Arm found on beach belongs to missing rapist

3-31-2011 Ireland:

Police in the Republic of Ireland have identified a human arm, found on Dollymount Strand last November, as belonging to a convicted rapist.

The man was named last night as 46-year-old James Nolan, of Fairlawn Road, Finglas, in west Dublin. He has not been seen since he was released from Portlaoise jail last November after serving a three-year sentence for a burglary in Booterstown, south Dublin, in 2005.

Nolan was arrested for the burglary as a result of fingerprints taken 19 years earlier when he was detained for the rape. He was jailed for 14 years in 1988 for the rape and false imprisonment of a woman.

Gardai said last night that his disappearance after his release from jail had not been notified to them and he had not been listed as a missing person.

Last night, officers were trying to contact members of his family to inform them of the find.

The limb was found on the beach on February 8 last. As part of their inquiries, gardai sought international co-operation from other police forces through the Interpol network.

As a result of assistance from British police, a DNA match was made recently which confirmed that it was Mr Nolan's arm.

Investigators acknowledged last night that they had no information yet on the circumstances surrounding his disappearance, when exactly he went missing and whether he had been killed.

One officer said their inquiries could now become more focused as a result of the positive identification through the DNA tests on the arm.

During Nolan's trial for burglary, the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that it was a fingerprint taken from him when he first went into custody in the 1980s that led to his arrest for the later offence.

The court was also told that he had other previous convictions for larceny and road-traffic offences.

Judge Katherine Delahunt noted that a probation report had shown a high risk of re-offending due to Nolan's use of alcohol and drugs.

She said that she had taken into account his "significant previous convictions" and the fact that he had twice opted for trial before pleading guilty.

But she said he would be given limited credit for not putting the victim of the burglary through the ordeal of a trial.

The judge suspended the final 18 months of the sentence and imposed 12 months' probation. She also ordered him to undergo alcohol and drug treatment. ..Source.. by Belfast Telegraph

Mother: Joseph K. Baer didn't deserve brutal death

3-31-2011 Wisconsin:

MANITOWOC — Joseph K. Baer may have been in and out of trouble much of his life, but he didn’t deserve to die the brutal way that he did, said his mother, LouAnn Baer of rural St. Nazianz.

The 37-year-old Manitowoc man’s body was found Saturday at a rural residence south of Brillion. Robert Saurbeir, 29, of Manitowoc, and James Loewe, 33, of Hilbert, are charged with beating him to death with several objects, including a metal pipe and hammer, during a night of drinking.

Baer was released from Manitowoc County Jail just two days before he was killed in Calumet County.

LouAnn Baer spoke Tuesday of her reaction when she was told of her son’s death on Sunday afternoon.

“I cracked. I cried and I cried. (Monday) didn’t help when they said they found a chain with blood on it and a hammer,” she said. “They claimed they were his friends.”

His death was any mother’s nightmare.

“I’m just imagining how he felt, being beaten to death,” Baer said. “I’m just imagining him saying stop, stop, stop. I can see him. I’m crying a lot. I’m angry and upset … he did not deserve to die like that. Nobody does. Nobody does.”

Joseph Baer grew up and lived in the St. Nazianz area most of his life, first with his mother and father and then, when they divorced in 1987, with his father, she said.

His father, who changed his name from Herbert A. Baer to Elvis A. Presley, died in 2004.

LouAnn Baer spoke of her son’s childhood.

“He was a sweet kid when he wanted to be but he had an awesome temper. He had to have it his way,” she said. “He had a hard time getting along and studying. He was a hyper child.”

Her son started his education at Riverview School and continued it in prison, she said.

“He was in detention and jail and prison all his adult life,” LouAnn Baer said. “I’ll grant you he was rowdy …. In all, he could be a very, very sweet person. He wasn’t all bad. He was more misunderstood.”

Joseph Baer had an extensive criminal record, said Capt. Scott Luchterhand of the Manitowoc Police Department.

