AL- Officers check on sex offenders during Operation House Call in Mobile County

Are we looking at a crime scene photo of a peeping tom? No, it is a law enforcement officer (from an unknown force, see list below) peeping into a RSOs window. I certainly hope the RSO is one on parole or probation, if not, then this is a crime scene photo. Further, notice the searching of mail boxes, a federal crime, finally their alleged purpose was to verify the ADDRESS of this RSO, then anything beyond that is not permitted by law; notice how they not only wanted to verify other information but also gather any new information they could coerce out of the RSO or neighbors. I love the toys on the lawn of a home where a RSO is not home, typical setup by neighbors to get rid of a RSO. I will be following up on this if possible. Simply unbelievable, hopefully the RSO who owns that home and sees this, if not on parole or probation, files charges against that officer!

5-26-2009 Alabama:

MOBILE, Ala. -- The U.S. Marshals and 10 other local law enforcement agencies on Wednesday wrapped up Operation House Call, a hush-hush undertaking to verify the addresses of 346 of Mobile County's sex offenders.

Operation House call was "designed to be unpredictable," U.S. Marshal Inspector Ross Hebert said, unlike routine checks run by compliance officers. Those checks, Hebert said, happen the same time each year, and the offenders are notified in advance.

But Monday through Wednesday this week, the offenders had no idea they'd be checked.

"It will be a true indicator of where we stand with our sex offenders, and we'll really get to see how successful our sex offender programs are," Hebert said last week during a planning meeting.

Sex offenders are required to register with law enforcement agencies after they are released from prison.

During the checks, law enforcement officers verified 284 addresses, with 37 that "require further investigation" and 25 others that could not be verified or still need to be checked, according to a news release.

During the three-day detail, officers worked in 15 teams of two, each with a stack of file folders containing information about the sex offenders, from where they live and the car they are believed to drive to locations of tattoos and whether they have piercings.

In some cases, the officers had to verify offenders' addresses by talking to neighbors, doing a mailbox search or surveying the property.

Officers were also asked to gather extra information, such as cell phone numbers and e-mail addresses. One man's e-mail address included a reference to male anatomy; another man told the officer that his screen name was "holleruntilithurts."

None of the offenders were arrested during the operation, Hebert said, but charges may be brought in some of the 37 open cases.

For example, at one house in the Tillman's Corner area, the officers could not find the sex offender but did find children's toys scattered about the front and back yards.

The sex offender was convicted in 1992 of first-degree rape and firs-degree sex abuse after he sexually assaulted an 8-year-old and 11-year-old girl. He was released in 2002.

Sex offenders are not allowed to live with children or allow them to visit their home. Hebert took photos and passed the information on to the offender's compliance officer.

"It will be investigated," he said.

Participating in the operation were law enforcement officers from the U.S. Marshals, Mobile Police Department, Mobile County Sheriff's Office, FBI, Prichard Police Department, Bayou La Batre Police Department, Saraland Police Department, University of South Alabama Police Department, Mobile Community Corrections Center and Alabama State Probation and Parole. ..News Source.. by Jillian Kramer, Staff Reporter