Suspected child molester commits suicide

1-27-2008 Georgia:

MONROE — A Loganville man who was being investigated for allegations of child molestation was found dead in a parking lot Wednesday night.

Walton County Sheriff’s Office investigators were called to the house of a 16-year-old juvenile who alleged Frederick Mitchell IV, 46, of Loganville, molested her. During the course of the investigation, detectives received a call from Mitchell.

According to reports, Mitchell told detectives he needed to see them immediately. The detectives, who were still conducting their investigation with the juvenile, tried to delay the meeting until Thursday morning. Arrangements were eventually made for him to come by the sheriff’s office.

“The detectives came back to the office and Mitchell never showed up,” WCSO Capt. Chris Cannon said, adding they waited for some time before opting to go and look for him. In their search, a detective located Mitchell’s vehicle in a parking lot.

“When they approached the vehicle, they found Mr. Mitchell dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound,” Cannon said.

A gun was found in the vehicle still in Mitchell’s hand, according to officials.

The investigation into the death was initially turned over to the Monroe Police Department, as the body was found in the Southern Pipe Company parking lot on South Broad Street. MPD Chief Keith Glass called in the Georgia Bureau of Investigations to assist in the processing of the scene. ..more.. by Robbie Schwartz, The Walton Tribune

'Bankers Hill Rapist' Found Dead In Jail Cell

11-23-2004 Arizona:

TUCSON, Ariz. -- A serial rapist convicted of the sexual assaults of four San Diego women committed suicide in an Arizona jail cell.

James Allen Selby, 38, who was dubbed the "Bankers Hill Rapist" by San Diego police three years ago, killed himself Monday.

Selby was found hanging from the window of his jail cell just a few hours before he was scheduled to be sentenced to life in prison in Tucson for raping five women and a teenage girl there in 2001 and 2002. He used a bedsheet to hang himself.

Selby had been connected by a national DNA databank to the rapes and assaults of 14 girls and women in San Diego; Tucson; Colorado Springs, Colo.; Sparks, Nev.; and Norman, Okla. comma between September 1999 and May 2002.

San Diego prosecutors were planning to extradite him after the Arizona sentencing to face charges that he raped four women between July and September of 2001 in Bankers Hill, North Park and Park West.

Selby was accused of entering his San Diego victims' apartments through windows, covering their faces with a towel and assaulting them, according to court records.

Four days after the last San Diego attack, Selby attacked his first victim in Tucson.

Authorities believe Selby was a drifter who came to San Diego in 2001. At the time of his death, he was serving a sentence of 20 years to life for a Colorado rape conviction and faced multiple life sentences in Tucson.

A convicted serial rapist who faced a life sentenced, was found hanged in his jail cell hours before his scheduled court appearance. ..more.. by 10News.com

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Does a rapist deserve a military burial?
1-25-2008 California:

Honoring a convicted sex predator who killed himself behind bars sends a chilling message to victims.

Consider this, if you can bear to. Jenny Bush, a young Arizona woman just graduated from college, walks into her home at the end of a workday and encounters an armed serial rapist, James Allen Selby. Selby, who had entered through a first-floor window, uses duct tape to gag and bind her, and then rapes her at knifepoint before fleeing.

After freeing herself, Bush has the courage to report the crime to police -- and the conviction to pursue legal justice. Following a nationwide manhunt, Selby is apprehended and accused of attacking Bush (who, with three other victims, took the stand at his trial) and at least 10 others, including a 9-year-old girl. In October 2004, Selby is convicted on 27 counts, including armed robbery, rape, kidnapping and attempted murder (for slitting the throat of one of his victims). But hours before facing sentencing, he hangs himself in a Tucson jail.

For Selby's victims and their families, it may have been tempting to believe a certain accountability remained operative: His suicide put a fine point on how little he had left to live for in the wake of his conviction. But his death also granted this serial rapist a moral reprieve that the civilian legal system couldn't. Selby was a Persian Gulf War veteran and so, in accordance with Pentagon policy, was buried with full military honors at Ft. Sill National Cemetery in Oklahoma.

The military policy of allowing honors burials for veterans convicted of rape sends a chilling message to victims: Even the most heinous sexual violence does not trump prior military service. It is a position that is as ethically indefensible as it is inconsistent. In 1997, after Army veteran Timothy McVeigh was sentenced to death for his role in the Oklahoma City bombings, Congress barred veterans convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death or life in prison from being buried with full military honors. Veterans convicted of rape or any other violent crime, however, encounter no such restrictions.

"By honoring those that do not deserve it, we dishonor those who do," Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.) said during 1997 hearings on the policy. McVeigh, he said, "was worthy of honor at one time, but he is no longer worthy of honor." Surely the same can be said of Selby.

