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JBean

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Please post links and only a few sentences from the latest media. Please stick to main stream media sites.
 
The San Diego U-T published a background article on JAG today.

Here's the link:

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2...suspects-life/

Here's an excerpt:

Quote:
RUNNING SPRINGS — He was popular with girls and made fun of by classmates. He ran errands for neighbors and discovered outdoor sports. He could be moody and aggressive when he didn’t take his medication.

By any measure, the adolescent years that accused killer John Albert Gardner III spent in this mountaintop village were the high-water mark of a deeply troubled life.



The article is fairly well balanced, establishing the facts of a troubled life without trying to evoke sympathy.
 
Thousands Turn Out at Candlelight Vigil for Chelsea King
5:19 AM MST, March 3, 2010
<snipped>
Thousands turned out Tuesday night for a candlelight vigil for 17-year-old Chelsea King hours after a body believed to be hers was found buried in a shallow grave near Lake Hodges. A registered sex offender was set to be arraigned in the case Wednesday.

Chelsea's parents, Brent and Kelly King, were joined by mourners -- many of them strangers -- to remember the teen's short life outside St. Michael's Catholic ChurchTuesday night.

Brent King spoke briefly, thanking everyone for their efforts to find his daughter. "One of the nicknames that I've always called my daughter is my Angel. She's my angel forever," he said. "I want to thank you. Chelsea wants to thank you," he said. When someone shouted, "We love you," Brent King responded, "We love all of you."

Sheriff's officials believe the body found near Lake Hodges Tuesday afternoon is that of the missing high school athlete, although forensic tests will be conducted to confirm the identity. Sheriff William Gore says the body was located in a shallow grave about 10 feet from the shoreline and about a half a mile from the parking lot.


Video: Body Found Near Lake Is Likely Missing Teen 4:23
http://www.fox13now.com/videobeta/?watchId=82400b1b-85e5-4fe3-81c4-d9aa49ed80e1

Video: KTLA: Body Found Believed to be Chelsea King
http://www.fox13now.com/news/nationworld/ktla-chelsea-king-news-conference-video,0,4383402.tivideo

Article: Psychiatrist Warned Sex Offender in Chelsea King Case Would Strike Again
http://www.fox13now.com/news/nationworld/ktla-john-gardener,0,1793927.story

PHOTOS: First a jog, then a disappearance
http://www.fox13now.com/news/nationworld/la-me-missing2-pictures,0,3254236.photogallery

PHOTO GALLERY: Search for Chelsea King
http://www.fox13now.com/news/nationworld/kswb-pg-chelsea-king,0,1687019.photogallery

MAP: Missing Poway teen last seen
http://www.fox13now.com/news/nationworld/kswb-photo-missing-poway-teen-map,0,1107744.photo

Article:
http://www.fox13now.com/news/nationworld/ktla-poway-missing,0,1644502.story
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GMA: Chelsea King Killing: Police Comb Grave for Clues
Former FBI Profiler Says This Was 'Probably a Blitz Attack' on San Diego Teen

March 3, 2010
<snipped>
Investigators were searching the shallow grave where the body of San Diego high school student Chelsea King was found Tuesday, trying to gather every bit of evidence that will help put away the sex offender they say killed her.

King's devastated parents attended a vigil Tuesday night in their daughter's honor to thank the tight-knit community that has spent nearly a week trying to bring her home. "One of the nicknames I always used to call my daughter is my angel, and she'll be my angel forever," Brent King said.

King's body was found about 10 feet from the shore of Lake Hodges, a half mile from where she parked her car to go jogging in the park last week. The discovery, San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore said, "was made by one of the searchers. Looking from the water up the shoreline [the searcher] spotted something that looked suspicious, and investigated and ... by moving some small debris ... found Chelsea's body."

Former FBI agent and ABC News consultant Brad Garrett said the location of the body likely means King was attacked shortly after she started her jog. ""This was probably a blitz attack. where he sees her jogging and attacks her," he said, adding that it's not uncommon for murderers to leave their victims near the site of the crime.

*Much more at link!

WATCH: Chelsea King's Body Found
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/chelsea-kings-body-found-9995773

Related:
WATCH: Who's Watching the Sex Offenders?
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/chelsea-king-case-watching-sex-offenders-9985654

Article: Police Find Body Believed to Be Missing Runner, Chelsea King, 17
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/TheLaw/police-find-body-missing-runner-chelsea-king-17/story?id=9992504

PHOTOS: The Missing: Chelsea King
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/slideshow?id=9978237

Article: Same Park, Same Guy: Other Woman Attacked by Chelsea King Suspect
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/TheLaw/chelsea-king-disappearance-watching-sex-offenders/story?id=9985483

WATCH: California Teen Vanishes During Jog
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/california-teen-vanishes-jog-9975789

Article: Cops: Chelsea King Was Raped, Murdered
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/TheLaw/chelsea-king-disappearance-suspect-linked-cases/story?id=9975272

Article:
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/TheLaw/chelsea-king-murder-police-combing-grave-clues/story?id=9995419
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'Move out' painted on King suspect's parents' home
Wednesday, March 3, 2010 at 6:57 a.m.
<snipped>
Police on Wednesday were investigating graffiti left at the Rancho Bernardo home of the mother and stepfather of the man arrested in connection with the disappearance of Chelsea King. The phrase &#8220;Chelsea blood is on you. Move out,&#8221; was discovered spray-painted on the garage door of the townhome on Matinal Road about 5:39 a.m., police Sgt. Ray Battrick said.

John Albert Gardner III, 30, is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday afternoon. His mother and stepfather live in the townhouse, which is near the park where a body presumed to be Chelsea&#8217;s was found in a shallow grave Tuesday afternoon.


Article:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/03/threat-painted-king-suspects-parents-home/
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Mourning begins for SoCal teen after body is found
March 3rd, 2010 @ 4:05am
<snipped>
Thousands of mourners walked the sidewalks of a wide avenue in silence, holding candles and tearfully embracing. Many were at a loss for words over the discovery of a body believed to be that of 17-year-old Chelsea King, five days after the popular, straight-A student from San Diego County disappeared and two days after a registered sex offender was booked on suspicion of rape and murder. Severe shock and denial among King's classmates is giving way to anger and hurt, Traci Barkerball, King's teacher for three years at Poway High School, said Tuesday night. "What bothers me most is the kids don't feel safe anymore," Barkerball said between hugs for grieving students. "Their sense of security has been taken away from them."

[San Diego police say Gardner is positively linked to an assault on a 22-year-old Colorado Springs, Colo., woman who managed to fend off her attacker on Dec. 27 in Rancho Bernardo Community Park on the northern edge of San Diego, where King's 1994 BMW was found with her belongings inside. San Diego police Capt. Jim Collins decline to describe the evidence pinning the December assault on Gardner but said a swab taken from the victim's elbow did not match Gardner's DNA.

Tuesday night's ceremony was initially planned as a vigil for King's safe return but it took on the air of a memorial service three hours after the sheriff announced the body was recovered. Friends spoke of her quirky sense of humor and irrepressibly upbeat spirit. "She would just breathe sunshine even if you were in a bad mood," said Madison Chapman, a friend. "She made you feel like a little kid, like there were no problems, like nothing could go wrong."

*More at link!

In this undated family photo released by the King family shows Chelsea King, the missing 17-year-old teen from Poway a suburb of San Diego. The parents of a 17-year-old girl who failed to come home after a run in the park are pleading for people to come forward with information
01a7e17f-1716-4842-921b-ca4fb73aea82.jpg


Article:
http://www.ktar.com/?nid=509&sid=1268786
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A Community Mourns
Poway teen missing since last week

Updated 7:35 AM PST, Wed, Mar 3, 2010
<snipped>

Thousands of people holding candles created a sea of lights for miles Tuesday night in honor of Chelsea King, the Poway High School student whose disappearance launched a massive search effort. Among the mourners were friends, classmates, neighbors, volunteers who helped in the search and the King family.

Officials cordoned off a large area with police tape and made a series of trips to the shore from a boat moored nearby. The body was found about 10 feet from the water's edge. "It's a heavily wooded area and not observable from the homes on the hillside or the park," Gore told the media. Gore said he had informed the teen's parents, Brent and Kelly King. "Obviously they are devastated, and I ask that you respect their privacy during this extremely difficult time," he said.

Dana Matonis, whose daughter was on the cross-country team with Chelsea, said the whole community had lost a child. "It's very hard," a tearful Matonis said. "I just can't put my head where her parents are right now. I just can't."


View The Chelsea King case in a larger map
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=U...086105&spn=0.12944,0.145912&z=12&source=embed

Related:
Video: Suspect Had 'Unnatural Interest in Young Girls:' DA (VIDEO)
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/loc...l_Interest_in_Young_Girls___DA_San_Diego.html

Article: Suspect Had 'Unnatural Interest in Young Girls:' DA
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local-beat/Arrest-in-Chelsea-King-Disappearance.html

Article:
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local-beat/A-Community-Mourns-86202377.html
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Arraignment for suspect in Chelsea King case, John Gardner
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
<snipped>
San Diego police received a report around 5:40 a.m. Wednesday that someone had vandalized the townhome of the defendant&#8217;s parents on Matinal Road in Rancho Bernardo, spray-painting on the garage door the words, &#8220;Chelseas (sic) blood is on you. Move out.&#8221;

Searchers combing woods, marshes and swamps in northeastern San Diego for a sixth straight day early Tuesday afternoon found a body believed to be that of the missing teen in a shallow grave at the edge of Lake Hodges. &#8220;Although positive identification has not been made, there is (a) strong likelihood that we have found Chelsea,&#8221; Sheriff Bill Gore several hours later, shortly after breaking the news to the girl&#8217;s parents. A member of a law enforcement dive team found the body shortly after 1 p.m. in a remote, secluded spot on the south side of the lake, about 10 feet from the water&#8217;s edge, Gore said. The body was covered by a layer of earth and debris about a half-mile from where Chelsea, an avid runner, had parked her car at Rancho Bernardo Community Park on Thursday afternoon, according to Gore.

Detectives have linked Gardner to another attack late last year on a jogger in the same open-space area where Chelsea was last seen, according to police. On the morning of Dec. 27, a Colorado woman in San Diego on a family visit was running alone near Lake Hodges when a man tackled her and demanded money.

Authorities say they also are investigating whether Gardner might be responsible for the February 2009 disappearance of Escondido High School freshman Amber Dubois, who was 14 when she vanished while walking to campus.

According to public records, Gardner was convicted of assaulting and molesting a girl in 2000. The victim, a 13-year-old neighbor, said he repeatedly punched her in the face and fondled her at his mother&#8217;s townhouse, which is about a mile from Rancho Bernardo Community Park. The girl said she went to the residence after Gardner invited her in to watch a movie. Gardner was sentenced to six years in prison and served five before he was released in September 2005.

He was on probation until 2008. He registered as a sex offender using his grandmother&#8217;s Lake Elsinore address but reportedly had been staying with his mother lately.

*Much more at link!

Chelsea King vigil
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Article:
http://www.sdnn.com/sandiego/2010-0...tp://www.10news.com/news/22728257/detail.html
 
Chelsea King's Body Believed Found
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91VFFXFU7dM[/ame]

Suspect John Gardener's Criminal Past
Criminal Profiler Pat Brown discussed suspect John Albert Gardener III's criminal past in the Chelsea King case.
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JINTYmUatfo[/ame]
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Source: Death penalty likely in Chelsea King case
March 3, 2010 at 9:21 a.m., updated March 3, 2010 at 1:45 p.m.
<snipped>
The county public defender will represent the man suspected in the rape and murder of Poway teenager Chelsea King and has assigned two attorneys to the case, a strong indication that prosecutors will seek the death penalty, according to a courthouse source. John Albert Gardner III, 30, a registered sex offender from Lake Elsinore, is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday afternoon for a hearing that may force prosecutors to reveal what led to his arrest and announce whether the charges will include one or more special allegations that would make him eligibile for the death penalty.

The 2:30 p.m. court appearance will be the culmination of a weeklong ordeal that has gripped the nation and led more than 6,000 volunteers to look for Chelsea, a 17-year-old Poway High School student. She disappeared Thursday after going for a jog in the Rancho Bernardo Community Park. Sara Muller Fraunces, a spokewoman for the King family, declined to say whether the parents would be at the arraignment. She directed people to visit the &#8220;Chelsea King Search Center&#8221; Facebook page, which will be changed today to &#8220;Chelsea&#8217;s Light,&#8221; for family statements and memorial service details.


Broadcast trucks lined the streets outside San Diego County Superior Court Wednesday in this frame from aerial video taken by Sky10.
trucks_t352.jpg


Article:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/...helsea-king-killing-to-appear-in-court/?imw=Y
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*NOW LIVE: Live Coverage Outside Of The Courthouse:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/...helsea-king-killing-to-appear-in-court/?imw=Y

*NOW LIVE: Alternate Live Link!
Livestream: John Gardner Arraignment
http://www.10news.com/video/15013365/index.html
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John Gardner Pleads Not Guilty To Rape, Murder In King Case
POSTED: 9:02 am PST March 3, 2010
UPDATED: 3:10 pm PST March 3, 2010
<snipped>
Gardner said little during his brief arraignment in downtown San Diego. The not guilty plea was entered on his behalf by his attorney. He was ordered back to court Tuesday, and a preliminary hearing was tentatively scheduled for March 18.

Gardner was charged with murder and assault with the intent to commit rape, according to District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis. The murder charge includes a sentence-enhancing allegation of murder during the commission of a rape or attempted rape. The special allegation could make Gardner eligible for the death penalty.

"It is a sad day indeed where we have to file criminal charges," Dumanis said. "... We want to make sure that justice is done for Chelsea and we want to make sure that we do everything we can to preserve the case and to make sure that the person responsible is held accountable."


Read PDF: Complaint Against John Gardner
http://www.10news.com/download/2010/0303/22733356.pdf

PDF Link: Read August 2000 Court Document In Gardner Case
http://10newsblogs.com/pdf/gardner_documents.pdf

Link: John Gardner's Megan's Law Listing
http://www.meganslaw.ca.gov/cgi/prosoma.dll?searchby=offender&id=18601061E8554

Slideshow: Missing Calif. Teen's Body Believed Found 1-15
http://www.10news.com/slideshow/slideshows/22722229/detail.html

Article:
http://www.10news.com/news/22728257/detail.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
UPDATED: Gardner pleads not guilty in King rape, murder
Wednesday, March 03, 2010
<snipped>
Gardner was charged with murder with a special allegation of rape, and with assault with intent to rape. He pleaded not guilty to both charges. The pleas to the two charges were made by Gardner's attorney, a public defender. The special allegation makes Gardner eligible for the death penalty.

Gardner is due back in court Tuesday. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for March 18. He continues to be held without bail. He was being held in solitary confinement.

The second charge, the assault with intent to rape, is connected to an incident in Rancho Bernardo Park in December. A female jogger was attacked but managed to fight off her assailant. That jogger has not been identified.


Video: Gardner pleads not guilty in King rape, murder 2:48
http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/video?id=7309737

Video: Gardner Arraignment 2:02
http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/video?id=7308943

Article:
http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/state&id=7308553
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John Albert Gardner pleads not guilty to the murder of Chelsea King
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
<snipped>
John Albert Gardner III was arraigned in a downtown San Diego courtroom Wednesday, pleading not guilty to charges of murder and assault with intent to commit rape in the death of Poway teen Chelsea King. Amid a horde of media, about 15 King family members and protesters holding signs that stated &#8220;Castrate Rapists&#8221; and &#8220;No Parole 4 Molesters&#8221; outside the courthouse, Gardner made his plea.

He was taken into custody without bail. A preliminary hearing to determine whether to continue to pursue felony charges will take place on March 18. The district attorney&#8217;s office is not expected to make a plea bargain in the case. The court hearing came a day after the discovery of a body near Lake Hodges that is suspected to be King&#8217;s.

District attorney Bonnie Dumanis and assistant district attorney Kristen Spieler spoke with the media after the arraignment. While the death penalty for Gardner is an option, the D.A.&#8217;s office likely won&#8217;t make that decision until after the March 18 preliminary hearing. &#8220;It is a very somber decision,&#8221; Dumanis said of the decision to seek the death penalty. &#8220;I ask you [the media] again to be patient as we present evidence and gather further evidence. &#8220;We know that this has rocked San Diego. It has rocked all of us.&#8221;

Dumanis and Spieler both emphasized that they would not discuss the facts of the case in public and would try the case in the courtroom &#8212; not in the press. &#8220;I am confident that Mr. Gardner can get a fair trial in San Diego,&#8221; Speiler said.

The two charges specifically read:

&#8211; First count: Murder with the special allegation that the murder was committed in the commission or attempted commission of rape.

&#8211; Second count: Assault with the intent to commit rape.

Dumanis will meet with her deputy district attorneys, the defense attorney and the King family before deciding whether to pursue the death penalty. Gardner&#8217;s prior conviction of molesting a 13-year-old girl &#8220;may enhance any sentence he might receive,&#8221; Speiler said.


Article:
http://www.sdnn.com/sandiego/2010-0...not-guilty-to-the-murder-rape-of-chelsea-king
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Suspect pleads not guilty to Chelsea King murder, second assault
Wednesday, March 3, 2010 at 3:10 p.m.
<snipped>
John Albert Gardner III, 30, a registered sex offender from Lake Elsinore, faces one count of murder with the special allegation that it was committed in the commission of a rape, a charge that allows prosecutors to seek the death penalty. He has also been charged with one count of assault with intent to rape for his alleged role in a Dec. 27 assault on a different woman. The public defenders who represent Gardner did not seek a bail amount so no evidence in the case was revealed during the hearing. He will remain in custody. Gardner spoke only one word, &#8220;Yes,&#8221; in response to Judge Joseph Brannigan&#8217;s question about whether he understood the upcoming dates in the trial. The status conference between lawyers is set for March 9 and a preliminary hearing will be March 18.

Sara Muller Fraunces, a spokewoman for the King family, directed people to visit the &#8220;Chelsea King Search Center&#8221; Facebook page, which will be changed today to &#8220;Chelsea&#8217;s Light,&#8221; for family statements and memorial service details. Fraunces welcomed the community&#8217;s desire to help but said plans to use that &#8220;activist energy&#8221; for some purpose has not yet been identified. &#8220;I am sure the family hopes to do something with that for good but we are just not there yet,&#8221; she said. &#8220;I am hoping that people can just go into a holding pattern for a day or two.&#8221;

Gardner is also under investigation for possible involvement in the case of Amber Dubois, a 14-year-old who disappeared while walking to Escondido High School on Feb. 13, 2009. As recently as November 2009, Gardner registered as a sex offender at an Escondido address two miles from the school.

*More at link!

Suspect John Albert Gardner III pleads not guilty to the rape and murder of Poway teenager Chelsea King during a brief court appearance in this frame grab from pool video.
gardner_t352.jpg


Raw Video: Suspect John Albert Gardner III Pleads Not Guilty 1:51
http://www.signonsandiego.com/video/?bcpid=51433955001&bctid=69777940001

WHAT'S NEXT
Arraignment: John Albert Gardner III pleaded not guilty to the rape and murder of Chelsea King and the assault to commit rape on a second woman. A status conference was set for March 9.
Charges: Gardner was arrested on suspicion of rape and murder in connection with 17-year-old Chelsea King&#8217;s disappearance. In filing charges today, prosecutors may include one or more special allegations that could make him eligible for the death penalty if convicted.


Article:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/03/suspect-pleads-rape-and-murder-chelsea-king/
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Outrage Growing over Repeat Sex Offenders
Known Predator John Gardner Charged with Killing Chelsea King; Experts Say Monitoring of Offenders Insufficient

March 3, 2010
<snipped>
When 17-year-old Chelsea King went for a jog near her San Diego home last week, police say she ran into John Gardner, who they believe raped and murdered her before dumping her body nearby.

CBS News correspondent Ben Tracy reports Gardner, 30, is a known predator. In 2000, he pleaded guilty to molesting his 13-year-old neighbor. His psychiatrist said he was "a continued danger to underage girls in the community" and recommended a 30-year sentence. However, prosecutors made a plea deal so the victim didn't have to testify. Gardner served just five years.