Most recently he was in jail on extended supervision starting Jan. 29, said Jason Jost, Manitowoc County Jail administrator.

According to Manitowoc County Circuit Court records, Baer was sentenced to prison on felony burglary charges in 1999 and again in 2006. Baer had other criminal convictions in Manitowoc County, including for theft, negligent handling of a dangerous weapon, disorderly conduct and criminal damage to property.

Baer also was a registered sex offender, convicted on Jan. 2, 1992, of sexual assault of a child, according to Wisconsin Department of Corrections records. ..Source.. by Suzanne Weiss, Herald Times Reporter

Corpus Christi police make arrest in Thursday night killing

3-29-2011 Texas:

Man found dead Thursday night identified

CORPUS CHRISTI — A Corpus Christi man was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of murder related to the death of a man last week.

Alfonzo Lee Soliz, 30, was arrested in San Antonio by U.S. Marshals working with the Gulf Coast Violent Offenders Fugitive Task Force. Soliz also is known as Alonso Soliz.

He is accused of killing 41-year-old Barry James Holland, who was found Thursday night laying between two houses on Mestina Street.

Police announced the arrest in a news release. Soto’s bail was set at $100,000, according to Lt. Isaac Valencia.

No other details were released because of the ongoing investigation.

The Nueces County Medical Examiner has not ruled on a cause of death and police are investigating the case as a homicide.

Witnesses who found the body said he appeared to have been stabbed.

Court records show both men have criminal records that include convictions for child sex crimes.

Holland was sentenced in 1997 to five years in prison for sexual assault of a child.

At the time of his death, Holland was free on $50,000 bail related to a felony charge that accused him of failing to register as a sex offender.

His trial was set for next week.

Soliz’s record includes a 2000 conviction for sexual assault of a child along with aggravated robbery and burglary cases. ..Source.. by John Allen

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Soliz Given 30 Years for Mestina Street Murder

4-18-2012:

CORPUS CHRISTI - The man who stabbed another man to death by Corpus Christi City Hall last year is headed to prison for 25 years.

Alfonso Lee Soliz, 31, stabbed Barry Holland, 41, several times on Mestina Street in March 2011. Investigators say the two men were in a fight three days before Holland's murder.

Authorities had to track Soliz down in San Antonio afterwards. He recently entered a guilty plea and will be credited for time served. ..Source.. by KRISTV.com

Man who killed sex offender could spend 6 years in jail

3-28-2011 Canada:

A Montreal crown prosecutor has recommended six years in jail for a man convicted in a vigilante-style killing.

Patrick Belanger was convicted of the manslaughter death of 63-year-old Leonard Wells at a Snowdon-area apartment building.

In July 2009, Belanger attacked Wells after he spotted child pornography on the man’s computer.

Belanger became angry and began punching Wells repeatedly.

The victim died in hospital.

Wells was a known sex offender from Ontario.

During a pre-sentencing hearing at the Montreal courthouse Monday afternoon, lawyers debated what sentence the 28-year-old Belanger deserved.

In his arguments, crown attorney Thierry Nadon said a clear message needed to be sent that people should not take justice into their own hands.

On the other side, the defense argued three years behind bars would be enough. In court, lawyer Julien Archambault discussed his client’s alcohol and drug problems, and argued his client was a victim of sexual abuse in his youth.

Therapist Clement Proulx was one of eight people to testify for Belanger.

“This is somebody who has less than one per cent of a chance of recidivism, of committing another crime like that, of committing any crime. He doesn’t have a background of criminal history,” he said.

Eric Schorer is the janitor at the building where the crime took place.

He agreed Belanger deserved a less harsh sentence.

“I don’t think he wanted to kill him. He’s a normal type of person. He needs a break in life. He had a really rough life,” Schorer said.

The crown’s suggestion was in line with a similar recent case.

In 2009, a British Columbia resident received seven years in prison for attacking a suspected pedophile with a baseball bat.