Jenny Bush's father, Steve Bush, thinks so. Along with several victims' rights organizations, including my own, he has been lobbying to prevent those convicted of the most serious sex crimes from receiving military honors at burial. Rep. John Shadegg (R-Ariz.), who represents Jenny Bush's district, will introduce "Jenny's Law" in the coming weeks, and Democrat Barbara Boxer of California plans to introduce a companion bill in the Senate.

To be clear, changing the military burials policy would be a largely symbolic act. The Department of Justice conservatively estimates that fewer than 40% of all rapes are reported to authorities, demonstrating how infrequently sexual predators are held accountable. The military in particular has a long history of downplaying or decriminalizing the violence against women committed by men in its ranks. A 2003 Veterans Administration report on military sexual trauma estimated that 60% of women in the Reserves and National Guard experienced rape, sexual assault or sexual harassment while on active duty. Defense Department figures show that there were nearly 3,000 accusations of sexual assault in the military in 2006, up 24% from 2005.

The Miles Foundation, a public policy institute specializing in interpersonal violence associated with the armed forces, estimates that only 2% to 3% of offenders receive disciplinary action as serious as court-martial. More commonly, punishment is of the administrative variety, such as extra duty or a letter of reprimand.

It is tempting, and far too easy, to maintain that the military exists in a realm separate from the civilian world. We tell ourselves that the moral ambiguities demonstrated by soldiers who have gone to battle on our behalf cannot be understood by, or be subject to the laws that govern, the rest of us. But the policies our military establishes to respond to violence against women are not merely abstractions. They are expressions of the military's values, and our own.

In the wake of mass violation of women and girls during the conflicts in Kosovo and Rwanda, rape and sexual violence were for the first time codified as distinct crimes under international law. How telling then, and how troubling, that our country's policy on military burials is at odds with international standards the United States worked to establish.

Opinion: Anne K. Ream is founder of The Voices and Faces Project, an advocacy organization that seeks to engage survivors of sexual violence in political and civic life.

Sex abuse claimed at firehouse

Odenton volunteer committed suicide while police investigated

1-24-2008 Maryland:

Two former volunteer firefighters at the Odenton Volunteer Fire Company are suing Anne Arundel County, claiming they were molested by a now-dead company president while they were teenagers and that their superiors ignored pleas for help.

The men, who were unnamed in the lawsuit filed Friday in the county Circuit Court, claim Louis A. D'Camera, 41, a 26-year volunteer, sexually assaulted them, forced them to strip naked, and even sit on his lap.

Mr. D'Camera committed suicide in July 2005 - shortly after Baltimore City police caught him with an 18-year-old male prostitute and charged him with perverted practice. Anne Arundel County police also were investigating the volunteers' claims at the time of the suicide.

According to the lawsuit, the victims, who were 16 and 19 when the alleged abuse began, told their bosses at both the volunteer company and the county Fire Department, but were rebuffed and told to keep quiet. One of the two claimed company members spoke against him during a background check with a potential employer as retaliation for going to police, costing him the job.

Suspect in sex assaults kills himself as police show up to arrest him

1-24-2008 Pennsylvania:

A man who was about to be arrested in the second of three pending sex assault cases shot and killed himself yesterday in front of police on the grounds of the former Dixmont State Hospital in Kilbuck.

Steven M. Sutfin, 58, formerly of Emsworth, committed suicide in front of officers who were attempting to serve a warrant charging him with two counts each of indecent assault and corruption of minors and one count each of endangering the welfare of children and unlawful contact with a minor.

The warrant, obtained Tuesday by Allegheny County police, stemmed from an investigation of assaults on a young girl, said Detective Daniel Mayer of the county sex assault and child abuse unit.

That case was one of three pending investigations involving Mr. Sutfin, who was sentenced to five years on probation after pleading guilty in 1999 to indecent assault and corruption of minors. That case also involved a young girl, police said.

County police last month also charged him with two counts each of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, aggravated indecent assault and indecent assault and one count of endangering the welfare of children and corruption of minors. He was free on $75,000 bond in that case.

Detectives had planned to question a third woman today about allegations that she, too, had been assaulted years ago by Mr. Sutfin, Detective Mayer said.

Police planned to serve the warrant and arrest Mr. Sutfin yesterday, but did not find him or the van he'd been driving at an apartment he'd recently rented in Avalon, the detective said.

A short time later, a foreman from the public works department in neighboring Ben Avon who'd heard a police radio bulletin about Mr. Sutfin spotted his van.

The foreman alerted police, prompting officers from Avalon and Ohio Township to find and follow the van onto the Dixmont property, state police said.

