HOMERVILLE — A man has been sentenced for sex crimes in Clinch County, according to the district attorney’s office.

Charlie Ben Curry Jr., 50, pleaded guilty to enticing a child for indecent purposes and to sexual battery against a person under 16 years of age, according to a statement from the office of Alapaha District Attorney Dick Perryman.

The sentence handed down was for 30 years, with the first eight to be served in the Georgia prison system, the statement said.

Curry pleaded guilty to the charges stemming from his sexual contact with a teenage girl, Perryman’s statement said.

If Curry completes his prison sentence, he will spend the remainder of his life on probation, including sex offender registration and sex offender probation conditions. Curry will also be banished for 30 years from 10 South Georgia counties including Clinch, Atkinson, Lanier, Cook and Berrien, the statement said.

Curry was sentenced by Chief Superior Court Judge Howard McClain.

“The things this man has done are inexcusable and I am proud we have been able to secure a lengthy prison sentence and his complete banishment from our community. It is a top priority of my office to prosecute people who harm children. I am grateful for the hard work and effort from my staff including Assistant District Attorney Annika Register. I must also commend the work of the Homerville Police Department. While the innocence lost at the hands of this man can never be recovered, I am pleased with the outcome of this case,” Perryman said in his statement.

Terry Richards is senior reporter at The Valdosta Daily Times.

LONDON (AP) — The U.S. Justice Department has charged WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange with conspiring with Chelsea Manning to break into a classified government computer.

The charge was announced Thursday after Assange was taken into custody in London in connection with a U.S. extradition request, as well as for breaching U.K. bail conditions in 2012.

His lawyer has previously said that Assange planned to fight any U.S. charges against him.

The indictment accuses Assange of assisting Manning, a former U.S. intelligence analyst, in cracking a password that helped Manning infiltrate Pentagon computers.

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2:10 p.m.

Ecuador’s government says that as part of its decision to expel Julian Assange from its embassy in London, it has withdrawn the Ecuadorian citizenship he was granted last year in a failed attempt to end the activist’s tumultuous stay at its diplomatic mission.

Ecuador also accused supporters of WikiLeaks and two Russian hackers of attempting to destabilize their country.

Interior Minister Maria Paula Romo said in Quito a close collaborator of WikiLeaks had traveled with former Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino this year to several countries, including Peru, Spain and Venezuela, in an attempt to undermine the government. She did not identify the individual but said their name, as well as two Russian hackers working in Ecuador, would be turned over to judicial authorities in the coming hours.

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2 p.m.

Britain’s Prime Minister Theresa May says the arrest of Julian Assange shows that “no one is above the law.”

May was speaking to the House of Commons after the arrest of the WikiLeaks founder, who was dragged out of the Ecuadorian Embassy Thursday after taking refuge there for seven years to avoid extradition. Ecuador announced it was revoking Assange’s asylum status, citing repeated violations of international conventions.

Assange is expected to appear at Westminster Magistrates court later Thursday on allegations of breaching bail conditions dating to 2012, and on extradition charges to the United States.

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1:50 p.m.

A U.S. official says the Justice Department is preparing to announce charges against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

The official spoke Thursday on condition of anonymity because no charges have yet been announced.

The exact nature of the charges was not immediately known.

Assange was arrested Thursday in London by police for breaching 2012 bail conditions as well as on an extradition request from the United States.

–By Eric Tucker in Washington, D.C.

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1:40 p.m.

Sweden’s Chief Prosecutor Ingrid Isgren says “we have not been able to decide on the available information” whether a stalled investigation into alleged sexual offenses against Julian Assange could be reopened if he returns to Sweden before the statute of limitations lapses in August 2020.

In 2017, Swedish prosecutors dropped a long-running inquiry into a rape claim against Assange, saying there was no way to detain or charge him “in the foreseeable future” because of his protected status inside the Ecuadorian Embassy in London.

Assange was arrested earlier Thursday at the embassy, where he had been holed up for seven years

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1:10 p.m.

Edward Snowden, the former security contractor who leaked classified information about U.S. surveillance programs, says the arrest of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is a blow to media freedom.

“Images of Ecuador’s ambassador inviting the U.K.’s secret police into the embassy to drag a publisher of–like it or not–award-winning journalism out of the building are going to end up in the history books,” Snowden said in a tweet.

