Bradley Preston Found Guilty of Sexual Abuse on 8-Month-Old

A Hancock County jury found a Storm Lake man guilty of second-degree sexual abuse and incest last week in Hancock County District Court.

Bradley Gene Preston, 27, formerly of Britt, was charged in July 2007 with the sexual assault of his eight month-old child. His trial, which took five days, concluded on Oct. 20.

According to a criminal complaint filed in the office of Hancock County Attorney Karen Salic, police were called on June 12 to 114 1st Ave. SW in Britt. Preston told police he was carrying his daughter down the stairs when he slipped on a camera on the steps. He said he thought he might have squeezed her hard enough that it caused her to have a hard bowel movement.

The child was taken to Hancock County Memorial Hospital, but was later moved to Blank Children's Hospital in Des Moines for two days of evaluation.

Doctors found perianal bruising on the child and noted blood in her stool. They determined the child's injuries were not consistent with Preston's story.

Preston was the only adult present at the time of the injury, the complaint said.

Preston was free on bond until his court date. He is now being held in the Hancock County Jail pending sentencing, according to Salic.

Judge Stephen Carroll has ordered a pre-sentence investigation. A sentencing date has not been set.

Second-degree sexual abuse is a Class B felony punishable by up to 25 years in prison. Incest is a Class D felony punishable by up to five years in prison.

Polygamist Raymond Jessop Arrested for Sexually Assaulting Teen

A 38-year-old man from a polygamist sect sexually assaulted a teenager less than half his age at the Yearning For Zion Ranch, a prosecutor charged Wednesday to open the first criminal trial since the ranch was raided.

An attorney for defendant Raymond Jessop disputed the allegation, telling jurors there is no evidence Jessop sexually assaulted the girl in Schleicher County. The location is critical, since prosecutors must prove they have the jurisdiction to prosecute the alleged crimes.

Jessop was one of 12 members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints charged after authorities raided the ranch last year and swept 439 children into foster care. The children were later returned to their parents after an appellate court intervened, but documents and DNA seized during the raid resulted in criminal indictments on charges ranging from failure to report child abuse to sexual assault and bigamy.

All the men will be tried separately.

Both sides presented opening statements Wednesday evening in Jessop's case after 12 jurors — seven men and five women — were culled from a pool of 300, the largest ever called in this tiny county 200 miles northwest of San Antonio.

Assistant Attorney General Eric Nichols said Jessop was 33 when he had sex a 16-year-old girl, who later gave birth to a daughter. Under Texas law, generally, no one under 17 can consent to sex with adult. Nichols did not discuss the relationship between the two in his opening statement, but prosecutors have said in court documents the teen is one of Jessop's nine wives. Jessop has also been indicted on a bigamy charge that will be tried later.

"You will see evidence that establishes that this offense — the offense of sexual assault of (the teen) — occurred just down the road from this courthouse at the YFZ Ranch," Nichols told jurors.

Defense attorney Mark Stevens said prosecutors would not be able to show evidence of a crime occurring in Texas, and he urged jurors not to be distracted by the alleged polygamy or the religious beliefs Jessop and the church. Broadcast images of women from the church wearing prairie dresses and distinctive braids were impossible to ignore during the weeklong raid in April 2008.

"We don't try people because of their hairstyles or their clothes. We don't try people because of their religious practices," Stevens said. "We try people based on evidence, facts and proof."

Testimony in the case is scheduled to begin Thursday. Nichols had previously said the trial would take about two weeks. Prosecutors have prepared to call dozens of witnesses, including law enforcement officials, child welfare workers and church members.

The FLDS is a breakaway sect that is not recognized by the Mormon church. It has historically been based along the Arizona-Utah border, but church members bought a 1,700-acre ranch outside Eldorado about six years ago and began building log cabin-style homes and a four-story limestone temple that is visible from the highway that run's through the town of about 2,000 people.

Sect Leader Warren Jeffs was arrested in 2006 and convicted as an accomplice to rape in Utah for arranging an underage marriage there. He awaits trial on similar charges in Arizona before he can be tried for sexual assault of a child and bigamy in Texas.

Fearing possible prosecution for underage marriages, Jeffs allegedly advised Jessop not to take the 16 year old to the hospital even though she was struggling for days in child labor. One of Jeffs' daughters allegedly married Jessop at age 15 and is the focus of the separate bigamy indictment.

The Mormon church, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, renounced polygamy more than a century ago.

Piano Teacher Donald Palmer Convicted of Molesting Student

A 60-year-old Allouez piano teacher was convicted Friday of molesting a student during a piano lesson in May.

