints out visitor badges.

"It scans all the major sex offender national databases," said Regina Wainwright, who helps run the district's student-safety programs.

Wainwright said the security system is being considered because of the district's ongoing review of its safety plans. She added officials want to make sure visitors continue to feel welcome at schools and that the new system does not hinder volunteers.

Sex Offender Seen Loitering Near School

Police Say 50-Year-Old Spotted Near School For Second Day

Police are searching for a convicted sex offender who was seen loitering near a Miami elementary school Wednesday morning.

School police said a staff member saw the man in his pickup truck near the Ada Merritt Elementary School two days in a row and became suspicious.

"The truck belongs to a registered sex offender. It's been here twice in two days. He's not a parent, and that's enough to raise suspicion on our part. We're going to be very vigilant," said Commander Charles Hurley of the Miami-Dade School Board Police.

Mom plans march to protect kids

For years, Bernadine Wade kept quiet about the sexual assaults her daughter endured to and from school in a Jackson Local Schools' van.

Now the township mother plans to share her story during a "March to Protect Our Children" rally at 1 p.m. Friday at North Park on Fulton Drive NW. Attendees will walk to nearby Township Hall, which is across the street from Jackson Local's bus garage on Mudbrook Street NW.

"I'm not only marching for my daughter, I'm marching for every child," said Wade, who wants all school districts in the state to put a monitor on every bus and van that transports students. "I don't care what color they are. You don't send your child to school to be raped, sodomized and forced into oral sex."

SPECIAL-NEEDS STUDENT

Wade's adopted daughter, a 7-year-old special-needs student, was repeatedly sexually assaulted by a teenager on the van from 2003 through October 2004.

Although both Wade's daughter and the teenager lived in the township, they rode together in a seven-passenger van provided by Jackson Local to schools they attended in the Tuslaw Local School District.

"This is a march for everyone," said Moniquec Conner, president of the Stark County NAACP. "There have been 11 different families this has happened to in Ohio. This is to generate awareness."

The sexual assaults against Wade's daughter came to light in November 2004 when another van rider alerted school officials.

DISMISSED

In 2005, Wade filed a civil lawsuit in Stark County Common Pleas Court against the Jackson Local district, a transportation supervisor and two van drivers, accusing them of negligence. She sought $500,000 in damages.

The court, citing Ohio law, ruled the district and its drivers were immune from the liability and dismissed the complaint.

Wade appealed to the Ohio Supreme Court, which declined to hear the case. The court has agreed to hear similar but unrelated cases involving the Marlington Local and Massillon school districts.

A subsequent bill, named for Wade's daughter, has been introduced in hopes of changing Ohio law.

FOUR-YEAR NIGHTMARE

"This has been nothing but a nightmare for me and my family," Wade said. "To go through all this hell to find out no one wants to take responsibility. It's been a hard four years of fighting."

The abuser, Justin Abney, pleaded guilty to a juvenile count of gross sexual imposition in 2005, according to Stark County Family Court Records. He served 18 months in a Ohio Department of Youth Services facility.

When the Ohio Supreme Court declined to hear the case, Wade began speaking out in the media. She wanted to make other parents throughout the state aware of her situation and how it could affect their children.

"I'm signaling the alarm," Wade said. "Someone is going to listen."

Jackson Local Superintendent Cheryl Haschak declined to address Friday's planned march to the district's bus garage.

"It's gone through the legal process," Haschak said. "The actual case is settled. Other than that, because it involves students, I can't comment."

THEY ARE LISTENING

A video clip on YouTube featuring Wade's interview with a Cleveland TV station has had more than 42,000 hits. Mentions of Wade and her daughter can be found on Web sites and blogs.

Wade's phone rings constantly with calls from people outraged about the incident and the lack of recourse in this type of situation. She wants to reach out to more.

"People are not aware of what's going on," she said. "People have no clue what's happening to their children. That's what this march is all about. I didn't have a clue.

"The only way the school is liable is if your child dies in a traffic accident. They can be beat up, raped or stabbed to death and nothing can be done."

Wade's message has gone beyond Stark County. On Sunday, she traveled to Kalamazoo, Mich., to do a television interview about Friday's rally.

She has done radio interviews with stations throughout the county, including those in Atlanta and Chicago.

Because Wade's daughter's case has drawn so much attention, the Police Department has gotten involved in the planning of the rally, securing a pavilion for attendees and helping to map out a nonintrusive route to the bus garage, Maj. Dave Zink said.

Wade isn't sure who'll show up, but the rally is just the beginning of her campaign.

"I'm not going to stop until I'm on the 'Oprah Winfrey Show,' " Wade said. "Until that happens, I'm going to keep it going. It doesn't end with the march. It's the beginning."

Schools take spotting sex offenders seriously

That is, of course, unless you live in my school district. You see in my school district they allow sexual predators to festivals, assembleys, concerts, games, etc. What about your school district?

A parent at Woodland Elementary School in Edwardsville spotted a registered sex offender attending a carnival at the school March 28.

The parent notified police, who on Tuesday arrested Michael E. Cox, 40, of 445 E. Main St. in East Alton, on charges of unlawful presence in a school zone by a sex offender.

Because in the state of Illinois it is against the law for sex offenders of any status to be on school grounds. Kinda smart, eh?

While there is no indication Cox had contact with any other children, the case raises new questions about what steps school districts should take to make sure buildings are out of reach of registered sex offenders, which by state law are required to stay at least 500 feet away from schools.

