October 30, 2014 at 9:53 a.m.
Officials meet with concerned citizens in Chagnon case
Officials meet with concerned citizens in Chagnon case
Police and the state Department of Corrections have said Chagnon removed the photos from The Lakeland Times, to which he subscribed while in prison, and other publications. Chagnon canceled his subscription to the Times earlier this month.
The officials who spoke included Oneida County Sheriff Grady Hartman, Lt. Terri Hook of the sheriff's office, Shellie Holmes of the Tri-County Council on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault and Minocqua Police Chief Dave Jaeger.
Audience members asked a wide range of questions about the status of the investigation, who Chagnon is and his prior offenses, and how parents can keep their children safe.
Hook said she did not believe Chagnon necessarily intended to target Minocqua, but rather, that he targeted certain age groups and activities. She described Chagnon as "meek" and "timid."
"He's not really social with adults," Hook said.
Other audience members expressed frustration that only 23 felony charges have been filed so far, given the far larger quantity of photos Chagnon is alleged to have stored. Hook said she is actively working to identify more children, and that additional charges could be filed.
Chagnon was charged Wednesday in Winnebago County Circuit Court with violating a state law prohibiting registered sex offenders from storing photographs of a minor without the written consent of the minor's parent, legal custodian or guardian. He also faces four misdemeanor counts of violating prison policies.
If convicted on all counts with the enhanced penalties, Chagnon could be sentenced to a maximum of nearly 181 years in prison and a $232,000 fine.
The charges follow a 2003 conviction against Chagnon for possession of child pornography, in which he emailed sexually explicit images of children to a co-worker. He has since been in and out of prison, and most recently served a two-year sentence in Oshkosh for violating the state's sex offender registry rules.
Chagnon has never been charged with a sexual assault, according to court records.
Hook and Hartman also said they believed Winnebago County officials are taking the case seriously. They cited the decision by the county's district attorney to prosecute the case, and the fact that a judge Wednesday imposed a $100,000 cash bond against Chagnon.
"That's amazing," Hook said, noting that a $10,000 bond is much more typical in such cases.
One citizen asked how parents should negotiate the desire to publicize youth achievements but at the same time protect children and their privacy. Hartman suggested parents should not allow sex offenders such as Chagnon to stifle the flow of community information.
"I want my kids in the paper. I want their names in the paper," Hartman said. "I hope you continue to ... put your kids in the media because that's cool as a community. It's good to have them recognized."
More on Wednesday's meeting will be published in Saturday's edition of the River News.
Jamie Taylor contributed to this report.
Jonathan Anderson may be reached at [email protected].
Comments:
You must login to comment.