“Assange’s critics may cheer, but this is a dark moment for press freedom.”

Snowden was charged by the United States in 2013 of violating the country’s espionage act. He was granted asylum by Russia that year and the asylum has been extended until at least 2020.

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12:50 p.m.

London police say they have arrested Julian Assange on extradition charges to the United States, as well as for breaching U.K. bail conditions.

Scotland Yard said in a statement Thursday that Assange was “further arrested on behalf of the United States authorities, at 10:53hrs after his arrival at a central London police station. This is an extradition warrant under Section 73 of the Extradition Act.”

The WikiLeaks founder sought political asylum in the Ecuadorian embassy in London in 2012, after he was released on bail while facing extradition to Sweden on sexual assault allegations. The accusations have since been dropped but he was still wanted for jumping bail.

Separately, he has been under U.S. Justice Department scrutiny for years for WikiLeaks’ role in publishing thousands of government secrets.

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12:05 p.m.

A senior member of Germany’s opposition Left party says Europe must not allow WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to be extradited to the United States for trial.

Sevim Dagdelen said in a statement that the withdrawal of Assange’s political asylum by Ecuador and his subsequent arrest by British police was a “scandal, a violation of international law, and at the same time a severe blow to independent journalism.”

She says it is the German government’s “duty” now to prevent Britain, which earlier Thursday was granted an extension to its departure from the European Union, from extraditing Assange to the U.S., “where he faces life imprisonment or even the death penalty for exposing U.S. war crimes.”

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12 p.m.

Julian Assange’s attorney Jennifer Robinson says the WikiLeaks founder had been arrested on an extradition request from the United States as well as on charges of breaching his bail conditions.

In a tweet, Robinson said Assange “has been arrested not just for breach of bail conditions but also in relation to a US extradition request.”

The U.S. Justice Department inadvertently revealed the existence of a sealed criminal case against Assange in a court filing last year. It’s not clear what he’s been accused of.

Former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning, who leaked a trove of classified material to WikiLeaks, was jailed last month after she refused to testify before a grand jury.

In a statement Thursday, Justice Department spokesman Marc Raimondi said: “We are aware of the reports that Julian Assange was taken into custody by United Kingdom authorities.”

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11:50 a.m.

The Swedish woman who alleged that she was raped by Julian Assange during a visit to Stockholm in 2010 has welcomed his arrest in London.

Elisabeth Massi Fritz, the lawyer for the unnamed woman, says news of Assange’s arrest earlier Thursday came as “a shock to my client” and that it was something “we have been waiting and hoping for since 2012.”

Massi Fritz said in a text message sent to The Associated Press that “we are going to do everything” to have the Swedish case reopened “so Assange can be extradited to Sweden and prosecuted for rape.”

Massi Fritz said “no rape victim should have to wait nine years to see justice be served.”

In 2017, Sweden’s top prosecutor dropped a long-running inquiry into a rape claim against Assange, saying there was no way to have Assange detained or charged within a foreseeable future because of his protected status inside the embassy.

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11:35 a.m.

WikiLeaks has accused “powerful actors,” including the CIA, of a “sophisticated” effort to dehumanize Julian Assange.

The comments by the organization Assange founded came soon after he was arrested at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he had been holed up for seven years.

In a tweet, the organization posted a photo of Assange with the words: “This man is a son, a father, a brother. He has won dozens of journalism awards. He’s been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize every year since 2010. Powerful actors, including CIA, are engaged in a sophisticated effort to dehumanise, delegitimize and imprison him. #ProtectJulian.”

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11:15 a.m.

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman says Russia wants Julian Assange’s rights to be observed following his arrest.

Shortly after Assange’s arrest in London, Dmitry Peskov told reporters that he could not comment on the overall case.

But, he said, “We of course hope that all of his rights will be observed.”

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11 a.m.

Ecuador’s president says his government withdrew asylum status for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange almost seven years after he sought refuge in Ecuador’s embassy in London, citing “repeated violations of international conventions and daily-life protocols.”

Lenin Moreno announced the “sovereign decision” in a statement accompanied by a video on Twitter on Thursday.

