updated 9/16/2010 10:43:07 AM ET By Sarah Jacobsson Purewal [PC World]
Pressured by law enforcement, advocacy groups, and Congress, Craigslist said it would permanently remove adult services from its online classified ads here in the United States. The move quickly sparked criticism by free-speech advocates who see Craigslist's shuttering of its adult services as a threat to free speech on the Internet.
Craigslist's lawyers told a House Judiciary subcommittee hearing on child sex trafficking Wednesday that it has no plans to reopen its U.S. adult services section, which it shut down Sept. 3 after heavy criticism from human rights advocacy groups and Congress who charged that Craigslist was commonly used in the global sex trade of women.
William Clinton Powell, the director of customer service and law enforcement relations for Craigslist, said that his company had "no intention to bring the category back" and "money is not a consideration." Craigslist skirted the issue of whether it would yield to calls by advocacy groups to stop running erotic services ads that appear on international versions of the Craigslist site outside the U.S.
At the end of August a group of 17 attorneys general requested, in an open letter, that Craigslist disable the adult services section of its site immediately. The letter explained that the "increasingly sharp public criticism" of the adult services section "reflects a growing recognition that ads for prostitution — including ads trafficking children — are rampant on it."
The letter also gave examples of how adult services ads on Craigslist were allegedly tied to sex crimes. It cited one story of two girls who were allegedly trafficked over the Internet through listings on the Craigslist site. Those two girls wrote an open letter in July 2010 requesting that Craigslist take the section down.
Craigslist responded with a request evidence of the alleged trafficking authorities.
Earlier this month Craigslist complied with lawmaker requests and put a black bar with the word "censored" over the section of the site labeled adult services. The move raised the question of free speech and the Internet — and whether or not Congress has the right to censor Internet.
According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), the Craigslist decision to "censor" its Adult Services section is an unfortunate one. The EFF points out that the attorneys general basically bullied Craigslist into making such a decision, as "over the past two years, Craigslist repeatedly offered to go far above and beyond their legal obligations to work with law enforcement officials," and "the AGs have inevitably rewarded completely voluntary, non-mandatory offers of cooperation from Craigslist with further demands and insults."
Of course, shutting down Craigslist's Adult Services section for good is unlikely to fix all the sex trafficking issues like that. As Elizabeth McDougall, a partner at Perkins Coie LLP (the law firm representing Craigslist), says, the ads will just "migrate to less socially responsible sites" that won't cooperate with law enforcement.
Showing posts with label online safety. Show all posts
Showing posts with label online safety. Show all posts
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Craigslist rapists get 60 to life - ad seeking someone with "no regard for women" led to rape
Both men involved in the rape of a woman after a Craigslist ad was placed to solicit it were sentenced to 60 years to life in the Wyoming prison system. Natrona County District Judge David Park sentenced both Jebidiah James Stipe, now 28, and 26 year old Ty Oliver McDowell to 60 years to life for their role in the brutal attack, an attack which left the victim, a woman Stipe once dated, traumatized.
Stipe plead guilty to 5 felonies including conspiracy to commit sexual assault. McDowell also plead guilty to 5 felonies, including 3 counts of 1st degree sexual assault. Stipe's sentencing was held Monday, June 28 and McDowell's sentenced was handed down Tuesday, June 29. The ad solicited the rape of a woman seeking a "real aggressive man with no concerns for women well being interested let me know."
Stipe, a 28-year-old Carbon County native, paid for the ad that led McDowell to a 25-year-old woman's west Casper residence and impersonated the woman in online communications with McDowell. The ad appeared on Dec. 5, reading, in part, "Need a real aggressive man with no concerns for women well being interested let me know," according to an affidavit from the case.
Less than a week later [On December 11, 2009], McDowell showed up at the victim's west Casper residence. Once inside, the victim -- weighing less than 100 pounds -- struggled to fight, biting and scratching McDowell. Unable to escape, she was raped by a penis and a knife sharpener found in the home after the assault. Her wrists were bound so tightly together a nurse later thought they were broken. Then she was raped and left naked and tied in her living room, bruised from head to toe. An investigation by the Natrona County Sheriff's Office revealed Ty Oliver McDowell, who carried out the rape, was led to the 25-year-old victim's Casper home after responding the bogus Craigslist ad Stipe posted.
During the sentencing, the victim said that "It's very hard for me to trust people and not question what their intentions are.[Stipe] turned my world upside-down. I don't understand why someone would do something as violent and as vicious as he did." Sgt. Michael Steinberg testified that Stipe had requested that similar things happen to other women, including his ex-wife. The ex-wife, according to Steinberg, had to change vehicles and move back into her parents' house.
George Doherty, a witness presented by Stipe's defense attorney Vaughn Neubauer, said that he believed Stipe, an ex-Marine who served in Iraq, suffered from PTSD. Neubauer said that "Something happened inside Mr. Stipe. Something happened. But that something can be addressed, he can be salvaged."
District Attorney Michael Blonigen showed how the rape was planned and that Stipe had a change to back out of the devious (and deviant) scheme, but did not. "This defendant had every opportunity in the world to stop this. Mr. Stipe could have pulled back. Instead, he pushed the throttle forward."