Donald Palmer offered a special plea to second-degree sexual assault of a child that allows him to maintain his innocence, but concede there in enough evidence for a judge or a jury to find guilt.

Palmer was arrested May 2 after a 14-year-old boy told authorities that Palmer had sexual contact with him during a lesson at Palmer’s Allouez home. Palmer posted bail but was arrested two days later and charged with bail jumping for calling the boy’s mother to apologize despite a condition of bail that forbid him from having contact with the boy or his family.

Palmer posted bail again and was arrested May 19 for allegedly pushing his 84-year-old mother down during an argument. He was charged with bail jumping and disorderly conduct for that incident.

Palmer posted bail but was arrested a fourth time on Aug. 27 after he was involved in a car accident and allegedly drank a large amount of vodka. His bail included a condition of absolute sobriety.

Palmer, on Friday, pleaded no contest to the felony bail jumping charge stemming from his call to the victim’s mother. The two other bail jumping charges and the misdemeanor disorderly conduct charge were dismissed as part of Palmer’s plea deal.

All three dismissed charges can be considered at his Dec. 18 sentencing hearing.

Palmer faces up to 46 years in prison.

After entering his pleas, Palmer asked to have his bail reduced citing a need to “re-establish his credibility” and deal with some health issues. Brown County Circuit Court Judge William Atkinson denied the request.

Kenji Haley Arrested for Sexually Abusing Children

A 31-year-old man accused of sexually abusing children for years under the guise of dating single mothers has been arrested, Cook County sheriff's police said Saturday.

Kenji Haley had eluded authorities since 2007 when he was charged with aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a child younger than 10.

The sheriff's department said it recently learned Haley was seeing as many as 10 women with young children in Cook County.

Police arrested Haley Thursday at a home in the 8700 block of South Kingston Avenue.

The department has opened an investigation into Haley regarding possible Chicago-area victims.

Michael Davis Arrested for Raping Girls Age 10 & 11

A Mooringsport man has been arrested by Caddo deputies after charges that he raped two girls, aged 10 and 11 at the time of the attacks, Sheriff Steve Prator says.

Michael Jerry Davis, 32, of the 400 block of Weston Street, was arrested at his residence late Thursday by Detectives Jackie Winston and Dorothy Brooks.

The alleged abuse by Davis has been ongoing for several years, the detectives said. Davis is accused of raping a girl numerous times over a two-year period beginning in 2004. The victim was 10 years old when the sexual abuse began.

An 11-year-old girl also reported she was raped several times by Davis between June and November 2008, detectives said.

Davis was booked into Caddo Correctional Center on two counts of aggravated rape.

His bond has been set at $500,000.
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http://www.wxvt.com/Global/story.asp?S=11372567

Sick Couple Charged with Having Sex with 18-Month-old Daughter

A Punta Gorda man has been charged with having sex with the 18-month-old daughter of his girlfriend, who detectives say was also involved in the acts.

Glenn M. Nelson, 59, of the 28000 block of Bermont Road, was arrested Tuesday and charged with capital sexual battery and lewd and lascivious molestation on a child under 12, the Charlotte Sheriff's Office said.

He is being held without bond at Charlotte County Jail.

The Sheriff's Office has not released details about the victim's mother, who lives in Port Charlotte. The investigation continues and more charges are expected, sheriff's spokesman Bob Carpenter said.

Detectives searched the mother's home and found child pornography on her computer. Chat sessions between the couple discussing having sex with the baby on webcam were also found, officials said.

Detectives then searched Nelson's apartment and offices at the Villa Del Sol apartments in Punta Gorda, where he is the property manager. They said the couple engaged in sexual acts with the girl since she was born. Photos were taken and sent to Nelson's home computer and his workplace, the Sheriff's Office reported.

Detectives filed additional charges against Nelson after an investigator located photos in his computer.

The baby was initially turned over to the Department of Children and Families, and is now with a relative.
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http://www.news-press.com/article/20091022/NEWS01/910220365/1002

Antonio Moreno Arrested for Sexual Battery on Child

43-year-old Antonio Arementero Moreno of Tampa, Florida was arrested Wednesday and charged with Sexual Battery on a Child Older Than 12 and Lewd and Lascivious Molestation on a Child Older Than 12. He had a bond hearing earlier today and has been ordered held without bail. Moreno is currently lodged in the Hillsborough County Jail.

Moreno has apparently been sharing a bedroom with the boy at Moreno's home although their relationship has not been made public by the Hillsborough County Sheriff.

The sexual battery took place around midnight and the boy told his father about the incident, who called police as soon as it became known to him.