Assange hasn’t left the embassy since August 2012 for fear that if he steps off Ecuador’s diplomatic soil he would be arrested and extradited to the U.S. for publishing thousands of classified military and diplomatic cables through WikiLeaks.

London police arrested Assange at the embassy Thursday on a court warrant issued in 2012, when he failed to surrender to the court.

British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt thanked Moreno for breaking the impasse, saying on Twitter that Assange “is no hero and no one is above the law.”

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10:45 a.m.

Police in London say they’ve arrested WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange at the Ecuadorian embassy on a court warrant dating back to 2012.  

In a statement Thursday, police said Assange has been taken into “custody at a central London police station where he will remain, before being presented before Westminster Magistrates’ Court as soon as is possible.”

Assange hasn’t left the embassy since August 2012 for fear that if he steps off Ecuador’s diplomatic soil he will be arrested and extradited to the U.S. for publishing thousands of classified military and diplomatic cables through WikiLeaks.

PICKENS COUNTY, Ga. — School officials in north Georgia say a man who entered an elementary school Friday morning was a registered sex offender.

Officials said that around 9 a.m., a man gained access to Tate Elementary School in Pickens County and was in the building for about 5 minutes before being confronted by personnel. 

According to a spokesperson for the Pickens County School District, he was then escorted to the front office.

After checking his identification and running his information, they learned that the man, later identified by the school resource officer as 57-year-old Bruce Lee Daniell of Dawsonville, is a registered sex offender.

State records provided by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation suggest that Daniell was arrested for being a “Peeping Tom” in 2004.

“Due to the upgraded security camera system, district staff can confirm that the subject had no direct interactions with students,” the school district said in a letter to parents that was also shared online.

However, the Pickens County Sheriff’s Office said he entered a restroom and remained there for about 2 minutes, during which time four students came in as well. Investigators said Daniell never attempted to contact them and, after the fourth student entered, he walked into the hallway where he was found by staff members. Authorities said he claimed to be looking for employment.

The Pickens County Sheriff’s Office soon opened an investigation and issued warrants for Daniell’s arrest on charges of felony restrictions for sexual offenders and burglary. He was arrested at his home in Dawson County.

The sheriff’s office later added that Daniell first tried to enter a locked door at the front of the school but then moved to the east entrance where he found a door that wasn’t closed all the way.

“We want to assure all parents and our community that we take these situations seriously,” officials said in their letter. “We must all work together as a community of students, parents and school personnel to keep our campuses safe.”

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Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard said he has solutions to the county justice system’s repeat offender problem.

The system that has allowed repeat offenders to be released by Fulton Magistrate and Superior Court judges on signature or low bonds and/or probation has been criticized by residents, law enforcement agencies and other officials as broken.

“Our entire system is not set up to currently to rapidly dispose of cases. That’s very important,” Howard said in an interview. “Once you get past disposing of cases, you don’t have to worry about getting out on bond.”

He referred to a 2000 study of the Fulton justice system by Barry Mahoney of the Justice Management Institute in Denver that gave three recommendations for ways to improve it.

“First is that the DA’s office should set up a front-end evaluation process, and that process is called the complaint room,” Howard said. “It’s designed to quickly evaluate cases so the prosecutors can make a decision as to whether or not those cases should remain in the system. The second thing they recommended is the court should set up a criminal division of judges and a court that only handles criminal cases. The reason that suggestion was made is so the cases could rapidly be completed or disposed of. The third thing the study recommended is that in Fulton County, we should set up an aggressive case-processing standard. What that means is every case, once that case is charged, it should be completed within a certain time period.”

The only suggestion implemented was the complaint room, he said.

“We don’t have the other two,” Howard said. “Because those things don’t exist, that’s why we are talking a lot about bonds in cases when we should be talking about disposing of cases so if they are incarcerated, they are by the state and not paid for by Fulton County citizens. I understand how people would look at the complex court system. I believe it shouldn’t even exist. It’s a bad system. We ought to abolish it. There’s been a lot of controversy about how 70 percent of the cases assigned by the Superior Court are handled by two un-elected judges in the Magistrate Court. … It’s a bad system. What we ought to move to is a criminal division, as is done in many urban courts throughout this country. Also, the urban systems in other courts utilize case-processing standards. For instance, if someone is charged with entering an automobile case, we have to get that case disposed of within 90 days. We have some defendants waiting two or three years for a trial. Most are more serious cases, including murder and sex crime cases.”