When the officers asked Mr. Sutfin to get out of the van, he pulled out the gun and shot himself, according to state police, who are investigating his death.

Mr. Sutfin had been a carpenter and construction worker, Detective Mayer said. ..more.. by Cindi Lash can be reached at clash@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1973.

Paedophile teacher commits suicide

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Dead man found in Bridge Avenue house

1-22-2008 Ohio:

Cleveland homicide detectives were called to a house in the 3900 block of Bridge Avenue, where Cuyahoga County sheriff's deputies found a dead man lying on the kitchen floor.

The deputies went to the duplex today to arrest sexual predator Charles Anderson, 57, who had failed to re-register his address last July.

Sheriff's Capt. Donald Gerome said the body -- which has not officially been identified -- had been there awhile, decomposing.

Anderson pleaded guilty to rape in 1990 and served 14 years in prison for raping a 28-year-old woman. ..more.. by Donna J. Miller

Social network sites link to town's seven suicides

1-23-2008 United Kingdom:

Natasha Randall was 17, had a large circle of friends and was studying childcare when, without any indication that she was unhappy, she hanged herself in her bedroom.

Her death last Thursday was the latest in at least seven apparent copycat suicides in Bridgend, South Wales, that have alarmed parents, health authorities and police, who believe that they may be prompted by messages on social networking websites such as Bebo.

Within days two 15-year-old girls, both of whom had known Tasha, as she called herself, had also tried to take their lives. One cut her wrists and was later discharged from hospital into the care of her parents. The other tried to hang herself and spent two days on life support before showing signs of recovery. Police have since visited the families of 20 of Tasha’s friends, urging them to keep an eye on their daughters.

In the 12 months before Tasha’s death, six young men from Bridgend and the surrounding area had killed themselves. Most were known to each other. This month Tasha attended the funeral of 20-year-old Liam Clarke, who was found hanged in a local park the day after Boxing Day.

Tasha had left a tribute to Liam on his Bebo webpage. It said: “R.I.P. Clarky boy!! gonna miss ya! always remember the gd times! love ya x.”

After Tasha’s death police took her computer to try to find a reason for her suicide. They will also be looking for links to the other deaths.

Copycat suicides are a well-known phenomenon but in Bridgend the tributes left on websites such as Bebo appear to have had a significant impact. Friends have set up memorial pages where wellwishers have posted messages or bought virtual “tablets” in a remembrance wall. The 19 tablets on Tasha’s memorial page include the messages “RIP chick”, “Sleep Tight Princess” and “Sweet dreams, Angel”.

David Gunnell, Professor of Epidemiology at the University of Bristol, said that research had shown a connection between reports of suicide in the media and copycat deaths, and it was likely that discussions of suicide on websites would have a similar effect.

He said: “Young people are more likely to see and read items concerning suicide on the internet than they are in newspapers. One can extrapo-late from wider research on responses to newspaper reporting that a medium like Bebo will have an impact on suicidal behaviour in young people.”

South Wales Police fear that the reason could be simpler. One officer said: “They may think it’s cool to have a memorial website. It may even be a way of achieving prestige among their peer group.”

South Wales already had one of the worst suicide rates for young people. Tasha, who called herself “Wildchild”, was not the only one to spend hours each day on the internet in a world about which their parents knew little.

Even before she died a task force that includes represntatives of the NHS trust, school, police and local authority was investigating the high suicide rate. It is due to report in the next few weeks. Tegwyn Williams, the director of mental health services for Bro Morgannwg NHS Trust, said: “The key is to break down the stigma attached to suicide in the community so that people aren’t afraid to talk to someone if they feel depressed.”

Melanie Davies’s son, Thomas, was the third young person from the area to kill himself last year. Mrs Davies, 38, said: “One of his friends told me that they feel these kids seem to be copying each other . . . so many of them are hanging themselves.”

The friends who killed themselves

Dale Crole, 18, hanged himself at the Coney Beach funfair at Porthcawl, near Bridgend, January 2007
David Dilling, 19, a former classmate of Dale from Pyle, near Bridgend, hanged himself, February 2007
Thomas Davies, 20, who had been at school with both Dale and David, found hanged from a tree in David’s home village two days before his funeral, February 2007
Zachery Barnes, 17, of Wildmill, Bridgend, a friend of Thomas’s family, hanged with washing line, August 2007
Liam Clarke, 20, a friend of Dale, found hanged in a park in Bridgend, December 2007
Gareth Morgan, 27, who knew Liam, found hanged in his bedroom, January 2008
Natasha Randall, 17, of Blaengarw, Bridgend, a close friend of Liam, hanged herself in her bedroom, January 2008

Man kills self after resisting arrest

Note: He was not accused of another sex crime.
1-17-2008 Maine:

WILLIMANTIC — A man who'd eluded arrest for two years took his own life when officers closed in on his camper on a secluded mountain ridge about a mile and a half from the nearest road, authorities said.