After Stipe's sentencing, Blonigen said that the Craigslist rape was the worst he had seen over his 27 years as a prosecutor. "We were satisfied with the sentence. Sixty years to life for a 28-year-old man is virtually a life sentence. I really think that it's because of the courage of the victim that we're here today."
Ty Oliver McDowell was a technician for a hospital who lived in Bar Nunn, Wyoming when he raped the woman. Just before his 60 year to life sentence, he addressed Judge Park, the victim, and Stipe. "I am terribly sorry that (she) had to go through this nightmare. I'm sorry that I put her through it...I forgive [Stipe]for tricking me and deceiving me into doing this."
After McDowell made his statement, the victim went to the front of the court and addressed how the rape impacted her life. "This is something I will never get over. My family have been the ones to pick up the pieces of something he tore apart for something he thought was a game."
Toward the end of her statement, choked with tears, she said, "I'm sorry." "That's all right," Natrona County District Judge David Park told her. "You don't need to apologize."
District Attorney Michael Blonigen, speaking at McDowell's sentencing Tuesday, said if someone is going to solicit a rape, "He has to find a rapist...I don't see a dime's worth of difference between the two," he said of McDowell and Stipe.
The prosecutor argued that McDowell's act were premeditated. He took pictures of the victim's home with his cellular telephone; communicated with Stipe in the days leading up to the rape; on another occasion checked the home's front and back door, finding them locked; and, on the day he committed the rape, carried with him a blindfold and rope to bind the victim's hands.
Blonigen said that McDowell's actions were that of someone who had not accepted accountability for his actions. "I do not see how any rational person can insist -- like Mr. McDowell continues to insist -- that this was a terrible misunderstanding. He has taken the charge, but he has not taken responsibility."
Both McDowell's attorney Tim Cotton and McDowell's parents described a man who was raised with good morals and to shun alcohol and drugs, but had "really began to lose touch." Cotton asked for a sentenced of 20 years, stating that it would allow his client to rehabilitate himself eventually while also "satisfying the demands of justice."
After McDowell's sentencing Blonigen stated that while Craigslist cooperated throughout the investigation, "I would like them to not take those sort of ads. But, as someone else has said, if they don't, someone else will. It boils down to personal (responsibility)."
He also reiterated that both Stipe and McDowell earned the identical 60 to life sentences and shared equal accountability. "Either one of these people could have stopped it at any time. The only person who couldn't have stopped it is [the victim]."
Stipe plead guilty to 5 felonies including conspiracy to commit sexual assault. McDowell also plead guilty to 5 felonies, including 3 counts of 1st degree sexual assault. Stipe's sentencing was held Monday, June 28 and McDowell's sentenced was handed down Tuesday, June 29. The ad solicited the rape of a woman seeking a "real aggressive man with no concerns for women well being interested let me know."
Stipe, a 28-year-old Carbon County native, paid for the ad that led McDowell to a 25-year-old woman's west Casper residence and impersonated the woman in online communications with McDowell. The ad appeared on Dec. 5, reading, in part, "Need a real aggressive man with no concerns for women well being interested let me know," according to an affidavit from the case.
Less than a week later [On December 11, 2009], McDowell showed up at the victim's west Casper residence. Once inside, the victim -- weighing less than 100 pounds -- struggled to fight, biting and scratching McDowell. Unable to escape, she was raped by a penis and a knife sharpener found in the home after the assault. Her wrists were bound so tightly together a nurse later thought they were broken. Then she was raped and left naked and tied in her living room, bruised from head to toe. An investigation by the Natrona County Sheriff's Office revealed Ty Oliver McDowell, who carried out the rape, was led to the 25-year-old victim's Casper home after responding the bogus Craigslist ad Stipe posted.
During the sentencing, the victim said that "It's very hard for me to trust people and not question what their intentions are.[Stipe] turned my world upside-down. I don't understand why someone would do something as violent and as vicious as he did." Sgt. Michael Steinberg testified that Stipe had requested that similar things happen to other women, including his ex-wife. The ex-wife, according to Steinberg, had to change vehicles and move back into her parents' house.
George Doherty, a witness presented by Stipe's defense attorney Vaughn Neubauer, said that he believed Stipe, an ex-Marine who served in Iraq, suffered from PTSD. Neubauer said that "Something happened inside Mr. Stipe. Something happened. But that something can be addressed, he can be salvaged."
District Attorney Michael Blonigen showed how the rape was planned and that Stipe had a change to back out of the devious (and deviant) scheme, but did not. "This defendant had every opportunity in the world to stop this. Mr. Stipe could have pulled back. Instead, he pushed the throttle forward."
After Stipe's sentencing, Blonigen said that the Craigslist rape was the worst he had seen over his 27 years as a prosecutor. "We were satisfied with the sentence. Sixty years to life for a 28-year-old man is virtually a life sentence. I really think that it's because of the courage of the victim that we're here today."