Moreno, who is unemployed, was also arrested back in January by the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office on a Domestic Battery charge. He was released on his own recognizance the next day. I don't know if it's been to court or not but will try and update this post later in the week when I have time.

Former Officer Travis Ezell Arrested for Child Porn

A former University of Oklahoma police officer was arrested and booked into the Cleveland County Jail on a complaint of possession of child pornography.

Travis Lee Ezell, 41, allegedly downloaded the pornography from his home computer.

OU Police Lt. Bruce Chen said Ezell is recently no longer with the OU Police Department.
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http://www.normantranscript.com/localnews/local_story_287011551

Teacher Deanna Higgins Charged with Sexual Assault

A Spring High School teacher has been accused of having an improper relationship with a student, KPRC Local 2 reported Tuesday.

Science teacher Deanna Higgins has been charged with having an improper relationship between an educator and a student and sexual assault of a child. Both charges are second-degree felonies.

Higgins has been a science teacher at the school since January 2008. She is on administrative leave from the school.

Principal Donna Ullrich sent a letter home to parents to alert them to the situation.

"I want to assure you that the safety of our students is of the highest importance," she said. "Inappropriate behavior with our students will never be tolerated or overlooked."

Ullrich said a second teacher is also on administrative leave in a separate issue. She said she could not release details about that case until the investigation is complete.

Spring ISD released the following statement.

"Incidents involving improper relationships between teachers and students are not tolerated in Spring ISD. We have made it our practice to take allegations of this nature seriously. We will investigate thoroughly any report we receive and pursue criminal charges when appropriate."
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http://www.myfoxhouston.com/dpp/news/local/091013_spring_teacher_charged

Fannie Schwartz Charged with Endangering Welfare of child

The wife of a man charged with sexually abusing two young girls, is now also charged in the case.

Prosecutors today charged Fannie J. Schwartz, 47, of Seymour, with two counts of endangering the welfare of a child.

Late last week, Johnny Schwartz (right) was charged with statutory sodomy and first degree child molestation, for incidents that allegedly happened over an eight year period ending in June 2008.

Now prosecutors accused Fannie Schwartz of allowing her husband to have sexual contact with the girls.

Court documents say the girls were 6 and 14 when the abuse began.

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http://www.kspr.com/news/local/64466317.html

Terry Lane Lee Arrested for Sexual Assault

In Midland, police have arrested and charged a man with two counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child.

A warrant for 46-year-old Terry Lane Lee of Midland was issued Tuesday, and he was arrested yesterday, after two female victims reported the abuse to authorities in Fort Worth.

Fort Worth Police and CPS then contacted the Midland Police Department about the case.

Police say the assaults occurred at west Midland apartment complexes over a period of ten years and that the victims and lee know each other.
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http://www.oaoa.com/news/midland-38062-jauz-children.html

Signs Of Sexual Abuse

According to the Arkansas Coalition Against Sexual Assault, more than 65% of all sexual assault victims are under the age of 18. Of every 10 people, nine have identified the assailant as someone they know. We talked to two doctors Thursday about the problems related to sexual abuse.

"A lot of times in working with children or even adolescents or adults who have been victims of any type of abuse, there can be a series of several different types of emotions," said Dr. Bill Smith, Clinical Manager at St. Bernard's Behavioral Health.

"If left untreated, sometimes this can result in major episodes of depression," said Smith.

Smith said sexual abuse can trigger anxiety, depression and nightmares later in life.

"A lot of emotions come to play and sometimes these emotions for some individuals can develop into some type of behavioral or mental illness," said Smith.

Smith said the best course of action for anyone suffering from sexual abuse symptoms need to seek the help of a medical professional.

According to Dr. Elmo Diaz, a psychiatrist with Families Inc, the major problem with sexual assault in victims of any age is that it often goes unreported.

"If we're able to raise awareness in the public, that number will shrink," said Diaz. "Obviously people don't recognize signs. People who are in touch with students, with the kids like the teachers or the parent itself."

"They're having emotions or feelings that kind of take them back to that abusive time. That can be very difficult the older you are. It's harder to do that sometimes," said Smith. "I think the more people are aware of this type of help in therapy and counseling can be very beneficial to children adolescents and adults."

"The first thing that we need to do is to listen to the children. Sometimes we brush off things that are not supposed to come out of a 3, 4 year old's mouth," said Diaz. "Sometimes they're telling you it's going on. What's going on?"

"If it's ongoing at the time, I would think the child is scared. The fear that they may have been threatened by the person who is abusing them or persons that are abusing them," said Smith. "They may have a fear that they're going to get hurt or that whoever the person is that's abusing them may hurt someone that they love in their family."

