Sex Offenders - Failure to register

April 25, 2008

Benjamin McGonigle
An increasing number of sex offenders are being arrested for violation of F.S. 943.0435(9) - Failure to properly register as a sexual offender.

Yesterday, Benjamin Michael McGonigle became the latest in St. Johns County and this is not his first time.

According to the FDLE Sex Offender Registry website, McGonigle was convicted of a sexual offense in Illinois on 12/10/2003. He later moved to Florida and was arrested and convicted on 09/19/2005 for failure to properly register.

According to the records of the St. Johns County jail, 29 year old Benjamin Michael McGonigle was booked again yesterday for failure to properly register. His booking sheet shows that he was residing at 495 Pomont Avenue - although his address, according to FDLE, is supposed to be 351 Varella Avenue in St. Augustine.

You may recall that Sgt. Chuck Mulligan of the SJSO said last November that a convicted sexual offender “must register at a permanent address in his current state of residency or be subject to arrest” when referring to Artimus Pyle; the former Lynyrd Skynyrd drummer. Pyle was also arrested twice by the local Sheriff’s Office for failing to properly register.

As of this morning, McGonigle is being held in the St. Johns County jail pending $10,000.00 bond.

There are many resources available to enable citizens to stay informed of sexual offenders and predators who may move into their neighborhoods. The Sheriff’s Office has partnered with Watch Systems in order to provide increased community safety and awareness of the whereabouts of sexual offenders through their website.

Individuals listed on this registry have been convicted of a sexual offense that requires them to meet a number of mandates including semi-annual registration with law enforcement.

Written by Mike · Filed Under Crime & Punishment

Comments

2 Responses to “Sex Offenders - Failure to register”

Freddy on April 26th, 2008 7:32 pm

A review of the incident report filed by Detective Kevin Kier in connection with this arrest reveals that the Sheriff’s Office received a call from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) Sex Offender Unit alerting them to McGonigle’s move.

Detectives Kier and Jackson went to the Varella Ave address and found that the property had been abandoned.

McGonigle was contacted by the S.J.S.O. detectives at a local restaurant where he was employed. McGonigle claimed that he had moved to Pomant Avenue and admitted that he moved out of Varella Avenue at the end of March.

A signed copy of McGonigle’s last registration report and his list of rules and regulations indicated that he had knowledge that he was required to provide the State of Florida with his current address within 48 hours of any move.
Cato on April 26th, 2008 10:09 pm

The 9/19/05 conviction in St. Johns County for failing to register was a bit more involved than simply moving to Florida and failing to register.

He was arrested and jailed locally on 1/6/05 for failing to register, and stayed in county jail for 257 days until 9/19/05 when he pleaded “nolo contendere” to two 3rd Degree felonies - felony battery and failure of a sex offender to properly register.

He was sentenced to three years in prison and also ordered to have no contact with his victim or his victim’s immediate family while he was incarcerated.

At the time of the sentencing the States Attorney told the judge that they were considering seeking civil commitment for McGonigle under the Jimmy Ryce Act before he was released from prison - that law allows the Florida to send violent sex offenders to a secure facility indefinitely for treatment upon completion of the prison sentence.

Obviously that action wasn’t taken.