Ty Oliver McDowell was a technician for a hospital who lived in Bar Nunn, Wyoming when he raped the woman. Just before his 60 year to life sentence, he addressed Judge Park, the victim, and Stipe. "I am terribly sorry that (she) had to go through this nightmare. I'm sorry that I put her through it...I forgive [Stipe]for tricking me and deceiving me into doing this."
After McDowell made his statement, the victim went to the front of the court and addressed how the rape impacted her life. "This is something I will never get over. My family have been the ones to pick up the pieces of something he tore apart for something he thought was a game."
Toward the end of her statement, choked with tears, she said, "I'm sorry." "That's all right," Natrona County District Judge David Park told her. "You don't need to apologize."
District Attorney Michael Blonigen, speaking at McDowell's sentencing Tuesday, said if someone is going to solicit a rape, "He has to find a rapist...I don't see a dime's worth of difference between the two," he said of McDowell and Stipe.
The prosecutor argued that McDowell's act were premeditated. He took pictures of the victim's home with his cellular telephone; communicated with Stipe in the days leading up to the rape; on another occasion checked the home's front and back door, finding them locked; and, on the day he committed the rape, carried with him a blindfold and rope to bind the victim's hands.
Blonigen said that McDowell's actions were that of someone who had not accepted accountability for his actions. "I do not see how any rational person can insist -- like Mr. McDowell continues to insist -- that this was a terrible misunderstanding. He has taken the charge, but he has not taken responsibility."
Both McDowell's attorney Tim Cotton and McDowell's parents described a man who was raised with good morals and to shun alcohol and drugs, but had "really began to lose touch." Cotton asked for a sentenced of 20 years, stating that it would allow his client to rehabilitate himself eventually while also "satisfying the demands of justice."
After McDowell's sentencing Blonigen stated that while Craigslist cooperated throughout the investigation, "I would like them to not take those sort of ads. But, as someone else has said, if they don't, someone else will. It boils down to personal (responsibility)."
He also reiterated that both Stipe and McDowell earned the identical 60 to life sentences and shared equal accountability. "Either one of these people could have stopped it at any time. The only person who couldn't have stopped it is [the victim]."
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Wyoming sex assault case highlights kids are not the only targets of online sexual predators
(AP) CASPER, Wyo. - Authorities say a Casper woman was assaulted at her front door, raped at knifepoint in her living room and left bound on the floor, and they say one of the men charged in the brutal attack claimed that he thought it was invited.
Two men are accused in the crime. One is charged with carrying out the rape. The other, the woman's ex-boyfriend, stands accused of posing as the victim online and claiming she harbored a rape fantasy and wanted to be assaulted.
The case in the central Wyoming city of Casper, population 54,000, illustrates that middle America isn't immune to the dangers of Internet anonymity and predators who target victims through online ads that hint at sex and prostitution.
Prosecutor Mike Blonigen, the Natrona County district attorney, declined to comment on the specifics of the ongoing rape case. But he said Internet cases generally pose a challenge to law enforcement.
"Tracking down who's involved is relatively difficult," Blonigen said. "It's pretty easy to set up a false identity in cyberspace, so that's always an issue. And of course, they have to make some overt act to actually accomplish any of these things. We're not the thought police."
In the Casper case, Blonigen's office has charged Ty Oliver McDowell, 26, of Bar Nunn, a Casper suburb, with three counts of first-degree sexual assault, one count of kidnapping and one count of aggravated burglary. Jebidiah James Stipe, 27, a Marine based in Twentynine Palms, Calif., is charged with conspiracy to commit first-degree sexual assault. Lawyers representing McDowell and Stipe declined comment.
A few days before the Casper woman was raped, she had complained to the Natrona County Sheriff's Department that someone had made a false Craigslist posting about her, including photographs and personal information. The ad read, "Need a real aggressive man with no concern for women," authorities said.
Craigslist took the advertisement down when the woman complained. Yet prosecutors say it was posted long enough to catch the attention of McDowell, a medical technologist.
According to a statement filed in court by Natrona County Sheriff's Deputy Todd Sexton, McDowell waived his right to remain silent and talked to deputies investigating the case. "McDowell admitted to going to the victim's residence ... and having sexual contact with (the woman) to fulfill a 'rape fantasy' for her," Sexton wrote.
McDowell told investigators that he had corresponded with a person he thought was the woman at an e-mail address featured on the advertisement, Sexton wrote. However, prosecutors charge that McDowell was actually communicating by e-mail with Stipe, the woman's former boyfriend. They say Stipe posted the ad to set the woman up for the attack without her knowledge.
The San Bernardino County (Calif.) Sheriff's Department on Dec. 16 arrested Stipe, a private first-class in the U.S. Marine Corps then stationed at Twentynine Palms. A spokeswoman for the Marine Corps said Stipe enlisted in July 2001 and, "was being processed for administrative separation as a result of a pattern of misconduct at the time of his arrest."
The Casper case is one of several sex crimes to grab headlines recently in which the Internet linked perpetrators and victims. Law enforcement officials around the country also have in the past accused Craigslist of promoting prostitution.
Scrutiny of Craigslist increased significantly when prosecutors in Boston last year charged that former medical student Philip Markoff used Craigslist to arrange a meeting with masseuse Julissa Brisman. He's accused of shooting her to death last April and of attacking other women he met through the site.
