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Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Authorities announce diversion program for “Sexting” offenses
DAYTON — Montgomery County authorities, concerned about teens sending sexually explicit photographs to each other, have started a diversion program to prevent some first-time offenders from being labeled as sex offenders.
“Sexting” refers to the sharing of sexually explicit or nude photographs via cellular phones. The diversion program will also be available for juveniles who post pictures online, said Montgomery County Prosecutor Mathias H. Heck, Jr., who announced the program Wednesday, March 4, with Juvenile judges Nick Kuntz and Anthony Capizzi.
Heck said that one recent study shows that one in five teens say they have sent or posted on-line nude photos of themselves, and 31 percent report having received a nude or semi-nude photo of someone else. About two-thirds of the photos are to or from a boyfriend or girlfriend, Heck said.
“The act of “sexting” appears to be, in some cases, a result of our teens not understanding appropriate sexual boundaries and not thinking of the consequences of their actions,” Heck said.
The problem is that, under Ohio law, sending or receiving such photos could be a felony crime, Heck said. In some cases, a conviction could include designation as sex offender, requiring registration for 10 or 20 years.
Juveniles charged with “sexting”-type offenses will be screened by one of Heck’s Diversion Officers.
Juveniles accepted into the program will be under supervision for a minimum of six months, must agree to relinquish their cell phones for a period of time, and will perform community service. They must also attend four hours of education dealing with the legal ramifications, effects on victims, age-appropriate sexual boundaries and responsible use of the internet, cell phones and other communication devices. For those who successfully complete the program, the pending charges will be dropped.
“In some cases, charging a juvenile with a felony and labeling them a sexual offender when their actions were clearly a result of poor judgment and ignorance of the law seems harsh for first-time offenders,” Heck said.
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Two home invasion suspects indicted
DAYTON — Two men arrested in connection with a Huber Heights home invasion were indicted Wednesday, March 4, on multiple felony counts.
The charges against Anthony Wayne Jones and Demetrius Ewing concern a Feb. 22 robbery at 5483 Misty Lane, in which a man was shot in the groin area.
The grand jury indicted Jones, 52, and Ewing, 29, on two counts of aggravated burglary, four counts of kidnapping, five counts of aggravated robbery, two counts of felonious assault, three counts of assault and one count of being a felon in possession of a weapon. Jones was also indicted on one count of tampering with evidence.
According to police reports, two men entered an apartment in the 5400 block of Misty Lane through a back door while three people were in the residence. A woman’s wrists were bound, a man was put in a closet with the door tied shut and a second man handcuffed and shot in the groin area. Property was allegedly stolen from the apartment and the victims told police they did not know their attackers.
Ewing and Jones have remained in the Montgomery County Jail since their arrests.
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Man convicted of retalliation killing is sentenced to prison
DAYTON — A Dayton man convicted of gunning down another man in retaliation for his brother’s slaying was sentenced Wednesday, March 4, to 36 years to life in prison.
Antonio M. Alford, 26, was convicted of murder and other charges Feb. 27 after a four-day trial before Montgomery County Common Pleas Judge Barbara P. Gorman.
LaQuan S. Sanford, 26, was killed May 11. Investigators said Alford incorrectly believed Sanford was a family member of the person who shot him and his brother, killing his brother.
“You were wrong, Mr. Alford, wrong in thinking that revenge would make the hurt go away,” said Gilbert Frazier, stepfather of LaQuan A. Sanford. “You gained nothing because your brother’s real killer is still out there.”
Frazier wept as he made his victim impact statement, but Alford taunted him, yelling “I’ll be back, on appeal,” until sheriff’s deputies grabbed him and placed a Taser on him.
Alford then told Sanford’s family that he was not Sanford’s killer. But Gorman said that the jury had found him guilty, and that he continued to show “total disrespect” for Sanford’s family, to life, and to the law.
“You chose to kill a innocent person in some kind of twisted sense of revenge,” Gorman said.
Alford was also convicted of felonious assault, being a felon in possession of a weapon and tampering with evidence. The jury acquitted Alford of one count discharging a weapon upon or over a public highway. The jury also approved the firearm specifications to the counts Alford was convicted of. Those specifications added three years to his sentence.
Alford’s brother, Maurice N. Alford Jr., 26, was killed in an early morning drive-by shooting on Feb. 24 on the Third Street Bridge near Edwin C. Moses Boulevard. Antonio Alford was with his brother and was shot several times in the arms and torso as the two drove home from Club Cream, 80 N. Main St. in Dayton.
Frazier said he was sorry for the loss of Maurice Alford’s life, but that by killing Sanford, Antonio Alford merely caused another family to feel the same hurt and loss.
“You have the mark of Cain forever on your forehead,” Frazier said as Alford taunted him. “I will be praying for you.”
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Woman convicted in identity theft scheme sentenced to probation
DAYTON — A Trotwood woman accused of stealing identity information from dead hospital patients was sentenced Wednesday, March 4 to five years community control.
Lisa Kidd, 39, appeared before Montgomery County Common Pleas Judge Michael L. Tucker. She pleaded guilty Feb. 4 to one count of identity fraud and 19 counts of money laundering, all third-degree felonies.
During the sentencing hearing, Tucker noted that Kidd had fully paid restitution of $6,200. Kidd did not make any statement during the hearing.
Kidd and her co-defendant, Linda McDermott-Dorsey, were indicted in December on multiple felony charges. McDermott-Dorsey, 41, also of Trotwood, was granted diversion in lieu of conviction on Feb. 20.
According to Englewood police, the two women used their positions at Samaritan North Health Center to access information, which was then used to apply for online loans.
Englewood Police Sgt. Mike Lang said in December that Samaritan North Health Center did an internal investigation and called police after being contacted by an online loan company the women are accused to trying to swindle. The families of the deceased were unaware of the loan applications, Lang said.
Lang said the women allegedly obtained a little more than $7,000 using information from 24 people over about a five-week period in May-June 2007. They checked newspaper obituaries and used the hospital computer system to gather the personal information of deceased persons who had been Good Samaritan Hospital patients, Lang said.
The money laundering charges stem from online bank accounts opened and used to transfer funds.