Officers trying to arrest Roberto Morales on Wednesday saw the curtains inside the camper burst into flames, then heard two gunshots.

Local firefighters were unable to get near the trailer because "thousands of rounds of ammunition" along with an oxygen tank used for welding and propane tanks were exploding, according to officers at the scene.

"There was popping noises and a big whoosh with fireballs coming," said Lt. Robert Young of the Piscataquis County Sheriff's Department.

Morales, 29, was wanted on charges of burglary and theft, as well as possession of a gun by a felon, authorities said.

Acting on information, two investigators snowshoed Wednesday to a remote area where Morales was believed to be living. They found an empty trailer but followed snowmobile tracks leading to the camper deep in the woods, Young said.

The two intended to keep Morales under surveillance but Morales' German shepherd alerted him to the presence of the officers.

Morales went back inside after telling officers that he "needed time to think about it" after being informed that he was under arrest.

About five minutes later, officers noticed a curtain on fire and then the officers heard two gunshots inside the camper, Young said. They believe Morales shot himself and his dog after setting the fire that consumed them both, he said. ..more.. by The Associated Press wire report



Facing arrest, man kills himself
1-17-2008 Maine:

WILLIMANTIC, Maine - A local man reportedly committed suicide Wednesday in a bizarre way on a remote mountain ridge about a mile and a half from the nearest road.

Roberto Morales, 29, set his small tagalong camper on fire and then shot himself inside the camper as officers were attempting to arrest him on several outstanding warrants, according to police.

"We were concerned about what may happen when he was confronted because of his previous threats, but we were still hoping for a peaceful resolution," Lt. Robert Young of the Piscataquis County Sheriff’s Department said Wednesday.

Morales, who had several outstanding felony warrants for his arrest including burglary and theft, some of which were two years old, had reportedly told people in the past that he wanted to kill cops, Young said. Morales also was a convicted sexual predator, he said.

Acting on information, investigators Sgt. Michael Gould and Guy Dow snowshoed Wednesday to a remote area off Route 150 where Morales was believed to be living. When they arrived at the trailer where he reportedly lived once before, they found no one there, but did find snowmobile tracks leading into the woods, Young said.

The officers followed the snowmobile tracks to another trailer located deeper into the forest, according to Young. If they found Morales, Gould and Dow had planned to keep him under surveillance until a team of other officers could arrive to assist in the arrest.

Morales had been successful in eluding police over the years, in part because his German shepherd alerted him when officers neared, Young said.

It was Morales’ dog that tipped him off Wednesday. Young said he didn’t think Morales had been aware the officers were in the vicinity until he let his dog outside. The dog immediately went for Gould and Gould in turn hollered to Morales to call off his dog, the officer said.

Morales reportedly called his dog back inside and asked the officers to come inside to talk with him. He also allegedly told them he had enough explosives to blow off the top of the mountain, according to Young.

Believing the camp may be bobby-trapped, the officers stayed back from the camper until backup arrived. About 10 minutes later after being told that he was under arrest, Morales told the officers "he needed time to think about it" and he shut the door, the officer said.

About five minutes later, Gould noticed a curtain on fire and then the officers heard two gunshots inside the camper. Morales had set his place on fire and they believed he had shot himself, Young said.

Local firefighters were called to the scene but no one could get near the trailer because "thousands of rounds of ammunition" along with an oxygen tank used for welding and propane tanks were exploding, according to officers at the scene.

"There was popping noises and a big whoosh with fireballs coming," Young recalled.

The trailer was destroyed.

To make sure Morales hadn’t set the fire and fired the gun to distract and elude police again, game wardens did a complete perimeter check for tracks but found none. Morales and his dog had died inside the camper, Young said.

The Maine State Police tactical team was on call during the incident and an explosives team remained on standby, according to the officer.

The investigation has been turned over to the State Fire Marshal’s Office. ..more.. by Diana Bowley

Series of E.L. Sexual Assaults Solved

1-17-2008 Michigan:

East Lansing Police say DNA conclusively links a Michigan State University employee with a series of home invasions and sexual assaults that go back to 1998.

The break in the case came over MSU's winter break, when East Lansing police put the Bailey neighborhood under surveillance. That's when they spotted a man driving suspiciously around 6:45 in the morning. The detective wrote down the license plate number and later tracked down the driver, who told them he had been driving around trying to track mileage for a running route.