He did wear a GPS monitoring device until 2008, but since then investigators think he may be involved in the disappearance of a 14-year-old girl last year and may have attacked a 22-year-old woman in December. Convicted sex offender Jake Goldenflame says without therapy, prison terms are useless.

If convicted, John Gardner will now spend the rest of his life behind bars -- but some say if the system were tougher he'd already be there.


Video: Sex Offenders Fuel Outrage
A registered sex offender is being charged in Chelsea King's disappearance. As Ben Tracy reports, there is growing outrage over sexual predators who have the opportunity to re-offend.
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=deq5B2UKnQA[/ame]

Article:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/03/03/eveningnews/main6264100.shtml
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Assemblyman plans to explore tightening offender laws
His effort is a response to the Chelsea King case

Wednesday, March 3, 2010 at 4:12 p.m.
<snipped>
Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher has begun to explore tightening state sex offender laws in the aftermath of the rape and murder of Poway teenager Chelsea King.

The San Diego Republican said he plans a deliberative approach, working with state and local authorities to determine where the system may have failed the 17-year-old out for an afternoon jog last Thursday afternoon.

"Our laws are supposed to protect the innocent, but they didn't protect Chelsea King," Fletcher said.

Fletcher said he wants to gather more information and allow time for the family and community to mourn before pressing legislation. "This is a time for grieving and comforting the family," he said. Then, he continued, "it will be a time for a real conversation about how to make policy to protect our children. We have to look at every option."

Among those:

*Expand Jessica's Law to limit how close registered sex offenders can get to places frequented by children, such as parks and schools. Current law only prohibits them from living within 2,000 feet of a school or park. Authorities can impose specific restrictions, however, on a case-by-case basis. Such limits have been proposed before, but the measures stalled in the Legislature.

*Fletcher also is considering whether existing monitoring technology could be used to trigger a warning for authorities when a parolee comes too close to parks and schools. Registered sex offenders are tracked using global positioning systems since the passage of Jessica's Law in 2006.

*Lengthier prison systems, perhaps even mandatory terms, also must be weighed, he said.

"We are trying to identify the gaps in the system," Fletcher said. Sen. George Runner, R-Lancaster, and the author of the landmark Jessica's Law, said, "We're reviewing what took place to see where there might be some loopholes." Crime Victims United, a statewide advocacy group, said it is also researching the case to determine whether steps can be taken to avoid future tragedies. "At this point it's hard to know entirely what the appropriate fix is," said Dawn Koepke, legislative advocate on behalf of Crime Victims United.

*More at link!

Article:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/03/assemblyman-plans-explore-tightening-offender-laws/
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Budget Cuts Hurting Tracking Of Sex Offenders
POSTED: 4:23 pm PST March 3, 2010
UPDATED: 4:26 pm PST March 3, 2010
<snipped>
"It's sad that it takes an event like this for people to realize these people are out there, and they're watching and waiting for their opportunity," said David Collazo, commander of the San Diego SAFE (Sexual Assault Felony Enforcement) Task Force. The task force, run by the California Department of Justice, relies on support from local law enforcement agencies and is responsible for keeping tabs on local sex offenders. "They are free to roam wherever they like to roam," Collazo told 10News.

Only those on parole or probation wear GPS monitors and are banned from certain places, like where children congregate. Others like Gardner, who completed his parole in 2008, are free to go wherever the public can go. "They need to know that we walk among these monsters and they need to protect themselves," Collazo said.

Sex offenders can be arrested if they don't comply with Megan's Law, which allows their picture and address to be posted online. Collazo said just last month his task force arrested six people for non-compliance. In 2009, a total of 39 sex offenders in San Diego County were arrested for violating Megan's Law. But there are limitations, Collazo acknowledged. For instance, in San Diego County, 427 sex offenders are transient, with no address. Budget cuts are also taking a toll, as the task force was cut from 17 people to 13 people at the end of 2008.


22678749_240X180.jpg


Article:
http://www.10news.com/news/22733865/detail.html
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Is This the Same Person?
Updated 4:27 PM PST, Wed, Mar 3, 2010
<snipped>
Police in Lake Elsinore are investigating whether John Albert Gardner III, who is accused of murdering and raping Chelsea King, may be responsible for the attempted kidnapping of a girl in October, according to a published report.

The Riverside County girl told police the incident occurred as she was walking to a friend's house about 7 a.m. one morning in the Lakeland Village neighborhood, near Lake Elsinore, the Press-Enterprise newspaper reported. She said a man in a gold four-door sedan stopped to ask her for directions, then showed her a gun and demanded she get in his car.

The girl, however, ran ran off, then reported the incident to police. The sketch that police released in October is of a man in his 30s with a fair complexion, brown eyes and a blond crew cut. Investigators told the paper that they have not positively linked Gardner to the attempted abduction. There are similarities," Lake Elsinore Police Chief Joe Cleary told the paper. "If there is a connection, we will track it down."


Video: DA Discusses Charges Against John Gardner
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local-beat/DA_Discusses_Charges_Against_John_Gardner_San_Diego.html

Article:
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local-beat/Is-This-the-Same-Person-86284382.html
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Suspect pleads not guilty in Chelsea King rape, murder
Source: Death penalty likely to be sought

March 3, 2010 at 9:21 a.m., updated March 3, 2010 at 1:45 p.m.
<snipped>
BREAKING NEWS UPDATE: Through an attorney, suspect John Albert Gardner III pleaded not guilty Wednesday afternoon to the rape and murder of Chelsea King and the attempted rape of another woman. District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis says few details about the evidence linking Gardner to King's disappearance -- or possibly other crimes -- will be released. "We will not try it in the press. Period," Dumanis said.

The first count was murder with the special allegation that the murder was committed during the commission or attempted commission of a rape, which makes the defendant eligible for the death penalty. The second count, assault with the intent to commit rape, involved a Dec. 27 incident on a second woman jogging nearby in Rancho Bernardo. Gardner will be held without bail.

At a news conference following the arraignment, the father of missing Escondido teenager Amber Dubois said the family was working with law enforcement officials who were looking into the possibility that Gardner had also killed Amber in early 2009. "In our hearts, we don't want to accept that," Maurice Dubois said. "We feel she is still alive."


Suspect John Albert Gardner III pleads not guilty to the rape and murder of Poway teenager Chelsea King during a brief court appearance in this frame grab from pool video.
ssuepctincourt_t352.jpg


Video: Joh Albeet Gardner III Arraignment Press Conference 3:58
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid46702670001?bclid=16685637001&bctid=69800550001

Raw Video: Suspect Pleads Not Guilty 1:51
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid46702670001?bclid=16685637001&bctid=69777940001

Article:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/03/suspect-in-chelsea-king-killing-to-appear-in-court/
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Chelsea King Case Video Collection
http://www.sdnn.com/sandiego/2010-03-03/san-diego/chelsea-king-video-collection
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Accused Murderer of Chelsea King Appears in Court
Last Update: 6:29 pm
<snipped>
Gardner looked down and said little during his brief arraignment in downtown San Diego. His hands were shackled and he was flanked by two sheriff's deputies. His not guilty plea was entered on his behalf by one of his attorneys, Michael Popkins. The defendant was ordered back to court Tuesday, and a preliminary hearing was tentatively scheduled for March 18.

Superior Court Judge Joseph Brannigan ordered Gardner held without bail. Friends, family, reporters and other officials packed the courtroom during the arraignment. Members of Chelsea's family -- including her parents, Brent and Kelly -- attended the hearing but did not speak with reporters afterward.

California law enforcement officials say Gardner was linked to the death of Chelsea King through DNA matching of semen found in the victim's clothing. State Department of Justice spokeswoman Christine Gasparac told The Associated Press Wednesday that Gardner was identified after his DNA was run through a national database. San Diego County prosecutors have declined to comment on the evidence.

Gardner was charged with murder for the death of Chelsea, and assault with the intent to commit rape for an earlier attack on another woman, according to District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis. The murder charge includes a sentence-enhancing allegation of murder during the commission of a rape or attempted rape. The defendant could face the death penalty if convicted. A decision on what penalty Gardner will face will be determined after the preliminary hearing.


Video: Chelsea King Murder Suspect In Court 3/3/10 ~ 28:23
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=752524@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Gardner Family Home Vandalized 3/3/10 ~ 0:39
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=752373@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

PDF Read the John Gardner criminal complaint (1.6MB)
http://www.sandiego6.com/media/lib/...b4ab9a900be5/CD225886_John_Albert_Gardner.pdf

Article:
http://www.sandiego6.com/news/local...-Bernardo-jogging/zTLAKar0XUGyf78trbfHvg.cspx
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Video: John Gardner Pleads Not Guilty to the Murder of Chelsea King 5:15
http://www.kusi.com/home/86282557.html?video=YHI&t=a

Video: Poway High School Students Mourn the Loss of Chelsea King 2:35
http://www.kusi.com/home/86290837.html?video=YHI&t=a

Video: Sheriff says body found near Lake Hodges is likely Chelsea King 4:46
http://www.kusi.com/home/86031367.html?video=YHI&t=a

Video: Chelsea's parents: Love and support "overwhelming" 7:55
http://www.kusi.com/home/85984147.html?video=pop&t=a
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Among the gated homes, anger and fear over Chelsea King's killing
John Albert Gardner III, 30, a registered sex offender, is charged with murder. The teen's death leaves a community shaken.

March 4, 2010
<snipped>
The joggers returned Wednesday morning to the winding trails around Lake Hodges, along with the bird-watchers and the hikers swinging their long walking sticks. They came for the same reason as always, to enjoy a rural retreat amid the bustle of suburbia. But the park had changed. Down a worn path and around a bend was where Chelsea King, a high school senior from nearby Poway, was believed to have been attacked, killed and buried in a shallow grave. Her presumed death -- the coroner has yet to positively identify the body -- has shaken people in a place where many felt sheltered against the grimmer side of life.

"Nobody's safe. Nobody's privileged. Everybody's vulnerable," said Coleen Huang, 48, who has walked the trails for years. "This was so extreme. A girl living in a gated community. The all-American girl, attacked out in broad daylight, on a run." At Rancho Bernardo Community Park, at prayer vigils and at schools throughout this upscale northern San Diego County community, emotions were still raw -- a sense of anger, sadness and, most of all, shock that a sex offender tucked away in an anonymous subdivision could pierce their sense of security so profoundly.

The outpouring of support continued after the body believed to be Chelsea's was discovered Tuesday. About 5,000 people packed a prayer vigil at St. Michael Catholic Church, crying and holding candles as they listened to one of the teenager's favorite songs, &#8220;Vanilla Twilight.&#8221;

*More at link!

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John Albert Gardner III is being held in Chelsea&#8217;s death. He was also charged with assault in the December 2009 attack on a 22-year-old woman in the same park. Gardner was ordered held without bail and could face the death penalty if convicted.
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Chelsea's Song: &#8220;Vanilla Twilight.&#8221;
http://popup.lala.com/popup/432627088413834036

Article:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-chelsea-king4-2010mar04,0,2666344.story
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Gardner Identified by Semen Found on Chelsea King's Clothes
7:14 PM PST, March 3, 2010
<snipped>
Police say convicted sex offender John Gardner was linked to 17-year old Chelsea King through semen found in the victim's clothing. State Department of Justice spokeswoman Christine Gasparac says Gardner was identified after his DNA was run through a national database.

The 30-year old showed no emotion Wednesday as his public defender entered pleas of not guilty to murder with a special allegation of rape or attempted rape, and another count of assault with intent to rape another woman last December. Gardner spoke only one word, &#8220;Yes,&#8221; in response to Judge Joseph Brannigan&#8217;s question about whether he understood the upcoming dates in the trial.

DNA on a piece of King's clothing found near the lake led to the arrest Sunday of registered sex offender John Albert Gardner III, according to law enforcement sources. Police say Gardner refused to cooperate with authorities. He was arrested around 4:20 p.m. Sunday in front of a Mexican restaurant and bar called "Hernandez Hide-A-Way" in the small community of Del Dios, on the west shore of Lake Hodges, near Escondido. Gardner, who lists his residence as Lake Elsinore, frequently visits his mother's home in Rancho Bernardo.


Video Report: Chelsea King Murder Suspect Appears In Court 3:02
http://www.ktla.com/videobeta/?watchId=f9542e4c-e1a5-4225-bcb6-2dd8bfd638c3

Family Website
http://findchelsea.com/

Follow status of case on Facebook
http://www.facebook.com/pages/CHELSEA-KING-SEARCH-CENTER/372532087872

Article:
http://www.ktla.com/news/landing/ktla-poway-missing,0,5645458.story
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Accused Killer of Chelsea King, John Albert Gardner, Pleads Not Guilty
Prosecutors to Decide Whether to Seek Death Penalty for Convicted Sex Offender

March 3, 2010
<snipped>
John Albert Gardner III was arrested on Sunday, two days before the body of King, 17, was found 10 feet from Lake Hodges in the park where she went missing on Feb. 25 during an afternoon run.

Amid heightened security around the court house, Gardner was flanked by two court officers. His head was shaved and his hands were manacled around the waist of his blue prison jumpsuit.

Prosecutors said the severity of the accusations, including a "special allegation" that a murder was committed during a rape, could carry the death penalty. The decision to seek capital punishment, however, is weeks away.

"The special allegation does make the defendant eligible for the death penalty," Deputy District Attorney Kristen Spieler said at a press conference following the arraignment. "That decision is made by the D.A., typically after the preliminary hearing and before a trial."

If the district attorney does not seek the death penalty, the charges carry a penalty of 25 years to life.

Gardner's prior record as a convicted sex offender, prosecutors said, would be presented at trial.

Former FBI agent and ABC News consultant Brad Garrett said the location of the body likely means King was attacked shortly after she started her jog.

*Much More At Link!

WATCH: Freed To Kill? 6:19
http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/video/freed-kill-10005174

Related:
Chelsea King Killing: Police Comb Grave
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/TheLaw/chelsea-king-murder-police-combing-grave-clues/story?id=9995419

WATCH: Who's Watching the Sex Offenders?
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/chelsea-king-case-watching-sex-offenders-9985654

Police Find Body Believed to Be Missing Runner, Chelsea King, 17
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/TheLaw/police-find-body-missing-runner-chelsea-king-17/story?id=9992504

PHOTOS: The Missing: Chelsea King
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/slideshow?id=9978237

Same Park, Same Guy: Other Woman Attacked by Chelsea King Suspect
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/TheLaw/chelsea-king-disappearance-watching-sex-offenders/story?id=9985483

WATCH: California Teen Vanishes During Jog
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/california-teen-vanishes-jog-9975789

Cops: Chelsea King Was Raped, Murdered
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/TheLaw/chelsea-king-disappearance-suspect-linked-cases/story?id=9975272

Sex Offender Arrested in Hunt for Missing Girl
http://abcnews.go.com/WN/search-missing-girl-chelsea-king-draws-hundreds/story?id=9971804

Article:
http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/The...-john-albert-gardner-pleads/story?id=10002541
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Chelsea King Killing: Police Comb Grave for Clues
Former FBI Profiler Says This Was 'Probably a Blitz Attack' on San Diego Teen

March 3, 2010
<snipped>
Investigators were searching the shallow grave where the body of San Diego high school student Chelsea King was found Tuesday, trying to gather every bit of evidence that will help put away the sex offender they say killed her.

Former FBI agent and ABC News consultant Brad Garrett said the location of the body likely means King was attacked shortly after she started her jog.

""This was probably a blitz attack. where he sees her jogging and attacks her," he said, adding that it's not uncommon for murderers to leave their victims near the site of the crime.

Police said Gardner, who was arrested in 2000 for committing lewd and lascivious acts on a child under 14, may also be connected to the disappearance of Amber DuBois, a 14-year-old who disappeared near San Diego on her way to school in February 2009.

DuBois' grandmother, Sheila Welch, is demanding a crackdown on known sex offenders.

"It makes me want to throw up. How many times are we going to continue to let this happen?" she asked. "Whose child is it going to be next?"


WATCH: Chelsea King's Body Found
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/chelsea-kings-body-found-9995773

Article:
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/TheLaw/chelsea-king-murder-police-combing-grave-clues/story?id=9995419
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Chelsea King Case: Outrage Over Sex Offender Monitoring Reaches White House
John Walsh Said President Obama Vowed to Fund Federal Sex Offender Law

March 4, 2010
<snipped>
John Walsh, host of "America's Most Wanted," said he met with President Obama Wednesday to discuss child protection laws and funding for the Adam Walsh Act, signed three years ago by President George W. Bush.

The law promised to create a national registry of sex offenders and keep closer track of the most violent of them, but did not come with the money to implement the bill. "President Obama said yesterday, 'As the father of two girls, John, I will get the Adam Walsh law funded,'" Walsh told "Good Morning America" today.

Walsh, whose 6-year-old son for whom the law is named and who was kidnapped and murdered in 1981, knows firsthand the grief King's parents are suffering. "They're in the worst place a parent could be," he said. "They look in that courtroom and see a guy who should have never been out on the streets."

But the outrage grew with the arrest of Gardner, a known violent sex offender who has since been charged with the December assault and attempted rape of 22-year-old Candice Moncayo in the same park where King's body was found. "I think everyone asks the same question," Walsh said. "Why was this animal out on the streets?"

*Much more at link!

WATCH: Was Chelsea King's Death Preventable?
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/chelsea-kings-death-preventable-10007135

Article:
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/TheLaw/ch...sex-offenders-reaches-white/story?id=10006593
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Chelsea King Suspect Linked to More Crimes
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fahO9wai0UQ[/ame]

Notebook: Chelsea King
Katie Couric comments on the sadness and despair of the Chelsea King case and the anger surrounding it now that convicted sex offender, John Albert Gardner III is a suspect.
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBYXsxW0fEs[/ame]
 
Obama to Appear on 'America's Most Wanted' to Mark Show's Anniversary
President Obama will make an appearance Saturday on Fox's "America's Most Wanted," helping to celebrate the broadcast of its 1,000th episode.

March 4, 2010
<snipped>
Walsh will interview Obama on the episode airing 9 p.m. ET. The president will discuss the show's impact in its 22 years as well as his administration's anti-crime initiatives, including those involving white-collar crime, Fox said Wednesday.

Walsh told Fox News Thursday that he spoke to the president about John Gardner, the sex offender suspected in the disappearance of 17-year-old Chelsea King, who disappeared last week from a wooded park in San Diego County.

Gardner, who is now in custody without bail for investigation of murder and rape, served only five years in prison for molesting a girl a decade ago after prosecutors rejected a psychiatrist's advice to seek a stiffer punishment, court documents state.

"We actually were discussing this case," Walsh said. "And his response and his outlook on it is the same as mine. How could this guy be out there and why was he out there and if he is out there, why isn't he being watched more closely?"

Walsh noted that when the show began, the only other program on the network was "21 Jump Street," an undercover cop drama starring Johnny Depp.

"Whatever happened to that guy, I don't know," Walsh joked. "We were the first reality show and it's been quite an incredible journey."


Article:
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/201...anted-mark-shows-anniversary/?test=latestnews
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Chelsea King Murder Suspect Had History
John Albert Gardner III pleaded not guilty to charges

Posted on Thu, Mar 4th, 2010
Last updated Thu, Mar 4th, 2010
<snipped>
A registered sex offender accused of murdering Poway High senior Chelsea King was reported today to match the description of a man seen stalking a 13-year-old girl on the same day and in the same community where Chelsea went missing.

San Diego police received a report a week ago today about a man in a black sedan following a 13-year-old girl as she walked near Bernardo Heights Middle School in Rancho Bernardo, CW6 News reported this morning.

A black sedan frequently seen parked in front of John Albert Gardner III's mother's townhouse in Rancho Bernardo has since been towed away by police, according to the news station.


Gardner, 30, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to murdering 17-year-old Chelsea, who vanished last Thursday after she went for an after-school run at Rancho Bernardo Community Park.

In addition to murder, Gardner was charged with assault with the intent to commit rape for an attack on another woman in the same park last December, according to District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis.


Article:
http://www.sandiego.com/family-and-children/chelsea-king-murder-suspect-had-history
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John Gardner matched description of stalker the day Chelsea King went missing
March 4, 2010
<snipped>
San Diego police received a report a week ago Thursday about a man in a black sedan following a 13-year-old girl as she walked near Bernardo Heights Middle School in Rancho Bernardo, CW6 News reported Thursday morning.

