Monthly Archive for December, 2008Page 3 of 6

Indictment: Cumberlands student tried to blackmail woman with sex video

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By Bill Estep - bestep@herald-leader.com

A southern Kentucky college student tried to force a young woman to send him a sexually graphic video of herself after he stole log-in information from several computers, a federal grand jury has charged.

Sungkook Kim

Sungkook Kim

Sungkook Kim, 23, was indicted Thursday on 15 counts of sending threatening e-mails to the woman in October and November.

The grand jury also charged Kim with illegally accessing other people’s e-mail accounts, possessing identification belonging to others, and possessing child pornography.

Kim, who is from South Korea, was a student at the University of the Cumberlands when he allegedly tried to extort the video from a female student. The university expelled him, according to a court document.

Kim was arrested in November. Earlier this month, U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert Wier ordered him held without bond.

Kim told authorities that he was in the university science lab more than a year ago when he noticed someone had failed to log off a computer, according to a sworn statement from Donnie D. Kidd, an FBI agent.

Kim said he looked on the computer said found an e-mail with an attached video clip of a young woman having sex, and saved it to a thumb drive, Kidd said.

Kidd said Kim also admitted placing software on several university computers that captured data on keystrokes, allowing him to get other people’s log-in and password information.

On Oct. 1, a female student told police in Williamsburg that someone was trying to force her to make a video of herself masturbating and send it to him, Kidd said.

The student had gotten an e-mail that said the sender had four Web cam clips of her having sex with a young man, and that if she didn’t make a video for him, he would send the clips to her friends and professors, according to Kidd’s statement.

The young woman told police she had made the videos with her boyfriend when she was 17.

Wayne Bird, then a detective in Williamsburg, sought assistance from the cyber-crimes unit of the state Attorney General’s Office, which tracked the e-mail to Kim, Kidd said.

Kim told Bird he contacted the female student to teach her a lesson, and didn’t really plan to send the compromising material to anyone.

However, Wier, the magistrate judge, said Kim’s messages to the woman were “insistent, repeated and extremely threatening.”

“The court fearfully wonders where the threats would ultimately have led, if the victim had not alerted authorities,” Wier wrote in his order to detain Kim.

When police searched Kim’s computer at his home in Williamsburg, they found a file showing girls younger than 12 being raped by adult men, Kidd said in his affidavit.

Kim denied possessing child pornography, but told Kidd he is addicted to porn, Wier said in his order.

Related Story Doctor indicted on sex charges

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Danville driver charged with DUI after 7-year-old hit

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A 7-year-girl was taken to University of Kentucky Hospital after she was struck by a pickup in Danville, and the driver was charged with driving under the influence, Danville police said.

Shortly after 6 p.m. Thursday, Ravyn McKitric was trying to cross Wilderness Road in front of her house when she was hit by a blue Dodge Dakota. The driver, Jerry Curtis, 55, of Danville, was also charged with having an open container in the vehicle in addition to DUI, police said.

Ravyn initially was taken to Ephraim McDowell Regional Medical Center in Danville and was later transferred to UK. Her updated condition was not immediately available Friday morning.

Curtis was released from the Boyle County jail Thursday night after a $300 bond was posted. He will be arraigned in Boyle District Court within the next couple of weeks.

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Lexington clerk pistol-whipped during robbery, police say

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Herald-Leader Staff Report

Lexington police are investigating the Thursday night armed robbery of the Shell station at 1070 Newtown Pike near New Circle Road.

Shortly after 11 p.m., two men entered the store and demanded money from the clerk, who was hit in the head with a gun and forced to get on the floor, police said.

When the two robbers were unsuccessful in their attempt to get into the cash register, they had the clerk get up and open it. The two men took an undisclosed amount of money and fled.

A police dog searched the area but was unable to locate the robbers. They were described as two white men; the one with the gun wore a gray jacket, jeans, work boots, black gloves and a bandanna. The other man wore a black hoodie, jeans, work boots, gloves and a bandanna.

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Lexington man shoots, kills intruder

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on December 18, 2008
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By Shawntaye Hopkins

A Lexington man told police he shot an intruder, who later died, after the man entered his apartment near Shillito Park Wednesday night and tried to rob him, Lexington police said.

About 10:45 p.m., police found the resident suffering from gunshot wounds that weren’t considered life-threatening when they arrived at an apartment complex at 3500 Beaver Place, near Nicholasville Road and Man o’ War Boulevard.