Clifford Frederic Martin struck his victim as he lay sleeping.

The man he killed was accused of molesting a 13-year-old girl.

Justice Louise Boudreau will hand down a sentence on April 21. ..Source.. by Global Montreal

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Child-porn discovery not a 'licence to kill': Canadian man who beat his neighbour to death after finding child pornography on his computer will serve six years behind bars

4-1-2011:

A man who beat his neighbour to death after finding child pornography on his computer should serve six years behind bars, says the Crown.

Patrick Belanger, 28, has pleaded guilty to manslaughter for the July 2009 beating death of Leonard Wells, 63, in west-end Montreal.

Prosecutor Thierry Nadon told a Quebec Court judge the sentence would send a clear message to society that vigilante killings are unacceptable and that a man's pedophilic tendencies don't give citizens "a licence to kill."

Belanger will be sentenced on April 21.

He was initially charged with first-degree murder following the attack on July 25, 2009. He had been helping Wells to move and had asked to use his computer while the two were taking a break.

He flew into a rage when he stumbled across images of children being sexually assaulted. Belanger called 911 and warned he would take matters into his own hands unless Wells was arrested immediately. He began punching and kicking the man when police failed to arrive after 20 minutes.

Belanger called 911 a second time as Wells lay in a pool of his own blood. The victim was transported to hospital in a coma and died a month later.

Belanger later told the court the child-porn images triggered memories of his own father's tale of childhood sexual abuse. The defendant also said he was drunk at the time of the beating and he had been an alcoholic for several years.

But the Crown said the "horrific" and "revolting" images did not give Belanger an excuse to kill a man.

"We cannot allow people to mete out their own justice," Nadon told the court.

"(Otherwise) we would be promoting anarchy. Incidents such as this one ... do not give him a licence to kill."

The prosecutor said the fact Belanger waited 20 minutes to administer the beating was evidence the killing was premeditated.

Defence lawyer Julien Archambault countered Belanger had no criminal record and has been in alcohol rehab for two years.

He requested a three-year prison term.

Belanger told judge Louise Bourdeau he's a changed man and was "not thinking rationally" at the time of the deadly attack.

"I'll have to pay for what I did," he added. "I have no hard feelings towards the Crown. Justice must be served." ..source..

Death at California's Civil Commitment Center: Coalinga

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Suspect killed was sex offender from Tennessee

Posted in Related Deaths

A registry violation, a ministerial violation. I begin to wonder, if once an arrest seems to go awry, and they are ready for a SWAT Team, do they have any negotiator type person to at least try to end a situation without further violence. Unfortunately the articles do not have a timeline to know whether a negotiator could have ended it. The facts here are missing something, this is not the usual way this occurs. I know this, there is a little girl who will grow up fatherless, and one day will be asking WHY? Will police or lawmakers be able to answer her?

3-10-2011 Colorado:

LIMON, Colo. — The shooting death of a police officer on Colorado's eastern plains left his community grieving Thursday as state and local police investigated a standoff that also ended with a suspect dead inside a mobile home.

Limon officer Jay Sheridan, 27, was killed Wednesday by gunfire that erupted when police tried to serve a fugitive warrant to a man at a mobile home park in the town 70 miles east of Denver, Colorado State Trooper Heather Cobler said.

Sheridan had been a six-year veteran on the Limon police force, and his death marked the first time an officer had been killed in the line of duty in the community of about 1,800, said police chief Lynn Yowell.

"It's hit all of us very hard," Yowell said. "It's a loss that's cut deep within the community."

U.S. marshals identified the suspect as Dennis Mark Hasty, 52, who was wanted on a sex offender registry violation from Tennessee's Roane County.

Officers said they found Hasty's body after a four-hour standoff, and that he apparently shot himself.