A black sedan frequently seen parked in front of John Albert Gardner III&#8217;s mother&#8217;s townhouse in Rancho Bernardo has since been towed away by police, according to the news station. Gardner also bears a striking resemblance to a composite sketch of a suspect in an attempted abduction of a girl less than four miles from his residence in Lake Elsinore last October. The Press-Enterprise in Riverside reported that the girl was walking to a friend&#8217;s house when she was approached by a man driving a sedan. After a brief conversation, the man showed the girl a gun and demanded she get inside his car, but she refused and ran, according to the newspaper.

Local authorities say they also are investigating whether Gardner might be responsible for the February 2009 disappearance of Escondido High School freshman Amber Dubois, who was 14 when she vanished while walking to campus.


John Albert Gardner III looks toward the judge at an arraignment where he pleaded not guilty to murder and other charges in the case involving teenager Chelsea King in a San Diego Superior Courtroom Wednesday March 3, 2010 in San Diego.
gardner-arraign4-365x400.jpg


Article:
http://www.sdnn.com/sandiego/2010-0...-of-stalker-the-day-chelsea-king-went-missing
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Sex Offender Charged In Chelsea King Case
Mar 3, 2010 10:49 pm US/Eastern
<snipped>
Dr. Matthew Carroll, a psychiatrist who interviewed Gardner, had urged "the maximum sentence allowed by law." He said in court documents that Gardner was a "continued danger to underage girls in the community" and an "extremely poor candidate" for treatment.

Dr. Mark Kalish, who shares an office with Carroll, said his colleague was saddened and angered by the news about Gardner, feeling his advice was ignored. "He didn't want there to be any ambiguity or doubt about his assessment. He laid it out there and he was essentially ignored by the district attorney's office," Kalish said. "How much bigger a red flag could Dr. Carroll have raised?"

Kalish said Carroll was referring calls to him because his colleague, who does work for the county, did not want to discuss the case publicly. Carroll, a court-appointed psychiatrist, reached his conclusion because Gardner took no responsibility, despite evidence, described in the prosecution sentencing memorandum, of the girl's frantic escape. "How are you going to treat someone who says you got the wrong guy?" Kalish said. "This girl ran out of (his) house with her pants down. Come on!"

The district attorney's office has declined to comment on the 2000 case.


Video: Psychiatrist Sounded Warning On Murder Suspect
http://wjz.com/video/?id=22223@cbslocal.dayport.com

*Added For Future Reference!
Video: Body Found In Search For Missing San Diego Teen
http://wjz.com/Link.ashx?R=http://wjz.com/video/?id=68119@wjz.dayport.com

Video: Suspect To Be Arraingned In Chelsea King Case
http://wjz.com/video/?id=129069@kcbs.dayport.com

Video: Suspect To Be Arraingned In Chelsea King's Murder Case
http://wjz.com/video/?id=129042@kcbs.dayport.com

Video: Community Holds Vigil For Chelsea King
http://wjz.com/video/?id=129026@kcbs.dayport.com

Video: Police: Suspect Also Behing Another Attack Of Jogger
http://wjz.com/video/?id=129028@kcbs.dayport.com

Video: Authorities Find Body At Rancho Bernardo
http://wjz.com/video/?id=128984@kcbs.dayport.com

Video: Body Found Could Be Chelsea King
http://wjz.com/video/?id=128982@kcbs.dayport.com

Video: Body Believed To be Chelsea King
http://wjz.com/video/?id=128975@kcbs.dayport.com

Article:
http://wjz.com/national/chelsea.king.teen.2.1535254.html
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Suspect in Teen's Murder Charmed Some
3/4/10
<snipped>
He shoveled snow and carried groceries for a neighbor. He cared for a sick girlfriend by pressing a cool cloth to her head all afternoon. A former high school girlfriend called him "the one person who has made me feel completely safe in this world."

Testimonies from family and friends in a 2000 child molestation case cast a sympathetic light on 30-year-old John Albert Gardner III, now accused of murdering 17-year-old girl Chelsea King while she was on a run and raping or attempting to rape her. Gardner, who pleaded not guilty Wednesday to murder and assault with intent to commit rape, was linked to King's death from semen found in the victim's clothing, said California Department of Justice of spokesman Christine Gasparac.

Gardner spent at least part of his childhood in the San Bernardino Mountains community of Running Springs and attended nearby Rim of the World High School, according to the document. He was convicted in 1998 of disturbing the peace in an incident that involved trespassing on campus, his only previous criminal record at the time. "Never once in the whole time that I have known John have I ever felt threatened or scared," Jennifer Tripp, who began dating Gardner when she was a sophomore and he was a senior, wrote the judge. She declined to comment Wednesday when reached by The Associated Press.

Vergie Lightfoot, who lived four houses away, said Gardner volunteered to fix a septic tank and carry groceries. They talked over pie and coffee.

Beth Melban, his then-girlfriend, said she began dating Gardner when they worked at Big 5 Sporting Goods in San Diego and that she took the initiative to kiss him on a first date. Her parents were eager to meet him. "I practically had to force myself on him and he even knew I liked him," she wrote the judge. "John has never been anything but kind and compassionate towards me."

Catherine Osborn, Gardner's mother, wrote the judge in 2000 that her son accepted "full responsibility for his actions."


Article:
http://www.aolnews.com/crime/articl...ornia-teen-chelsea-king-charmed-some/19382924
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Gardner involved in I.E. attempted kidnap?
Thursday, March 04, 2010
<snipped>
A convicted sex offender charged with murdering a Poway teenager may also be involved in the attempted kidnapping of a girl from Lake Elsinore in October. Authorities said John Gardner recently moved to the Lake Elsinore area, so while looking at past cases, and they found one case that may have a connection.

Gardner, 30, was in court for the first time on Wednesday to face charges for murdering 17-year-old Chelsea King. He is also facing a second charge of attempting to sexually assault a female jogger who was able to escape.

Riverside County officials are very interested in Gardner because a composite sketch put together by a 16-year-old in October 2009. The sketch shows physical similarities to Gardner. The victim had claimed a man with a gun tried to force her into a car.

Gardner's parents have had to leave their Rancho Bernardo home because of threats, including one painted on their garage door, blaming them for King's death.

Gardner is due back in court Tuesday. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for March 18. He continues to be held without bail in solitary confinement.


Video: Gardner involved in I.E. attempted kidnap? 1:54
http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/video?id=7311588

Article:
http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/state&id=7311589
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DNA match of semen found on Chelsea King's clothing led to sex offender's arrest, officials say
March 4, 2010 | 7:05 am
<snipped>
During a brief court hearing in San Diego, Gardner, 30, said through an attorney that he denied killing King. Handcuffed and dressed in a jail jumpsuit, Gardner himself did not address the court. Gardner was arrested Sunday afternoon outside a restaurant near Lake Hodges. Authorities said the arrest was made after semen found on King's clothing was run through a national DNA database and was matched to Gardner.

The 230-pound Gardner, who is registered as living in Lake Elsinore, had been visiting his mother in Rancho Bernardo last week, officials said.

The California Department of Justice told Fox 5 San Diego that detectives were able to arrest Gardner two hours after the match came in. In 2000, Gardner pleaded guilty to molestation charges involving a 13-year-old girl. He served five years of a six-year prison term and wore a global-positioning system tracking device until 2008, when his parole term ended.


6a00d8341c630a53ef01310f61f5b8970c-800wi


Article:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lan...-on-chelsea-kings-clothing-led-to-arrest.html
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Sex offender laws didn't protect Chelsea King
Suspect in murder complied with Megan's Law requirments

8:13 AM PST, March 4, 2010
<snipped>
According to public records, Gardner was convicted of assaulting and molesting a girl in 2000. He was sentenced to six years in prison and served five before he was released in September 2005. He was on probation until 2008. Since then, he apparently registered his addresses with local authorities as required by California State Law, Penal Code 290, known popularly as Megan's Law.

Records show that less than two months ago convicted sex offender John Gardner moved from Escondido to his grandmother's home in Lake Elsinore. He registered with the Riverside County Sheriff's Department as required by law. "John Gardner registered with Riverside County Sheriff's Department on January 7, 2010," said sheriff's Sgt. Joseph Borjas. His current address is listed on Gelette Street in Lake Elsinore. In a phone interview, Sgt. Borjas said his department didn't think Gardner was a threat.

"When he moved from Escondido, if he had any issues, they would have passed that information to us," Borjas said. Under Code 290, Gardner is required to register with the city or county every year for the rest of his life. Not doing so would be violation of the law.

Law enforcement officials say police make an effort to keep tabs on registered sex offenders. They make unscheduled house checks on offenders, called "290 stings", especially during events like Halloween. FOX 5 News contacted the Escondido Police Department about how they conduct such checks, but officials refused to comment on this case. In San Diego County there are 4,000 registered sex offenders. Police say they don't have the resources to check on all of them. Police recommend monitoring registered sex offenders living near you on the Megan's Law Web site.


Video: Remembering Chelsea King 2:38
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...48-7fae888ae679/News/Remembering-Chelsea-King

Video: DA Bonnie Dumanis On Gardner Arraignment 13:09
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...News/DA-Bonnie-Dumanis-on-Gardner-arraignment

Video: Gardner Arraignment 2:00
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobeta/f6324b9a-6e78-49c7-9dd7-521c0986ab7c/News/Gardner-Arraignment

Video: Gardner Court Security 2:08
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...b806-78f413cd2f55/News/Gardner-Court-Security

Video: Gardner Home Vanalized 2:06
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...cfa-fa0f1822a083/News/Gardner-Home-Vandalized

Video: Why Wasn't Sex Offender Gardner In Prison? 2:11
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...ws/Why-Wasn-t-Sex-Offender-Gardner-In-Prison-

Video: Sex Offender Laws 1:44
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobeta/bce94a82-13c5-4e07-aba7-2032cd9eb424/News/Sex-Offender-Laws

Video: Remembering Chelsea King 1:21
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...e8-6a472c88e16c/News/Remembering-Chelsea-King

Video: Psychologist Explains The Grieving Process 5:30
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...ws/Psychologist-Explains-The-Grieving-Process

Video: Chelsea King Suspect To Be Arraigned 2:44
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...e63/News/Chelsea-King-Suspect-to-be-Arraigned

Video: Outpouring Of Support For Chelsea King 1:50
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...5/News/Outpouring-of-Support-for-Chelsea-King

Video: Classmates React To Chelsea King Tragedy 3:16
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...News/Classmates-React-To-Chelsea-King-Tragedy

Video: Defending An Accused Killer 7:20
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...7f2705a0b931/News/Defending-an-Accused-Killer

Video: Thousands Mourn Chelsea At Candlelight Vigil 2:52
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe.../Thousands-Mourn-Chelsea-At-Candlelight-Vigil

Video: Search For Chelsea Ends Tragically 2:50
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...8543a/News/Search-For-Chelsea-Ends-Tragically

Video: Body Found In Shallow Grave 2:34
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...735bfcfabcdf/News/Body-Found-In-Shallow-Grave

Video: Classmates React To Discovery Of Body 2:06
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...80/News/Classmates-React-To-Discovery-Of-Body

Video: News Of Chelsea Spreads Via Social Media 1:35
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...ws/News-of-Chelsea-s-Spreads-Via-Social-Media

Video: Search Volunteers Reactions To Body Found 0:46
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...ews/Search-Volunteers-Reactions-to-Body-Found

Video: Poway Student Vigil 7:21
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobeta/66e5e1c5-c33c-43ae-b725-19c2db7e555b/News/Poway-Students-Vigil

Video: Body Found In Lake Hodges , Sheriff Press Conference 7:37
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...ound-in-Lake-Hodges-Sheriffs-Press-Conference

Raw Video: Searchers Find Body In Lake Hodges 4:22
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...c1f0c/News/Searchers-find-body-in-Lake-Hodges

Video: Matt Johnson With A Chelsea King Update 2:47
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe.../News/Matt-Johnson-With-a-Chelsea-King-Update

Video: Who Is John Albert Gardner? 1:52
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...a90ac4183ac3/News/Who-Is-John-Albert-Gardner-

Video: Classmates React To Teen's Disappearance 1:39
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...News/Classmates-React-To-Teen-s-Disappearance

Video: Volunteers Search For Chelsea King 1:47
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...8eee9/News/Volunteers-Search-For-Chelsea-King

Video: Keeping Kids Safe 1:38
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobeta/3bd7335b-08c2-4f82-9c16-70cf8d166e5d/News/Keeping-Kids-Safe

Raw Video: Searching Lake Hodges For Chelsea King 4:29
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...c/News/Searching-Lake-Hodges-for-Chelsea-King

Video: Missing Teen Search 1:40
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobeta/10027cd7-4c0f-49d5-b639-14cd15f013f8/News/Missing-Teen-Search

Video: Missing Teen Search Continues 1:37
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...63c9f98b66/News/Missing-Teen-Search-Continues

Video: Search Continues Monday For Chelsea King 6:03
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...News/Search-continues-Monday-for-Chelsea-King

Video: Shally Zamordio With Missing Teen Update 3:44
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...News/Shally-Zomorodi-With-Missing-Teen-Update

Video: Sheriff's Update: Search Continues For Missing Poway Teen 6:21
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...pdate-Search-Continues-For-Missing-Poway-Teen

Video: Missing Teen Search 2:49
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobeta/af0fc228-3a9c-47d6-bfac-0893d802e75c/News/Missing-Teen-Search

Video: Search Is On For Missing Teen 3:42
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...94b299b22d/News/Search-is-On-for-Missing-Teen

Video: Missing Teen Search 3:14
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobeta/c13d2fe9-0e46-4a22-8cca-c66544d0db99/News/Missing-Teen-Search

Video: Volunteers For For Missing Girl 2:52
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...57e4dae35054/News/Volunteers-For-Missing-Girl

Raw Video: Poway Missing Teen Chopper 2:41
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobe...-7f59f3ab80f7/News/Poway-Missing-Teen-Chopper

Video: Missing Teen Search 4:12
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/videobeta/f32fb7bb-6652-482a-bd4d-e56b2ad5ec0e/News/Missing-Teen-Search

Article:
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/news/kswb-sex-offender-law,0,2422495.story
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Gardner suspected in 2 recent abduction attempts
11:52 AM PST, March 4, 2010
<snipped>
A registered sex offender accused of murdering Poway High senior Chelsea King matches the description of a man seen stalking a 13-year-old girl on the same day and in the same community where Chelsea went missing, a San Diego police spokesman said.

San Diego police received a report last Thursday about a man in a black sedan following a 13-year-old girl as she walked near Bernardo Heights Middle School in Rancho Bernardo, San Diego police Lt. Gary Hassen told FOX5 News. A black sedan frequently seen parked in front of John Albert Gardner III's mother's townhouse in Rancho Bernardo has since been towed away by police, Hassen confirmed. Police investigators have turned over evidence in the case to the San Diego District Attorney, Hassen said.

Gardner also bears a striking resemblance to a composite sketch of a suspect in an attempted abduction of a girl less than four miles from his residence in Lake Elsinore last October. The Press-Enterprise in Riverside reported that the girl was walking to a friend's house when she was approached by a man driving a sedan. After a brief conversation, the man showed the girl a gun and demanded she get inside his car, but she refused and ran, according to the newspaper.


Article:
http://www.fox5sandiego.com/news/kswb-gardner-abduction-attempts,0,176270.story
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POWAY: Veteran to prosecute teen's suspected killer
Kristen Spieler has previously tried sexual predators

March 3, 2010 9:35 pm
<snipped>
Following Gardner's arraignment on murder and assault charges Wednesday, Spieler said she was confident that he can get a fair trial despite the extensive media coverage. And she made it clear authorities have a solid case.

A former San Diego assistant city attorney, Spieler was hired by former San Diego County District Attorney Paul Pfingst in 1998.

Pfingst on Wednesday described her as extremely bright, capable and personable. "She has an obvious sincerity about what she says and does," Pfingst said. "She is not mean-spirited and is someone who is very articulate and would favorably impress a jury." Pfingst also said Spieler is a very deliberate and careful attorney. "She is a dotting the 'I,' crossing the 'T' type of person," said Pfingst, who now works in private practice as a criminal defense attorney.

Pfingst said the decision to hire Spieler was easy. "I knew she would make me look good."

Spieler's most recent North County case involved a Rancho Bernardo man who fatally stabbed his 28-year-old neighbor as she talked on the telephone with her mother. The suspect in that case, Richard Saldivar, 40, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder on Feb. 24 for the killing of Jennifer Lee Jones.

Spieler was raised in Point Loma and is a graduate of UC San Diego.


Deputy District Attorney Kristen Spieler, speaking to the press Wednesday with District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis.
cb4674e5-bce2-5e7f-83cf-658392177584.preview-300.jpg


Chelsea King news coverage
http://www.nctimes.com/collection_672152ae-270a-11df-a38b-001cc4c03286.html

Article:
http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/poway/article_3517e26c-54ee-52ba-9145-4ed9f940df2e.html
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Sex offender charged in Chelsea King case
03.03.10, 09:29 PM EST
<snipped>
Prosecutors declined to answer questions about the evidence against Gardner. However, California Department of Justice spokeswoman Christine Gasparac told The Associated Press Gardner was identified after the semen from clothing found by investigators was run through a national database.

The semen had been detected by the San Diego County crime lab and forwarded to the state, where technicians ran it through the national Combined DNA Index System. "We were able within two hours to get a match to Gardner, and they were able to make the arrest," Gasparac said.

District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis said a decision on whether to seek the death penalty would be made later. "It is a very somber decision," she said. Gardner's public defender, Michael Popkins, did not address reporters.


Article:
http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2010...-teen_7405613.html?boxes=Homepagebusinessnews
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Video: Chelsea's family 'angry, sad'
[ame]http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/bestoftv/2010/03/03/lkl.chelsea.family.angry.cnn[/ame]

Video: Suspect pleads not guilty
[ame]http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/crime/2010/03/04/ng.sex.offender.plea.cnn[/ame]

Video: Remains missing teen's?
[ame]http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/crime/2010/03/03/ng.missing.teen.body.found.cnn[/ame]

Chelsea King Vigil, Family Mourns Photos 1-26
http://www.cbsnews.com/2300-504083_162-10002669.html
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POWAY: Gardner assigned experienced defenders
Public defense attorney Michael J. Popkins also adjunct law professor

Posted: March 3, 2010 8:43 pm
<snipped>
The registered sex offender charged with killing Chelsea King will be represented by two attorneys from the San Diego County public defender's office.

The lead defense attorney on the case is Deputy Public Defender Michael J. Popkins, who has more than three decades of experience as an attorney.

Popkins supervises one of the teams of public defenders who often handle clients in high-profile homicide cases. In recent years, he represented Kaijamar "Kai" Carpenter, who a judge found was legally insane when Carpenter killed his educator mother in her Chula Vista home in 2007. He has also spent the last year moonlighting as an adjunct professor at the California Western School of Law in downtown San Diego, where he teaches trial and courtroom skills to students. Popkins earned his undergraduate degree at Villanova University in Pennsylvania, earned his law degree at the University of San Diego School of Law, and joined the state bar in 1976, according to the California state bar Web site.

Also assigned to the case is Deputy Public Defender Mel Epley, who has been an attorney since 1989.

Among his recent cases, Epley represented Dragon Jones, who earned the moniker "Backroom Bandit" for a crime spree in which he robbed 20 San Diego County businesses inside of a month, often threatening to shoot the lone female employee in the store. Jones pleaded guilty in January and was sentenced to 14 years in prison. Epley earned his undergraduate degree at San Diego State University, and then earned his law degree at the University of San Diego School of Law, the state bar Web site states.


Deputy Public Defender Michael J. Popkins is the lead defense attorney assigned to represent John Albert Gardner III
d01a3d4d-1f43-567e-b573-3cff64cc41ec.preview-300.jpg


Article:
http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/poway/article_b4d02725-3ed0-595b-961b-f082bfb616a8.html
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Social networking helps police in missing persons cases
How Facebook and Twitter changed the search for Chelsea King

March 04, 2010
<snipped>
Several trends are already emerging from Chelsea's case.