Howard said Mahoney said if those two recommendations were implemented, the Fulton County Jail, which has had overcrowding issues in the past, would reduce its number of inmates in half because their cases would be processed faster, so they would go into the state prison system sooner.

“Why is that important? The money we’re using to fund those defendants in the Fulton County Jail unnecessarily could be used in better ways to hire more people so we could get through these cases faster,” Howard said, adding another study recommended the district attorney’s office double its number of lawyers, which now stands at 114.

Howard’s letter

March 1, a day after the justice system and repeat offender issues were mentioned often at a town hall meeting in Buckhead hosted by Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and her senior staff, Howard also sent a letter to the chief judges of the Fulton Superior, Magistrate and State courts and the solicitor general. In the letter, he wrote that he has ideas on how to fix the repeat offender issue.

“The Fulton County district attorney’s office has complained for many years that the issue of release by Fulton County Magistrate judges is particularly harmful when it involves defendants who are arrested and charged with serious violent felonies,” Howard wrote. “On March 5, 2018, the Superior Court judges of Fulton County, in response to this request, made the adjustment to remove the ability of magistrates to release a defendant who is charged with these serious violent felonies: murder, rape, aggravated child molestation, aggravated sodomy (and) aggravated sexual battery.

“I am writing this letter today because it is my opinion that the time has come for our system to make two additional changes. First, magistrates should be prohibited from issuing bond for seven additional violent offenses including: armed robbery, kidnapping, home invasion (in the) first degree, aggravated stalking, motor vehicle high-jacking, aircraft high-jacking, defendants who are repeat offenders and charged with the following offenses: arson, aggravated assault and burglary. Secondly, I am requesting a more extensive change in our release procedures as they relate to repeat offenders. …

“Accordingly I am asking the court to adopt the policy below beginning on March 11. If the request for bond is made before a Magistrate Court and the case involves one of the elements below: a defendant who is recognized as a repeat offender under Georgia law, which means the defendant has already been convicted of a felony; the defendant is being charged with a crime of violence under Georgia law; if the defendant is currently serving a probated sentence which would be violated by the conviction of a new or subsequent crime (or) if the defendant is charged with a sex offense under Georgia law.

“And if the Fulton County district attorney opposes such bond or release by the magistrate, in such case the action by the magistrate shall constitute a recommendation for bond to be reviewed for final disposition by a sitting Superior Court judge. To ensure the success of such policy, the district attorney pledges not to oppose all bond matters, but rather to limit his objection to cases that present discernible harm to the public.”

Atlanta Police Chief Erika Shields, who talked at length at the town hall meeting about the repeat offender issue, issued a statement in response to Howard’s letter.

“I’m encouraged by Mr. Howard’s willingness to take action on this issue,” she said. “The easy issuance of bonds for convicted and repeat offenders has been a continued thorn int he side of our officers out there on the streets making these arrests. But any real movement on this issue will also require any judge — not just magistrates — to be diligent in carefully and thoughtfully reviewing these cases, especially when it involves violent, repeat offenders. Today’s appeal by Mr. Howard to the Fulton judiciary is a step in the right direction, but by no means is our collective work done.”

Fulton Magistrate Court Chief Judge Cassandra Kirk issued a statement in response to Shields’ town hall comments regarding the Magistrate Court’s role in the justice system. Shields said, “All we’re asking of them is before you make a decision whether a person should walk out the door (with a low or signature bond), you have the person’s criminal history in front of you and the initial (arrest) report. That’s it.” She also asked that court’s judges to further investigate cases if not enough evidence regarding a defendant’s criminal background or police report is presented.

Kirk said, “The situation is not as simple as the police chief portrays. The issuance of bonds relies heavily on the sworn testimony and information presented during the hearing by (the) state and the defense. Judges are prohibited from investigating cases. This means that judges cannot conduct their own research on cases pending before them and must rely on the proper parties to bring forth relevant information, such as criminal histories, police reports and pretrial recommendations. I look forward to collaborating on process improvements with all stakeholders.”

Other changes needed

Howard also said other adjustments are needed to help improve the justice system.