The resident, whose name has not been released, said he was shot during a fight after two men entered his apartment and tried to rob him. The resident was armed with a handgun and shot one of the intruders, Lexington police said.

Officer Ann Gutierrez, a Lexington police spokeswoman, said the resident opened the door after the two men knocked. No information was available Thursday morning about whether the resident recognized the intruders.

The alleged intruder and the resident were taken to University of Kentucky Hospital. The alleged intruder later died. The Fayette County coroner has not yet released his name.

No charges have been filed.

On Thursday, Lexington police were still searching for the other alleged intruder who witnesses saw running toward Shillito Park Wednesday night. The man was described as about 6 feet 3 inches tall and wearing a dark gray, hooded jacket.

Lexington police said anyone with information about the incident should call the Personal Crimes Section at (859) 258-3700 or Bluegrass Crime Stoppers at (859) 253-2020.

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Former Richmond nursing home aide is charged with wanton neglect

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on December 18, 2008
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By Valarie Honeycutt Spears

Jaclyn Dawn VanWinkle, a former nurse’s aide at Madison Manor Nursing Home in Richmond, who was arrested in connection with actions caught on a hidden video camera, denies charges that she neglected an 84-year-old former resident of the home. 

“I think I took very good care of Mrs. (Armeda) Thomas,” VanWinkle, 25, said in a telephone interview Thursday. “I’ve done nothing wrong.”

VanWinkle was arrested Wednesday and charged with wanton neglect. She said an investigator from Attorney General Jack Conway’s office told her that as many as eight of her former co-workers — none now work at the facility — also face criminal charges.

Jaclyn Dawn VanWinkle
Armeda Thomas

“I was charged with neglect because the videotape showed me singing and dancing,” VanWinkle said. “They said it looked like I was taunting her. They said I was being disrespectful.”

Shelley Johnson, a spokeswoman for the attorney general’s office, said the criminal investigation is continuing.

Armeda Thomas’ family members hid a video camera in her room without the nursing home’s knowledge for three weeks after they discovered 36 bruises all over her body and didn’t get satisfactory answers from the staff.

The videotape shows nursing assistants at Madison Manor physically abusing and taunting Thomas, of Irvine, and failing to feed and clean her, according to state records.

VanWinkle is not charged with physically abusing Thomas. State records concerning the investigation refer to an occurrence in which a nursing assistant danced in front of Thomas while one other staff member held the resident’s arms.

Cindi Simpson, a spokeswoman for Extendicare, the Wisconsin-based company that owns Madison Manor, said that nine nursing assistants have been fired and that there have been other staff changes, as well as retraining, since the incidents were filmed.

“We have terminated any employees seen acting inappropriately toward this resident,” said Simpson, “We don’t condone this kind of behavior.”

‘Part of daily routine’

VanWinkle said the singing and dancing showed on the videotape was neither disrespect nor neglect and might have been misunderstood because it was not accompanied by sound.

“It was part of my daily routine with her, to get her to get up, get dressed, go to the rest room.”

VanWinkle did not have her certified nursing assistant’s license at the time of the alleged incident, she said, although she had completed her training.

Under state regulations, she was allowed to work at the nursing home for a certain time period without passing a competency test. Nursing home officials said she passed her test Sept. 8.

An investigator from Conway’s office also told VanWinkle that her failure to use a safety belt, called a gait belt, when transferring Armeda Thomas from her bed to a wheelchair also constituted neglect, she said.

However, VanWinkle said supervisors should have told her to use the gait belt.

“I like working with the elderly. I like taking care of people,” said VanWinkle, who took the job at Madison Manor in the spring and began classes at the facility to get her license.

VanWinkle said she was suspended in October and fired in November.

The arrest came as a shock, she said.

“My grandmother is in a nursing home,” VanWinkle said. “She has Alzheimer’s and dementia. I visit her every day.”

Cared for at home

Thomas, of Irvine, died in November of complications from Alzheimer’s disease. Family members cared for her at home after they discovered how she was treated.

Deb Hamilton, Thomas’ granddaughter, said Thursday that nursing home workers should be held accountable for their behavior.

“There need to be consequences,” Hamilton said. “Maybe it’s a facility that fostered an environment where they didn’t have adequate training and quality of care. Co-workers didn’t feel comfortable coming forward.”

VanWinkle, of Richmond, was released Wednesday night on $7,500 bond. She said she is scheduled to appear in court Monday.

In March 2007, she pleaded guilty to a charge of public intoxication with a controlled substance, a misdemeanor, and paid $177 in court costs, according to Madison Court records.