* One is the large role social networking websites Twitter and Facebook played in helping to mobilize thousands of volunteers to look for Chelsea and a suspect in her disappearance. The Facebook page set up by Chelsea's family had grown to upwards of 70,000 members by Tuesday, at the height of the search for her. Organizers say more than 6,000 volunteers came together to scour the area surrounding the park where her car was found.

* A second trend will come as law enforcement agencies try to construct a timeline for the suspect, derived from testimonies of those who saw him before and after the incident.

Chelsea's case highlights how law enforcement agencies are more efficiently gathering and cataloging information. Ken Dixon of MIR3, a San Diego-based company which has been developing communication networks for governments, universities and large corporations since 1999, calls the coming era "important communications." "In the old days, you lined up people around the block. Each would write down their phone number and expertise and bearing to the case, and getting back to them was tedious and slow. Now you can aggregate and annotate responses, contact and deploy with lightning speed," he says.

"State-of-the-art systems today go 'social-networking' one better," Mr. Dixon says, "because they have many more ways to collect and annotate responses in real-time." He says there is now far greater "incident management capability" because law enforcement can build a chronology of who said what, where, and when much faster. "It's like Twitter on steroids."

* A third will show itself as the community, family, and friends try to keep in touch, mourn, and share photos and stories. "The compelling story of this murder is the role of technology in addressing all these crucial issues," says Elizabeth Dowdell, an associate professor of nursing at Villanova University who works with the FBI in forensics and Internet safety.

"The community support tapped into by these systems will help San Diego cope with their sense of loss, and piece together the many details of the case to create needed court testimony," she says. "Equally important are the living memorials that can be created to mitigate the need for parents who hold onto picture collages and keep the bedroom of their deceased children unchanged for year upon year."

Facebook recently changed its policy to allow family members of deceased people to memorialize their personal pages, preserving the popular "wall" as a place for people to leave remembrances and messages of support, and limiting access to confirmed friends.


Article:
http://www.policeone.com/police-pro...orking-helps-police-in-missing-persons-cases/
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It Was the Worst Day of Their Lives
Updated 10:46 AM PST, Thu, Mar 4, 2010
<snipped>
In their first interview after the discovery of a body in the search for their missing 17-year old daughter Chelsea, Brent and Kelly King described Tuesday as the worst day of their lives. When deputies told them they had found Chelsea&#8217;s body in a shallow grave along the shore of Lake Hodges, the Kings say the news brought them some closure. They had every emotion running through their bodies, according to Brent. "Not only through the arraignment process but planning services you never could conceive of," he said.

Kelly King attended the Gardner's arraignment Wednesday. His attorney for the hearing, Michael Popkins, entered not guilty pleas to the charges, saying that his client denied all the allegations. During the date-setting portion of the hearing, Gardner spoke only a single word, "yes," otherwise allowing his attorney to speak for him. The suspect spent the hearing in shackles, mostly looking downward. Kelly described seeing Gardner in court and said she only &#8220;wished he would&#8217;ve looked at me so he could&#8217;ve seen my eyes,&#8221; she said. Brent and Kelly have nothing to say to Gardner and, as they&#8217;ve said before, they don&#8217;t want to waste anytime thinking about him. "It&#8217;s past anger," said Brent. "It&#8217;s revulsion, it&#8217;s disgust, it&#8217;s anger," Kelly added.

A group of Chelsea&#8217;s close friends stopped by last night and visited them, talking not only about Chelsea and their memories but also about their plans for college. When the college acceptance letters start arriving for Chelsea, her parents believe they will be another tribute to their daughter and her academic achievement.

*Much more at link!

Video: Vigil Was Everything Chelsea Embodied
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local-beat/Vigil_Was_Everything_Chelsea_Embodied_San_Diego.html

Video: Kings Search for Strength to Continue
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local-beat/Kings_Search_for_Strength_to_Continue_San_Diego.html

Article:
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local-beat/It-Was-the-Worst-Day-of-Their-Lives-86359392.html
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Murder Suspect a Rim Graduate
3/4/10
<snipped>
The convicted sex offender arrested Sunday on suspicion of abducting, raping and killing a San Diego County teenager was a 1997 graduate of Rim of the World High School, officials have confirmed. The 6-2, 230-pound Gardner, who reportedly lived in Running Springs while enrolled at Rim High but recently had lived in Lake Elsinore, was released from prison in 2005 after serving five years of a six-year sentence for molesting a 13-year-old girl in his mother's townhouse in Rancho Bernardo 10 years ago.

Members of the 1997 Rim graduating class recall Gardner, but say he did not make a particular impression on them. One, who asked not to be identified, referred to Gardner as "dorky and unpopular," and said he "kept to himself." Twin Peaks Sheriff's Detective Mike Pelkey, when informed of that comment, said, "that's kind of typical of people who cause that kind of problem. They're loners, but they choose to be."

Though he was pictured along with other seniors in Rim's 1997 yearbook, Gardner apparently did not submit a senior biography for publication in that volume, so a listing of his interests and activities is missing from the book.


news1.jpg


Article:
http://www.crestlinecourier-news.com/articles/2010/03/04/news/news1.txt
 
Video: Suspect held without bail in case of missing California teenager Chelsea King 1:25
http://www2.wnct.com/nct/video/detail/03a27c2c-7901-102d-a6fd-001ec92a4a0d/115876/
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POWAY: Chelsea King's family establishes new Facebook page
Posted: March 4, 2010 9:39 am
<snipped>
Chelsea King's family plans to communicate with supporters on a new Facebook page called "Chelsea's Light," a family spokeswoman said Thursday.

"Our sorrow and loss runs unspeakably deep, yet the inspiration of everyone's love and encouragement lifts us up," reads a Wednesday statement posted on the page by Chelsea's parents, Brent and Kelly King. "Our Chelsea set out to change the world and throughout our lifetime we will work to ensure that through us, Chelsea will create the enormous change she was determined to see. With your help, Chelsea's light will never dim."

Chelsea was an environmental activist and a humanitarian, according to one family member. "Chelsea's Light" will replace the "Chelsea King Search Center" page where the Kings communicated with thousands of people who had been following the search for the missing girl.


Article:
http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/poway/article_bcdce7f6-a19c-58db-9916-e8f3431da682.html
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Chelsea King's parents say they want justice for their daughter
Posted: Mar 04, 2010 2:56 PM EST
Updated: Mar 04, 2010 2:56 PM EST
<snipped>
Brent and Kelly King are saying they want justice for their daughter. Chelsea King's parents sat down with News 8 just one day after looking their daughter's accused killer in the eye. It's one week to the day the King's 17-year-old daughter went missing. "I think we've experienced emotions we never even knew existed," Kelly King said.

The body of a young woman investigators believe to be Chelsea was discovered Tuesday off the Southeast end of Lake Hodges. "Yes, we found Chelsea. Yes, we found the horrible man that did this, but this is just the beginning," Kelly King said.

Brent and Kelly King are now dedicated to changing the laws. "The rest of our lives, this is what we do," Wednesday in court, for the first time the couple looked their daughter's accused killer in the face. "I won't even say his name. He doesn't deserve a name," Brent King said.

According to prosecutors, semen found at the scene matched that of John Gardner. They also say if found guilty, Gardner is eligible for the death penalty. "I always told my children if anything happens to you I'll make sure, and I am letting the courts and the DA make sure for me," Brent King said.

The Kings told News 8 they also plan on contacting the parents of Megan Kanka and Jessica Lunsford to gain some knowledge on how to re-write laws against sex offenders.


Video: Chelsea's parents say they want justice for their daughter 1:56
http://www.cbs8.com/global/category...default&clipId=4594508&flvUri=&partnerclipid=

Chelsea King: Related Stories, Videos & Links
http://www.cbs8.com/Global/category.asp?C=183482

Article:
http://www.cbs8.com/Global/story.asp?S=12084870
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State says Chelsea King suspect found through DNA
Posted: Mar 03, 2010 10:10 AM EST
Updated: Mar 04, 2010 10:47 AM EST
<snipped>
A convicted sex offender charged Wednesday with murdering 17-year-old Chelsea King while raping or attempting to rape her was linked to the crime by DNA found in her clothing, a state Justice Department spokeswoman said.

The break led to the weekend arrest of 30-year-old John Albert Gardner III as thousands of people still held out hope that an extensive search would find the teen alive even though she had not been seen since last Thursday. Prosecutors declined to answer questions about the evidence against Gardner.

Early Wednesday, a spray-painted message was found on the garage at the home of the suspect's mother. It said, "Chelseas blood is on you. Move out." Police did not know who painted it.

Gardner lived at the Rancho Bernardo home in 2000 when he molested a 13-year-old neighbor. The home is down the street from an elementary school and near the park where King was last seen Thursday wearing running clothes. A piece of paper taped to the front door told visitors to leave.


Video: Gardner faces judge, cameras and Chelsea's parents 6:20http://www.cbs8.com/global/category...default&clipId=4592277&flvUri=&partnerclipid=

Video: Bonus Video: John Gardner arraignment pt. 1 10:26
http://www.cbs8.com/global/category...default&clipId=4591779&flvUri=&partnerclipid=

Article:
http://www.cbs8.com/Global/story.asp?S=12075781
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Defendant in Chelsea King murder charmed some
Posted: Mar 04, 2010 10:08 AM EST
Updated: Mar 04, 2010 1:47 PM EST
<snipped>
A court-appointed psychiatrist, Dr. Matthew Carroll, urged the "maximum sentence allowed by law" in 2000 for Gardner for molesting a 13-year-old neighbor at his home, according to court documents. He called him "an extremely poor candidate" for treatment because he refused to admit any responsibility.

Dr. Mark Kalish, who shares an office with Carroll, said his colleague was saddened and angered by the news about Gardner, feeling his advice was ignored. "He didn't want there to be any ambiguity or doubt about his assessment," Kalish said. "How much bigger a red flag could Dr. Carroll have raised?" A defense sentencing memorandum shows Gardner also had sympathizers.

Dr. Divy Kikani, a psychiatrist who treated Gardner for bipolar disorder, wrote that his patient was "extremely remorseful" for inappropriate sexual relations with two girls, ages 13 and 14. He said Gardner was "highly motivated" to get help. Kikani didn't respond to phone messages Wednesday.

Gardner spent at least part of his childhood in the San Bernardino Mountains community of Running Springs and attended nearby Rim of the World High School, according to the document. He was convicted in 1998 of disturbing the peace in an incident that involved trespassing on campus, his only previous criminal record at the time.

"Never once in the whole time that I have known John have I ever felt threatened or scared," Jennifer Tripp, who began dating Gardner when she was a sophomore and he was a senior, wrote the judge. She declined to comment Wednesday when reached by The Associated Press.

Vergie Lightfoot, who lived four houses away, said Gardner volunteered to fix a septic tank and carry groceries. They talked over pie and coffee.

Beth Melban, his then-girlfriend, said she began dating Gardner when they worked at Big 5 Sporting Goods in San Diego and that she took the initiative to kiss him on a first date. Her parents were eager to meet him. "I practically had to force myself on him and he even knew I liked him," she wrote the judge. "John has never been anything but kind and compassionate towards me."


Video: Psychiatrist: warning signs concerning Gardner were ignored 1:43
http://www.cbs8.com/global/category...default&clipId=4594051&flvUri=&partnerclipid=

Article:
http://www.cbs8.com/Global/story.asp?S=12082874
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Authorities won't yet confirm body is Chelsea King
Thursday, March 4, 2010 at 12:05 p.m.
<snipped>
Officials are withholding official confirmation that the body found at Lake Hodges Tuesday is Poway teenager Chelsea King until the next court hearing for the man accused of killing her.

District Attorney Spokesman Paul Levikow said Thursday that any evidence, including the identification of the body, will not be revealed until the preliminary hearing in San Diego Superior Court. That hearing is scheduled for March 18.

A spokeswoman at the Medical Examiner&#8217;s Office says the case has been sealed and refered all questions to the Sheriff&#8217;s Department. Jan Caldwell, spokeswoman for the Sheriff&#8217;s Department, referred questions about the identification of the body to the District Attorney&#8217;s Office which ordered the Medical Examiner&#8217;s file sealed.


Composite of man sought in an attempted abduction of a girl in October in Lake Elsinore. Police are investigating whether John Albert Gardner III is connected to the case.
composite_t180.jpg


Updated Map:
http://www.umapper.com/maps/view/id/57373/

Article:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/04/chelsea-king-body-confirmation/
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Cops Link Accused Chelsea King Killer to 'Several' Other Near Abductions
Police Believe John Gardner Tried to Attack Other San Diego Girls

March 4, 2010
<snipped>
Police in Lake Elsinore, Calif., a San Diego suburb where John Albert Gardner III registered as a sex offender in January, are reexamining several recent assaults on young women. The family of a 16-year-old girl told police Sunday, the day Gardner was arrested, that their daughter recognized Gardner from news reports as the man who tried to kidnap her on Oct. 28, 2009. "At the time we didn't have a suspect," said Sgt. Joe Borjas of the Riverside County Police Department. "We're taking another look at all of the recent incidents that bear a similarity to the King case, including that one."

The girl reported the attempted kidnapping on the day it happened, telling police she was on her way to a friend's house around 7 a.m. when she was approached by a man in a gold 1990s four-door sedan asking directions.

Police said the October incident was one of several reported attempted abductions reported last fall. Borjas said police had not tallied all the cases that could be related, but there were numerous similar incidents at the time. "We don't know exactly how many cases there are, we're in that process right now," said Borjas. "There are several with similarities from around that time."

Police had already connected Gardner to an attack on 23-year-old graduate student Candice Moncayo in December 2009 on the same jogging trail where Chelsea King died, and believe he could be responsible for the disappearance of Amber Dubois, 14, who vanished while on her way to school in Escondido in February 2009. Moncayo reported being attacked on the same jogging path in the same park north of San Diego in which King went missing. "I thought he was going to rape me," Moncayo said of the overweight man who tackled her. "So I told him he would have to kill me first."

He registered as sex offender in Lake Elsinore in January when he began living with his mother and step-father at a home near an elementary school. Prior to that he lived in nearby Escondido, but police say it is possible he was traveling to Lake Elsinore to look for victims. "It is certainly a possibility that he was travelling back and forth," said Borjas. "The towns are pretty close."


Article:
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/cops-link...ed-killer-linked-abductions/story?id=10012155
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WATCH: Chelsea King's Parents Fight for Justice
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/chelsea-king-parents-justice-rape-10017716
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Today Show Video: Murdered teen&#8217;s parents remember &#8216;spectacular girl&#8217; 3/5/10 8:37
The parents of murdered California 17-year-old Chelsea King tell Ann Curry they will work to ensure that sex offenders are kept away from children.
[ame="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26184891/vp/35723125#35723125"]Today Show Video Player[/ame]
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Chelsea King&#8217;s family spokesperson speaks to Larry King
March - 4 - 2010
<snipped>
A spokesperson for the family of slain teenager Chelsea King appeared on the Larry King show last night. Traci Barker-Ball serves as a peer counseling supervisor at Chelsea King&#8217;s high school. When asked how the King family was handling the devastating news she answered, &#8220;You know, I&#8217;ve just been amazed at their strength. They &#8212; you know, every time I talk to them, they want to know how everybody else is doing, how the students are doing. So, obviously very hard for them.&#8221;

She said that the students are angry, sad, and scared. She also said that &#8216;Security has been taken away from them.&#8217;

*More at link!

chelsea-2.jpg


&#8226;Read John Gardner Criminal Complaint
http://primewriter.com/criminal complaint john gardner.pdf

&#8226;John Gardner arraignment video
http://www.examiner.com/x-32312-Amb...ith-attempted-rape-and-murder-of-Chelsea-King

&#8226;Slideshow: Chelsea King Vigil
http://www.examiner.com/x-32312-Amb...ng-17yearold-Chelsea-King-found-photos-videos

Photos: Chelsea King Body Found
http://www.examiner.com/x-32312-Amb...ng-17yearold-Chelsea-King-found-photos-videos

Chelsea King Press Conference
http://www.examiner.com/x-32312-Amb...ng-17yearold-Chelsea-King-found-photos-videos

Press Conference transcript (pt 1)
http://primewriter.com/news-1246-headlines/?p=4785

Press Conference transcript (pt 2)
http://primewriter.com/news-1246-headlines/?p=4791

Article:
http://primewriter.com/news-1246-headlines/?p=4872
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Outrage Growing Over Repeat Sex Offenders
Thursday, 04 March 2010 3:52PM
<snipped>
Experts say there are not enough parole officers to monitor the more than 700,000 registered sex offenders in the United States. At least 100,000 may not even be living where they say they are.

"The sex offender registry provides this false sense of security we are monitoring and doing something with the sex offenders out there," said Robin Sax, a former Los Angeles county prosecutor.

And monitoring doesn't always work. Even with home inspections, Phillip Garrido was still able to hide Jaycee Dugard in his backyard for 18 years. Last November in Cleveland, 11 bodies were found in the house of another registered sex offender being monitored by police.

If convicted, John Gardner will now spend the rest of his life behind bars -- but some say if the system were tougher he'd already be there.


Audio: Congressman Lungren Discusses the Chelsea King Case with KNX 1070
http://www.knx1070.com/topic/play_window.php?audioType=Episode&audioId=4442684

Article:
http://www.knx1070.com/Outrage-Growing-Over-Repeat-Sex-Offenders/6480696
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Friend who took last photo of Chelsea King talks to News 8
Posted: Mar 04, 2010 8:29 PM EST
Updated: Mar 04, 2010 8:51 PM EST
<snipped>
During the past week there have been a number of photos of Chelsea King shown on various media outlets, but one in particular stands out.

One photo of Chelsea was taken just hours before her disappearance, shot for a class assignment and taken by one of her best friends.


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Video: Friend who took the last photo of Chelsea 3:10
http://www.760kfmb.com/global/video...Format=flv&clipId1=4595644&at1=News&h1=Friend who took the last photo of Chelsea&flvUri=&partnerclipid=

Article:
http://www.760kfmb.com/Global/story.asp?S=12087404
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Public memorial planned for Chelsea King
Thursday, March 4, 2010 at 5:52 p.m.
<snipped>
A family spokeswoman, Sara Muller Fraunces, announced Thursday that the King family has arranged a memorial to be held March 13 at Poway High School Stadium north of San Diego. The spokeswoman says more details will be released later.

The complaint and charges filed against John Albert Gardner III (PDF)
http://media.signonsandiego.com/pdf/010303gardnercomplaint.pdf

Article:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/04/public-memorial-planned-for-chelsea-king/
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Attorney General: State's Sex Offender System Needs Repair
Gubernatorial Candidate Jerry Brown Talks To 10News

POSTED: 6:27 pm PST March 4, 2010
UPDATED: 7:23 pm PST March 4, 2010
<snipped>
California Attorney General Jerry Brown, who has long opposed the death penalty, said the system in which sex offenders are tracked or monitored is not broken but is in need of some repairs. Brown made his first stop in San Diego Thursday as a Democratic gubernatorial candidate, and spoke 10News&#8217; Joe Little at the Marston House in Balboa Park about a variety of topics, including the recent rape and murder of Chelsea King. He arrived in San Diego amid a public outcry for reform in the state's system that deals with sexual predators.

Little asked Brown, "Did our system here in California fail Chelsea King?" "The system did fail, and it's a system, by the way, that has been built up over decades,&#8221; said Brown. Brown, who was governor from 1975 to 1983, said somewhere along the way California stopped sentencing sexual deviants to indeterminate terms, where only a parole board could let them out. "The parole board wouldn't let you out unless they thought you were rehabilitated or suitable, and I think there were some indications this man was not suitable,&#8221; said Brown, referring to accused killer John Gardner.

"Keep tabs on them in a very controlled way. That takes a type of focus and a type of system that we don't have,&#8221; said Brown. "It'll never be 100-percent perfect, but we can make it a lot better than it is today." Brown said the system succeeded when the state&#8217;s DNA lab in Richmond positively linked a sample found on Chelsea&#8217;s clothing to Gardner -- a link that lead to Gardner&#8217;s arrest.