In 2008, Craigslist agreed to tighten its adult services advertisements as part of an agreement with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and with the attorneys general for 43 states and territories, including Wyoming.
Under the agreement, Craigslist started requiring a working telephone number and charging a small credit card fee for each such ad. "Requiring credit card verification and charging a fee to post in this category raises accountability to a point where we expect few illicit ads will remain," Craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster said in November 2008 in a joint statement with the state prosecutors and the children's center.
Craigslist didn't respond to an e-mail sent to their San Francisco headquarters seeking comment on the Wyoming rape case, although a company phone message requests that press inquiries be made by e-mail.
Blonigen, the Casper prosecutor, said Craigslist was cooperative with Wyoming investigators. "I would prefer that they maybe not run these ads," Blonigen said. "You know somebody's going to do it even if they don't."
Wyoming State Sen. Tony Ross, R-Cheyenne, is a criminal defense attorney and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee in the state Legislature. He said the committee may have to consider whether state law is up to the challenge of dealing with sexual predators who prowl the Internet. "The world is changing so rapidly here, particularly with regard to Internet, cyber crimes, and things like that, that we're going to see a whole new evolution of law, it seems to me," Ross said.
(Update 2-14-10) Last Tuesday, Ty Oliver McDowell, the alleged actual rapist, appeared before Judge Scott Skavdahl and entered a not-guilty plea in Natrona County District Court. He is being charged with conspiracy to commit sexual assault, which carries a maximum life sentence. He's being held on $250,000 bond in the Natrona County Detention Center and his trial is scheduled for late April.
His codefendant, Jebidiah James Stipe, the victim's ex-"boyfriend," is being held on $500,000 bond. He's yet to be arraigned.
Two men are accused in the crime. One is charged with carrying out the rape. The other, the woman's ex-boyfriend, stands accused of posing as the victim online and claiming she harbored a rape fantasy and wanted to be assaulted.
The case in the central Wyoming city of Casper, population 54,000, illustrates that middle America isn't immune to the dangers of Internet anonymity and predators who target victims through online ads that hint at sex and prostitution.
Prosecutor Mike Blonigen, the Natrona County district attorney, declined to comment on the specifics of the ongoing rape case. But he said Internet cases generally pose a challenge to law enforcement.
"Tracking down who's involved is relatively difficult," Blonigen said. "It's pretty easy to set up a false identity in cyberspace, so that's always an issue. And of course, they have to make some overt act to actually accomplish any of these things. We're not the thought police."
In the Casper case, Blonigen's office has charged Ty Oliver McDowell, 26, of Bar Nunn, a Casper suburb, with three counts of first-degree sexual assault, one count of kidnapping and one count of aggravated burglary. Jebidiah James Stipe, 27, a Marine based in Twentynine Palms, Calif., is charged with conspiracy to commit first-degree sexual assault. Lawyers representing McDowell and Stipe declined comment.
A few days before the Casper woman was raped, she had complained to the Natrona County Sheriff's Department that someone had made a false Craigslist posting about her, including photographs and personal information. The ad read, "Need a real aggressive man with no concern for women," authorities said.
Craigslist took the advertisement down when the woman complained. Yet prosecutors say it was posted long enough to catch the attention of McDowell, a medical technologist.
According to a statement filed in court by Natrona County Sheriff's Deputy Todd Sexton, McDowell waived his right to remain silent and talked to deputies investigating the case. "McDowell admitted to going to the victim's residence ... and having sexual contact with (the woman) to fulfill a 'rape fantasy' for her," Sexton wrote.
McDowell told investigators that he had corresponded with a person he thought was the woman at an e-mail address featured on the advertisement, Sexton wrote. However, prosecutors charge that McDowell was actually communicating by e-mail with Stipe, the woman's former boyfriend. They say Stipe posted the ad to set the woman up for the attack without her knowledge.
The San Bernardino County (Calif.) Sheriff's Department on Dec. 16 arrested Stipe, a private first-class in the U.S. Marine Corps then stationed at Twentynine Palms. A spokeswoman for the Marine Corps said Stipe enlisted in July 2001 and, "was being processed for administrative separation as a result of a pattern of misconduct at the time of his arrest."
The Casper case is one of several sex crimes to grab headlines recently in which the Internet linked perpetrators and victims. Law enforcement officials around the country also have in the past accused Craigslist of promoting prostitution.
Scrutiny of Craigslist increased significantly when prosecutors in Boston last year charged that former medical student Philip Markoff used Craigslist to arrange a meeting with masseuse Julissa Brisman. He's accused of shooting her to death last April and of attacking other women he met through the site.
In 2008, Craigslist agreed to tighten its adult services advertisements as part of an agreement with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and with the attorneys general for 43 states and territories, including Wyoming.
Under the agreement, Craigslist started requiring a working telephone number and charging a small credit card fee for each such ad. "Requiring credit card verification and charging a fee to post in this category raises accountability to a point where we expect few illicit ads will remain," Craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster said in November 2008 in a joint statement with the state prosecutors and the children's center.