In a statement, the U.S. Marshals Service said Thursday that authorities in Colorado's Lincoln County were notified late Wednesday that Hasty was believed to be in the area. The Tennessee Sexual Offender Registry listed Hasty as having a 1990 conviction for incest.

Tennessee officials could not immediately provide additional information.

Jim Hartwig, manager of the mobile home park, told The Denver Post the man had been living in a trailer with a woman since November. Hartwig said the man possessed a .25 caliber handgun and other guns.

Two other officers, who were not identified, were trapped in a separate room of the home during the standoff. Neither was hurt. As many as 20 mobile home park residents were evacuated during the standoff.

Chief Yowell said the department has five officers on its police force. Yowell told the Post that Sheridan was the father of a 1-year-old girl and he had just started a goat ranch.

Resident Josh Wiedemann said he heard "a pop and a whiz" and that when he went outside, a police officer with a shotgun told him to move away.

"The U.S. Marshals Service is deeply saddened at the tragic loss of Officer Jay Sheridan of the Limon Police Department," said Colorado U.S. Marshal John Kammerzell. "The Marshals Service stands together with our fellow law enforcement partners during this time of mourning." ..Source.. by ajc.com

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Suspect In Limon Police Shooting Convicted Of Incest

3-10-2011 COlorado:

Dennis Marc Hasty Wanted On Sex Offender Registry Violation; Limon Police Officer Jay Sheridan Dies;

LIMON, Colo. -- The man who police say shot and killed a Limon police officer before shooting and killing himself was wanted for repeatedly failing to register as a sex offender.

Dennis Mark Hasty, 52, was convicted in 1993 for incest in Knox County, Tennessee. According to his criminal record, the violation occurred on Nov. 30, 1990.

When he was released on probation, he failed to register as a sex offender and went back to prison for another term in February 2001, according to court records.

In 1996, he was charged with aggravated rape of an 8-year-old girl but pleaded guilty to a lesser charge, according to Knoxville News Sentinel in Tennessee.

He was supposed to register as a sex offender after he was released a second time, but the last time he was on the registry was in August 2007 in Texas, according to officials.

In January 2008, deputies with the Roane County Sheriff's Office went to a home where Hasty was staying to conduct a welfare check. Before officers could talk to him, he ran out the back door, the U.S. Marshal's Service said. Inside the house were two runaway teenage girls, according to the Sentinel.

While Hasty was a convicted felon, and on the run for some time, sources told 7NEWS that there was no indication he might come out shooting if approached by local police officer.

Dennis Hasty Vowed Somebody Was Going To Die, Manager Says

Hasty had vowed that somebody was going to die and that he was never going to jail, according to the manager of the trailer home park where he lived.

The manager of the Wagon Wheel Mobile Home Park said Hasty rented the trailer as Mark Hasting. The manager, who only wanted to be identified as "J," said he had not idea Hasty was a wanted fugitive.

Hasty apparently told residents that he was an ordained minister, but the manager said there were signs something was wrong.

He said, before Wednesday night's standoff, it was chaos in Hasty's trailer home. J said he knows because he lives next door.

"I wasn't really surprised because he had said before that if the cops ever came banging on his door that somebody was going to die and he was never going to jail," J said.

J said when officers showed up to pick up Hasty on Wednesday night, he told officers that Hasty owned several guns and was a dangerous person. J said he offered to knock on the door and get Hasty for them, so that they could avoid a confrontation, but J said the officers said they had it under control.

He said he heard the shooting around 6:10 p.m.

"I heard three gunshots and officers started screaming, 'Man down!'" J said. "(There were) two small caliber guns and the really big caliber gun."

Police said Hasty shot and killed Limon Officer Jay Sheridan while he was in the hallway. Sheridan was there to pick up Hasty on a out-of-state fugitive warrant.

When Hasty opened fire, two other officers with Sheridan ran for cover inside a separate part of the home and remained there for their own safety, police said.

Those officers were initially thought to be hostages, but Hasty had barricaded himself in one room of the mobile home, and the officers had just ended up in a separate part of the mobile home.