Video: Attorney Gen. Brown Critical Of State's Handling Of Sex Offenders
http://www.10news.com/news/22747704/detail.html#

Video: 10News Reveals Gardner's Two Faces
http://www.10news.com/news/22747704/detail.html#

Video: Mother Of Victim Speaks Out in Gardner's Dec. Assault Charge
http://www.10news.com/news/22747704/detail.html#

Article:
http://www.10news.com/news/22747704/detail.html
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Neighbors Unaware Of Gardner's Sex Offender Status
POSTED: 5:38 pm PST March 4, 2010
UPDATED: 6:31 pm PST March 4, 2010
<snipped>
Residents at the Rock Springs apartment complex in Escondido expressed shock after learning the man charged with the rape and slaying of Chelsea King was recently their neighbor. Neighbors told 10News John Gardner lived in the complex until January of this year and that children lived just inches away. "It's just scary to know that he's a sex offender not knowing that he was around our apartment complex," said former neighbor Victor Valadez.

Several residents -- many with children -- all said Gardner lived with a woman they believed was his girlfriend, along with two young boys. Neighbors said they thought the children were Gardner's sons, but did not know for sure. They told 10News there was constant yelling and screaming coming from his apartment.

Alicia Morales lived directly across from Gardner and said the violent arguing prompted her to do some digging. She said she found Gardner's photo on the Megan's Law Web site and immediately warned her neighbors.

Armando Reyes and his family lived next door to Gardner and said when word spread about his past, Gardner approached him and said the photo was a mistake and that he "had nothing to worry about." Shortly after, however, Gardner moved out, according to residents. The next time the residents saw him was after his arrest in the death of Chelsea King.

Gardner registered as a sex offender in Lake Elsinore on January 7, 10News learned. The staff at the Rock Springs apartment complex said they never noticed any suspicious activity coming from Gardner's apartment. They also said they were unaware he was a sex offender.


Link: Read August 2000 Court Document In Gardner Case
http://10newsblogs.com/pdf/gardner_documents.pdf

Link: John Gardner's Megan's Law Listing
http://www.meganslaw.ca.gov/cgi/prosoma.dll?searchby=offender&id=18601061E8554

Video: Neighbors Recall Gardner's Childhood As Uneventful
http://www.10news.com/news/22747704/detail.html#

Video: Neighbors Unaware Of Gardner's Sex Offender Status
http://www.10news.com/news/22747704/detail.html#

Article:
http://www.10news.com/news/22747383/detail.html
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Laws to Track Sex Offenders Lack Funding
In the wake of the rape and murder of a San Diego teenager, people are again asking why we can't do a better job tracking sex offenders.

Posted: 7:48 PM Mar 4, 2010
Updated: 4:10 AM Mar 5, 2010
<snipped>
Law enforcement officials say the laws are there. The resources are not. You can find if you're living near one the Reno area's registered sex offenders on line. Beside each name a picture and address. Each of the men was convicted of a felony sexual crime and are considered a potential threat to reoffend. All of this is required by what's known as Megan's Law.

But registration and monitoring may not have protected, the San Diego teenager, 17 year old Chelsea King. John Gardner, the man accused of her murder was a convicted sex offender and case, reportedly was in full compliance with the laws that followed him after his release. Four years ago, 16 year old Holly Quick was brutally raped and murdered in her Sparks home. Like Gardner, her attacker, Tamir Hamilton, was also a convicted sex offender.

The same year Congress passed another law named for another young victim. The Adam Walsh Child Protection Act included a number of measures aimed at better tracking sex offenders or keeping them from the public altogether including tightened registration requirements, a national DNA registry and GPS tracking of the most dangerous offenders. What it didn't contain was the funding to put it into effect. "It sounds good<" says Washoe County District Attorney Dick Gammick, "and there are a lot of good items in there, but unless you've got the funding....."

And Gammick says the problem only gets worse in tough economic times when there are calls for early releases from prison. "It comes down to money. How much are we willing to spend as a society for that element of safety," As it stands, he says, there's no other solution. Counseling and alternative sentencing that may work with other crimes, he says, are ineffectual for this kind of crime. "These people cannot be treated. There's no way of changing who they are. They need to go away and be kept out of society."


Video: Laws to Track Sex Offenders Lack Funding
http://www.kolotv.com/video/?autoSt...default&clipId=4595970&flvUri=&partnerclipid=

Article:
http://www.kolotv.com/home/headlines/86455442.html
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What Makes A Sex Offender Become A Killer?
POSTED: 6:54 pm PST March 4, 2010
UPDATED: 6:56 pm PST March 4, 2010
<snipped>
It's hard to predict and even harder to ignore the moment a sex offender becomes a killer, but a local psychologist said there are some clear warning signs when pinpointing a violent sexual predator. "It's about satisfaction at my cost," said clinical psychologist Michael Mantell, who has worked with many sex offenders.

Many wonder when that hunt for satisfaction turns into murder, and Mantell told 10News, "Many of them commit what we call 'lust murders.' The act of murder is a sexual experience." Mantell said it is a final act in a pattern of behavior often littered with animal cruelty, rape fantasies and violence.

In the case of John Gardner, the man accused in the rape and slaying of 17-year-old Chelsea King, he was handed a six-year sentence for molesting and beating a 13-year-old girl in 2000. At the time, he was nearly 21 years old. "My guess is this is not the first time he's acted out on his obsession for violence," said Mantell.

*More at link!

Video: What Makes A Sex Offender Become A Killer?
http://www.10news.com/news/22747704/detail.html#

Article:
http://www.10news.com/news/22747842/detail.html
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Police hope arrest will aid Amber Dubois case
Friday, March 5, 2010 at 12:04 a.m.
<snipped>
The arrest of John Albert Gardner III has given Escondido police renewed hope in the disappearance last year of Amber Dubois, but without witnesses or a body, they could still be a long way from solving the case. &#8220;Every time a tip or a lead comes in that seems the least bit substantial, it gives us hope,&#8221; Lt. Craig Carter said yesterday. &#8220;I would put this as just another one of those leads, where we have hope that it is something that can pan out for us, and maybe somebody will remember something that will bring this case to closure.&#8221;

In a new development yesterday, police are investigating a report that two preteen girls were followed by a man in a black car near Bernardo Heights Middle School the day before Chelsea&#8217;s disappearance. A law enforcement source said the incident occurred about 3:30 p.m. Feb. 24. The man was reportedly spooked by another vehicle, and when he drove off, the girls ran home and called police.

The source asked not to be named because the District Attorney&#8217;s Office has asked all local law enforcement agencies not to talk about Gardner so as not to risk jeopardizing its case against him.


Gardner spent at least part of his childhood in Running Springs, a community in the San Bernardino Mountains, and attended nearby Rim of the World High School. He was convicted in 1998 of disturbing the peace in an incident that involved trespassing on campus, the only mark on his criminal record at the time.


Dagmi Atnaf paused yesterday at a memorial for Chelsea King, which had been set up outside Poway High School and adorned with flowers and mementos.
amber1_t352.jpg


Article:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/05/police-hopeful-that-arrest-will-aid-amber-dubois/
 
Neighbors Recall Gardner's Childhood As Uneventful
POSTED: 10:56 pm PST March 4, 2010
UPDATED: 11:30 am PST March 5, 2010
<snipped>
On Thursday, 10News traveled to Running Springs and Lake Arrowhead in Riverside County to see the area where he was raised.

Jo Braasch told 10News she knew Gardner and his family very well, but said she was caught completely off guard when she learned Gardner was charged with the murder and rape of King. He never caused problems with the neighborhood, Braasch said. "I'm one that watches out for things," said Braasch, who for the past 15 years has lived right next to the red, cabin-style house in Running Springs where Gardner grew up.

According to an article in the Lake Arrowhead Mountain-News, members of the 1997 graduating class recall Gardner, but said he didn't make a particular impression on them. They also described him as "dorky and unpopular," and said he "kept to himself." School officials at Rim of the World High School declined to comment on Gardner. They told 10News "the issue is way too sensitive,&#8221; and said they wanted to keep their privacy.


Video: Neighbors Recall Gardner's Childhood As Uneventful
http://www.10news.com/news/22747704/detail.html#

Article:
http://www.10news.com/news/22749204/detail.html
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Gardner Contacted By Escondido PD 8 Times Since '08
POSTED: 4:23 am PST March 5, 2010
UPDATED: 7:03 am PST March 5, 2010
<snipped>
Registered sex offender John Albert Gardner III, the suspect in the rape and murder of Chelsea King, was contacted by Escondido police at least eight times since January 2008, far more times than usual, it was reported today.

Contacts with sex offenders are normally made once a year, on or around their birthday, or when they move, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune, which reported that Escondido police declined to explain why Gardner, who used to live in Escondido, was contacted so frequently.Escondido police Lt. Craig Carter told the Union-Tribune he couldn't say whether the unusually high number of contacts made with Gardner had anything to do with Amber.


Article:
http://www.10news.com/news/22750621/detail.html
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MEMORIAL AND DONATIONS
&#8226;&#8201;A public memorial service for Chelsea King is set for 2 p.m. March 13 at Poway High School&#8217;s stadium.

&#8226;&#8201;The family has started the Chelsea&#8217;s Light Fund to help with any causes the group might pursue in the future, the family&#8217;s Facebook page announced yesterday. Donations will be accepted at any Wells Fargo Bank in the United States, Account No. 1838355913.

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Should Calif. Change Sex Predator Laws?
March 5, 2010
<snipped>
GLORIA PENNER (Host): San Diego remains shaken by the rape and murder of Poway teenager Chelsea King. At his arraignment on Wednesday, John Albert Gardner III was accused of the killing and pleaded not guilty. He is a registered sex offender. After the arraignment, San Diego District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis had this to say.

BONNIE DUMANIS (San Diego District Attorney): We know this has rocked San Diego. It has rocked all of us. And, as we move forward, we need to move forward and wrap our arms around this family. And, begin the process of bringing this defendant through the justice system, and holding him accountable for the death of Chelsea.

PENNER: KPBS reporter Amita Sharma is covering the story and joins me now to give some detail. So, Amita, what are the specific charges that John Albert Gardner III is facing?

AMITA SHARMA (KPBS News): John Gardner is charged with murder as well as the special allegation of murder while committing or attempting to commit rape. It&#8217;s that last allegation that gives prosecutors the option of pursuing the death penalty against him. They can also ask for life without parole if he is tried and convicted. There are some deliberations that need to take place within the DA&#8217;s office before a decision is made. Chelsea King&#8217;s family will be consulted. An informal, unscientific poll of local lawyers regarding this case, they say this is a slam-dunk death penalty case.


Video: Are Sex Predator Laws Working?
San Diego remains shaken by the rape and murder of Poway teenager Chelsea King. We discuss the details of the case, and how it could impact California's sex offender laws in the future.
http://kpbs.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com/video/2010/03/05/gardner.mp4

Transcript: Are Sex Predator Laws Working?
San Diego remains shaken by the rape and murder of Poway teenager Chelsea King. We discuss the details of the case, and how it could impact California's sex offender laws in the future.
http://www.kpbs.org/videos/2010/mar/05/4689/#transcript

Article:
http://www.kpbs.org/news/2010/mar/05/should-calif-change-sex-predator-laws/
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Editors Discuss Megan&#8217;s Law And County Elections
March 5, 2010
<snipped>
GLORIA PENNER (Host): With me now to give their perspective on laws meant to protect our youth from sexual predators are Kent Davy, editor of the North County Times, and David Rolland, editor of San Diego CityBeat. Gentlemen, thank you for joining us. Kent, what's the good of laws like Jessica&#8217;s Law, which prohibits offenders from living near schools or parks, if those offenders can actually walk from their legally located homes to a park, or a jogging track, or a trail?

KENT DAVY (Editor, North County Times): Well I think that&#8217;ll be one of the questions as this wave of emotion because of this case continues to build and to sweep. Those will be the sorts of things that will come up, as legislatures jumping on the anti-crime bandwagon will say here, we&#8217;ve got to do something. And that&#8217;s one idea I think will come up. It&#8217;s also important to remember with Jessica&#8217;s Law that it&#8217;s not applied retroactively. It&#8217;s only those people who have been convicted since it went to effect in&#8230; I think you said earlier.

DAVID ROLLAND (Editor, San Diego CityBeat): 2006.

DAVY: 2006.

PENNER: Mm hmm. Kent mentioned, you know, a fact of legislatures jumping on the bandwagon. Is that what you think is going to happen? That state laws are going to be changed because of what happened here?


Video: Editors Discuss Megan&#8217;s Law And County Elections
Editors discuss the impact of Megan's Law on the local community. Also, San Diego City Council member Donna Frye made news this week with the announcement that she will not run against Ron Roberts for a seat on the Board of Supervisors. We discuss the reasons behind Frye's decision, and how it could affect the makeup of the Board of Supervisors in the future.
http://kpbs.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com/video/2010/03/05/laws.mp4

Transcript: Editors Discuss Megan&#8217;s Law And County Elections
Editors discuss the impact of Megan's Law on the local community. Also, San Diego City Council member Donna Frye made news this week with the announcement that she will not run against Ron Roberts for a seat on the Board of Supervisors. We discuss the reasons behind Frye's decision, and how it could affect the makeup of the Board of Supervisors in the future.
http://www.kpbs.org/videos/2010/mar/05/4690/#transcript

Article:
http://www.kpbs.org/news/2010/mar/05/donna-frye-wont-run-supervisor/
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Chelsea King Case Files:
PDF: John Albert Gardner Complaint
http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2010/images/03/03/complaint.john.albert.gardner.pdf

PDF: Jose Lopez Jasso Complaint
http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2010/images/03/03/jose.lopez.jasso.pdf

PDF: John Albert Gardner 2000 Sentecing Memo
http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2010/images/03/03/gardner.sentence.pdf
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POWAY: King family sees daughter as catalyst for change
Authorities won't publicly ID body; memorial set for March 13

March 4, 2010 7:46 pm
<snipped>
Members of 17-year-old Chelsea King's family turned their attention to the future Thursday, two days after a body found in the Lake Hodges area dashed their hopes of finding their daughter alive. The Poway family started a fund to collect contributions from supporters, launched a new Facebook page aimed at keeping Chelsea's memory alive and made preparations for a public memorial at 2 p.m. March 13. "Our Chelsea set out to change the world and throughout our lifetime we will work to ensure that through us, Chelsea will create the enormous change she was determined to see," Kelly and Brent King wrote in a message on a Web site. "With your help, Chelsea's light will never dim."

As the family moved forward, authorities Thursday refused to release the identity of the body found Tuesday saying the case has been sealed by the district attorney's office. Typically, the medical examiner's office releases the identity of people who die once their family has been told about the death. Lenore Aldridge, an investigator with the medical examiner's office, said Thursday that the remains have been identified but the agency would not release any information because the case was sealed.

Paul Levikow, a spokesman for District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis, said no information about the case, including the identity of the remains, would be released until a preliminary hearing is held. That hearing is tentatively scheduled for March 18.


In this undated family photo released by the King family shows Chelsea King, the missing 17-year-old teen from Poway a suburb of San Diego. The parents of a 17-year-old girl who failed to come home after a run in the park are pleading for people to come forward with information.
2007d155-b3e6-5ea1-b06a-0d193bb5e06d.preview-300.jpg


Article:
http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/poway/article_9da746ad-ab04-532b-9f68-03d7025d7206.html
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ESCONDIDO: Aiming to stop predators, city wants to clear brush in Kit Carson Park
Hikers hail plan, but environmental rules could be hurdle

March 4, 2010 7:22 pm
<snipped>
In the wake of the Chelsea King killing, Escondido officials say they plan to quickly clear excess brush and foliage along trails in southwestern Kit Carson Park to deprive predators and muggers of places to hide. City Councilman Dick Daniels said Thursday that he hopes to round up Boy Scout troops, local churches and other volunteers to remove non-native brush and trim overgrown trees in the area, which is roughly 1 mile north of where Chelsea's body was discovered Tuesday in a shallow grave near the shore of Lake Hodges. "We can take the energy resulting from everyone's angst and frustration and use it to make our environment more safe," said Daniels. "We need to increase visibility and make things as safe as we can."

In addition, officials from the Westfield North County regional mall said Thursday that they would be willing to step up maintenance of trees and bushes that separate the 86-acre mall from the southern edge of the 300-acre park. One hurdle could be environmental regulations, which limit what kinds of trees and brush can be sheared and which require permission from the California Department of Fish & Game for such efforts. But city officials said Thursday they were confident those hurdles could be overcome.

Joggers and hikers interviewed Thursday morning hailed the plan, explaining that the park's southwestern corner has a reputation for being dangerously desolate and overgrown. "I never go there because of that," said Patty Billings, a longtime Escondido resident who was walking about a half-mile from the area targeted by city officials. Later, a young jogger on the path named Elisa said clearing brush couldn't hurt. But she also recommended that all female joggers and walkers follow her lead and undergo martial arts training. "It could happen anywhere," she said.

Erin Smith, principal of nearby San Pasqual High School, said school officials would welcome city efforts to clear excess foliage. Smith said members of the school's cross country team, which trains in the park, are urged to stay close to their teammates, or at least one other runner, at all times.

Robin Bettin, the city's assistant director of community services, said city officials were tentatively planning to put colored ribbons on protected plants and trees to prevent volunteers from violating environmental regulations.


Article:
http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/escondido/article_79e5d870-e816-5df3-a2af-d45161ef3a79.html
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Poway dedicates win to slain classmate
Thursday, March 4, 2010 at 10:26 p.m.
<snipped>
The Poway High girls basketball team dedicated Thursday night&#8217;s semifinal victory over Granite Hills to slain classmate Chelsea King.

Before the game, the near sellout crowd stood for a moment of silence. The Titans players all marked King&#8217;s initials on their left wrists and wore orange shoestrings and headbands to honor the memory of King. &#8220;Orange was Chelsea&#8217;s favorite color,&#8221; said senior forward Katie Holiday, who had 19 points, 10 rebounds and three steals in Poway&#8217;s 62-32 win over Granite Hills in the San Diego Section Division I semifinals.

The Titans had the Eagles (25-7) backpedaling from the get-go. &#8220;Rather than sit back and mourn for Chelsea, we were playing this game to honor her memory,&#8221; said Poway senior guard Callie Rhoads. &#8220;We were motivated to play hard, like we know she would have wanted us to.&#8221; The Titans (27-3), who took an early 14-2 lead, posted their 17th straight victory to qualify for Saturday&#8217;s Division I championship game against San Diego at Jenny Craig Pavilion. Granite Hills rebounded briefly from its slow start to pull to within 16-10 in the final minute of the opening quarter. After that Poway played near perfect basketball, outscoring the Eagles 29-2 over a 14-minute stretch. &#8220;Our team was focused so well that it all came together,&#8221; Holiday said.


Article:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/04/poway-dedicates-win-classmate-preps/
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REGION: Sex offender laws exerted little control over defendant
March 4, 2010 10:24 pm
<snipped>
Registered sex offender John Albert Gardner III, the 30-year-old man accused of raping and murdering Poway High School senior Chelsea King, appears to have complied with Megan's Law, the only statute governing where he lived and traveled.

Yet, when 17-year-old Chelsea disappeared in Rancho Bernardo last week, authorities checked the database of sex offenders registered in the San Diego area. Gardner was not among them. And when a 16-year-old girl was attacked last year in Riverside County, authorities did a similar check of the sex offender registry. Again, no Gardner.


Megan's Law and Gardner
In recent years, Gardner apparently spent time at his parents' town house in Rancho Bernardo, an Escondido apartment where he lived about two years, and a home outside Lake Elsinore. Megan's Law, enacted in 1996 in California, requires most of the state's sex offenders to register their address every year, or within five days of moving. A public database of sex offenders is supposed to let the community and police track potentially dangerous neighbors. There is no indication from authorities that Gardner violated the law.

Escondido police Lt. Craig Carter said Gardner was a registered sex offender in Escondido for most of January 2008 until January 2010. Carter would not confirm Gardner's address and added Gardner moved out of the city at least once in that time. Neighbors said Gardner lived in two different units at a Rock Springs Road apartment complex during that time.

In January, Gardner moved, registering his address at a home outside Lake Elsinore, Riverside County sheriff's officials said. Deputies never visited the home, officials said. Seven weeks later, Chelsea disappeared in the Rancho Bernardo area of San Diego, and Gardner's name didn't turn up on the list of neighborhood sex offenders because he had already registered his Lake Elsinore-area address.