Lieutenant Kevin Daley told News 10 the man, 32-year-old Troy Robertson, fit a profile they had built of the sex offender, a white male in his late 20s or early 30s. The sex offender also struck in the early morning hours and often near certain holidays.

Police say the suspect's excuse of tracking a running route was suspicious, because he was making U-turns and doubling back on himself. They then requested a DNA sample, but he never showed up for the appointment. Later, they learned Robertson committed suicide at the Park N Ride at Barnes Road and US 127 on December 27.

East Lansing police Chief Tom Wibert said Robertson had a wife and young children, who were completely unaware of Robertson's crimes. The chief said the wife is "absolutely devastated," and said the children are the "victims of this whole thing."

Police are closing sixteen cases, five of them conclusively linked by DNA to Robertson. ..more.. by Adela Uchida


Police close 9-year sex offender investigation
1-16-2008 Michigan:

East Lansing police have brought closure to the investigation of the man responsible for 16 sexual assaults in the East Lansing area in the past nine years.

Police have identified 32-year-old Troy Robertson as the assailant in a string of sexual assaults dating back to 1998.

After tracking Robertson since Dec. 14, the Ingham County Sheriff’s Department contacted East Lansing police to inform them Robertson had committed suicide on Dec. 27.

The Michigan State Police crime lab was able to match Robertson’s DNA with DNA collected from five sexual assault cases, East Lansing police Lt. Kevin Daley said.

Robertson was a Mason resident and an employee in the MSU Controller’s Office.

Daley said he is almost positive that Robertson also was the offender in the 11 other sexual assault cases because the suspect was wearing an orange ski mask in all 16 cases.

“There aren’t a lot of people running around with orange ski masks,” Daley said. “We have a strong belief that this is the same individual.”

An unidentified number of MSU students and employees were victims of the sexual assaults.

East Lansing police Chief Tom Wibert said police had conducted surveillance routines in the neighborhoods where the offender struck in the sexual assaults since the first report in 1998.

Wibert and Daley both said the suspect sexually assaulted women on Kedzie, Gunson, Ann, Elizabeth, Orchard, Charles and Center streets, among others.

Wibert said the offender would strike periodically throughout the year, with more offenses around holidays.

The assaults typically occurred in the early morning hours, around 5-7 a.m.

On Dec. 14, an East Lansing police detective was on routine undercover surveillance north of downtown East Lansing when he noticed Robertson driving suspiciously through the area.

The detective made contact with Robertson and recorded his license plate number.

When East Lansing police contacted Robertson to come into the station for an interview and DNA test, he did not show up, Wibert said.

“He piqued our curiosity when he didn’t come in,” Daley said.

Wibert said Robertson used a variety of methods to sexually assault the victims.

In the earlier years, he would peak into windows and jump in front of cars, exposing himself in front of the victims.

As the years progressed, he began entering houses with no clothing on and forcing himself upon the victim.

In more recent attacks, he entered unoccupied houses and used the victims’ cameras to take pictures of himself masturbating.

Wibert said there were no serious injuries reported from the incidents. Robertson’s family’s lawyer, Chris Bergstrom, issued a statement Tuesday on the matter.

“On behalf of the deceased’s immediate family, as well as his extended family, I have been asked to convey their condolences to all victims and their families who have been hurt by the actions of the deceased,” Bergstrom said in the statement.

Daley and Wibert said they are relieved to have cracked an investigation that has been pending for so long.

“I have laid awake at night thinking about this case because you never know when he is going to strike,” Wibert said.

“It’s a miracle that we caught him.” ..more.. by Nicquel Terry, The State News

Convicted sex offender commits suicide in jail

1-15-2008 Florida:

LAKE WALES – Polk County authorities say a convicted sex offender apparently committed suicide in his jail cell early Tuesday morning.

Deputies say 26-year-old David Spalding was found dead in his jail cell. They say he hung himself with a sheet sometime during the early morning hours, and he was discovered when a detention deputy found him during medication rounds at about 2:00 a.m.

Attempts by deputies to revive Spalding were unsuccessful, and he was taken to Lake Wales Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

According to authorities, the other two inmates that were in the cell with Spalding at the time did not know he had hung himself.

Spalding was in jail after a violation of probation. He was arrested back in April of 2006 on charges of sexual battery on a child. Investigators say he sexually battered a 14-year-old girl and got her pregnant. He pled guilty in August of 2006, and served six month in jail.

Deputies say Spalding was also sentenced to 10 years probation, which he violated earlier this month. They say he failed to move from his previous residence, and he admitted to contact with children under 18—both of which were violations of his probation.

