A sex offender Katrina "refugee" tries to use a FEMA debit card to bail himself out of jail in Massachusetts.
Needless to say, the juicy details are buried in this news story from a PC newspaper. Also, no word that Ted Kennedy is inviting the refugees over for a clam bake at the family compound in Hyannis.
http://www.capecodonline.com/archives/7days/sun/checksraise11.htm
September 11, 2005
Checks raise concern at base
By ERIC GERSHON
STAFF WRITER
As state police continued to screen the 200-plus Katrina survivors living at Camp Edwards for criminal histories, six known male sex offenders remain among the residents of a dormitory housing single men.
Allison Rice of the non-profit Housing Assistance Corporation, which is managing the shelter operation at the base, said there was no immediate plan to transfer the offenders to another facility, despite HAC's eagerness to do so.
''We are depending on people in authority to aid us in keeping everybody safe,'' she said.
Identified by law enforcement on Friday, the six men, who have been convicted of past sex-related offenses, have been isolated in two rooms now ''under constant surveillance'' by private security guards hired by the state, Rice said.
Employees of Cambridge-based Internal Security Associates stand watch on every floor of the three barracks now occupied by the evacuees, Rice said. State Police are also patrolling the grounds of the barracks 24 hours a day.
Nonetheless, HAC officials, who do not allow high-risk sex offenders in the shelters they operate in Hyannis, expressed anxiety about the offenders' presence, despite their supervised segregation from women, children, and the elderly.
Rice said she could not explain why the offenders have not been moved elsewhere, saying only that ''We are continuing to work on that issue.''
She added, without further explanation, ''I would say this is not directly in the hands of the state police.''
The extent to which local police are involved in investigating and supervising the sex offenders is unclear.
Sargeants at the Bourne and Sandwich police departments said they were unaware yesterday of any involvement by their agencies.
Although local police departments keep photographs and addresses of local sex offenders on file for public review, Bourne Sgt. Gary Devillez said the refugee sex offenders had not, to his knowledge, been added to the roster.
But Barnstable County Sheriff James Cummings said he understands that Bourne police will interview the offenders and add them to the state sex-offender registry.
An official from the state
Sex Offender Registry Board was expected at the base yesterday.
Although state Public Safety Secretary Edward Flynn has pledged that all evacuees would be screened for criminal histories over the weekend, state police would not provide a report on their progress yesterday. A state police spokeswoman also would not identify the sex offenders by name or state their specific past crimes.
The evacuees were not screened before leaving New Orleans.
Another evacuee, John Kitchens, 46, was arrested Thursday night on a fugitive-from-justice warrant, arraigned in Falmouth District Court, and held on $250,000 bail. He remained at the Barnstable County Correctional Facility last night.
Cummings confirmed Kitchens had several hundred dollars in his possession at the time, some of it stuffed in his underwear. Cummings also confirmed that Kitchens sought to bail himself out with a debit card issued by the federal government.
The sheriff was not certain of the charge that led to Kitchens' original arrest.
Cummings also said it would be unfair to villianize all the
refugees based on the discovery of a small percentage of criminals and ex-criminals among them.
''If I went to Route 28 anywhere on the Cape and grabbed 200 people, probably 10 percent would have an outstanding warrant, too,'' he said. ''These folks aren't any different from any group of 200 people.''
State police spokeswoman Lt. Sharon Costine said state police assigned to Otis Air National Guard Base would conduct all the background checks. As for the methods they would use, she said only that the refugees' names would be processed through national criminal history databases.
Many of the refugees arrived without any belongings, including identifying documents.
Costine referred all further inquiries to Flynn's office. His press secretary, Katie Ford, did not respond to messages repeatedly left for her throughout the day yesterday.
Despite a visit to the barracks yesterday by U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., and his wife, Victoria, who brought a barbecue lunch for all 217 evacuees, the guests from New Orleans have apprently already begun to grow restless, Rice said.
''They would like to, as they put it, 'Go to town,''' she said. ''They are beginning to feel quite confined. These are people who were in their own homes until a couple of days ago. They're safe and they're being cared for, but on the other hand, life is not normal.''