Megan's Law places no restrictions on travel or overnight stays of sex offenders, and authorities say Gardner was not restricted from traveling to North County once he moved. However, the law requires offenders to register multiple addresses where they "regularly stay." If Gardner was regularly staying with his parents in Rancho Bernardo, as neighbors have reported, he was required to register that address with San Diego police.

The address does not appear on the Megan's Law Web site, indicating Gardner never registered it. San Diego police would not have seen it if they searched for local registered sex offenders during their investigations of the two crimes prosecutors now say Gardner committed.


A flawed law
Defense attorney and former San Diego County District Attorney Paul Pfingst said Gardner's case illustrates the flaws in the Megan's Law registry and monitoring program. By requiring every sex offender to register for life, it creates a massive pool that makes it difficult for the police or the public to monitor those who are most dangerous. The state has about 63,000 sex offenders listed in its Megan's Law registry, according to the state Department of Justice. "It brings in dangerous characters with less dangerous characters," Pfingst said. "There's too much information, so it brings in useless information with useful information." Police don't have the resources to track so many offenders, Pfingst said. If no one kept a close eye on Gardner, that's no surprise, he said.

Julie Stone, a Poway resident whose daughter is a senior at Poway High School, said the Megan's Law Web site doesn't help her protect her daughter. "It shows there's a sex offender living on my street right now, but I don't know what he did," Stone said. She said the registry shows the neighbor was convicted of lewd acts with a child under 14, but it is not clear how much of a threat he poses now.

Gardner's Megan's Law Web listing notes the same crime, but doesn't give any details. Current law limits available information about registered sex offenders. It would take a legislative change to expand the amount of information available to the public. Even local police have no easy access to detailed information about registered sex offenders living in their community, state Department of Justice officials say. The Department of Justice compiles only a "rap sheet" for sex offenders that includes past arrests, charges and sentences. So police can't easily research what a particular offender has done and often must track down old probation and police reports to learn more, said California Deputy Attorney General Janet Neeley.

Police also have no access to the risk score the State Parole and County Probation departments assign to each newly released offender. But beginning June 1, the Department of Justice will receive a "facts of the case" report for every sex offender released on parole or probation, along with the risk assessment score, Neeley said. Police will have access to that. "We think that will be a huge step forward," she said.


Past offenses
It is not clear whether Escondido, Lake Elsinore or San Diego police knew the facts of Gardner's past offense. Carter said every sex offender in the city is required to meet once with a detective to discuss past offenses and review the law.

Authorities also are investigating the case of a 16-year-old girl who reported that she ran away after a man asked her for directions, then tried to force her into a car at gunpoint Oct. 28 in Lake Elsinore, the Riverside County Sheriff's Department said. At the time, Gardner was registered in Escondido. The suspect was described as a man 30 to 35 years old with a squarish jaw, brown eyes and a blond crew cut. A sketch appears similar to Gardner. Investigators checked out local sex offenders at the time, but not Gardner, Sgt. Patrick Chavez said. "He had not come onto our radar until January," when he notified authorities that he was living in an unincorporated village near Lake Elsinore, Chavez said.


The first conviction
Many are questioning Gardner's sentence for the crime: six years in prison, of which he served just over five. He could have gotten 30 years for the original charges, according to court documents. The sentencing memo notes an agreement allowing the lesser charges ---- and a shorter sentence ---- will "spare the victim the trauma of testifying."

"It's bad enough we have predators out there who have not been caught do these horrible things, but to have one who we had every chance to keep behind bars be sentenced so leniently, it's just infuriating," said Sen. Dennis Hollingsworth, whose 36th District includes Murrieta, Temecula, Bonsall, Fallbrook and Poway. He and other local representatives say they have been flooded with calls and e-mails from people who are furious that Gardner went to jail for only five years, followed by three years of parole, and was free to strike again.


Jessica's Law
Since Gardner's conviction, 70 percent of voters in November 2006 approved Jessica's Law, which monitors sexual offenders by GPS for life and bars them from living within 2,000 feet of any school or park. So far, court rulings have said it applies only to those paroled from prison after its enactment so it did not apply to Gardner. Had Gardner been released under Jessica's Law, he would have been subject to its restrictions.

But the reality is that Gardner probably would have been monitored by GPS only for the length of his parole, which ended in 2008. The 6,788 California sex offenders on active parole are the only offenders in the state monitored by GPS, according to a January report by the California Sex Offender Management Board, which advises the government and Legislature on sex offender policy. And once sex offenders leave parole, virtually no local agency monitors them with GPS, the report notes.

*Much More At Link!

Article:
http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/sdcounty/article_1423d1ef-f88b-5a5a-9e44-e21f6e7cd71d.html
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Predator Laws Questioned After SoCal Teen's Death
Sex Offender Charged In Teen's Murder

Posted: 11:41 am EST March 4,2010
Updated: 4:26 am EST March 5,2010
<snipped>
California has required sex offenders to register with local police for 50 years, and began making the information available to the public in the mid-1990s. It now posts information about more than 63,000 offenders online through what's known as the Megan's Law database, named after a 7-year-old New Jersey girl killed by a child molester who had moved in nearby. "Megan's Law is nothing more than a tool so that you can find out who the individuals are in your community who might be likely to commit these crimes," said Marc Klaas, who founded Klaaskids Foundation after his 12-year-old daughter Polly was abducted from a slumber party in 1993 and later found slain. "For law enforcement it provides an investigative tool, and this guy seems to have avoided that."

Gardner was registered as a sex offender because of his 2000 conviction for molesting a neighbor he lured at a bus stop to his San Diego home. He served five years of a six-year sentence, though his plea agreement allowed for nearly 11 years and a court-appointed psychiatrist urged "the maximum sentence allowed by law." Gardner has never failed to register, as Megan's Law requires. Gardner is not subject to Jessica's Law, which bars offenders from living within 2,000 feet of a school or park and is supposed to require lifetime GPS monitoring of their whereabouts. California voters approved the law in 2006, after Gardner was paroled.


Video: Sex Offender Charged In Case
http://www.wjactv.com/video/22733503/index.html

Video: Chelsea's Body Believed Found
http://www.wjactv.com/video/22722087/index.html

Slideshow: Grim Vigil Honors Chelsea 1-15
http://www.wjactv.com/slideshow/news/22722229/detail.html

Article:
http://www.wjactv.com/news/22740302/detail.html
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Cops Link Accused Chelsea King Killer to Other Near Abductions
March 5, 2010 | 7:25 a.m.
<snipped>
After his arrest, the family of a 16-year-old girl told police that their daughter recognized Gardner from news reports as the man who tried to kidnap her on Oct. 28, 2009. The 16-year-old girl reported that she ran away after a man asked her for directions then tried to force her into a car at gunpoint on Oct. 28 in Lake Elsinore, about 75 miles from the site where King disappeared, the Riverside County Sheriff's Department said.

The suspect was described as a man 30 to 35 years old with a squarish jaw, brown eyes and a blond crew cut. A sketch appears similar to Gardner, who is 30 and has a closely-shaven scalp. "There are similarities," Capt. Joseph Cleary told the Riverside Press-Enterprise. Investigators in the case checked out local sex offenders but not Gardner because he was registered as living in San Diego County, Sgt. Patrick Chavez said.

Police said the Oct. 28 incident was one of several reports of men approaching children and teenagers around Lake Elsinore and Wildomar last fall. Investigators have not tallied all the cases that could be related, but say there were numerous similar incidents at the time. "If there is a connection, we will track it down."


Video: Neighbors Say They Were Worried About Accused Chelsea Killer 2:03
http://www.latimes.com/videobeta/11...ere-Worried-About-Accused-Chelsea-King-Killer

Article:
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/wire/ktla-gardner-other-crimes,0,1617124.story
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Chelsea King's parents want changes in sex offender laws
March 5, 2010 | 8:01 am
<snipped>
The parents of Chelsea King said they will fight for changes in sex-offender laws as a result of their daughter's slaying. Chelsea, 17, was raped and killed, allegedly by a registered sex offender now in custody. She was last seen jogging around a lake near her home in San Diego County. Brent King, her father, said on two morning TV new shows Friday that laws need to be changed so that registered sex offenders are restricted from being around children. "Kids [need to be] kids and be safe," Brent King told NBC's "Today" show. "And predators should not be allowed within their reach."

Brent King told NBC he will have more to say about specific changes in the law at a later date. His wife, Kelly, said current law "lets every child in this country down." The couple said their 13-year-old son has taken his sister's killing particularly hard but that he's heartened by the outpouring of support from the community.


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Article:
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lan...arents-want-changes-in-sex-offender-laws.html
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Chelsea King's death could have been prevented
By Jane Velez-Mitchell, HLN
March 5, 2010 11:36 a.m. EST
<snipped>
Chelsea King, 17, was a straight-A student, a high school track star and she loved to volunteer. Now, she's been killed, the latest victim of what you could call "junk justice." When Chelsea went running in a San Diego, California, park, it's doubtful she had any idea that another young female runner had been attacked in that very same park just a couple of months before. That first victim said she feared her attacker was going to rape her. She managed to get away by elbowing the large man in the nose. If there were falling rocks in that park, a warning sign would be up. If a hungry coyote had been spotted scrounging for food, a warning sign would tell you. But there was no warning at all that a human predator, on the hunt for young women, might be in the park. If there had been a sketch of this suspect, or a warning posted, Chelsea might not have gone running alone there.

In California, for every one parole officer there are 70 criminals. Companies like Google, FedEx, and eBay use high-tech systems to track packages and information. We already have the technology in the form of ankle bracelets to track the sex predators so why not use it? Think about this. We can carefully track the delivery of a package across the country but don't keep track of a sex offender who weighs more than 200 pounds. It's time that we demand the most basic freedom of all, and that is freedom from fear.


Article:
http://www.cnn.com/2010/OPINION/03/05/velez-mitchell.chelsea.king/
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Chelsea's Light
"Chelsea's Light" will replace the "Chelsea King Search Center" page

Updated 8:02 AM PST, Sat, Mar 6, 2010
<snipped>

"Our sorrow and loss runs unspeakably deep, yet the inspiration of everyone's love and encouragement lifts us up," reads a Wednesday statement posted on the page by Chelsea's parents, Brent and Kelly King. "Our Chelsea set out to change the world and throughout our lifetime we will work to ensure that through us, Chelsea will create the enormous change she was determined to see. With your help, Chelsea's light will never dim." "Chelsea's Light" will replace the "Chelsea King Search Center" page where the Kings communicated with thousands of people who had been following the search for the missing girl.

Chelsea's memorial is scheduled for March 13 at 2 p.m. at Poway High school. The family has received so many requests of people wanting to donate that they have established the Chelsea 's Light Fund. Donations to the Chelsea 's Light Fund will be accepted at every Wells Fargo Bank across the United States (account #1838355913).


Chelsea King's family has a new Facebook page called "Chelsea's Light."
http://www.facebook.com/search/?q=Chelsea+'s+Light+&init=quick#!/chelseaslight?ref=ss

Article:
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local-beat/Chelseas-Light--86680577.html
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2 Missing Teens, 2 Different Police Responses
Not All Missing Children Cases Treated Same

POSTED: Friday, March 5, 2010
UPDATED: 12:52 pm EST March 6, 2010
<snipped>
The disappearances of 14-year-old Amber Dubois and 17-year-old Chelsea King illustrate a sad fact: not all missing children cases are treated the same. Chelsea disappeared Feb. 25, last seen in a park with running clothes. The case sparked a search that involved a small army of 1,500 law enforcement officials from dozens of agencies and thousands of volunteers.

Perhaps the biggest determinant in getting the attention of law enforcement and reporters is whether there are signs of foul play that may put other children at risk. The skill of a victim's family at working with the media and mobilizing supporters also helps decide which cases capture public interest. There are 115 non-family child abductions a year in the United States -- an average of more than two a week, according to the latest Department of Justice figures from 1999. But only a handful get anywhere near the attention that followed the disappearance of Chelsea King.

Susan Plese, a spokeswoman for the San Diego County Sheriff's Department, said no one was available Friday to discuss the scale of the response to the King case compared to other disappearances. Experts said evidence of foul play was probably key. "Any evidence that confirms foul play will definitely bump up the visibility," said David Finkelhor, director of the University of New Hampshire's Crimes Against Children Research Center. "If there's a homicidal maniac in the community and there's a threat to you and your kid, that always increases the fever about a case."

Children from wealthy families tend to generate more attention, said Finkelhor, partly because the parents seem to be more adept at working with the media and building networks. Chelsea's parents, Brent and Kelly King, patiently and skillfully worked with the media through their anguish, aided by a volunteer public relations professional. In interviews, they gave Chelsea's life story: the oldest child of long-married parents, straight-A student, French horn player in the youth symphony, avid long-distance runner, tireless volunteer for school and community activities.

Chelsea's friends at Poway High School turned out in droves. "Right before I broke the news (of the body discovery), they were telling stories about her -- funny things she said, silly things she did," said Paula Bunn, a counselor at the Chelsea King Volunteer Center. "You could tell she was very loved by her friends."


Video: State: DNA Found On King Suspect 1:34
http://www.clickorlando.com/video/22733503/index.html

Article:
http://www.clickorlando.com/news/22756744/detail.html
 
Chelsea King's Parents Talk About Their Loss
Last Update: 3/05 11:37 pm
<snipped>
In seven days, the King Family is forever changed. Holding on to hope through emotionally draining days while volunteers search for their missing 17 year old daughter, Chelsea, the emotional toll was far from over once her body was discovered near Lake Hodges and close to the path where she'd gone for a jog. "We want to celebrate how she lived her life and that was take each and every minute. Live it to its fullest," says Chelsea's Mother, Kelly King.

The day after her body is discovered, the King's were face to face with her accused murderer and rapist John Gardner as he faced the charges in court. "If you were given the opportunity to sit in the courtroom and physically watch, you would also understand the amount of cowardice in that person," says Chelsea's Dad, Brent King.

Chelsea's parents say they hold Gardner's Mother responsible for their daughter's death as well. "If you know your child has done something wrong, tell somebody. So, absolutely," says Brent King. Gardner was staying at his Mother's house in the days before Chelsea disappeared. The home is blocks away from where the 17-year-old's body was found. Gardner is convicted of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old in the same home a decade ago. "Anyone who is a parent cannot in good conscience sit there and say, 'yes, it's okay to let this person live next door.' You cannot, You cannot tell me," says Chelsea's Dad.

Her parents both want the District Attorney to push for the death penalty in their daughter's case. "This is not a sickness that can be cured. There is only one way to cure it." Even with their loss, the Kings look to the future hoping to change the laws so other sex offenders don't get a second chance to destroy another life. "We've been given an opportunity to do something really good and she's given that to us in a way we would have never wanted. But we've got it and we're not gonna let her down," says Chelsea's Mother. The memorial service for Chelsea will be on March 13th. The public is invited.


Hope for Memorial Park
Backers of a name change of the park where Chelsea King began her fateful run are gathering support for the idea on Friday. A Facebook page and a Web page have been created to request that city officials rename the grounds as "Chelsea King Memorial Park."

Jogging Safety
Runners -- both adolescents and adults -- are adopting tighter rules on when and where they can safely train following the slaying of Poway High School senior Chelsea King. Vista High girls cross-country coach Sonia Rodriguez told The San Diego Union-Tribune that her team is no longer allowed to run alone or in rural areas. "I told them that the only way they can run is to run with someone else and they must stay in highly visible areas," she said. Rodriguez suggests her runners head to the gym if they can't find a running buddy and that they not use iPods because it could make them lose focus on their surroundings, the Union-Tribune reported. "I'm mad that now when I go for a run, I don't have to just worry about dogs and cars. Now, I have to worry that there may be some guy out there that could hurt me," Kate Garcia, a long-distance runner and vice president of the San Diego Track Club, told the newspaper.


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Video: King Family Talks 2:22
Chelsea King's family talks about the week that will impact them every day for the rest of their lives. 3/5/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoid=753607@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

FACEBOOK: Chelsea's Light
http://www.facebook.com/chelseaslight?ref=search&sid=659201198.2585892002..1

FACEBOOK: Chelsea King Memorial Park
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Renam...helsea-King-Memorial-Park/338902172098?ref=mf

Article:
http://www.sandiego6.com/news/local...-About-Their-Loss/L6htM0v5MkC5JEaRIIogfg.cspx
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Assaults on females prompt police safety tips
Friday, March 05, 2010
<snipped>
A composite sketch was released Friday of a man wanted for sexually assaulting a woman at knifepoint in Hemet Wednesday. At about 9:40 p.m. Wednesday, a 32-year-old woman walking on the 26800 block of Yale Street was lured by a suspect into a vacant lot where she was assaulted at knifepoint. Earlier the same day, police say the man depicted in the sketch tried to kidnap a 16-year-old girl in West Covina. The South Hills High School student told police she was walking home when a man in a Toyota Camry pulled up alongside her at Cortez Street near Prospero Drive and offered her a ride. When she declined, he got out and tried to force her into the car. He even slapped her on the face, but she fought back.

The recent abduction of 17-year-old Chelsea King ended with her death. A suspect was arrested and charged with assault and murder in that case.

Authorities are encouraging teenage girls to not only be aware of the surroundings but also to fight back if confronted in any way possible. The 16-year-old in West Covina did just that and got away. Police also suggest girls always walk in groups and face the direction of oncoming traffic so they won't be caught off guard. "We recommend you scream, make a lot of noise, try to draw attention from people that are around you so that they can focus on who is out there and what this problem is," said Lopez. "So it's good to use your cell phone immediately. Dial 911 immediately and get some help out there as quickly as you can."


Video: Assaults on females prompt police safety tips 1:58
http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/video?id=7314963

Article:
http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/local/los_angeles&id=7315009
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Keeping Sex Offenders Offline
Last Update: 3/05 6:07 pm
<snipped>
A California lawmaker has a new proposal that would require paroled sex offenders to add their e-mail addresses and other on-line identification to the long list of information they provide to the state. The proposed law would also ban offenders from going on to social networking sites.

Last year the state of New York passed a similar law after their officials found more than 3 thousand sex offenders from that state on sites like Facebook. Now one of our lawmakers says we're overdue for the same kind of protection for our kids. We know these are hunting grounds for those individuals who are looking for their next victim.

California State Senator George Runner said shock and sadness over tragedies such as the brutal murder of 17 year old Chelsea King have motivated him to propose a new law designed to keep predators away from kids. He said California State lawmakers have not been tough enough on sex offenders. "The tragedy down there in San Diego is an example of a legislature that failed to move," said Runner.

Runner's bill will be argued in Sacramento at the end of this month. He believes the biggest hurdle to its passage is the public safety committee, which he said has traditionally failed to get tough on sex offenders.


Video: Keeping Sex Offenders Offline 3/5/10 ~ 2:20
http://www.kpsplocal2.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=10050@kpsp.web.entriq.net&navCatId=15

Article:
http://www.kpsplocal2.com/Content/T...Offenders-Offline/Du4HqAtIh06wzBmG2xDlfQ.cspx
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Woman describes encounter with Gardner at RB park
Posted: Mar 05, 2010 9:56 PM EST
Updated: Mar 05, 2010 9:56 PM EST
<snipped>
John Albert Gardner may have returned to the scene of the crime hours before he was arrested on Sunday. That's according to a new witness who's talking to News 8. Becky Sangha's chilling account of coming face to face with Chelsea King's accused killer started as she drove into the park. She spotted an inebriated man stumbling up an embankment, who later accosted her along a trail. "To realize you were that close to someone that evil is something that doesn't sit well inside you," Sangha said.

The Escondido resident was finishing a Sunday afternoon walk along the trail bordering Lake Hodges with her five-year-old daughter and four dogs when she came face to face with Chelsea King's alleged killer. "I heard the crackling in the bushes first," she said. She says the man appeared drunk and was dressed in a red shirt and black pants, wet from the waist down as if he'd just come out of the lake. He started to advance toward Sangha and her family. "His body was kind of forward and he was walking very quickly and directly toward us. It made me uncomfortable. I got alarmed," she said.