Diaz said one sign is that children become more isolated in society.

"Sudden avoidance of people and places, no I don't want to go, I don't want to go, that kind of thing. Pay attention to that," said Diaz.

"Fear would be probably the initial reason why the child or adolescent doesn't report that to a caregiver or a parent," said Smith.

Diaz said children tell one parent that the other is abusing them, but the report isn't recognized as believable because of denial.

"They have been sexually abused by one parent. They tell the other parent and they don't believe them. That kind of thing goes on a lot too," said Diaz. "No one sign alone will give us the clue of sexual abuse, but it's a group of things. If there is a sexual abuse, there will be a group of things."

Police Looking for Man Who Sexually Assaulted 7-year-old Girl

Police are looking for a man they believe sexually assaulted a 7-year-old girl.

The child was at Children’s Medical Center of Dayton for evaluation on Thursday evening, Oct. 15, Dayton Lt. Brian Johns said.

The suspect, an associate of the victim’s mother, is believed to have sexually assaulted the child several times over the course of several days, Johns said.

The victim’s mother got information that the assaults occurred and followed up with the victim, Johns said.

Dennis Earl Bradford Accused of Raping & Slitting Throat of 8-year-old

An Arkansas man accused of raping an 8-year-old girl and slitting her throat 19 years ago returned to Texas Wednesday night after waiving extradition.

Dennis Earl Bradford, 40, waived extradition proceedings after his arrest on Tuesday in North Little Rock, Ark., on a charge of attempted capital murder in the 1990 abduction and sexual assault of Jennifer Schuett, now 27 and living in League City.

DNA testing techniques developed since 1990 allowed the FBI to match DNA found on a man’s underwear and T-shirt to a DNA sample taken from Bradford after his 1999 kidnapping conviction in Hot Springs, Ark. The underwear and T-shirt were discovered near the overgrown lot where Schuett, naked and bleeding from a slit throat, was dumped on a fire ant mound.

In a brief hearing today at the county jail, Bradford waived appointment of an attorney and said he would hire one. The next hearing is set for next Wednesday.

Katrina Darasouk Arrested for Child Abuse

Prosecutors on Wednesday charged the mother of a 2-year-old -- who ended up with bleeding on his brain because of alleged abuse at her boyfriend's hands -- for putting him in a position that endangered his life.

After spending a night in jail, Katrina Darasouk headed into the courtroom with shackles at her ankles.

A judge set her percentage bond at $50,000 after she said quietly she understood the child abuse charge she faced and that it carried up to 20 years in prison if she's convicted.

Police say Darasouk woke up Sept. 20 to her boyfriend, Joshua Ironshell, yelling at her son and found them in the bathroom.

Darrek Andrew was unresponsive and appeared to be having a seizure.

But, police allege, Darasouk agreed with Ironshell not to take him to the hospital because he feared bruises on the boy would lead to a child abuse investigation.

Two days later, her son had another seizure while in Ironshell's care.

This time, Darasouk drove Darrek to the hospital. She told police later she thought her son was going to die.

He was unresponsive, his breathing labored, when she got him to the emergency room at BryanLGH Medical Center West.

He was taken by helicopter to Children's Hospital in Omaha, where he was diagnosed with bleeding on the brain and in the blood vessels at the back of the eye, spinal fractures and multiple bruises. He had old scarring on his buttocks.

Police say doctors treated Darrek, and he since has been released from the hospital. He was placed in foster care while police and Health and Human Services investigate, and he continues to suffer from lingering vision and balance issues.

According to court documents, Darasouk told police Ironshell was the boy's primary care provider, and that she had no idea how he got the injuries.

Police now believe she'd seen Ironshell spanking her son at least once before and told him to stop.

Sometime in the week of Sept. 12-16, police believe, Ironshell, spanked him hard enough they both fell in the shower.

Police allege Ironshell had spanked the boy while holding him by one arm, then hit him on the buttocks, hip and lower back causing swelling. He walked stiff-legged after the fall, they say.

On Sept. 20, the boy had a seizure and briefly stopped breathing, according to the affidavit filed in Lancaster County Court.

A second seizure happened on Sept. 22, the court document said. In it, police allege Ironshell and Darasouk did not take him to the hospital right away because Ironshell didn't want to be investigated for child abuse.

The charge against Darasouk alleges she went along with it, despite it putting her son in a position that endangered his life.

At about 10 a.m. Tuesday, police lodged her.

A week ago, they arrested Ironshell, later charged with felony child abuse and first-degree assault.