Craigslist didn't respond to an e-mail sent to their San Francisco headquarters seeking comment on the Wyoming rape case, although a company phone message requests that press inquiries be made by e-mail.
Blonigen, the Casper prosecutor, said Craigslist was cooperative with Wyoming investigators. "I would prefer that they maybe not run these ads," Blonigen said. "You know somebody's going to do it even if they don't."
Wyoming State Sen. Tony Ross, R-Cheyenne, is a criminal defense attorney and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee in the state Legislature. He said the committee may have to consider whether state law is up to the challenge of dealing with sexual predators who prowl the Internet. "The world is changing so rapidly here, particularly with regard to Internet, cyber crimes, and things like that, that we're going to see a whole new evolution of law, it seems to me," Ross said.
(Update 2-14-10) Last Tuesday, Ty Oliver McDowell, the alleged actual rapist, appeared before Judge Scott Skavdahl and entered a not-guilty plea in Natrona County District Court. He is being charged with conspiracy to commit sexual assault, which carries a maximum life sentence. He's being held on $250,000 bond in the Natrona County Detention Center and his trial is scheduled for late April.
His codefendant, Jebidiah James Stipe, the victim's ex-"boyfriend," is being held on $500,000 bond. He's yet to be arraigned.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Philly date-rapist sentenced to 10 to 20 years, gets 15 to life in Idaho case
WOLF IN BOYFRIEND'S CLOTHING
This is yet another post which highlights the dangers of sexual predators on the Web, even though they may appear to be nice, charming, and suitable. Not all predators target underage victims or strangers, and all women are potential victims.
The below story, is taken from the Philadelphia Enquirer in its entirety. (10-13-07)
Marsalis gets 10 to 20 years in date-rape cases
By Dwight Ott
Inquirer Staff Writer
Before a courtroom filled with women who had accused of him of plying them with drink and deceit, and then raping them, Jeffrey Marsalis was sentenced yesterday to the maximum, and given a lifetime label intended to warn potential victims.
Common Pleas Court Judge Steven R. Geroff sentenced Marsalis, 34, to 10 to 20 years in prison, and added that once released from prison, he would have to report under Megan's Law to let others know the threat that he poses.
"I believe you are a menace to the women who you meet on the Internet or in any manner - even at a long distance," Geroff said. "What you were was a wolf in sheep's clothing. Your lifestyle was a fantasy, but what happened to your victims was reality."
Wearing a buzz cut and displaying blue eyes that swept the room, Marsalis pleaded no contest during yesterday's hearing to an unlawful imprisonment charge that merited him an additional 10 to 12 months in jail.
Nearly a dozen women sat in three rows, one of them in a wheelchair, clutching tissues and watching the proceedings with red-eyed attention. They smiled for the first time on hearing the judge's ruling.
"Thank God," said one.
Marsalis - who had been charged with assaulting seven women between 2003 to 2005 - was convicted in June of sexually assaulting two women. The trial lasted three weeks and was filled with accounts of his using the Web dating site Match.com to pose as an astronaut, a doctor, and even a secret agent to lure women.
Before the sentencing, psychologist Barry Zakireh testified that Marsalis met the criteria of a sexual offender and qualified for restrictions imposed by Megan's Law, including leafleting neighborhoods and posting alerts on the Internet.
Kevin E. Hexstall, a lawyer for Marsalis, said of the Megan's Law decision: "I believe it is punitive because it does not allow my client a subsequent review. . . . It doesn't allow for reevaluation."
Marsalis was convicted of sexual assault, not rape, Hexstall said. Under the law, rape involves force, and sexual assault involves a classification where force does not have to be proven.
"I think the commonwealth has fallen short of its burden of proof," Hexstall said.
Zakireh testified that in some cases, Marsalis wore surgical scrubs and carried medical books as part of his ruse.
But Hexstall argued that since Marsalis had been a nursing student at the Hahnemann nursing school, that was to be expected.
Hexstall felt his client was guilty of nothing more than masquerading while his intoxicated clients agreed to consensual sex. (Note - there is no such thing as consensual sex when the woman is drunk, sleeping, or drugged. All sex when intoxicated is considered to be assaultive.)
One woman, a dietitian, testified that she met Marsalis on Match.com.
They agreed to meet in person in central Philadelphia. He told her he was a doctor and a former flight surgeon, and flashed a badge to spirit them to the head of the line outside bars.
But the woman said that after a drink or two, her vision blurred, she began to feel woozy, she developed a pounding headache, and she became so uncoordinated that she tripped and fell.
She said she hung on to Marsalis, who assured her he was an emergency-room doctor and knew what to do. She said that despite her protestations, she was raped, but did not remember the incident until the next day.
Marsalis still faces sexual-assault charges in Idaho.
This is the textbook definition of a psychopath - one who cares only for his own sexual pleasure and perversion. This "man" should not be spending 10 to 20 years, but 30 to 60 years in prison. In Pennsylvania, the legal difference between sexual assault and rape is use of force in rape vs. lack of force in sexual assault, but the victims called it what it is - rape. Sexual predation occurs with frightening regularity, and just like those who prey on children, not all of them fit the stereotypical mold.
