It’s part of a parent’s instinct: Protect their children from any and all threats. Whether it be a warning to stay away from a hot stove or the constant reminder to not talk to strangers, children heed the advice with care.
The recent announcement of Level 3 predatory offender Joshua Paul Rinde’s plan to move to the 200 block of Fourth Avenue Northeast in Brainerd on Wednesday has parents’ worry levels on high. But Rinde’s relocation to Brainerd has more than just worried parents, affecting the community as a whole.
In an effort to alleviate some of the apprehensions of a repeat predatory offender entering the community, Tuesday night’s 6 p.m. community meeting — required in Minnesota by the Community Notification Act — at the Brainerd Police Department will address concerns of community members as well as educate how Rinde’s addition to the Brainerd area will be carried out.
While focus right now is on Rinde, he is not the only Level 3 offender — the highest public risk level and most likely to re-offend — in the area.
According to the Department of Corrections report in September, there are 16,500 registered offenders in Minnesota, 184 registered offenders living in Crow Wing County about half of whom — 90 total — live in Brainerd. Crow Wing currently registers two other Level 3 offenders in addition to Rinde and Cass County has two:
• Brandon Keith Churchill lives in Birchem Circle in rural Brainerd and was released on March 7, 2011. Churchill has a history of sexual contact with females ages 12-15 and used force against the victims. It is also reported that Churchill’s victims knew him.
• Eugene Allen Wgeishofski lives on Birch Street in Crosby and has a history of sexual contact with females ages 15 to adult. Reports list that Wgeishofski broke into victims home, picked up victims while hitch-hiking and used force to put victims into a vehicle with a weapon before committing sexual acts against them. Wgeishofski’s victim’s were random.
• Dennis Anthony Lee lives on the 6100 block of 24th Street Southwest in rural Pine River and was released on March 14, 2011. Lee has a history of sexual contact with females ages 7 to adult and the victims were girls he knew.
• Daniel Paul Tomann lives in rural Pine River and was released on April 19, 2010. Tomann has a history of sexual contact with known females ages 12-15.
Relocating from Merrifield this is not the first community notification for Rinde and Minnesota Department of Corrections community notification coordinator Michele Murphy reminded community members that awareness needs to be made about all offenders in the area.
“Mr. Rinde is a Level 3 offender moving into your community but he is not the only (predatory offender) in your community, so I’d caution you about focusing too much on just him,” Murphy said in August at Rinde’s meeting in Merrifield. “If we just focus on Mr. Rinde then we’re ignoring 90 percent of the other threats to our families and to everyone else because those (offenders) have not been caught and convicted.”
(Information may be found at http://www.doc.state.mn.us)
JESSI PIERCE may be reached at 855-5858 or jessi.pierce@brainerddispatch.com. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/jessi_pierce
Comments (12)
Add commentAnyone think about other options?
I happen to be family friends with one of the people mentioned in this article. Unfortunately the Brainerd Disgrace is only a one sided media and doesn't write non-biased articles on both sides of the story. This particular "Offender" had consensual sex with a girl when they were both underage, and he went to prison for that. The girl should be equally at fault, after all it takes two... enough said. I think in the object of fair journalism (which the Brainerd Disgrace has never had) both sides of the story should be brought to light. I think from now on I guess ill get my news from the Hopper.. at least its not biased one-sided stories that create more hatred and fear that doesn't need to always be spread... now let the "holy rollers" start ripping on my post (which is why no normal person wouldn't normally post on this junk stories published by the BDD (Brainerd Daily Disgrace )!
dear reader mn
thank you readermn for supporting the Lakes Area Baby Rapers.
Nope!
reader mn, I had to re-read the article after I read your comment. I don't see how any of these cases could have involved consent. The ages don't match with the age of consent in Minnesota. I do see that two of the offenders like adult victims, as well as child victims, but one was clearly forcing himself on his random victims and the other ones victims were aged 7 (first Grade) to adult. Rinde's victims were aged 11-15. Nice try but just because you want to believe it doesn't make it true! Your comment is nonsense in its truest form.
Just doesn't add up reader,
Just doesn't add up reader, for one two underage kids having sex and one goes to prison? I could see statutory rape had he been 18, but to say prison for what you claim, not gonna happen! Obviously there was something that you left out, a juvenile will not go to prison for having consensual sex with another juvenile , there is no crime there. Normal people can see you don't get charged with a felony and sent to prison as a juvenile for consensual sex when there is no crime commited. He did something and maybe you were left out of that part of the story? No dice friend!
weird article
I'm not sure of the timing/intent of this article. BDD presented an article on a new Level 3 offender moving to town which caught everyone's attention (or at least it should have). And then when the fever pitch is high, they throw out names of 4 people who have already been in the community for some time. And to single them out further, they claim that 90 offenders live in Brainerd, but they only list the names and addresses of 2 of them.