The man came as close as 10 or 15 feet as Sangha gathered her daughter and dogs and hurried away, she said. "I kept eye contact with him the whole time. He finally sat down, but he kept watching us," she said. "I don't know what his intentions were that day." But her instincts were confirmed that night when she saw on the news that John Gardner had been arrested for Chelsea King's murder. "I jumped out of bed and I said that's the guy, that is the guy who made me feel so uncomfortable. That's him," she said.

Sangha contacted authorities, and on Monday took search teams to the locations she'd spotted Gardner. The next day Chelsea's body was discovered near the lake in a shallow grave. "It made me feel sick, especially having my daughter with me that day. My gut reaction was to get her out of bed and keep her close to me," Sangha said.

As part of the effort to raise awareness about park safety, a special event called "Finish Chelsea's Run - Take Back the Parks" is scheduled at Lake Hodges on Saturday, March 20 at 9 a.m.


Video: Woman describes encounter with Gardner at RB park 2:43
http://www.760kfmb.com/global/video...pFormat=flv&clipId1=4599350&at1=News&h1=Woman describes encounter with Gardner at RB park&flvUri=&partnerclipid=

Article:
http://www.760kfmb.com/Global/story.asp?S=12093983
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System Failed Chelsea King, Advocates Say
3/5/10 - Updated: 1 hour 22 minutes ago
<snipped>
A Houston crime victim advocate said steps must be taken to prevent other girls from being victimized. "The sad reality is, you have to try to take a negative and turn it into a positive, so that there won't be any more Chelsea Kings that have to be needlessly and brutally murdered for no reason other than the systematic failure," Andy Kahan told AOL News. "That is the real quest now -- to ensure she didn't die in vain." "America's Most Wanted" host John Walsh told Fox News on Thursday that he spoke with President Barack Obama about the case. "His response and outlook on it is the same as mine," Walsh said. "How could this guy be out there and if he is out there, why isn't he being watched more closely?"

A psychiatrist recommended that Gardner be given the maximum sentence of at least 10 years in prison because he showed no remorse and was a "continued danger to underage girls in the society." Nevertheless, San Diego County prosecutors agreed to lesser charges to spare the victim the ordeal of testifying. "It is extremely rare for a psychiatrist to make a recommendation, particularly of a maximum sentence. Normally you are dealing with people who are more treatment-oriented, so it is pretty telling that the psychiatrist said that this guy was a danger and will be a danger and deserves the maximum punishment," Kahan said. "That recommendation should been taken wholeheartedly as gospel, but, unfortunately, the prosecutor ignored it."

King's parents said they are determined to see that laws are changed to help prevent their tragedy from befalling another family. "How many times do our daughters need to be raped before we put these monsters behind bars forever?" Kelly King said Thursday on CNN's "Larry King Live."

Kahan said that it is great that the Kings want to take proactive steps, but he is skeptical about how effective new laws can be. He believes the only way to stop sex offenders from attacking new victims is to lock them up for a long time. "It is time we need to start hammering the people with lengthy sentences, particularly those that molest the most vulnerable members of our society -- our children," Kahan said. "I get sick and tired of naming state laws after victims of child molesters. Think about all your state laws. You got Jessica's Law, Megan's Law, Ashley's Law, the Amber Hagerman Act, etc., etc. It's pretty sad that we continue to name those laws after dead children who were taken from known offenders."


Article:
http://www.aolnews.com/crime/article/did-system-fail-slain-california-teen-chelsea-king/19385884
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REGION: Chelsea King case raises awareness among runners
Always be aware of your surroundings, authorities say

Posted: March 5, 2010 7:20 pm
<snipped>
The killing of Poway teen Chelsea King has special significance among runners in North County, who now say they are taking precautions when they jog along the region's picturesque but often isolated trails. Law enforcement officials have also urged caution for runners, especially those who exercise alone. Bill Martin, who coaches nearly 200 runners in North County, said he sent out an e-mail to team members reminding them of safety tips. He said he often runs the trails south of Lake Hodges where Chelsea disappeared last week and where a body believed to be hers was recovered Tuesday. "It breaks my heart what happened there," Martin said.

Some of the tips are:

-- Don't run at night.

-- Always have an ID.

-- Don't wear headphones.

*More Tips At Link!

Article:
http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/sdcounty/article_b108f8a2-810b-5f40-9ce9-21b11b17e69f.html
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New Revelations About John Gardner From Family Member
Last Update: 3/05 11:37 pm
<snipped>
We are learning more about Chelsea King's suspected murderer, John Albert Gardner III. One of Gardner's relatives phoned into a Los Angeles radio talk show and gave an in depth talk about the man now behind bars. "He was impulsive and prone to violent outburst," the unidentified man said in a 26-minute exchange. "I was in shock I couldn't believe what I was hearing."

The man poured his heart out on the John and Ken radio show, telling listeners the FBI interviewed him, and just a couple of weeks ago he and Gardner got into a very bad argument. The relative said he kicked John out of his grandmother's Lake Elsinore home where he had been staying. "There may be other victims out there. Some of this info needs to be shared every dot needs to be connected," he said on the air. Gardner's relative believes he is behind other attempted abductions in Lake Elsinore and Rancho Bernardo. He even believes it's possible John has something to do with missing Escondido teen, Amber Dubois. He said, "I hope not. I hope not. But at this point and time..."


Earlier Incidents Probed
Gardner was charged with sex crimes against two teenage girls about a decade earlier. Even after pleading guilty to some of the charges, he was back on the streets after spending less than six years behind bars.

Blank says if the case had gone to trial Gardner could have been sentenced to decades behind bars. Gardner was originally charged with three counts of using force to perform lewd acts on the 13 year old, one count of false imprisonment, and a fifth count for molesting a second girl who was 14-years-old at the time. Even after being charged, Gardner was quickly out on $50,000 bail and allowed on the streets for more than four months before his bail was revoked according to court document. Blank says he would expect the bail to be set at $250,000 with the serious nature of the charges if it was granted at all. "Why he was out on that kind of bail is another question."

*Much More At Link!

Chelsea King
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Chelsea King
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John Albert Gardner
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AUDIO: Listen to Gardner relative on the John and Ken Show (8.5MB)
http://www.sandiego6.com/media/lib/...-4226-8aad-e8ea738a1109/Gardner_Interview.mp3

Video: Relative Speaks 3:25
We are learning more about Chelsea King's suspected murderer, John Albert Gardner. 3/6/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=753627@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: How Chelsea King's Story is Affecting You? 1:25
Viewers share the personal impact of the Chelsea King murder on their lives on Facebook.com/SanDiego6. 3/6/2010
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=753778@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: John Gardner's Prior Cases 3:06
More questions are still being raised about why the man accused of killing Chelsea King was given such a light sentence in his prior case. 3/4/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=753117@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Changing Laws 3:14
The Chelsea King tragedy has many people now wanting to change our sex offender laws. 3/4/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=753094@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Missing Teen 2:52
The reward for information leading to the discovery of Amber Dubois, the 14-year-old Escondido high school student, has been upped to $60,000. 3/4/09
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=585850@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: John Gardner in Court 4:14
John Gardner faced the parents of his alleged murder victim, Chelsea King, as he appeared in court to be arraigned. 3/3/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=752610@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Chelsea King Murder Suspect in Court 28:23
John Gardner III enters a plea in the murder of 17-year-old Chelsea King. 3/3/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=752524@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Sex Offender Arrested 0:23
A convicted sex offender is back behind bars after being chased down by the father of a girl he approached in Del Mar. 3/3/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=752601@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Gardner Family Home Vandalized 0:39
Vandals lash out at the mother of the suspect in Chelsea King's murder. They painted a message on the garage of her Rancho Bernardo home. 3/3/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=752373@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Back to School 0:59
Students returned to Poway High for the first time since Chelsea King first disappeared on Thursday. 3/3/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=752603@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: San Diego 6 Webcast 3/3/10 5:12
John Gardner enters plea in murder of Chelsea King, Mayor Sanders comments on UCSD racial tensions, man caught with marijuna hidden in spare tire,
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=752525@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Chelsea's Classmates Coping 2:56
The principal from Chelsea King's school talks about how her classmates are dealing with the death of the popular student. 3/3/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=752335@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Remembering Chelsea 5:41
Family, friends and those who never met Chelsea King are mourning her loss. Thousands of people, moved by her story, came out to remember the local teenager. 3/2/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=752131@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Chelsea King's Body Discovered 31:22
The Sheriff's Department announces that the teen's body has been found in a shallow grave at Lake Hodges. 3/2/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=752047@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Vigil for Chelsea King 3:41
A vigil will be held Tuesday night for missing Poway teen Chelsea King. 3/2/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=751963@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Remains Found 1:51
The suspect accused of killing and raping Chelsea King is set to be arraigned but many say he should never have been walking the streets. 3/2/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=752108@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Missing Teen News Conference 13:11
The Sheriff's Department holds a news conference concerning the disappearance of 17-year-old Chelsea King of Poway. 3/1/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=751523@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Holding Out Hope 5:50
The search continues for a missing Poway teenager, and a sex offender suspect is arrested and is now facing murder charges. 3/1/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=751610@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Missing Teen Arrest 3:09
A registered sex offender has been arrested in the case of missing Poway teenager Chelsea King. 3/1/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=751522@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Missing Poway Teen 3:07
The San Diego County Sheriff's Department has made an arrest in the disappearance of 17-year old Chelsea King. 02/28/2010
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=751088@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Missing Girl Search 2:59
The search for Chelsea King. 02/27/2010
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=750844@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Searching for Missing People 5:23
Private investigator Patrick Schneeman shares the strategies behind the searches for Chelsea King and the McStay families.
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=750796@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Video: Missing Teen 2:58
Authorities and volunteers continue to search for a Poway High School student who went missing while jogging. 2/26/10
http://www.sandiego6.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=750663@xetv.dayport.com&navCatId=5

Slideshow: Chelsea King 1-13
http://www.sandiego6.com/Photo.aspx?content_id=29c032cd-f4aa-415d-b27f-bf2dadb7c7be&i=4

Read the John Gardner criminal complaint (1.6MB)
http://www.sandiego6.com/media/lib/...b4ab9a900be5/CD225886_John_Albert_Gardner.pdf

Article:
http://www.sandiego6.com/news/local...-Bernardo-jogging/zTLAKar0XUGyf78trbfHvg.cspx
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Symphony cancels date after loss of Chelsea
Saturday, March 6, 2010 at 12:04 a.m.
<snipped>
Poway High School&#8217;s wind symphony won&#8217;t be performing today at a band-and-orchestra festival in Oceanside. Grief over losing Chelsea King, an essential member of the brass section, was too much for the students. Whenever the symphony plays for the rest of the school year, the seat that Chelsea would have occupied as a French horn player will remain vacant. The 35-member symphony rehearsed Monday and Tuesday, hopeful that Chelsea, 17, would be found after she disappeared Feb. 25 at Rancho Bernardo Community Park. Tuesday afternoon, authorities believe they found Chelsea&#8217;s body at Lake Hodges, and her musician friends stopped practicing. &#8220;She is a very prominent part of our symphony,&#8221; band director Mike Cook said. &#8220;Missing her would have been a travesty.&#8221;

When Chelsea&#8217;s mother, Kelly King, learned that the wind symphony wouldn&#8217;t compete today in the El Camino High School North County Band and Orchestra Festival, she called Cook to tell him Chelsea would have wanted them to perform. But she understood that it might be too difficult.

Kelly King invited the symphony to play at Chelsea&#8217;s memorial service March 13, Cook said.
&#8220;I think (playing at El Camino) would be a tough thing for them to do,&#8221; McCoy said. &#8220;But in my own personal opinion, I think that playing the memorial is going to be way more difficult.&#8221; Professional musician Mike McCoy volunteered to play Chelsea&#8217;s parts today, but Cook said the students weren&#8217;t ready to perform this weekend. Cook, who had been Chelsea&#8217;s band instructor since she was a freshman in 2007 at Poway High, said: &#8220;She was a bright young girl with budding talents who would never hurt a flea, never say anything bad about anybody. She was an amazing student to teach.&#8221;

Cook hasn&#8217;t decided which songs the band will play at Chelsea&#8217;s memorial service, but said whatever they choose will feature brass parts prominently. The service is set for 2 p.m. at Poway High&#8217;s stadium.


Article:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/06/symphony-cancels-appearance-after-loss-of-chelsea/
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Concerned Parents Can Track Child's Cell Phone
[Chelsea's parents found her missing car by tracking her cell phone

Updated 10:42 AM PST, Sat, Mar 6, 2010
<snipped>
Phone services that track cell phone locations are growing in popularity among concerned parents. Chelsea King&#8217;s parents found their daughter&#8217;s missing car by tracking her cell phone. The 17-year-old left her phone inside her BMW in Rancho Bernardo Community Park. Brent and Kelly King were able to track her phone using an AT&T Web site. Keith Donohue with Best Buy in Mission Valley said parents of younger children or of new drivers are most likely to pay for the feature. &#8220;You can actually go directly on the computer, shrink down on the map and zoom in on where the child is or very close proximity,&#8221; said Donohue.

AT&T and Verizon both offer tracking services. The cost for the feature runs between $10 and $15. &#8220;If you&#8217;re worried about your kids staying out too late at night or you&#8217;re worried they may not be telling you exactly where they&#8217;re going or you&#8217;re just concerned about their safety, it&#8217;s good to know where they are,&#8221; said Rainey Reitman with Privacy Rights Clearinghouse. But Reitman also said you should let your children know they are being tracked. &#8220;Kids have a right to know if parents are tracking them. We all want to know if we&#8217;re being tracked regardless of who&#8217;s doing it,&#8221; Reitman said.

The website services not only follow the movements of a phone but some will notify parents if the phone goes outside of a predetermined area. &#8220;If the child with the phone steps outside this parameter, it&#8217;s going to alert the parents,&#8221; said Donohue, who added that the carrier will notify parents with a text message. While parents have the option of paying for the service, police departments are able to access information. The information is generally taken from GPS or cellular tower signals.


Article:
http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/tech/Concerned-Parents-Can-Track-Childs-Cell-Phone--86691517.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Picture emerges of suspect as deeply troubled
Saturday, March 6, 2010 at 12:04 a.m.
<snipped>
He was popular with girls and made fun of by classmates. He ran errands for neighbors and discovered outdoor sports. He could be moody and aggressive when he didn&#8217;t take his medication. By any measure, the adolescent years that accused killer John Albert Gardner III spent in this mountaintop village were the high-water mark of a deeply troubled life.

While enrolled in public schools, Gardner was identified as an SED child, or seriously emotionally disturbed. A psychiatrist noted that lithium helped the boy&#8217;s bipolar disorder until he had to discontinue the medication because of side effects such as irritable bowel syndrome.

His first criminal conviction came in 1998, a year after he graduated from Rim of the World. Records show he was charged with disturbing the peace after showing up on the campus uninvited. Local officials recommended probation because of his clean record. Despite getting a break from prosecutors, Gardner had difficulty meeting adult responsibilities. He left the mountain in search of work, a career, someplace where, as his mother put it in court papers later, he could &#8220;contribute something meaningful back to society.&#8221;

In the weeks before he turned 21, Gardner won a promotion at the Big 5 store in Mira Mesa to a full-time job, according to court records. He was singled out for his work ethic and dedication, and began dating a young co-worker. At the same time, however, his interest in younger girls got the better of him. On March 16, 2000, he picked up a pair of teenage girls on their way to school and took one of them to his mother&#8217;s Rancho Bernardo townhouse. As they watched a movie, he began rubbing the 13-year-old and, his sexual advances rebuffed, he beat and fondled the girl before she escaped. Gardner was arrested within minutes and eventually pleaded guilty to committing lewd acts with a minor.

R.J. Donovan Correctional Facility is an overcrowded prison on Otay Mesa that often acts as a receiving barn for new convicts. Gardner arrived from San Diego County jail on Sept. 18, 2000. Three months later he was sent to the California Correctional Institution in Tehachapi. While he was there, his father &#8212; a self-employed &#8220;assembler&#8221; &#8212; declared bankruptcy in 2002, with $5 in his pocket and $227 spread across three checking accounts. In April 2005, Gardner was moved to Avenal State Prison in central California until he was paroled that September. After his release, Gardner was monitored like thousands of other sex offenders who make parole. He was ordered to register with local police wherever he lived. In January 2008, eight months before his parole case was closed, Gardner was &#8220;placed on a passive GPS caseload,&#8221; a prison spokeswoman said.

Prison officials could not provide details of Gardner&#8217;s time in state custody or discuss his parole term. Requests for public records of his case have not yet been processed. Two months after Gardner&#8217;s parole ended, his father died at age 64. The son kept a decidedly low profile outside prison, although he did receive a few traffic citations. He bounced around between Riverside and San Diego counties. Police now suspect he was spending time scouting young girls.

In January 2009, 14-year-old Amber Dubois of Escondido went missing from a street just two miles from where Gardner was living.

By early this year, many of the better things in Gardner&#8217;s life were falling apart. Within the span of a few weeks earlier this year, he lost his steadiest job and his girlfriend and also crashed his car, according to a family acquaintance in Running Springs.

Witnesses now say Gardner may have been stalking girls near Bernardo Heights Middle School on Feb. 24. The next day Chelsea was gone.

*Much more at link!

A yearbook photo of murder suspect John Albert Gardner III.
yearbook_t352.jpg


Article:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/06/deeply-troubled-picture-emerges-of-suspects-life/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Parents of slain teen Chelsea King: 'Change has to be made'
March 5, 2010 3:59 p.m. EST
<snipped>
The parents of a California girl who was allegedly raped and killed by a registered sex offender are calling for tougher standards against repeat offenders. "How many times do our daughters need to be raped before we put these monsters behind bars forever?" said Kelly King, mother of 17-year-old Chelsea King, in an interview Thursday with CNN's "Larry King Live." "I just don't -- I don't get it. Change has to be made," she continued, "and I know that there are people out there that are trying to, you know, get this change in place."

On Wednesday, John Albert Gardner III, 30, a registered sex offender, was charged in the rape and murder of Chelsea, who lived in the San Diego area. Gardner, who is being represented by a public defender, was also charged Wednesday with assault with intent to commit rape in an attack on a jogger in December 2009. He pleaded not guilty to all charges. Gardner, of Lake Elsinore, California, will not be allowed to post bail.

If convicted, the charges against Gardner make him eligible for the death penalty, the San Diego County district attorney's office said Wednesday. The prosecutor's office said it has not determined whether it will seek capital punishment. For the Kings, there's no question. "I think the death penalty is a very appropriate punishment for this case," Kelly King. Brent King said he had "100 percent agreement" with his wife.

*More at link!

Article:
http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/03/04/chelsea.king.parents/index.html?hpt=T2
 
Mother: Prosecutors Share Blame For King's Murder
Mother Who Lost Daughter Says Prosecutors Should Share Blame For Chelsea King's Murder

Mar 6, 2010 7:53 pm US/Pacific
<snipped>
Erin Runnion, whose daughter Samantha was kidnapped, sexually assaulted, and murdered by a man previously acquitted of child molestation charges, blasted prosecutors for their handling of the suspect in the Chelsea King tragedy.

17-year-old Chelsea King was raped and killed, allegedly by a registered sex offender. Her body was found in a shallow grave near the shoreline in San Diego.

In a conversation with CBS 2's Laura Diaz, Runnion said prosecutors must take responsibility for their part in setting the stage for Chelsea's death.

Runnion has devoted her life to the memory of her daughter, by creating the Joyful Child Foundation, which teaches parents how make their communities safer and lobbies for tougher laws on sexual predators.