Philly Daily News Coverage of Marsalis Sentencing
The below story, is taken from the Philadelphia Enquirer in its entirety. (10-13-07)
Marsalis gets 10 to 20 years in date-rape cases
By Dwight Ott
Inquirer Staff Writer
Before a courtroom filled with women who had accused of him of plying them with drink and deceit, and then raping them, Jeffrey Marsalis was sentenced yesterday to the maximum, and given a lifetime label intended to warn potential victims.
Common Pleas Court Judge Steven R. Geroff sentenced Marsalis, 34, to 10 to 20 years in prison, and added that once released from prison, he would have to report under Megan's Law to let others know the threat that he poses.
"I believe you are a menace to the women who you meet on the Internet or in any manner - even at a long distance," Geroff said. "What you were was a wolf in sheep's clothing. Your lifestyle was a fantasy, but what happened to your victims was reality."
Wearing a buzz cut and displaying blue eyes that swept the room, Marsalis pleaded no contest during yesterday's hearing to an unlawful imprisonment charge that merited him an additional 10 to 12 months in jail.
Nearly a dozen women sat in three rows, one of them in a wheelchair, clutching tissues and watching the proceedings with red-eyed attention. They smiled for the first time on hearing the judge's ruling.
"Thank God," said one.
Marsalis - who had been charged with assaulting seven women between 2003 to 2005 - was convicted in June of sexually assaulting two women. The trial lasted three weeks and was filled with accounts of his using the Web dating site Match.com to pose as an astronaut, a doctor, and even a secret agent to lure women.
Before the sentencing, psychologist Barry Zakireh testified that Marsalis met the criteria of a sexual offender and qualified for restrictions imposed by Megan's Law, including leafleting neighborhoods and posting alerts on the Internet.
Kevin E. Hexstall, a lawyer for Marsalis, said of the Megan's Law decision: "I believe it is punitive because it does not allow my client a subsequent review. . . . It doesn't allow for reevaluation."
Marsalis was convicted of sexual assault, not rape, Hexstall said. Under the law, rape involves force, and sexual assault involves a classification where force does not have to be proven.
"I think the commonwealth has fallen short of its burden of proof," Hexstall said.
Zakireh testified that in some cases, Marsalis wore surgical scrubs and carried medical books as part of his ruse.
But Hexstall argued that since Marsalis had been a nursing student at the Hahnemann nursing school, that was to be expected.
Hexstall felt his client was guilty of nothing more than masquerading while his intoxicated clients agreed to consensual sex. (Note - there is no such thing as consensual sex when the woman is drunk, sleeping, or drugged. All sex when intoxicated is considered to be assaultive.)
One woman, a dietitian, testified that she met Marsalis on Match.com.
They agreed to meet in person in central Philadelphia. He told her he was a doctor and a former flight surgeon, and flashed a badge to spirit them to the head of the line outside bars.
But the woman said that after a drink or two, her vision blurred, she began to feel woozy, she developed a pounding headache, and she became so uncoordinated that she tripped and fell.
She said she hung on to Marsalis, who assured her he was an emergency-room doctor and knew what to do. She said that despite her protestations, she was raped, but did not remember the incident until the next day.
Marsalis still faces sexual-assault charges in Idaho.
This is the textbook definition of a psychopath - one who cares only for his own sexual pleasure and perversion. This "man" should not be spending 10 to 20 years, but 30 to 60 years in prison. In Pennsylvania, the legal difference between sexual assault and rape is use of force in rape vs. lack of force in sexual assault, but the victims called it what it is - rape. Sexual predation occurs with frightening regularity, and just like those who prey on children, not all of them fit the stereotypical mold.
Philly Daily News Coverage of Marsalis Sentencing
(Update 10-19-07)
Marsalis will be extradited to Blaine County, Idaho, where he faces charges of raping a 21-year old Sun Valley woman back in 2005. Blaine County Prosecuting Attorney Jim Thomas expect Marsalis to be brought back to Idaho around the 1st of the year, with a trial scheduled for the spring. Marsalis waived extradition as a Blaine County bond condition.
(Update 7-11-09) Ten days ago, Marsalis was sentenced to the maximum term - life imprisonment, for the rape of a 21 year old woman that he met at a Sun Valley, ID ski resort where they were both employed. Marsalis was found guilty in April by a jury of 10 women and 2 men of plying the 21 year old victim with alcohol, then raping her when she was too drunk to refuse.
The sentencing, like the trial and conviction, took place at the Ada County Courthouse in Boise, ID. The judge who presided over the trial, Judge Daniel Hurlbutt Jr., said that he took into consideration the Pennsylvania rape victims before handing the life sentence down.
Hurlbutt stated, "It is clear the victim was harmed by your actions. This was a manner of grooming the victim. Without question, you did take off your clothes and you did have sexual intercourse with her."
Blaine County Prosecuting Attorney Jim Thomas stated that Marsalis was not a typical date rapist, and that Marsalis used the same grooming tactics against the Idaho victim as he did against the Philadelphia victims.