“I think one of the other things we’re going to have to do is look very closely at our probation system,” he said. “As you’re aware, most of our defendants are placed on probation and the majority of those repeat offenders are products of our current probation system. I think we should make a close inspection of our probation system, whether or not it is doing what the criminal justice system and the public expects. … Second, we need to operate a probation system in the State Court of Futon County. Third, we need to make goals with the probation system so these defendants are not repeat offenders and not involved in criminal conduct.

“We should have some very clear, attainable goals. For instance, if you are a defendant and if you’re charged with a crime and not working, the probation department ought to assist you in getting a job. If you don’t get a job, there’s a good chance you’re going to come back (through the system) again. … (With) the largest number of criminal defendants, in the State Court of Fulton County, there is not a probation department operated by the state or the county. That’s why I think the county, because of our repeat offender problem, should take charge of taking on the probation department in Fulton County. How do you pay for it? I think we can do that by reducing our jail population not by letting out defendants on bond but by processing the criminals faster so they go into the state prison system.”

Howard also said the county needs to “do is a better job of embracing technology,” including adding more surveillance cameras and license plate readers. He also said he believes the county should better use the cameras it already has to find and arrest suspects, “to discourage criminals from committing crimes.”

“There are some other things like ShotSpotter, the technology using radar to detect gunfire. We need to use it in conjunction with video surveillance. That’s what they’re doing in cities like Orlando and Washington,” he said, adding the funds for these items would come from the money the county would save on its jail population once other reforms are in place.

But the Atlanta Police Department already has some ShotSpotter devices installed for its officers to use as part of a pilot program financed by Georgia Power Co.

“We have five square miles of coverage with about 20 sensors per square mile,” said Officer Jarius Daugherty, a department spokesman.

Finally, Howard said Fulton should create a countywide pawn desk that would track items just sold to pawnshops and other similar businesses, since thieves often try to pawn off the things they steal.

Concerned Citizens’ requests

Concerned Citizens United, a Facebook group of about 5,000 Atlanta residents pushing for reforms in the justice system, recently met with Howard to talk about their solutions to the repeat offender problem. One of them is to have some offenses, such as entering an automobile to steal items (including slider crimes) be upgraded from non-complex to complex (complex crimes are categorized as serious offenses such as rape and murder), so they would only go before Superior Court judges and not Magistrate Court ones. But Howard said if the county set up a criminal division, it would accomplish Concerned Citizens’ goal.

The group also wants the Fulton County Board of Commissioners to hire an individual to handle oversight in the district attorney’s office so money is allocated in that department where it was supposed to be. Howard said he disagrees with that suggestion and added his office is already scrutinized enough by the county when it comes to budgeting. However, he said, if Concerned Citizens is also worried about the lack of technology used to help each department within the justice system communicate better with each other, he agrees with it in that regard.

An email to Fulton Commission Chair Robb Pitts seeking comment on what the board can do to help solve the justice system’s problems was not returned by the Neighbor’s deadline.

House Bill 202 would provide to the public aggregate statistics on crimes committed by people in state prisons who are in the country illegally. Monday afternoon, the state House Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee approved the bill on a 8-2 vote.

State Rep. Jesse Petrea, R-Savannah, is the lead sponsor of the bill and said it only pertains to state prisons — not local jails.

“The subset of inmates in this state who are illegally here are about 3 percent,” Petrea said. “So, this is a smaller subset. However, it is an impactful subset, because when you think about the fact that if indeed our federal government, our federally elected officials from both parties, if they were doing their job and dealing with the very important issue of immigration in this country, and making sure we have a legal and vigorous immigration system, if they were doing that job, then none of those crimes, perhaps, would have occurred.

“And so I had received this information at the request of the (state Department of Corrections) a couple of years ago, and discovered that I could get it, but it wasn’t available to the public.”

The aggregate data would include numbers on those under detainers from U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, offenses committed and the home countries of the inmates “who are not United States citizens and who are confined under the authority of the department and, with regard to the total population in confinement, the percentage that comprises persons who are not citizens of the United States.”

The first report would go out Oct. 1, and then every 90 days thereafter.

“This is 1,505 currently in Georgia corrections, and well over 1,100 of these are violent and sex offenses,” Petrea said. “These are heinous crimes, folks. And the degree to which this is a problem, the people need to be aware of.”

