Man accused of setting fire to sex offender's house in Jefferson County

8-20-17 Alabama:

The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office announced Friday an arrest in connection with a house fire earlier this summer.

Jessie Lessley, 35, of Robinwood, is charged with second-degree arson. Lessley is accused of burning a home in the 400 block of 10th Street on July 31. Authorities said he was reportedly spotted running from the rear of the home just before the fire brokeout.

An arrest warrant was issued on Aug. 14 after the state fire marshal investigated.

Lessley was booked into jail and later released on a $15,000 bond. ..Source..

Man charged for attacking sex offenders greeted as a hero by some

8-3-16 Alaska:

ANCHORAGE (KTUU) It's not often that someone handcuffed, in shackles, and facing a Superior Court judge on felony assault and robbery charges is greeted as a hero. But Jason Vukovich was last week, at least by some from a distance.

Little about the case against him is ordinary.

The 41-year-old is accused of using the state government sex offender registry to find his alleged victims, three men previously convicted of sex offenses ranging from possession of child pornography to attempted sex abuse of a minor. All three served prison terms but were still required to report their home and work addresses.

Prosecutors claim, over a five-day stretch in June, that Vukovich tracked the men down at their homes and used a hammer to threaten, assault, and rob them.

After his arrest, the defendant penned a letter to Alaska Dispatch News saying he had been physically and sexually abused as a child and described himself as an "avenging angel."

Some who read the initial story and subsequent news coverage have reacted with condemnation, saying he was a vigilante acting outside the law, deserving a lengthy jail term for attacking people who already served time for their crimes. But many more said things like this: "You are my hero." ... "Give the man an award. If there is a child molester, that individual should be shot and killed." ... "You'll get much respect inside for sure, and on the outside when you're done."

Lauderdale woman faces charges after confrontation with sex offender

12-3-2007 Florida:

Davie - As Valerie Parkhurst was warning neighbors about sex offenders, one of them turned down the street.

She confronted him at gunpoint, and ended up in jail.

Parkhurst, 52, said Monday she was surprised police arrested her after the confrontation with Dale Weeks, 49, in the Playland Village neighborhood on Saturday. She was charged with aggravated assault and two counts of carrying a concealed firearm without a permit.

"I had a convicted sex offender, kidnapper who cornered me," Parkhurst said. "I don't expect to be convicted on any one of those [charges] because I was in the right."

Weeks was convicted in 1996 of abducting and raping a Walton County woman, according to state records. He served nine years and was released from prison in May 2005

Lt. Wayne Boulier, Davie police spokesman, said he can understand that neighbors are concerned when a registered sex offender moves into a community.

"Still, that doesn't justify pulling out a gun and threatening to kill people," he said.

Police said in a report released Monday that Weeks and girlfriend Maria Rodriguez were driving on the 4600 block of Southwest 66th Avenue at 1:50 p.m. Saturday. They were headed to a thrift shop to buy clothes when they came upon Parkhurst, who was posting fliers of sex offenders in the area. Parkhurst recognized Weeks and thought he was following her. So she got out of her Chevy SUV, pulled 9-millimeter Glock from a holster, and told Weeks she would kill him, police said.

Rodriguez, who was behind the wheel, froze and could not drive away, police said. Parkhurst went back to her SUV, grabbed a 12-gauge shotgun, pointed it into the pair's car and again threatened to kill Weeks, police said.

"It's a vigilante-style move," Weeks said Monday. "She has no right to blow me away."

Parkhurst disputes the police account, saying that Weeks and Rodriguez stalked her after they saw her put up the fliers at Weeks' complex hours earlier. Parkhurst said they blocked her in at a dead-end street. When she got out of her truck to ask what they were doing, Parkhurst said Weeks threatened her in a profanity-laced rant.

That's when Parkhurst, mother of an adult son, threatened to shoot him if he touched her, she said. When Weeks continued to swear at her, she grabbed the shotgun she keeps in her SUV for her and her boyfriend's weekly clay shooting practice.

"I figured if the pistol didn't scare him, maybe the shotgun would," Parkhurst said. "I stood there with the shotgun and said, 'If you come near me, I promise you, I will shoot you.'"

Neighbors split on sex-offender clamor

5-14-2005 Florida:

A Davie couple have spent the past year warning neighbors of a sex offender in their midst. But some neighbors say they should back off.

.When Rick and Nancy Colgan learned a sex offender had moved onto their block in a quiet Davie subdivision last year, the couple with two sons sprang into action, posting fliers and alerting families. Two other families in the Crossbow subdivision posted fliers and erected fences, installing elaborate security systems with video cameras trained on the offender's home. But other neighbors, while concerned over safety, were also worried that zealous awareness campaigns could harm their sense of community and home values.

The case of Davie's Crossbow neighborhood raises a variety of questions: How and when should residents be alerted to a sexual offender? How much notification is too much? And what about an offender's right to reenter society and live where he wants to live? The neighborhood's conflicts come at a time when a number of cities, in South Florida and nationally, are considering laws limiting where sex offenders can live. Just last week, Davie tentatively approved a law prohibiting offenders from living within 2,500 feet of places where children congregate, such as schools. [snip]

When the Colgans' posters appeared, stapled to tree trunks and road signs, ''it didn't look good for the neighborhood,'' said Jim Kawas. A resident since 1988, Kawas lives down the street from the Mustaphas and Colgans. Kawas said he isn't thrilled about his new neighbor, but said the Colgans' leaflet campaign could scare off home buyers. Rick Colgan, a postal carrier, said he just wanted to make sure everyone knew Mustapha's face. ''You don't want people like that just blending in,'' he said.

Murders ignite frenzied furor toward molesters

5-16-2005 Florida:

.Francesca Vittorio readily admits she lost her mind when she learned a sexual offender had moved into her quiet Palm Beach Gardens neighborhood. She stormed to his house a half-block away and pounded on his door. When told he wasn't home, she left her phone number. When he called, she didn't give him a chance to talk. "I told him if you ever look at my child the wrong way, you'll be dead. You won't live to talk about it," said Vittorio, who has a 12-year-old son and another who's grown.

Although several weeks have passed, her venom hasn't abated. "I'm hoping to God he gets so much harassment, he has to put his house on the market and move out," she said. "We don't give child molesters a second chance. They lost their rights when they took away a little child's rights. "He needs to go to a deserted island with the rest of the pedophiles and live there for the rest of his life," she continued. "I'm not a bleeding heart for these people." Vittorio is far from alone. [snip]

Fueled by outrage over the inexplicable tragedies, neighborhood associations have turned into vigilante groups. Handmade signs have been planted in sex offenders' yards, and fliers with their pictures on them have been plastered on trees, stop signs and telephone poles. [snip]

Unfortunately, in the furor over the killings, those who deal with sex offenders and even those who advocate for victims of sex abuse say an important fact has been lost: All sex offenders aren't John Couey. "There's a difference between a 25-year-old who exercised bad judgment and had a relationship with a 17-year-old and a 45-year-old man who had sex with a 5-year-old," said Jennifer Dritt, executive director of the Florida Council Against Sexual Violence. "You can't paint people with such a broad brush."