"If the old adage is true- where there's smoke, there's fire, then Mr. Marsalis is an inferno."
The victim impact statement reads as follows.
"I have no doubt that if he wasn't in jail he would be victimizing other women. He took advantage of my body while I was unconscious. I don't need to know what he did to me to know that what he did was wrong....It continues to affect my life today. I had no idea what a monster he would turn out to be. I hope that he will be put away for so long that he will never be able to hurt another woman."
Marsalis will be parole eligible in 15 years.
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Online date turns to rape in New Orleans
Christopher Eugene Patterson, a 34 year old Ocean Springs, MS man, was charged with raping a woman he met online after taking her to New Orleans. The woman, from D'Iberville, was assaulted after she met Patterson in person.
Sheriff's Maj. Randy Cook said the victim, age 34, drove her car to Bay St. Louis and rode to New Orleans with Patterson, where the assault occurred. The woman was taken back to her car and drove herself to Biloxi Regional Medical Center on April 2.
"This woman should be counting her blessings that she's alive," Cook said.
Local investigators contacted New Orleans police, who obtained arrest warrants for Patterson on charges of aggravated rape, oral sexual battery and simple criminal damage.
Sheriff's officials said the woman has been released from the hospital.
"She met the defendant on the Internet and felt comfortable meeting him in person," said Cook. "It seems a lot of people meet online and have successful relationships, but it's a lot safer to have another person present for that first meeting. Having a cell phone with you won't do you any good if it turns bad."
Sheriff's Maj. Randy Cook said the victim, age 34, drove her car to Bay St. Louis and rode to New Orleans with Patterson, where the assault occurred. The woman was taken back to her car and drove herself to Biloxi Regional Medical Center on April 2.
"This woman should be counting her blessings that she's alive," Cook said.
Local investigators contacted New Orleans police, who obtained arrest warrants for Patterson on charges of aggravated rape, oral sexual battery and simple criminal damage.
Sheriff's officials said the woman has been released from the hospital.
"She met the defendant on the Internet and felt comfortable meeting him in person," said Cook. "It seems a lot of people meet online and have successful relationships, but it's a lot safer to have another person present for that first meeting. Having a cell phone with you won't do you any good if it turns bad."
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Suburban Toronto teacher charged with explicit chats with student
Dina Calautti, 35, a Grade 11 teacher from Missassauga, was charged with sexual assault, internet luring, and two counts of sexual exploitation. She allegedly engaged in explicit online chats with a 16 year old male student, as well as leg touching at school, according to Peel Regional Police. Calautti is a social studies teacher at Notre Dame Secondary School in Brampton, but is currently suspended with pay. Brampton & Missassauga are both suburbs of Toronto.
According to the Toronto Star,
These allegations are disturbing," said Bruce Campbell, spokesperson for the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board. "But we don't know anything more than what the police told us and we are co-operating fully."
Calautti is scheduled to make her first appearance in a Brampton court on Dec. 17.
According to a website where students rate their teachers, Caulutti is a popular teacher at Notre Dame.
Contributors to the site ratemyteachers.ca describe her as being "awesome,” “funny,” “sweet,” “pretty” and “smart." One submission calls her "the greatest teacher in the world."
The AOC in Canada is 14, but rises to 18 when the alleged abuse victim is in a position of trust. What's disturbing is that if Calautti wasn't a teacher, such conversations would be legal. Where I'm from, the AOC is 18.
Update (11-17-07):
The alleged teenage victim is talking with Toronto reporters and says that Calautti did not engage in any sexual contact with him. He says that Calautti comforted him after he broke up with his girlfriend.
"She did nothing wrong. She helped me get over my ex-girlfriend," said the Grade 11 student, who can't be named. "She did nothing to me. All we did was talk. Our conversations weren't sexually explicit. She never touched me. Police have taken this way, way too far. When they told me she was going to be charged, I was speechless."
Reference:
Teacher Charged With Sexual Offences
According to the Toronto Star,
These allegations are disturbing," said Bruce Campbell, spokesperson for the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board. "But we don't know anything more than what the police told us and we are co-operating fully."
Calautti is scheduled to make her first appearance in a Brampton court on Dec. 17.
According to a website where students rate their teachers, Caulutti is a popular teacher at Notre Dame.
Contributors to the site ratemyteachers.ca describe her as being "awesome,” “funny,” “sweet,” “pretty” and “smart." One submission calls her "the greatest teacher in the world."
The AOC in Canada is 14, but rises to 18 when the alleged abuse victim is in a position of trust. What's disturbing is that if Calautti wasn't a teacher, such conversations would be legal. Where I'm from, the AOC is 18.
Update (11-17-07):
The alleged teenage victim is talking with Toronto reporters and says that Calautti did not engage in any sexual contact with him. He says that Calautti comforted him after he broke up with his girlfriend.
"She did nothing wrong. She helped me get over my ex-girlfriend," said the Grade 11 student, who can't be named. "She did nothing to me. All we did was talk. Our conversations weren't sexually explicit. She never touched me. Police have taken this way, way too far. When they told me she was going to be charged, I was speechless."
