OH- Elderly sex offender poses dilemma

All of the federal compliance requirements of the Americans w/disability Act are ignored by this county's jail. Hummmmm..... Worse yet is, the jail's medical staff concluded "he was in a wheelchair and unable to take care of himself," anyone have any idea why he doesn't report to the Probation Officer? Seems that the law doesn't allow for physical disabilities as a defense.

4-17-2009 Ohio:

Hamilton County officials are unsure what to do with an elderly sex offender confined to a wheelchair who refused to report to the probation office and was rejected at the jail.

Gerald Ball, 79, of North College Hill, was supposed to appear Thursday before Common Pleas Judge Steve Martin to explain why he refuses to report to the Justice Center on a probation violation or meet with his probation officer.

Ball wasn't there - because the Sheriff's office promised Ball it would take him to court but forgot to pick him up Thursday.

"We dropped the ball," Sheriff's spokesman Steve Barnett said.

That didn't matter, Ball's attorney, Dan Burke Jr., said, because the jail won't take him anyway.

The issue is compounded by the defiant attitude Ball has taken since his 2001 arrest.

(eAdvocate Post)


Ball was convicted of showing minors pornography and sex toys when they visited his North College Hill home and of having some of them expose their genitals as he videotaped them.

He was convicted on crimes that could have sent him to prison for more than 20 years, but he served less than six months in the Justice Center and was placed on parole.

In December 2008, Ball violated that probation by not reporting to his probation officer.

When he refused three other orders in March to report to the probation office, he was arrested and taken to jail.

But the jail's medical staff refused to allow Ball to be admitted because he was in poor medical health and unable to take care of himself physically.

They released him but told him to appear Thursday before Martin.

But when he does show up in court, what will authorities do with Ball?

"I don't know how you get him arrested and if they do, will they take him?" Burke asked.

The jail won't take him because of medical issues and jail overcrowding.

"We can't meet his needs and we are packed," Barnett said.

Other programs might not take him, either. Some don't take sex offenders. Some won't take those physically unable to care for themselves.

"If they can't house him, we'll cross that bridge when we get to it," the judge said. ..News Source.. by Kimball Perry