Authorities say Spalding's death is still under investigation. ..more.. by MyFox TV



Convicted Child Sex Offender Commits Apparent Suicide in Jail Cell1-15-2008 Florida

David Spalding, DOB 2/14/1981, last known home address -2009 North Combee Road, was found in his jail cell after hanging himself with a sheet this morning, Tuesday, January 15, 2008.

Spalding was first booked into jail April 6, 2006 with Three Counts of Sexual Battery Charges on a Child. He sexually battered and impregnated a 14 year old child.

At approximately 2:16 am, this morning, during routine medication rounds, detention deputies discovered Spalding unresponsive. Two other inmates were in the cell with him and were unaware that Spalding had hung himself.

Attempts to revive him were unsuccessful. He was transported to Lake Wales Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 3:45 am.

Spalding had been released on a $25,000.00 Surety Bond April 8, 2006. The Three Sexual Battery Charges were merged on June 3, 2006. On August 21, 2006, Count 2 of the 3 was Nolle Prosse.

Spalding pled guilty and waived jury trial. He was remanded and sentenced to six months in jail, plus 10 years probation on September 8, 2006. Spalding was released with time served on February 4, 2007.

He was arrested January 3, 2008 for Violating Probation. He had failed to move from his residence and admitted to contact with children under 18. Both were violations of the conditions of his probation.

The Polk County Sheriff’s Office is currently conducting an internal review and is conducting the death investigation. The Polk County Medical Examiner will conduct an autopsy. The State Attorney’s Office will review all investigations. ..more.. by

Georgetown official kills himself after sexual assault allegations arise

Authorities said they were close to an arrest after he failed to show up for interview.

1-11-2008 Texas:

A Georgetown official fatally shot himself Tuesday, a day after allegations that he sexually assaulted a child surfaced, authorities said.

Tony Carrillo, assistant director of parks, was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound in his home outside Florence about 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, said Detective John Foster, a spokesman for the Williamson County sheriff's office.

Foster said investigators had been scheduled to meet with Carrillo on Tuesday after the allegations were made Monday. State Child Protective Services officials notified the sheriff's office about the accusation, he said.

Authorities interviewed the youth, who was described only as a girl younger than 17, on Monday, Foster said.

Man kills self after child sex charge

Authorities say alleged victim was not a student at Romeo Elementary, where man worked as teacher
1-11-2008 Florida:

A Marion County man was found dead Wednesday of an apparent suicide - the same day that Levy County authorities issued a warrant for his arrest on a charge of child molestation.

Randolph Coke Markham, who taught third grade at Romeo Elementary, died from carbon monoxide poisoning in a shed behind a relative's house in Morriston, authorities said. Inside the shed, Levy deputies found notes that Markham wrote proclaiming his innocence.

Markham, 28, faced a charge of engaging in sexual activity with a child younger than 12, sheriff's spokesman Lt. Evan Sullivan said.

Sullivan and Marion County School Board spokesman Kevin Christian both said that the victim was not one of Markham's students and that the crimes occurred away from school.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement received a complaint that Markham molested a child from 1999 to 2003.

The Marion School Board placed Markham on paid administrative leave in October, Christian said.

"Any time there are allegations of this nature, we take these actions," he said.

Sullivan said Markham knew about the warrant.

Markham had an attorney who had asked, if charges were filed, to be contacted. The lawyer would then arrange to have Markham turn himself in.

"That's not out of the ordinary," if the person is not an escape risk or a threat to the community, Sullivan said.

When Markham didn't show up when he was supposed to turn himself in, people began searching for him.

The body was found in a shed behind 7850 S.E. 175th Ave. in Morriston. Authorities say Markham hooked up pipes from a vehicle into the building, closed up and locked the structure, then pumped carbon monoxide inside.

Fumes were so thick that the person who discovered him also was overcome and fell to the ground, Sullivan said. A 911 call was made from the residence at 1:29 p.m. When rescuers arrived, they found Markham and the person who discovered him in the shed. Markham could not be revived.

Markham began teaching at Romeo Elementary in August 2006. He grew up near Romeo, where many of his family and friends live.

Romeo resident Nita Brass said she knew Markham all his life.

"He was always laughing, always having fun," Brass said of Markham. "He was as nice to talk to as anybody."

"I knew he had run into some bad problems," she said. "I guess he just couldn't take it." ..more.. by Joe VanHoose may be reached at joe.vanhoose@starbanner.com or at 352-867-4124.

Police: Accused pedophile kills self

1-9-2008 New York:

LEE – Prosecutors have dismissed sex charges against a 70-year-old town of Lee man following his apparent suicide in December, officials said.