Sex offender warned to stay away from schools

A tip led Michigan State Police personnel at the Brighton post to the Howell residence of a convicted sex offender, who allegedly was seen at Hartland High School.

Police said the tipster indicated the 29-year-old Howell man was at the school, but police did not witness that.

As a precaution, officers went to the man's home to remind him that as a convicted sex offender he must stay at least 1,000 feet from a school safety zone.

Sex Offender Captured Near Oakhaven High School in Memphis

Memphis Police arrested a convicted sex offender Tuesday, April 1. 2008 who is accused of exposing himself to three girls as they walked to school. The complaints were filed between March 25 and April 1, 2008.

Police say Eddy Barreras, 27, was captured in the 3600 block of Elm Park, near Oakhaven High School. Barreras has been listed as a registered sex offender since 2006, and is charged with aggravated statutory rape and indecent exposure. Investigators say they are looking into more incidents involving Barreras that date back to the fall of 2007. He may face more charges as the investigation continues.

Sex offender arrested after being seen at school carnival

A parent suspected that a man attending an Edwardsville school carnival might be a registered sex offender. So the parent left the event, found the man's picture on an Internet registry, and called police, officials said Tuesday.

The parent's actions resulted in Madison County prosecutors on Tuesday charging Michael E. Cox, 40, of East Alton, with unlawful presence in a school zone by a sex offender.

Illinois State law prohibits registered sex offenders from being on or near school grounds.

New School Security Will ID Sex Offenders

Schools hope to soon use a system known as Lobby Guard. It is being used at the district office and will soon be installed in four schools.

Anyone entering the buildings gets their driver’s license scanned, and the system has the ability of making sure those signing in aren't on the sex offender registry or presenting an invalid license.

"It would mark void, and that sends us a message. If something comes out, void will come up," said Metro Nashville Public Schools Assistant Superintendent Ralph Thompson.

"We value all of our children. We value all of our staff members, and we’re going to do whatever we can to make people feel safe and to keep out those that are unsafe to our environment," he said.

Sex offender restrictions pass

A bill reinstating restrictions on where registered sex offenders can live and barring them from taking photos of minors without parental permission easily passed the House on Wednesday.

The new law exempts offenders who own their property from having to move if it was legal for them to live there when they purchased their home.

The original measure barred registered sex offenders from taking pictures of minors unless they got permission from the child’s parent first. They filed the legislation last year after a constituent complained about a sex offender taking a picture of her daughter.

Kindergarten classroom volunteer found to be registered sex offender

A sex offender in a kindergarten classroom: it doesn't sound possible, but it happened at Harloe Elementary School in Arroyo Grande.

Some parents are saying if the school had performed a simple background check, the man never would have been allowed on campus.

Arroyo Grande police say the school was made aware of the situation when an alert parent who works for the Sheriff's Department recognized the name of the school volunteer.

Web Poll for Wednesday, April 2:

Do you think adults who volunteer in schools should undergo a background check?
Yes 96%
No 4%

Sex offender appeared to be following girl

A Level 2 sex offender driving near Hingham High School was told by police to leave the area after a witness reported that the man was following a 12-year-old girl riding her bicycle.

When officers stopped the car, the driver said he was in the area looking for junk cars on which to place fliers about trading cars for cash, police said. After the man identified himself, police determined that he was a Level 2 sex offender from Holbrook.

Child safety should trump sex offenders' voting rights

If the interests of convicted, high-risk sex offenders clash with efforts to ensure our children's safety, the decision ought to be a no-brainer: The safety of children ought to prevail.

So there should be little dispute in the Legislature over a bill that would prevent Level 3 sex offenders — those at the highest risk of re-offending — from voting at schools or libraries. If an offender's polling place is at a school or library, he or she would be required to vote by absentee ballot.

The rights of these sex offenders are not being violated. They are still allowed to vote, which is not the case everywhere. The voting rights of convicted felons are left up to individual states. Some prevent convicted felons from ever voting again. Some prevent them from voting until they have served their entire sentence, including probation and parole.

This bill would simply require them to plan ahead. It preserves their rights, while making the world a bit safer for children.

Ulster County helps residents keep track of sex offenders

A NEW search tool on the Web site of the Ulster County Sheriff's Office makes it easy to find sex offenders living near schools, but Kingston school district Superintendent Gerard Gretzinger says the information isn't necessarily cause for concern.

In late February, the Sheriff's Office linked its Web site to a municipal sex offender registry, allowing citizens to type in any address in the county and come up with a map that shows the addresses of all registered sex offenders living within a 1-mile radius.

Whenever a sex offender moves in near a school, the school district alerts the school's principal and safety officer, Gretzinger said.

"At least we're aware," he said. "That's really the best we can do."

Are they too close for comfort?

Children play outside Merrill Elementary in Flint during recess -- unaware that a convicted sex offender lives less than two blocks away.

And at least 32 of the offenders appear to live between 0.07 and 0.2 miles from a school -- some in possible violation of a law that imposes a minimum distance.

Their crimes range from coerced sexual touching to the rape of a child under age 13.

In fact, the state sex offender statute requires convicted offenders to live and work at least 1,000 feet -- slightly less than two-tenths of a mile, or roughly three blocks -- from a K-12 school, putting them outside of a so-called "school safety zone."

What should parents do if they discover a sex offender living within their children's school safety zone?

"They should call the police and report it, and we'll investigate it," Burton police Officer Steven Henry said.