The language of the committee substitute of the bill approved Monday doesn’t make it clear, but from discussion in committee, the statistics wouldn’t be on all unauthorized immigrants in state prisons, but on ones with ICE detainers — Petrea said there are an estimated 2,100 people in state prisons believed to be unauthorized but a few hundred don’t have ICE detainers.

Naomi Tsu, an attorney with the Southern Poverty Law Center who specializes in immigration law in the Deep South, told the committee that what happens with an ICE detainer is that the agency indicates it’s interested in finding out the release date of that inmate so the agency can pick them up.

“It’s basically like filing an indictment, but in the immigration system,” Tsu said. “So, it’s not proof of anything, it’s allegations of something. A detainer will often be filed against someone who had legal status. So, one of the things Congress has done is to say you can lose your privilege of being here if you are an immigrant, if you entered — I’m not an immigrant, but I’m the child of immigrants, and if any of my family members had committed a really heinous crime like the ones on this list, they would’ve lost their immigration status. Until they became citizens, at which point you’re just subject to the same protections as all citizens.

“Congress strips people’s immigration status, and the way ICE goes about doing that — because it’s not an automatic process, there’s an immigration court involved, etc. — and so, ICE files a detainer against someone who might have been here completely legally, in order to try to strip that status so they can be deported.”

Various speakers swung both ways on directions they believed the bill should go — some advocated for explicit comparisons to the percentages of crimes committed by inmates in the general population, so as to provide context and not needlessly demonize immigrant communities. Others asked for the bill to cover everyone in prison believed to be unauthorized, along with those in local jails throughout the state.

The bill now moves on to the House Rules Committee.

THOMASVILLE — Thomas County is a leader in a number of areas, and one of those areas, said a Thomas County law enforcement officer, is in child victims’ reporting of sex crimes.

A juvenile recently reported to officials at his school that a man exposed himself to him when the boy was in third grade. The incident took place a couple of years ago, said Lt. Tim Watkins, Thomas County Sheriff’s Office chief investigator.

The boy underwent a forensic interview at The Treehouse Advocacy Center for Children. 

“The child was specific about what had happened to him,” Watkins said.

The boy named James Caldwell, 42, as the offender. The child reported the incident to a school counselor.

“We found (Mr.) Caldwell and interviewed him,” Watkins said. “He admitted to exposing himself to the child.”

Caldwell, a Thomas County resident, was arrested Monday. The incident took place at a Boston residence.

Watkins said the suspect was convicted in 1998 of enticing a child for indecent purposes and placed on the sex offender registry.

Young Thomas County victims are reporting the incidents to school officials, including school resource officers.

“The children feel comfortable talking to them,” Watkins said. “We get a lot of the reports from schools.”

Students in the Thomas County school system are told about inappropriate touching, said Superintendent Dr. Lisa Williams.

A school system therapist adds another person a child can report an incident to, Williams said. 

“It adds more support and more people for students to talk to and feel comfortable with,” she said.

Some county school students report the crime to teachers, in addition to counselors and school resource officers.

Williams said the county school system has a climate that makes students feel comfortable about reporting the crimes.

In the Thomasville City school system, student victims usually report such crimes to counselors.

“Every adult in the building is a mandated reporter,” said Superintendent Laine Reichert.

All employees, including cafeteria and clerical personnel and bus drivers, undergo mandated reporter training.

School system protocol is followed after a sex-related crime is reported by a child, Reichert said. 

Senior reporter Patti Dozier can be reached at (229) 226-2400, ext. 1820 

ST. PETER, Minn. — A female security guard at the state sex offender treatment center here has been charged with sexually assaulting a male patient committed as a sexually dangerous person.

The complaint, filed recently in Nicollett County District Court, accused guard Claudia Kogo, 57, of Mankato, Minnesota, of having sex with the patient more than two dozen times in late 2017.

The patient reported the relationship started with flirting and progressed to sex, according to the complaint.

Kogo reportedly told a state investigator she kissed and groped the patient, but denied having sex with him. Recordings of phone calls between the two included conversations about their sexual activities, the complaint said.

Kogo is no longer an employee at the treatment center, the Minnesota Department of Human Services reported. 

“Sexual relationships between staff and patients or clients at DHS treatment facilities are unacceptable under any circumstances,” said Chuck Johnson, the department’s deputy commissioner.