In October she was charged with public intoxication, but the charge was dismissed.

Wrongful-death suit

In a separate case, the family of Teresa Kay Ritter, who died in September 2007 after a two-month stay at Madison Manor, filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the nursing home on Oct. 22. The lawsuit alleges that poor care at the facility resulted in the amputation of her left foot, renal failure and ultimately, death. Ritter also sustained unexplained bruising and lacerations, according to the lawsuit.

Lisa Circeo, the Lexington attorney who represents the family, said the Cabinet for Health and Family Services found violations of mandatory regulations with regard to Ritter and that Adult Protective Services substantiated neglect.

Circeo said her law firm had represented clients in at least eight other wrongful death lawsuits that have been filed against Extendicare facilities in Kentucky since 2006.

In the Thomas case, Madison Manor received the most serious citation a nursing home can receive. State officials say that the most serious problems have been corrected.

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Judge: Killer wasn’t victim of domestic violence

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on December 17, 2008
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By Brandon Ortiz

Every night, the booze flowed and heated arguments followed at Charlene Lynn and John William Todd Jr.’s Darien Drive house, John Todd testified Wednesday. JohnWilliamToddjr

Though he’d only lived with Lynn six months, John Todd, 64, said in a hearing in Fayette Circuit Court Wednesday that Lynn Todd, 48, a recovering alcoholic, would verbally abuse him every night after she started drinking.

John Todd said his wife had several choice subjects: The gun she’d shoot him with if he ever hit her; the limp he walked with; his broken promise of 10 more years of work before retirement; and the younger men she’d been intimate with and how he compared unfavorably to them.

“When Lynn drank, she was nasty,” John Todd said. “She cussed like a sailor and had a propensity for violence.”

Todd’s testimony was part of a day-long hearing in which his defense attorneys tried to portray him as a victim of domestic violence. But the judge overruled his motion.

Todd pleaded guilty in September to first-degree manslaughter for fatally shooting his wife several times in the basement of their home in 2007. John Todd agreed to a 10-year sentence, and he’ll be eligible for parole after serving eight-and-a-half years.

Under Kentucky law, John Todd could have been eligible for parole substantially sooner — in his case, six-and-a-half years earlier — had he proved the slaying was related to domestic violence.

But Todd’s erratic behavior after the shooting undercuts his credibility, Judge Kimberly Bunnell said.

Investigators said Todd drove to Richmond with plans to kill his brother, Jim Todd, editor of the Richmond Register newspaper. And he flatly told his daughter, Faron Todd, that he did not shoot Lynn in self-defense.

“Not only do I believe there is not a preponderance of evidence” to show John Todd was a victim of domestic violence, Bunnell said, “I believe there is no evidence. It is so easy for him to come in now and say that he was” a victim.

Testimony by Todd, relatives and police Wednesday provided new details in the headline grabbing case.

John Todd turned himself in to authorities on March 7, 2007, after a manhunt that lasted several hours.

Earlier in the day, police roped off Darien Drive and Traveller Road, and police SWAT team members entered the home at 2:30 p.m. to find Lynn Todd dead in a pool of blood in the basement.

John Todd talked to relatives by cellphone throughout the day, but he refused to speak with police negotiators, according to testimony.

The day of the shooting, John Todd said he and his wife got into a heated argument before she got home from work.

John Todd, a home remodeling contractor, was angry that his wife was planning to accept a job that did not provide health insurance for both of them.

The argument continued into the evening in their bedroom. Lynn Todd grabbed her gun, which she kept beneath their mattress, and placed it atop the bed, John Todd said.

She then blocked the door and asked John Todd to fight her, he said. John Todd said he pushed her out of the way and went into the basement with his gun, which he also kept underneath the mattress.

Later, Lynn Todd walked down into the basement. John Todd said she pointed her gun at him and he lunged for it. When he could not take it from her, John Todd said, he thought he was going to die. He said he then shot her four times.

The shooting occurred late on the night of March 6, 2007. John Todd said he drank bourbon and took OxyContin pain pills until the morning.

Prosecutors accused John Todd of fabricating the story. And they pointed to contradictory statements he told relatives.

One occurred in a phone call to his daughter. Unbeknownst to John Todd, a police detective was in the room with Faron Todd listening to their conversation.

The daughter, who was trying convince Todd to turn himself in, urged him to claim it was self-defense. You can beat this, she told him.

He told her it was not self-defense. He said he shot her because she is a “bitch,” an officer testified.

