BY SARAH STEPHENS
ELMORE/AUTAUGA NEWS
19th Judicial District Attorney CJ Robinson obtained a temporary restraining order to keep a registered sex offender from being moved to an unsecured residential, mental health facility Friday. This morning, he was back in court before Circuit Court Judge Bill Lewis to argue he wants to amend that, to include keeping any sex offenders from ever being moved to the facility in Prattville.
Tyrone Bennett was found guilty on multiple counts of sex charges against a young victim in Jefferson County and outlying areas. Since that time, he has been turned over to the Alabama Department of Mental Health. Last week a Jefferson County Judge ordered Bennett to be transferred to the residential mental health facility located at 425 Pratt Street in Prattville.
When the Prattville Police Department received the official SORNA notification, they immediately called the District Attorney’s Office. SORNA is short for the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act. There are very specific rules regarding the act that cover where a registered sex offender can reside, and how far they must be away from facilities such as schools, etc.
“I was shocked, completely shocked that something like this could happen,” DA Robinson said. “In my 16 years, I have never known the DA’s office to file for an injunction like this. I want an order that says no sex offender can come to this place where they can walk out the front door, look at children in their bathing suits at the splash pad, go over and look at the football stadium, the library, or other locations. That is not OK. I am not going to apologize for pursuing this. I am not going to act like I have hurt anybody’s feelings. Because the ones who deserve the protection are those children walking around out there that nobody is willing to speak up for.”
One of Robinson’s main concerns, and one that is shared by Prattville Police Chief Mark Thompson, is the lack of security at the current facility. In recent years, there have been 16 reports of mental health patients simply walking away from the facility unsupervised. “Those are the ones we know about. The ones where they called the police department to report a missing person,” Chief Thompson said.
Robinson said imagine having a sex offender that could just walk out of a facility and have a huge area within walking distance where other potential victims are located.
Robinson said there are no less than nine locations that are in close proximity to the residential housing unit. These include Prattville Kindergarten, a dance studio, the public library, the Splash Pad, Pratt Park and Prattville Primary School.
“So, the initial filing was against Tyrone Bennett because there was an immediate need to stop him from being placed there. As we investigated the situation we came to realize it is a bigger issue. It is not just this one, but trying to prevent the release of any future sex offenders to this facility. In its current state it is a matter of public safety,” Robinson said. “We are amending the complaint to include the Carastar facility at this address. So, not only Tyrone Bennet, but that no sex offender should be placed at this facility in its current state. There is no security. There is no way to prevent the type of things that the SORNA act is for.”
The hearing was set for 10:30 a.m. in Autauga County this morning, but was delayed for over an hour as there were backroom discussions between legal officials and multiple phone calls with Jefferson County.
“I believe that if the (Jefferson County) judge had had all of the information, she would have come up with a different ruling,” Judge Lewis said.
Since the Jefferson County Judge’s initial ruling, the DA’s Office has made sure she is aware of multiple issues with Bennett being transferred to that facility in Prattville. A hearing will be scheduled to address Robinson’s request to have any sex offender kept from being house at the facility.
There were multiple public officials present for the hearing today, including Prattville Mayor Bill Gillespie, Police Chief Mark Thompson, several police officers and DA office officials.
We will continue coverage on this matter as new information is forthcoming. But for now, Tyrone Bennett has an injunction against him, that keeps him from staying at this particular facility run by Carastar Health, formerly known as the Montgomery Area Mental Health Authority.