At 10:40 p.m., SWAT officers swarmed into the mobile home and knocked down one wall.

"I believe that's where they penetrated the house and put the grenade in," said J, pointing to a hole in the outside wall of the house.

Hasty was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in the bedroom, Limon police said.

Jay Sheridan Was Father To 21-Month Old

Wiping away tears during a Thursday morning news conference, Limon Police Chief Lynn Yowell said Sheridan was a great officer.

Yowell said he wasn't going to speak about the investigation but would speak as the family spokesman.

Sheridan, 27, was born and raised in Simla. He was a husband and the father of a 21-month-old girl.

That girl was Sheridan's pride and joy, Yowell said.

The girl was wondering why everyone was in their house Thursday morning, Yowell said, and it was heartbreaking.

Sheridan was 21 when he joined the Limon Police Department and was with the police department for 6½ years. He said Sheridan was a jokester who was always having fun, but when he put on a uniform, he buckled down and went to work.

"He wore his uniform with a lot of pride ... sorry (choking back tears), and a lot of respect. And is going to be sorely sorely missed," Yowell said. "When he came to work and he put on the uniform, he came to do the job."

He attended Northeastern Junior College in Sterling and was going to major in auto mechanics. However, he attended a law enforcement academy and decided to pursue a career as a police officer.

Sheridan is survived by his parents, who still live in Simla, his wife and daughter in Limon and a brother and sister in Fort Collins.

"Jay was a really good guy. If you needed anybody to talk to or if you needed something to do, he would be there to help you," said Sheridan's friend, Brandon Soderstrom.

Sheridan's death was one of only five officers on the Limon police force and his death has dealt a big blow to the community. The other Limon police officers have taken a leave of absence, although they were still wearing their uniforms Thursday in honor of Sheridan.

Deputies from neighboring Morgan County stepped up to secure the scene and take to relieve the officers who were on duty all Wednesday night and Thursday morning.

"They've suffered a tragic loss, and they need some time to realize what's happened here and to deal with that," said Dave Morgan with the Morgan County Sheriff's Department. "It's a tough thing. It's something that ripples through the law enforcement community. We're down here to provide support. We're giving them law enforcement services for Lincoln County as well as Limon PD."

Yowell said Sheridan was like a son to him.

"Not only was Jay an employee of mine, a colleague of mine, but he was also a dear friend of mine," Yowell said.

The shooting is being investigated by the 18th Judicial District Critical Response Team. ..Source.. by Kim Nguyen, Web Editor

Warren police question son, 34, found in attic after slaying of father, 61

3-3-2011 Michigan:

A man authorities believe killed his father this morning was found hiding in the attic of the family’s Warren home and is now in custody, police said this afternoon.

Police hadn't been sure the son, identified as Jason Kinnie, 34, was in the home or whether he fled after the killing of his father, Donald Kinnie, at the home on the 30200 block of Madison Avenue near Warren’s city hall complex.

Police found Donald Kinnie, 61, with significant head trauma in a first-floor bathroom at the home this morning. Police said a friend told police that Jason Kinnie told him he killed his father.

Kinnie was arrested and taken to the Warren jail for interrogation, Warren Deputy Police Commissioner Louis Galasso said. Kinnie wasn’t armed, but police said they found an empty gun holster in the home.

Galasso said the head trauma was so extensive that police aren’t sure whether a weapon was used, or what kind it may have been.

The Kinnies were no strangers to the Warren Police, who had been called to the home before for disputes between the father and son. Warren Police Commissioner Jere Green said the son had mental health issues and his father had him involuntarily committed for evaluation in 2004.

Donald Kinnie, meanwhile, was convicted in 2007 of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct with a person age 13-15 and was on the Michigan Sex Offender Registry, online state records show. Additional details about the conviction weren’t immediately available.