William James Hawkins Sr. shot himself four days after he was charged with first-degree sodomy Dec. 14 stemming from allegations that he sexually abused a 10-year-old child in 2000, according to state police and investigators with the Oneida County Child Advocacy Center.

Hawkins had returned to his Lee Valley Road residence after being released from jail that weekend on a $40,000 bond, police said. On Dec. 18, Hawkins’ wife left their residence for about 15 to 20 minutes, only to discover Hawkins’ body when she returned, police said.

Police said Hawkins left no suicide note.

Oneida County District Attorney Scott McNamara said Hawkins’ case has since been “abated by death of the defendant.” ..more.. by ROCCO LaDUCA, Observer-Dispatch

Wanted man dies days after suicide attempt

1-8-2008 Maryland:

A man recently featured on "America's Most Wanted" in connection to a brutal 1999 sex assault in Glen Burnie died in a Louisiana hospital Saturday, three days after officials said he attempted to hang himself in a jail cell.

Deputies found Ronald Lee Moore, 40, hanging from a vent about 4 p.m. Wednesday as they passed out dinner trays to inmates at Nelson Coleman Correctional Center in Hahnville, La.

Prison officials said Moore, of 3712 Lamberton Square in Silver Spring, used a nylon string from a laundry bag to hang himself from an air-conditioning duct above a toilet. He was not on suicide watch, and staff had no indication he was suicidal, officials said.

Moore, who was breathing when he was found, was taken to Ochsner Medical Center in Jefferson and was put on a respirator, said Capt. Patrick Yoes, a spokesman for the St. Charles Parish Sheriff's Department. He was pronounced dead at 1:01 a.m. Saturday, he said.

An officer in Louisiana arrested Moore on an Anne Arundel County warrant Christmas Eve in St. Charles Parish, about a month after he was accidentally released from a Maryland prison - even though a county Circuit Court judge two months ago ordered him held without bond.

Sgt. Sara Schriver, a county police spokesman, said she had expected Moore to be returned to Maryland "shortly." He was scheduled to go before a jury Feb. 5 for the Glen Burnie sexual-assault case, according to Circuit Court records.

Moore was charged with first- and second-degree sex offense, unnatural or perverted practice, second-degree assault, reckless endangerment, possession of a deadly weapon, and first-degree burglary. The charges stem from an October 1999 sexual assault during a home invasion.

Police linked Moore to the incident in July 2006, after matching his DNA to semen left behind at the scene of the attack. State prison officials collected his DNA while he was serving time for a 2000 burglary conviction and put it into the FBI's Combined DNA Index.

According to charging documents, police said Moore broke into an apartment on Green Bud Lane at about 1:45 a.m. Oct. 23, 1999, and sexually assaulted a woman inside.

Police said he was wearing a mask and gloves when he entered the apartment. Police said he punched the woman in the head several times during the assault and shocked her with a cattle prod. ..more.. by HEATHER RAWLYK, Staff Writer

Man accused of sexual assaults of pre-teen kills self

1-7-2008 Wisconsin:

A 48-year-old man who was scheduled to go on trial today for sexually assaulting a pre-teen girl for several years committed suicide over the weekend at his trailer home outside of Stoughton.

Terry C. Karna faced one count of repeated sexual assault of a child under the age of 13 and the case against him was scheduled for jury selection in front of Dane County Circuit Court Judge Patrick Fiedler, when Assistant District Attorney Doug McLean informed Fiedler that Karna killed himself. The case against Karna was dismissed.

McLean said Karna had written a letter earlier this month to his family in Minnesota, apparently indicating that he was going to kill himself, and when the family received the letter they immediately called the Dane County Sheriff's Department. Sheriff's deputies went to Karna's trailer home on Norman Drive near Lake Kegonsa Friday night and found he had killed himself with a gun, McLean said.

Karna was facing a maximum sentence of 40 years of prison and extended supervision time if he had gone to trial and had been convicted. He had repeatedly turned down offers to settle the case and insisted he was going to trial, McLean said.

According to the criminal complaint, Karna began assaulting the girl when she was in pre-school and continued until the summer between her sixth and seventh grades.

The girl said Karna had been drinking during all of the assaults.

"It made me feel really sick and violated," the girl said during the interview, according to the criminal complaint. ..more.. by Mike Miller

Suicide didn't clear allegations

1-7-2008 Mississippi:

Capt. Pete Collins received thousands upon thousands of letters of admiration.

"A lot of people here really look up to you. Including me!" wrote one high school student from Kentucky.

A Mississippi student wrote, "I won't forget you. I had thought about suicide, but it is not worth it. Now, I wouldn't commit suicide for anything in the world."