Lynn Todd’s supervisor testified that John Todd regularly called her at work to argue. The supervisor said Lynn Todd also told her that John Todd had pushed her against a wall once.

“Lynn Todd was the victim of domestic violence, not the defendant,” Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Kathy Phillips said.

Defense attorneys warned Bunnell that she’d be setting a dangerous example by making it nearly impossible for spouses to prove they’re domestic violence victims. Attorney Jerry Wright said victims rarely call police and often don’t tell anyone of their abuse.

That makes it tougher for them to corroborate abuse, he said.

“A lot of it is secret,” Wright said. “A lot of it is behind closed doors. And a lot of it does not come out until something like this happens.”

Todd will be sentenced at a later date.

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Teen charged with poisoning grandfather

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The Associated Press

LIBERTY — A grand jury has indicted a young Casey County woman, accusing her with lacing her grandfather’s coffee with automotive antifreeze.

Nineteen-year-old Brittany Ann Miller faces a charge of criminal attempt to commit murder.

WLEX-TV in Lexington reported Leonard Walls went to the Veterans Administration Hospital in Lexington, where he told a security officer he suspected his granddaughter was trying to kill him so she could inherit his money.

Authorities searched Walls’ home and found a jug of antifreeze that was half-empty along with two bags of rat poison.

The station quoted Walls saying he noticed his coffee had a sweeter taste to it when Miller brewed it.

The grand jury in Liberty returned the indictment on Friday.

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Man dies after breaking up burglary at Clay City pawn shop

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Herald-Leader Staff Report

A night watchman died Wednesday morning after confronting two men trying to break in to a Clay City pawn shop.

Donald Norris, 62, was pronounced dead at Clark County Regional Hospital, according to Kentucky State Police.

About 4:30 a.m., he called police to report an attempted break-in at the M&S Variety Pawn Shop in Clay City, where he has a nearby apartment.

When the police chief arrived, Norris told him the direction the suspects fled, and the chief went out to the parking lot looking for them. About 10 minutes later, he returned and found Norris lying on the floor, struggling to breathe, KSP spokesman Ralph Lockard said.

An ambulance took Norris to the hospital, where he died Lockard said.

Police are investigating the death, but there was no evidence that the thieves assaulted Norris, Lockard said.

The trooper said Norris did have a heart condition. An autopsy has been scheduled.

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2 Eastern Ky. therapists sentenced

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Herald-Leader Staff Report

Two Eastern Kentucky therapists accused of defrauding the state’s Medicaid program have accepted a plea agreement.

Vanessa Rouse, a speech pathologist from Deane in Letcher County, and Janice Fields, a developmental interventionist from Happy in Perry County, pleaded guilty to medicaid fraud, a class D felony, and were sentenced Thursday in Jefferson Circuit Court, according to a news release issued Monday by Attorney General Jack Conway’s office.

Under terms of the agreement, both Fields and Rouse will serve five years probation, thus suspending a one year prison sentence for both women, according tot he release. As a condition of their probation, each of them was ordered to pay restitution to the Kentucky Medicaid Program for a total amount of $14,640.25 and to reimburse the attorney general’s office for investigative costs.

Prosecutors said Rouse and Fields fraudulently billed the state’s Medicaid program for services provided to children in First Steps, a statewide early-intervention program for infants and toddlers with developmental disabilities. During 2006 and 2007, the therapists billed the state for services that were not provided to children, according to the release.

In a related case, Rouse and Fields also pleaded guilty to charges of bribing a witness in Perry Circuit Court last month, according to Conway’s office. Following receipt of a tip, investigators conducted surveillance of Rouse and Fields. On April 16, the women were arrested after investigators monitored a transaction in which Rouse and Fields gave $200 to a prosecution witness in Perry County and instructed the witness on to how to testify, the release says. Under the terms of that plea agreement, they will be required to serve 30 days of a one-year sentence, the remainder of which will be probated. Sentencing in that case is scheduled for Dec. 18 in Perry Circuit Court.

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Richmond man charged with sex abuse

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Herald-Leader Staff Report

RICHMOND — A Richmond man has been charged with sexually abusing a 6-year-old girl.

Gerald Hill, 38, was arrested Thursday and charged with four counts of first-degree sexual abuse. Richmond police say Hill committed a sexual act in front of the girl at least three times and subjected the girl to sexual contact at least once, according to a news release.

Hill was released from Madison County jail Friday on a $5,000 cash bond.

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