The News Room [News Archive]
Sheriff Contact: John Roach: 313-224-0615
Release Date: Wednesday, August 31, 2005
County sweep targets paroled
sex offenders living near local schools ---
Multi-agency effort designed to keep kids safe as classes
start
Wayne
County Sheriff’s Deputies along with officers from the Michigan
Department of Corrections [MDOC], Detroit Police, Michigan State
Police and a number of suburban police agencies recently visited
the homes of nearly 200 convicted sex offenders currently on parole
and probation as part of a combined effort to keep school kids
safe, Sheriff Warren Evans said today.
Operation Trackdown brought together more than 150 officers who
targeted known sex offenders that live close to schools to make
sure they are abiding by the terms of their supervised release.
While none of the parolees lived closer to a school than the minimum
500-foot distance required by state law, their relatively close
proximity warranted a visit before school started, Evans said.
“Statistics show that, because of the compulsive nature
of many sex crimes, these offenders re-offend at a high rate,” Evans
said. “We want local parents to feel confident sending their
children to school and to know that the local law enforcement community
is keeping a watchful eye on people who pose a higher risk to kids’ safety.”
During the three-day sweep [Aug. 24-26], officers visited 195
homes in Detroit, Dearborn, Inkster, Canton, Westland, Livonia
and Taylor, which were the participating local police departments.
Overall, there were few violations. “The good news is that
the vast majority of people were found to be in compliance with
the terms of their parole or probation, but it still important
that they know we may show up at any time,” Evans said.
There were, however, exceptions. Officers found at least four
individuals in serious violation. Two men, one from Detroit and
the other from Dearborn, each of whom originally was convicted
of sexually assaulting a minor, were discovered to be having a
relative’s children in their homes, frequently unsupervised.
One of the men also had a large amount of pornographic materials
in his possession, which also constituted a violation. A Taylor
man, also on parole for sexually assaulting a minor, was found
in violation for possessing video equipment – specifically
prohibited in his terms of parole - and a small bag of marijuana.
The individual’s computer, which had encryption-protected
files is being examined for suspected pornography. While one sex
offender was arrested, the Michigan Department of Corrections will
follow through on the other cases to determine what actions should
be taken against those who violated the terms of their release.
“The good news is that we did not find evidence of any new
crimes against children,” Evans said. “As time goes
on, people on parole or probation in Wayne County will be conditioned
to know that we will continue to hold them accountable until the
end of their sentence.”
Evans and MDOC created the Spot Check unit nearly one year ago
to perform unannounced home checks on parolees and probationers
convicted of various assaultive crimes. Since its creation, the
unit has conducted 2,500 home checks, during which it has found
nearly 300 people in violation and sent 25 parolees back to prison.
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