So, was this to detract from Rinde? As in, it's not so bad to have him here because you have 90 others already and here's the names and addresses of two of them. Or was this more of a hey, people are agitated already, let's add some fuel to the fire? Of the 4 other people you mention, didn't they already go through being published in the paper and notification meetings when they were released and moved here? Did they know they were going to be in the paper today?
I believe in making people accountable for their bad choices, yes, but at some point we also have to allow them credit for making better choices. Fair is fair. Of the 4 people listed, have they been in trouble recently that would give the BDD reason to make them headline news again? It just seems unjust that they are being dragged into someone else's issue.
Re: weird article
OkeyDokey,
The intent was to inform our new readers (over 100,000 since this time last year) of these offenders as well.
The 90 other offenders that you mention we didn't name are not level 3 offenders (most likely to re-offend) as these five are.
Locations and information about all level three offenders are a available to search for on the Minnesota Department of Corrections website: http://www.doc.state.mn.us/level3/Search.asp
Denton
So are you going to periodically (every 6 months to a year) run an article to list the names and addresses of Level 3 offenders for any new readers?
Your 100,000 readers missed LOTS of news since this time last year. And as you said, there is a website that supplies this information 24/7. I wonder why the BDD picked today to update it's new readers on these 4 names and addresses that they may have missed.
I just wonder if this is common practice or purposefully stirring the pot. The timing was too convenient.
OkeyDokey
We may "periodically (every 6 months to a year) run an article to list the names and addresses of Level 3 offenders for any new readers" if another Level 3 offender chooses to reside in our area.
We warned our readers in Jan. 2011 when a Level 3 offender was spotted frequenting certain areas; http://brainerddispatch.com/news/crime/2011-01-28/pequot-lakes-parents-w... .
On Dec. 30 2009, we ran a year end roundup article detailing Level 3 offenders who had moved or planned to move into Crow Wing County as part of our Top 10 stories of 2009; http://brainerddispatch.com/stories/123009/nei_20091230013.shtml
Stirring the Pot
Thank you OkeyDokey for seeing this article for what it is. How interesting that the release date for Wgeishofski was not mentioned and the fact that there were only 2 victims; one house and one hitchhiker unlike the multiply victims this article is trying to portray. Wgeishofski was released in 2005 and his TWO crimes were committed in the 80's. I wouldn't call him a predator after all these years. It's sad that our system still does. I can imagine that the facts on the other men have been twisted also. What a sick paper that you have to keep printing this stuff over and over and over! And then twist the facts or leave them out just so you can cause fear and anger in people. But I guess that's how you sell papers right? Too bad the law doesn't protect us against YOU.
Really???
Are you kidding me? There are people on here accusing the paper of unfair journalism? Im sorry but Im a firm believer in dont do the crime if you cant do the time. Maybe the above reader wouldnt look at Wgeishofski as a predator but I bet those that he offended still look at him that way. If someone murders someone else and then doesnt do it for 20 plus years, is that person still not a murderer? Sex crimes of any nature are hideous, when they are against children they become even more so. Every parent out there has a right to know if they and their children could be in harms way. Personally I believe level 3 offenders have no business being out of jail. Im a mother and a Grandmother, and I did daycare for many years. I certainly appreciated the notices I got about sex offenders moving into my area. These criminals need to be held accountable for what they did, and guess what, that may mean that their names will be mentioned and published in articles, or on TV or by word of mouth. Dont like it? TOUGH!!! What they have to go through can never be as horrific as what their victims went through and probably still go through every day. Kudos to our system which now makes it tougher for these offenders to just slip back into society and probably offend again.
denton newman & Kerr P69
well said..... thank you both!
Kerr_P69
You obviously don't get the system. These guys DID do the time. So leave them alone! It seems you would rather have your children murdered than sexually offended. I don't see you tracking murderers. You may live right next to one. Our wonderful justice system isn't notifying you about them are they. These guys were held accountable. You're twisting things to suit you just like this paper does. The public was notified when these guys were released and there is a site were they are registered for anyone to see. It disgusts me that this paper has to keep harrassing these guys. And to say that they will probably offend again makes you just one of the many who like to stir the pot.