Police check on registered sex offenders

Multiple law enforcement agencies conducted a check on 45 of the 48 registered sex offenders in Carroll County on Thursday, Sept. 27. The other three listed on the registry live in Indiana. Three arrests were made and two citations were issued.

Boyle

Hurley

Williams

The Carroll County Sheriff’s Office, Carrollton Police Department, Kentucky State Police, Carroll County Detention Center, Carroll County Probation and Parole and the U.S. Marshal Service gathered at Carrollton City Hall before fanning out in the county to check those on the sex offender registry. The Kentucky State Police maintains the registry at http://kspsor.state.ky.us/sor/html/SORSearch.htm.

Officers arrested the following:

• Patrick Frances Boyle, 47, 1049 Happy Hollow Lane, Worthville for failure to comply with the registry.

• Joshua Thomas Hurley, 26, 1204 Sixth Street, Carrollton, for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

• Harold Williams, 44, 69 New Castle Street, Prestonville, warrant from Knox County. Williams is not on the sex offender registry, but was residing with a man who is on the registry.

Officers cited the following:

• Robert Wentworth, 62, 811 Happy Hollow Lane, Worthville possession of marijuana, trafficking in marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.

• Brandon Skirvin, 28, 1191 Brock Drive, possession of marijuana. Skirvin is not on the sex offender registry, but was at the residence of Robert Wentworth.

“I was pleased with all of us getting together and going out to make contact with these subjects,” Sheriff Jamie Kinman said in an interview Tuesday. “For the most part, they were in compliance and cooperative.”

In addition to the charges above, Kinman said in a news release that three of the sex offenders have active Facebook accounts. Complaints will be filed with the County Attorney against Patrick Hill, Gerald Meyer and Mark Anthony Turner for the misdemeanor charge of a sexual offender using instant messaging or social networking. Sex offenders are prohibited from using any email, social networking, instant messaging or chat rooms that can be accessed by minors.

The sheriff said this is the first time the area police agencies have gotten together to check on the registered sex offenders all at once. The idea came from conversations between himself and Carrollton Police Chief Mike Willhoite, he said. “It’s just something we felt we needed to do for our community, to ensure our citizens that we are going to check on them and will continue to do so.”

Kinman said another large event has not yet been planned, but will happen again soon. Probation and Parole and Kentucky State Police check once a month on those listed on the registry, he said.

Kinman said he spoke to one of the U.S. Marshalls, who was giving a class at the recent Kentucky Sheriff’s Association convention in Louisville, about the sex offender checkup, and he told the sheriff to call whenever they did it and they would come. Kinman said he will call the U.S. Marshalls again next time they organize a large checkup.

Officers went to 40 residences and sought permission from the registered sex offenders to search their homes and computers, according to the news release. U.S. Marshals checked the recent activity on a person’s computer as well as any photographs on the computers.

Kinman encouraged the public to regularly monitor the sex offender registry website. It is important to check surrounding counties as well because addresses can periodically be entered in the wrong county.

“If you see anything we need to be made aware of, please contact us,” Kinman said. For more information, call the sheriff’s office at (502) 732-7010 or leaving an anonymous tip on the sheriff office’s website at www.carrollcountykysheriff.com.

News editor Kristin Sherrard contributed to this story.