Eric Gershon can be reached at [email protected].
(Published: September 11, 2005)
Needless to say, the juicy details are buried in this news story from a PC newspaper. Also, no word that Ted Kennedy is inviting the refugees over for a clam bake at the family compound in Hyannis.
http://www.capecodonline.com/archives/7days/sun/checksraise11.htm
September 11, 2005
Checks raise concern at base
By ERIC GERSHON
STAFF WRITER
As state police continued to screen the 200-plus Katrina survivors living at Camp Edwards for criminal histories, six known male sex offenders remain among the residents of a dormitory housing single men.
Allison Rice of the non-profit Housing Assistance Corporation, which is managing the shelter operation at the base, said there was no immediate plan to transfer the offenders to another facility, despite HAC's eagerness to do so.
''We are depending on people in authority to aid us in keeping everybody safe,'' she said.
Identified by law enforcement on Friday, the six men, who have been convicted of past sex-related offenses, have been isolated in two rooms now ''under constant surveillance'' by private security guards hired by the state, Rice said.
Employees of Cambridge-based Internal Security Associates stand watch on every floor of the three barracks now occupied by the evacuees, Rice said. State Police are also patrolling the grounds of the barracks 24 hours a day.
Nonetheless, HAC officials, who do not allow high-risk sex offenders in the shelters they operate in Hyannis, expressed anxiety about the offenders' presence, despite their supervised segregation from women, children, and the elderly.
Rice said she could not explain why the offenders have not been moved elsewhere, saying only that ''We are continuing to work on that issue.''
She added, without further explanation, ''I would say this is not directly in the hands of the state police.''
The extent to which local police are involved in investigating and supervising the sex offenders is unclear.
Sargeants at the Bourne and Sandwich police departments said they were unaware yesterday of any involvement by their agencies.
Although local police departments keep photographs and addresses of local sex offenders on file for public review, Bourne Sgt. Gary Devillez said the refugee sex offenders had not, to his knowledge, been added to the roster.
But Barnstable County Sheriff James Cummings said he understands that Bourne police will interview the offenders and add them to the state sex-offender registry.
An official from the state
Sex Offender Registry Board was expected at the base yesterday.
Although state Public Safety Secretary Edward Flynn has pledged that all evacuees would be screened for criminal histories over the weekend, state police would not provide a report on their progress yesterday. A state police spokeswoman also would not identify the sex offenders by name or state their specific past crimes.
The evacuees were not screened before leaving New Orleans.
Another evacuee, John Kitchens, 46, was arrested Thursday night on a fugitive-from-justice warrant, arraigned in Falmouth District Court, and held on $250,000 bail. He remained at the Barnstable County Correctional Facility last night.
Cummings confirmed Kitchens had several hundred dollars in his possession at the time, some of it stuffed in his underwear. Cummings also confirmed that Kitchens sought to bail himself out with a debit card issued by the federal government.
The sheriff was not certain of the charge that led to Kitchens' original arrest.
Cummings also said it would be unfair to villianize all the
refugees based on the discovery of a small percentage of criminals and ex-criminals among them.
''If I went to Route 28 anywhere on the Cape and grabbed 200 people, probably 10 percent would have an outstanding warrant, too,'' he said. ''These folks aren't any different from any group of 200 people.''
State police spokeswoman Lt. Sharon Costine said state police assigned to Otis Air National Guard Base would conduct all the background checks. As for the methods they would use, she said only that the refugees' names would be processed through national criminal history databases.
Many of the refugees arrived without any belongings, including identifying documents.
Costine referred all further inquiries to Flynn's office. His press secretary, Katie Ford, did not respond to messages repeatedly left for her throughout the day yesterday.
Despite a visit to the barracks yesterday by U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., and his wife, Victoria, who brought a barbecue lunch for all 217 evacuees, the guests from New Orleans have apprently already begun to grow restless, Rice said.
''They would like to, as they put it, 'Go to town,''' she said. ''They are beginning to feel quite confined. These are people who were in their own homes until a couple of days ago. They're safe and they're being cared for, but on the other hand, life is not normal.''
Eric Gershon can be reached at [email protected].
(Published: September 11, 2005)