Neighbors knew of the conviction and were leery of Kinnie, said Bonnie Hessling of Sterling Heights, who was looking after her mother who lives across the street from the victim. Hessling said neighbors had passed around photos of Kinnie from his entry on the sex offenders database.

Hessling said the father and son fought often, and she described the two as “just angry people.” Little things including parking too close to his driveway would set the father off, Hessling said.

“There was always something going on,” she said. “There was always fighting. Just little things like that always seemed to bother them.”

Police initially weren’t sure whether Jason Kinnie fled – his red Ford Explorer was not at the home – but police suspected he may have never left. He’d told his mother in a phone call that he’d killed his father and that he could hear police outside the family home.

Green said State Police and Sterling Heights SWAT officers were called in to help with the search. State Police brought equipment with cameras and heat detection to search hard-to-reach areas of the home.

Green said a small opening to the attic was ajar in a closet in the home, and there was insulation on the floor. There also were dents in the ceiling drywall indicating someone had stepped on it.

“Logic just told us he’s got to be in the house,” Green said.

Green said Warren’s SWAT team was getting ready for training today, with its officers at the city hall complex a block from the home “literally putting their gear on when this homicide took place.”

The team used tear gas and flash-bang grenades to try and flush Jason Kinnie from the home, Green said, but ultimately coaxed him out after the search gear from the State Police confirmed he was hiding in the attic.

The search for Jason Kinnie led school officials to lock down Cromie Elementary and Warren Cousino High as a precaution. ..Source.. MATT HELMS and PEGGY WALSH-SARNECKI, DETROIT FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER

Police: One person shot dead at Garfield Heights gas station

2-27-2011 Ohio:

GARFIELD HEIGHTS, Ohio - Garfield Heights Police said a man was fatally shot by officers after lunging at them with a billy club at a gas station Friday night.

The Cuyahoga County Coroner's office has identified the victim as 50-year-old Sylvester Gavin.

The incident happened just before 9 p.m. at the Marathon in the 14200 block of Broadway.

Police said Gavin entered the gas station and started eating candy and drinking alcohol.

According to police, the suspect had a billy club and was acting strangely. Police ordered the suspect to put the weapon down and get on the floor.

Gavin obeyed the command but then grabbed the club, rose from his knees and lunged at the officers. At that point, the officers fired five rounds at Gavin.

Gavin was taken to Marymount Hospital where he died from his injuries.

Garfield Heights police Capt. Robert said officers do not carry tasers.
Officers went to Gavin’s residence after the incident and found his front door wide open with loud music playing.

According to police, upon entering the residence, officers found the bathtub overflowing and the home flooded.

Gavin had a warrant out for his arrest in Garfield Heights. He had been arrested several times for serious felonies in the past 30 years and was a registered sex offender. ..Source.. by Curtis Jackson

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Fuming: Family members demand answers from cops following fatal shooting

2-27-2011 Ohio:

GARFIELD HEIGHTS, OH (WOIO) - A shooting victim's family wants answers from Garfield Heights Police this weekend following a deadly incident.

This, after police were called to the Marathon Gas station on Broadway and McCracken Friday around 8:15 p.m. when witnesses say Sylvester Gavin, 50, was reportedly acting strange.

Witnesses told police that he was opening and drinking beer, among other things.

Officers arrived on scene and noticed aGavin had a billy club and a knife, so they told him to drop his weapons. Gavin complied, but when officers went to take him into custody he picked up his bat and lunged at officers. That's when two officers fired five shots at Gavin.

Now, family members want to know why police had to shoot their loved one five times. They admit Gavin has done wrong in the past, but the way he died was "overkill" and say "we need to know why they had to shoot him that many times."

"He's not no angel...but he's still a good person. He doesn't deserve to die like he did" said Gavin's nephew Farrell Patterson.

Both officers have been placed on administrative leave.

Gavin has an extensive criminal history including serious felonies. He was also a registered sex offender. ..Source.. by Web Staff WOIO