Collins spent 28 years serving Mississippi as a highway patrolman. It was for his motivational speeches - inspiring, cautionary tales delivered over a 25-year speaking career - that Collins became, in the words of Louisa Dixon, former commissioner of the Department of Public Safety, "a great ambassador for Mississippi. Pete's talent for public speaking was of the highest caliber."

"Pete had a gift," Jackie Moore, his fiancee, said recently. "He could have you buckled over, laughing out loud one second, and crying your eyes out the next."

This 62-year-old man who was presented with enough awards to fill a home's walls slipped his socks off on a Sunday last August and hung himself with them inside the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility in Rankin County.

Convicted of molesting a 13-year-old girl, Collins was two days into a 10-year prison sentence when he ended his life.

"I don't worry about Pete. I know where he's at," Gail Jones, his older sister, said. "It's just the way he had to go - it's not right."

It took two trials to convict Collins. The first one, in August 2006, ended in a hung jury.

Lee County Assistant District Attorney Clay Joyner prosecuted Collins during the second trial, in August 2007. Joyner's investigation brought to the surface a portrait of Collins few wanted to see.

"In talking with current Highway Patrol investigators, I discovered a lot of them had problems with Pete," said Joyner. "Pete would take other people's stories and during his speeches put himself in their shoes. That rubbed a lot of people in the department the wrong way."

Jim Ingram, former commissioner of the Department of Public Safety, testified during the second trial. Ingram told jurors that he viewed Collins, after years of working with him, as a "dishonest" person. "I was subpoenaed, came forward and testified, under oath, to the truth," was all Ingram would say about his testimony.

More incriminating, Joyner uncovered five women who claimed to have been molested by Collins when they were teenagers, stretching back to 1967.

"None of them, whatsoever, have a motive to make something like this up," said Joyner. "When you've got a group of victims who match a sex and specific age range, from 13 to 15 years old, that, in and of itself, speaks to his situation."

A judge did not allow the women to testify at Collins' trial.

One of the victims was Kay Swindell. The Winona resident attended both of Collins' trials.

"I kept it a secret for 40 years. I never told a soul," said Swindell, who claims Collins molested her when she was 15. "That's because I didn't think anyone would believe me. Pete went out and made a big name for himself, and through all of those years, I wanted someone to know the truth about him."

Swindell said she came forward because she knew what the 13-year-old victim was going through.

"I knew that Pete would do everything in his power to try and discredit that little girl, and I knew how scared she was," said Swindell.

Joyner said he found a pattern in Collins' behavior.

"In these types of cases, you find repetition," he said. "And that's what you have here."

Collins would gain young girls' trust over a period of time before molesting them, Joyner said. "But he made a mistake with the last one. ... He never groomed her."

The incident that led to Collins' conviction began the night before Thanksgiving 2004. Visiting his son's home in Tupelo for the holidays, Collins went to bed in his grandchildren's bed.

"I'm going to sleep with them as often as I can because they are all I got," Collins testified during his first trial.

His granddaughter had a friend over, visiting.

The 13-year-old victim testified during both trials that she woke up in the middle of the night with Collins' hands down the front of her pajama bottoms.

All five of the previous victims Joyner found said they were teenagers when Collins first molested them. At least one of the girls says Collins had intercourse with her over a two-year period, beginning when she was 12.

"No man I know walks around with girls accusing him of that," Joyner said. "Again, that speaks to Collins."

Collins' family contends that his suicide was a combination of a false conviction, a 10-year sentence, public humiliation and lack of proper medication. ..more.. by William Browning

Inmate, 17, hangs himself at Rikers

1-6-2008 New York

A Mount Vernon teen hanged himself at Rikers Island after the jail failed to follow a Queens judge's order to place the inmate under suicide watch, lawyers charged Saturday.

David Mercado, 17, was supposed to be placed under round-the-clock protection after a Dec. 17 arrest in Queens on statutory rape charges that said he had sex with a 14-year-old girl.

But within 24 hours he hanged himself, attorneys for Mercado's family said.

"A judge ordered that he be placed on suicide watch," said lawyer Andrew Stoll, who will file a claim this week against the Correction Department.

"The Corrections Department knew that, and the level of care they gave him was plainly below standard."

Mercado, who lingered in a coma at Elmhurst Hospital for nine days before dying Dec. 30, was not diagnosed as depressed, but was put on suicide watch by Judge Gene Lopez after recommendations from Mercado's legal aide attorney.

Correction Dept. spokesman Stephen Morello said Mercado was not placed under suicide watch, insisting that a medical exam found he was not a threat to himself.

"Every inmate is given a medical examination - both physical and psychological - and this inmate was cleared to be housed in general population," said Morello, who noted that the death remains under investigation. ..more.. by