Details for this story were supplied by the Mankato, Minnesota, Free Press.

Jeannette Farmer Eady, 74, passed away Tuesday, May 19, 2020. Graveside services will be held at 2 p.m. Thursday, May 21, at Nunn-Wheeler Cemetery with the Rev. Freddie Hogg officiating. Mrs. Eady was born in Milledgeville and was a graduate of Baldwin County High School. She worked for Dr. …

Grady Ray Townsend (Pop) of Oxford, passed away Friday, May 15, 2020, at the age of 89. A Marine, Mr. Townsend valiantly served his country in the United States Marine Corps during the Korean War and was a faithful member of Heritage Hills Baptist Church. He was a hardworking, selfless man w…

Benjie Dewayne Fountain, 58, passed away Thursday, May 15, 2020. Private services will be held at West View Cemetery. Benjie was a life-long resident of Baldwin County. He was a retired electrician. He was preceded in death by his father, James E. Fountain; and two brothers, Eddie Fountain a…

A private burial service for Mrs. Lois Gilbert of Sparta, Ga., will be held for family. Her memories shall forever remain in the heart of her children, Johnnie Gilbert, Jennie Rous, Brenda Gilbert, Polly Wheeler, Eddie Gilbert, Bobby Gilbert, Deborah Gilbert, Timmy Gilbert, Trudy Butt and Ro…

Funeal services for Mrs. Evelyn R. Abram of Sparta, Ga., will be held privately with family. Her memories will be cherished by her children, Timothy Duggans, Charles Duggans, Kathy Harper, Lucious Abrams, Reva Williams and Vanessa Cheathem. Services entrusted to Dawson’s Mortuary, 98 Hopgood…

VARNELL, Ga. — A 30-year-old Dalton man who was found to have had sexual intercourse with a 15-year-old female in a vehicle by a Varnell Police Department officer in June pleaded guilty to statutory rape and was sentenced to one year in jail and seven years on probation.

Christopher Avery Adams, of 800 Autumn Court-3, was indicted for statutory rape and child molestation but the child molestation charge was dropped by prosecutors as part of a plea deal. Varnell Police had initially charged Adams with statutory rape, child molestation, enticing a child for indecent purposes and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. 

Adams was in jail from the time of his arrest in June until being released in December. As part of his sentencing, he will get credit for the

time served. He is back in the Whitfield County jail. He also was fined $1,000, must pay court costs and fees, must register as a sex offender and abide by sex offender conditions, and perform 300 hours of community service upon his release. 

Adams’ attorney, Anna P. Johnson, said the dropping of the other charges was because the 15-year-old told Adams she was 19. Johnson said Adams had no idea the female was a minor.

“Even the police were surprised when she told them how old she was,” Johnson said. “(Adams) immediately told the police he had no idea she was underage. It was a case that could have happened to anyone. He had no clue that she was underage. She admitted that to the police that he had no clue. He thought she was 19 and an adult. To me, it is heartbreaking, and he surely doesn’t need to be labeled as a sex offender for the rest of his life. But the law is the law.”

District Attorney Bert Poston wrote in an email that not knowing the age of the female was “no defense,” but the circumstances were taken into account in the plea deal. 

“Actual knowledge of a victim’s age is not an element of the crime of either statutory rape or child molestation,” Poston wrote. “Mistake of fact about such age is no defense. Nevertheless, we routinely take those sorts of issues into account along with all of the other facts and circumstances of a case when making negotiated plea offers including both the terms of the sentence and what charges they will plea to and what charges will be dismissed.  

“We felt that the terms of the plea in this case were reasonable under all of the circumstances and the victim’s mother agreed and supported the negotiated plea.”

According to a press release on the Varnell Police Department Facebook page at the time of Adams’ arrest, an officer responded to a call of “a suspicious vehicle … inside the Springs Subdivision off State Route 2.” The press release said the officer found a vehicle parked but with its engine running and “two occupants (male and female) inside engaged in lewd behaviors and activities.

“Both occupants had been involved in sexual intercourse prior to the arrival of our officer, and these activities were still present and/or ongoing to a certain degree upon the arrival of our officer,” the press release said. “The evidence of these sexual activities were observed by our officer inside the vehicle, and the evidence was recorded on camera and collected …”