Reference:
Teacher Charged With Sexual Offences
Thursday, October 25, 2007
WI man appears in court for 2nd alleged rape
Just like child predators use MySpace and other networking websites to gain access to kids, adult predators use dating websites to gain access to vulnerable (mostly) female victims. The story below is another case where this has led to tragedy.
Brian King, 29 appeared in court for a second time to face rape charges stemming from an incident 4 years ago. He was arrested the 1st time after a 19 year old woman told detectives that after dating king on Match.com, she met him at his Dewey home in October 2003 , where he repeatedly raped her.
According to Assistant DA David Knappen, this is the 3rd allegation that King faced since 2003, though previous charges have been dropped. There is an incident from November 2003 which is being investigated and which may lead to more charges.
The article from the Appleton Post-Crescent (WI) goes on to say:
According to the criminal complaint, a 19-year-old friend of King's had gone to his town of Dewey home on the afternoon of Oct. 17, 2003, to pick up some of her belongings.
King pinned the woman to his bed and fondled her, eventually ejaculating on her, said the complaint. After struggling with King, the girl eventually escaped the home and fled to the Family Crisis Center.
King faces two counts of second-degree sexual assault for the incident.
King faces three counts of second-degree sexual assault and one of third-degree sexual assault for the incident in June of this year. At a September preliminary hearing, the woman in that case told the court through tears that King had repeatedly assaulted her while at his home.
A not guilty plea was entered on King's behalf at that hearing as he stood mute.
King made an initial appearance for his new charges Tuesday, having been released from the Portage County Jail on a $10,000 cash bond shortly after his June arrest.
A preliminary hearing for those charges has been scheduled for Nov. 13.
"(The woman) said she had discussed at length with Mr. King her wish to not have premarital sex ... she thought Mr. King would understand," said the complaint.
Brian King, 29 appeared in court for a second time to face rape charges stemming from an incident 4 years ago. He was arrested the 1st time after a 19 year old woman told detectives that after dating king on Match.com, she met him at his Dewey home in October 2003 , where he repeatedly raped her.
According to Assistant DA David Knappen, this is the 3rd allegation that King faced since 2003, though previous charges have been dropped. There is an incident from November 2003 which is being investigated and which may lead to more charges.
The article from the Appleton Post-Crescent (WI) goes on to say:
According to the criminal complaint, a 19-year-old friend of King's had gone to his town of Dewey home on the afternoon of Oct. 17, 2003, to pick up some of her belongings.
King pinned the woman to his bed and fondled her, eventually ejaculating on her, said the complaint. After struggling with King, the girl eventually escaped the home and fled to the Family Crisis Center.
King faces two counts of second-degree sexual assault for the incident.
King faces three counts of second-degree sexual assault and one of third-degree sexual assault for the incident in June of this year. At a September preliminary hearing, the woman in that case told the court through tears that King had repeatedly assaulted her while at his home.
A not guilty plea was entered on King's behalf at that hearing as he stood mute.
King made an initial appearance for his new charges Tuesday, having been released from the Portage County Jail on a $10,000 cash bond shortly after his June arrest.
A preliminary hearing for those charges has been scheduled for Nov. 13.
"(The woman) said she had discussed at length with Mr. King her wish to not have premarital sex ... she thought Mr. King would understand," said the complaint.
King faces up to 10 years in prison for 2nd degree sexual assault.
Note: It is obvious that just like the pedophile has a preferred age range and gender preference of victim, that there are predators of adults which have preferred age ranges and sexual preferences of adult victims also. The only difference between the pedophile and someone who preys on 19 year old women is that ages of the latter's victims are double (or more) the age of the former's victims.
Reference:
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Woman, 21, raped after meeting man online
Online safety is usually geared towards children and teenagers and their parents. There have been two high profile cases of teenage girls meeting someone who is a convicted sex offender and running away with them this week. Both of these girls have been found alive, unlike other cases like Polly Klaas, Samantha Runnion, or Jessica Lunsford. But safety is a concern for vulnerable folks of all ages, including those over 18. One woman learned that the hard way.
David Graham, a convicted New York Level 3 sex offender, allegedly met a 21 year old Indianapolis woman from this website. After she traveled to Queens to meet him Tuesday, October 2nd, he allegedly raped and sodomized her until she managed to escape early Wednesday morning. He faced rape, sexual misconduct, and criminal misconduct charges as of October 4th.
The same precautions that teens are urged to take, people over 18 should take. Predators do not stop at 18, and the sexual victimization is just as traumatic when done to an adult as it is when done to a child or teen.
Woman raped after online meeting
David Graham, a convicted New York Level 3 sex offender, allegedly met a 21 year old Indianapolis woman from this website. After she traveled to Queens to meet him Tuesday, October 2nd, he allegedly raped and sodomized her until she managed to escape early Wednesday morning. He faced rape, sexual misconduct, and criminal misconduct charges as of October 4th.
The same precautions that teens are urged to take, people over 18 should take. Predators do not stop at 18, and the sexual victimization is just as traumatic when done to an adult as it is when done to a child or teen.
Woman raped after online meeting
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