Runnion has devoted her life to the memory of her daughter, by creating the Joyful Child Foundation, which teaches parents how make their communities safer and lobbies for tougher laws on sexual predators.
Erin_Runnion.jpg


Samantha Runnion
images_sizedimage_082193512.jpg


Added For Reference!
Joyful Child Foundation,
http://www.thejoyfulchild.org/

Video: Erin Runnion, Mother Of Of Samantha, Honored At Dinner 11/10/05
http://www.cbs2.com/video/?id=9699@kcbs.dayport.com

Video: Runnion's Mom Fights For Children's Safety Act 2/26/06
http://www.cbs2.com/video/?id=14779@kcbs.dayport.com

Video: Children's Arts Festival Remembers Samantha Runnion 7/2/9/06
http://www.cbs2.com/video/?id=22584@kcbs.dayport.com

Video: Erin Runnion Urges Congress To Take Tough Action 10/05/06
http://www.cbs2.com/video/?id=26289@kcbs.dayport.com

Video: Samantha Runnion's Convicted Killer Gets Death 7/21/05
http://www.cbs2.com/video/?id=7732@kcbs.dayport.com

Video: Laura Diaz Hosts Lunch In Honor Of Samantha Runnion 5/24/07
http://www.cbs2.com/video/?id=40271@kcbs.dayport.com

Video: Parent's Declare War On Child Predators 6/2/6/07
http://www.cbs2.com/video/?id=42463@kcbs.dayport.com

Video: Laura Diaz Honored At Samantha Runnion Luncheon 7/29/08
http://www.cbs2.com/video/?id=73054@kcbs.dayport.com

Video: Exclusive: Samantha Runnion's Mom Warns Parents 9/4/09
http://www.cbs2.com/video/?id=113290@kcbs.dayport.com

Video: Joyful Child Foundation Launches New Intiative 12/4/09
http://www.cbs2.com/video/?id=121155@kcbs.dayport.com

Article:
http://cbs2.com/local/Erin.Runnion.mother.2.1542636.html
 
Cases of Missing Women and Young Girls Get Varying Media Attention
Some Missing Persons Cases Captivate the Country While Others Get Little Notice

March 7, 2010
<snipped>
Hundreds of thousands of children are reported missing every year. A hundred or so turn out to be the result of foul play, and only a handful of those get the kind of media scrutiny that King's case got. Ernie Allen, president of the Center for Missing and Exploited Children, says the cases that get the most attention tend to involve pre-teen children where it's immediately apparent that foul play by a stranger, not a family member, is suspected.

There have been countless high-profile cases involving young girls, including the disappearances of Caylee Anthony, Jessica Lunsford, Somer Thompson and Madeleine McCann, whose story went global because of her telegenic look and her media-savvy parents.

Robert Thompson, a professor of television and popular culture at Syracuse University, explains that the reason the media tends to go in a frenzy around these types of cases is really because of a self-fulfilling prophecy. "Once one of these stories is decided to be covered, there's no turning back," Thompson said. "You've sent your reporters and your trucks to it, and you become invested in it. You start building interest in the story, and your audience wants to hear more about it, so you keep everyone there to continue reporting on it."

Quoting from a Scripps Howard study, Times continues, "One study showed that about 35,000 kids went missing one year, and a little more than half of those were white, but about 67 percent of stories covered by The Associated Press were about white children."

*More at link!

WATCH: Different Responses to Missing Girls
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/responses-missing-girls-10032658

Article:
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Weekend/cases-missing-women-covered-equally-media/story?id=10032847
 
REGION: Cousin remembers Chelsea King as 'a multidimensional girl'
Poway teen touched many in her community

Posted: March 6, 2010 9:15 pm
<snipped>
Intelligent, independent, driven, loving, scholarly, silly and goofy. Those were all words used by Stephanie Dorian to describe her cousin, 17-year-old Chelsea King. "She was a multidimensional girl," the 43-year-old teacher said Friday.

The King family is focusing on a future guided by the light of a girl forever enshrined in the hearts of an entire community, Dorian said. "We are devastated, but holding up through the support of friends, family and the community," she said. "We are focused on grieving and healing." Dorian, who said she was more of an aunt figure to Chelsea, has acted as the family's spokeswoman and media liaison since Chelsea was reported missing.

A senior at Poway High School, Chelsea was a straight-A student looking forward to college. She had been accepted by the University of Washington and the University of British Columbia.She wanted to write and study environmental issues. "She was well-read, loved great language and had a sophisticated taste," Dorian said. Chelsea liked classical literature and music, Dorian said.

She left herself notes of her favorite quotes, including this one from Virgil: "They can because they think they can." She was also a vegetarian who loved the outdoors. An avid runner, she was a member of the Poway High School cross-country team.

The King family started the Chelsea's Light Foundation because of the outpouring of support and those wishing to donate money. The Facebook site has thousands of messages of condolences. Dorian said the mission for the foundation has not been determined, but Brent King has said that he and his wife hope it will eventually serve as the platform for stricter laws for sex offenders.

*Much more at link!

Article:
http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/sdcounty/article_8e7d1da8-dcfc-595e-9fb7-382a91951e8c.html
 
REGION: Collective loss, anger in wake of Chelsea King killing
County residents join slain girl's family in working through emotional trauma

Posted: March 6, 2010 10:11 pm
<snipped>
When Poway's 17-year-old Chelsea King was reported missing on Feb. 25, people felt fear for the petite girl with sea-blue eyes. When a 6-foot-2, 230-pound registered sex offender was arrested on suspicion of her murder three days later with Chelsea still missing, they felt anger. And when a body believed to be Chelsea's was discovered, they felt a deep, deep sadness ---- and more anger.

Chelsea's story will continue. Its next chapter is a public memorial taking place at 2 p.m. Saturday at Poway High School.

The next court event, a status hearing for the suspect who was arraigned Wednesday in her slaying, John Albert Gardner III, is set for Tuesday.


Dr. Ken Druck, a San Diego bereavement specialist, said the way Brent and Kelly King have responded to their loss is remarkable. The couple have said they intend to work to strengthen the laws regarding the monitoring of sexual predators. "They are already reaching out and understanding the opportunity and responsibility that lies before them and channeling their rage, anger and unspeakable pain in a way that can prevent this from happening in any other family," he said. "They are extraordinary people."

The community at large, he said, needs to channel its anger in the same way. "It's not enough to just get angry and pretend that any form of vengeance will change the world," Druck said. "The outrage needs to be channeled into positive actions to better the world around us."

*Much More Info At Link!

Article:
http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/sdcounty/article_e78da7e1-8957-5fb2-9290-7c8cdc26cd74.html
 
It can, and does, happen here
Community&#8217;s psyche dealt yet another blow

Sunday, March 7, 2010 at 12:04 a.m.
<snipped>
Whenever a child is ambushed and killed by a stranger in San Diego County &#8212; a dozen horrific cases in the past 15 years &#8212; people commonly say, &#8220;We never thought it would happen here.&#8221; This time was different. In the days after Chelsea King went missing, thousands of people from as far as Oregon streamed into the volunteer search center in Rancho Bernardo. Many clung to the &#8220;not here&#8221; idea. But equally prevalent were people like Sherri Glidden of Sabre Springs, a housewife and mother of two. &#8220;It could happen anywhere,&#8221; she said.

Glidden spoke wearily, and not because she had just spent the morning combing fields near a former chicken ranch for the then-missing 17-year-old Poway girl. Hers was a weariness born of recognition about the time we live in, and the place. &#8220;Even if you live in a nice neighborhood &#8230;&#8221; she said, her voice trailing off. Violent crime is falling across the country and locally: Homicides dropped 25.5 percent in the city of San Diego last year; rapes fell 15.4 percent.

Rancho Bernardo, home to the park where Chelsea was killed, had one murder and four rapes in 2009.

It&#8217;s why a group of parents with the La Jolla chapter of the mother-daughter service group National Charity League made special arrangements to have their daughters, ages 13 and 14, take a self-defense class together this weekend. And it&#8217;s why many people went to the volunteer search center while Chelsea was still missing. &#8220;I couldn&#8217;t just sit at home and fret about it,&#8221; said Vicki Byrne, who went door to door with leaflets. &#8220;I had to do something productive, try to make a difference.&#8221;

Dawn Davis noticed that kind of hope and determination while she worked with the volunteers. Davis is a senior case manager for the Laura Recovery Center, a Texas-based organization that coordinates search teams after a child disappears. &#8220;The people who came here to help don&#8217;t believe that we will let this monster dictate the way we live,&#8221; Davis said. &#8220;Look at the thousands who turned out. That&#8217;s what defines this community.&#8221;

*Much More Info At Link!

Jill Leff took her dog, Beethoven, for a walk in the Rancho Bernardo park near where Chelsea King&#8217;s body was discovered last week.
king2_t352.jpg


MISSING CHILDREN
Children in San Diego County who disappeared and were never found or later found killed:
FOUND DEAD
*Jan. 3, 1960: Mary Lou Olson, 10, was last seen headed for a drugstore in National City. Her killer was never found.

*Sept. 28, 1974: Patricia Lee Kuzara, 7, disappeared walking home from her baby sitter&#8217;s house in Poway. Killer not found.

*Feb. 17, 1975: Tammy Suzanne Johnson, 11, was kidnapped off a Carlsbad street while walking with her 8-year-old brother and a friend. Killer not found.

*July 17, 1976: David Clinton Hobbs, 14, of Golden Hill failed to return home from a trip to the store.

*Aug. 14, 1976: Aleta Sue Grosenbach, 9, of Kankakee, Ill., went out to buy a newspaper while visiting her grandmother in Bird Rock and never returned. Killer not found.

*Sept. 25, 1976: Donald Whaley, 12, of El Cajon was last seen telling his sister he was going to visit his girlfriend.

*Feb. 6, 1977: Jose Luis Ramirez, 6, of Golden Hill was reported missing. A convicted molester pleaded guilty.

*July 5, 1978: John Mayeski and Michael Bauer, both 16, were kidnapped from the parking lot of a fast-food restaurant. Robert Alton Harris was executed for the crime.

*April 10, 1986: Rickieann Blake, 14, was last seen in her home in Chula Vista. Killer sentenced to death.

*Aug. 5, 1988: Charitie Angelique Careins, 7, didn&#8217;t return home from visiting a friend near the Campland park in Pacific Beach. Killer not found.

*Dec. 16, 1989: Leticia Hernandez, 7, disappeared while playing in front of her home in Oceanside. No arrests made.

*June 19, 1991: Laura Arroyo, 9, of Chula Vista ran to answer her front door and disappeared. Killer sentenced to death.

*Oct. 3, 1991: Amanda Leigh Gaeke, 9, vanished while riding her bike near her home in North Park. David Allan Webb sentenced to life in prison.

*Mar. 27, 1993: Charles Keever, 13, and Jonathan Sellers, 9, were last seen riding their bikes in Imperial Beach. Killer convicted.

*Feb. 2, 2002: Danielle van Dam, 7, was taken from her Sabre Springs bedroom. A neighbor was sentenced to death.

*Feb. 25, 2010: Chelsea King, 17, never came home from an after-school run at Rancho Bernardo Community Park. Suspect charged


STILL MISSING
*July 15, 1991: Rasheeyda Wilson, 9, was last seen playing outside her San Diego residence hotel.

*April 25, 2002: Jahi Turner, 2, of South Park was reported missing by his stepfather from a playground in Balboa Park.

*Feb. 13, 2009: Amber Dubois, 14, disappeared while walking to Escondido High School.

Online: For more about each case, go to:
http://uniontrib.com/missing

Article:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/07/it-can-and-does-happen-here/
 
Cash-strapped Escondido seeks volunteers
Sunday, March 7, 2010 at 12:04 a.m.
<snipped>
Escondido is coping with unprecedented budget cuts by turning to volunteerism. The first politician to tap into this reservoir of good will was Councilman Dick Daniels, who is running for mayor in November. He made his move after the City Council decided last week to cut $1 million in the next three months from police, fire, code enforcement, building maintenance and planning services, and when it became clear that Escondido will continue to experience deficit budgets for four to five more years.

Daniels said the most urgent task is to clear the 8- to 10-foot-tall acacia plants and non-native vegetation on the trails at 285-acre Kit Carson Park to prevent a repeat of the Chelsea King tragedy. The Poway teen disappeared Feb. 25 while running on trails at Rancho Bernardo Community Park. Her body was found Tuesday near Lake Hodges.

In Escondido, the downsized parks maintenance staff has been trying to keep the trails safe, said Robin Bettin, assistant director of community services. &#8220;As we have fewer and fewer staff, the ability to keep up on fine details becomes increasingly challenging,&#8221; she said.

Daniels took up the challenge by asking the community to chip in. He has placed an item on Wednesday&#8217;s City Council agenda to discuss how to organize volunteers for the brush clearing Saturday. Meanwhile, the Escondido Jaycees have offered to help remove graffiti one day each month, and Escondido contractor George Weir already is filling potholes for free.

The volunteerism began this year, when the city announced that it faces a $10.5 million deficit in its $72.9 million general-fund budget because of plummeting sales tax revenue. It has fallen from $26 million in fiscal year 2004-05 to a projected $19 million this fiscal year, and is expected to drop 18 percent in the fiscal year that begins July 1.

*Much More Info At Link!

Article:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/07/cash-strapped-city-wants-volunteers-to-help-out/
 
Missing kids a sad fact of life in county
Sunday, March 7, 2010 at 12:26 a.m.
<snipped>
The Laura Recovery Center tries to find missing kids. Sadly, they&#8217;ve been to our county too many times. They took part in the recent search for 17-year-old Chelsea King. They came last year to look for 14-year-old Amber Dubois of Escondido. In 2002, they searched for 7-year-old Danielle van Dam, missing from Sabre Springs. Later that same year, they helped in the effort to find 2-year-old Jahi Turner of San Diego. The endings haven&#8217;t been the storybook kind.

A body believed to be Chelsea&#8217;s was found by law enforcement authorities on Tuesday. Amber is still missing, nearly 13 months after her disappearance. Danielle&#8217;s body was found on Feb. 27, 2002, in the East County backcountry four weeks after she had been gone missing. Jahi, last seen on April 25, 2002, on a playground in Balboa Park, remains missing.

In the case of Chelsea, 6,000 people searched for the Poway High School senior who went missing Feb. 25 near Lake Hodges after going for a run. &#8220;The community wanted their little girl,&#8221; said Bob Walcutt, executive director of the Laura Recovery Center. Like the Amber Alert, like Jessica&#8217;s Law, like Megan&#8217;s Law, this organization boasts the name of a girl for a reason.

In 1997, Laura Smither, 12, went for a run, just as Chelsea did. An aspiring ballet dancer, she was hoping to improve her leg strength. She didn&#8217;t come home. Friends and family and the community of Friendswood, south of Houston, wanted to do something, but what did they know of such things? Who does? Soon, they became galvanized. Six thousand volunteers ended up searching for the girl. Her body was found 17 days later &#8212; floating in a pond. She had been strangled.

After the search, the volunteers evaluated what they had learned. They talked of how they could do things better, quicker. They wrote a manual. They decided to help other communities search for their missing children. And that&#8217;s what they do now. The center has performed more than 90 massive searches throughout the nation since being formed in 1998. Its annual budget is $120,000. It gets involved after family members of someone missing or law enforcement asks for assistance. In Chelsea&#8217;s case, a family member contacted the organization. Only a couple of representatives from the center are needed to get the effort going.

Smither can&#8217;t imagine what it would have been like had he never learned the whereabouts of his daughter. It&#8217;s not closure, but it is some sort of resolution, he said. Laura&#8217;s murder remains unsolved. &#8220;I thank God that we did (find her),&#8221; he said. &#8220;It&#8217;s not the way we wanted, but if your child just goes poof, just vanishes, how do you ever stop searching?&#8221;

So, through this organization, he helps. As a parent, I&#8217;m amazed that the man found the strength to do something like this. Doesn&#8217;t each missing child the center searches for bring back memories? No, he said. It hardly matters. Not a day goes by, not a minute, that he doesn&#8217;t think of his lovely daughter. This is her legacy. It&#8217;s sad beyond words that it had to be created. And it breaks my heart that we find ourselves needing it. Again and again and again.

*Much More Info At Link!

Article:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/07/missing-kids-a-sad-fact-of-life-in-county/
 
Police defend response to December incident
Residents question lack of information on attack

Sunday, March 7, 2010 at 1:10 a.m.
<snipped>
When a 22-year-old college student reported she was tackled by a &#8220;football-player big&#8221; man along the jogging trails of Lake Hodges on Christmas break, San Diego police determined it was an isolated attack and not something to alarm the community about. Two months later, authorities say, Poway teenager Chelsea King died at the hands of the same man at the same park, leaving many to wonder whether officers did enough in response to the first incident.

&#8220;The police should have done more after the Dec. 27 attack,&#8221; said Jimmy Ashker, who lives across the street from the suspect&#8217;s mother. &#8220;If they had put together a reasonably accurate sketch, and if they had passed it around the neighborhood, put it up on light poles, some of us would have seen it and told them right away who it was. It breaks my heart to think we could have done something to stop him.&#8221;

Amber alerts flash on freeway signs statewide if an estranged parent picks up a child from school. If a mountain lion is spotted near a residential area &#8212; much less attacks a hiker &#8212; word goes out and signs are posted.

San Diego Councilman Carl DeMaio, whose home overlooks the shore of Lake Hodges where Chelsea&#8217;s body was later discovered, was one of the residents who heard the helicopter following the attack. &#8220;The response that day was exceptionally good. It was immediate, it was thorough,&#8221; DeMaio said. &#8220;There will always be people who raise the question, &#8216;Should more have been done?&#8217;

&#8220;We need to focus on how do we make laws tougher and how do we make the response better. That should be our commitment to Chelsea.&#8221;

*Much More Info At Link!

A young woman was attacked Dec. 27 on this trail near Moon Song Court and Poblado Road in Rancho Bernardo. John Gardner III, charged with murder in the Chelsea King case, also has been charged with assault with intent to rape in the Dec. 27 attack.
jogger_t352.jpg


INVESTIGATION TIMELINE
*Dec. 27: Jogger attacked. Search offers no leads.

*Dec. 28: Detective is assigned to the case; sets up a time to meet with victim.

*Dec. 29: Detective meets with victim, determines incident to be a robbery attempt.

*Dec. 30: Detective contacts victim to set up meeting for composite sketch.

*Dec. 31: Composite artist heads to meet with victim but gets called to a commercial robbery.

*Jan. 2: Victim flies back to Colorado.

SOURCE: San Diego Police Department


ALERTS
To sign up for neighborhood crime alerts, go to sandiego.gov/police and click on Neighborhood e-Watch

http://sandiego.gov/police

Article:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/07/police-defend-response-to-dec-incident/
 
Past child abduction and murder cases in San Diego County
Saturday, March 6, 2010 at 6:37 p.m.
<snipped>
San Diego County cases of abducted children and teenagers, who were murdered or are still missing.

Jan. 3, 1960:Mary Lou Olson, 10, was last seen headed for a drugstore in National City. After a massive search, she was found dead nine days later, 13 miles south of Tijuana, when a farmer found her body in a gully. She had been raped and suffocated. Her killer was never found.

Feb. 2 2002: Danielle van Dam, 7, was reported missing from her Sabre Springs bedroom. Volunteer searchers discovered the girl's body in a rural area in East County on Feb. 27. Neighbor David Westerfield was convicted of the murder and sentenced to death.

April 25, 2002: Jahi Turner, 2 was reported missing by his stepfather, Tieray Jones, from a playground near 28th and Cedar streets at the edge of Balboa Park on. No resolution. Mother: Tameka Jones, 18-year-old Navy seaman assigned to the dock landing ship Rushmore. Jahi is still missing.

Feb. 13, 2009: Amber Dubois, 14 disappeared while walking to classes at Escondido High School. She is still missing.

Feb. 25, 2010: Chelsea King, 17, was reported missing when she failed to come home from an after-school run at the Rancho Bernardo Community Park, where her locked car was found. After five days that saw more than 6,000 volunteers comb North County, the search ended March 2, 2010 when authorities announced they had found a body near Lake Hodges. John Albert Gardner III, 30, a registered sex offender from Lake Elsinore, was arrested on suspicion of rape and murder.

*More at link!

Article:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2010/mar/06/past-child-abduction-and-murder-cases-san-diego-co/
 
Larry King Live: Chelsea King's parents speak
Mar 04, 2010 The parents of Chelsea King talk about the death of their daughter and their thoughts on suspect John Gardner.
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WfkRDUg44k8[/ame]

Larry King Live: Remembering Chelsea King
March 5, 2010 The parents of Chelsea King remember their daughter by reading a poem she wrote.
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LfeBVjgUv80[/ame]

Larry King Live: Chelsea's family 'angry, sad'
March 3, 2010 A spokesperson for Chelsea King's family remembers her and describes what the family is feeling.
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLhA2cEZJRE[/ame]
 

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