A Hunts Points prostitute testified in the Bronx yesterday in the trial of an accused serial sex assaulter. James Schlau, a registered sex offender, is accused of two sex assaults and the rape of three Bronx prostitutes. The 23-year-old victim described her terrifying encounter with him in detail: "‘Open your legs or I’ll cut your p----,’" he allegedly threatened her. more ›

The transgender girlfriend of the man who is accused of sexually assaulting an elderly woman on the Upper East Side last week wrote an email expressing her condolences to the victim of the assault today. And she wanted to make sure the 85-year-old victim knew she too was a victim: "I as well am a victim. A victim of falling in love." more ›

A Staten Island man was charged with killing his wife's dog in a rage because it had pooped on the floor. Police say that registered sex offender Nashbert Smith "repeatedly swung the dog by its leash against a wall, then choked it to death" in their apartment on Vanderbilt Avenue near Prince Street on Wednesday. more ›

Yesterday, police arrested Jeffrey Ritter in connection with the sexual assault of an 85-year-old Upper East Side woman from earlier this week. The News spoke with Ritter's twin brother Jeremy, who gave them a peek into his brother's screwed up life. Suffice to say, he didn't sound too sympathetic to his brother's current predicament: "I tried to help you and you chose the wrong path. It hurts me to see you locked up. But from me to you, heart to heart, you have issues and you need help." more ›

A 42-year-old female special-ed teacher in Queens yesterday pleaded guilty in Queens Supreme Court to the third-degree rape of a 15-year-old boy. As punishment, in addition to surrendering her teaching license and registering as a sex offender, the teacher, Christine Williams, is expected to be sentenced to 90 days in jail and ten years probation in July. Williams had sex with the boy (who was not her student) at least twice last year in her Jamaica, Queens, home. more ›

Giants football great Lawrence Taylor was officially classified as a sex offender today, as part of his sentencing for having sex with an underage prostitute last year. He will be a Level 1 sex offender, which is the lowest level; the Journal News explains, "This means his name, photo, and criminal history will not appear on the sex offender registry in New York." more ›

It's a question that has been troubling us for awhile: how did a billionaire hedge fund manager who was accused of being a sex-slave owning pedophile get away with 13 months in a country club prison, and still get to hang out with Princes and Presidents? A fascinating and troubling article on The Daily Beast today delves into the case of Jeffery Epstein, a man who believes the difference between himself and a sexual predator is like the difference "between a murderer and a person who steals a bagel." more ›

Giants legend Lawrence Taylor was sentenced to six years probation for his May 2010 encounter with a 16-year-old at a Holiday Inn in Montebello, NY. Earlier this year, Taylor agreed to plead guilty to patronizing a prostitute and sexual misconduct, avoiding statutory rape charges. He will have to register as a sex offender and must pay a fine, and his lawyer apologized on behalf of LT, "He never wanted to tarnish his image. Mr. Taylor readily accepts responsibility." But know who did want to tarnish LT's image further? Ubiquitous lawyer Gloria Allred, who is representing the now 17-year-old victim. more ›

Billionaire sex offender, Central Park stroller and user of poorly worded bagel analogies Jeffrey Epstein was apparently a "good friend" to former president Clinton, according to one of Epstein's former teenage "masseuses." Speaking to the Daily Mail, Virginia Roberts, who traveled with Clinton and Epstein in the Caribbean, notes that "Bill must have known about Jeffrey's girls," and that Epstein told her that Clinton "owes me some favors." Ms. Roberts stops short of accusing Clinton of partaking in more risqué behavior by noting that she was "never 'lent out'" to him. more ›

Former Giants great Lawrence Taylor pleaded guilty today to two misdemeanor counts, but avoided jail time completely. Back in May, the Hall of Fame linebacker was accused of raping a 16-year-old girl, which gave way to a bizarre series of excuses and defenses, and left Taylor's reputation in shambles. He later admitted in court to paying $300 to have sex with the young woman, but claimed she told him she was 19. Taylor, 51, pled guilty to patronizing a prostitute and sexual misconduct in exchange for six months probation. Taylor will have to register as a sex offender; we imagine he will be much less quippy during the hearing in March to determine the level of his sex offender status. more ›

The police have arrested a convicted rapist for robbing and sexually assaulting a City College student in her Hamilton Heights apartment on Thursday afternoon. Lawrence Elliot, 47, who is a registered sex offender, had been taken in for questioning yesterday, and neighbors are relieved, telling WCBS 2, "I think it’s great. I think it’s a great thing the police department did their job and made an arrest so quickly." more ›

When top-ranking members of the Gambino crime family were indicted for a host of crimes in April, one charge stood out in particular: sex trafficking with girls as young as 15, something one prosecutor called “a new low for the Gambino family.” But a Gambino defense attorney is now accusing the government of complicity allowing the sex trafficking to occur. more ›

Long Island cardiologist Vincent Pacienza was convicted yesterday of unlawful surveillance for setting up a surveillance camera in the bathroom of his medical office to watch women do their business. Back in June 2008, Pacienza closed an employees-only bathroom at this Manhasset office, leaving one bathroom for both employees and patients. He also informed female employees he had installed an air purifier across from the toilet, but according to the Nassau DA's press release, the air purifier "contained a hidden wireless camera with a direct video feed to a monitor underneath Pacienza’s desk." more ›

Yesterday, Senator Schumer announced that he wanted to close the loopholes that allow sex offenders to work with children. NY1 reports, "Laws nationwide prohibit sex offenders from working as school teachers and coaches. But most laws don't cover karate or dance instructors, youth coaches, carnival workers and children's entertainers in the provate sector when government funds are not involved." Schumer, who proposed the legislation after stories like this one, said, "These positions, whether paid of voluntary, put dangerous sexual predators in immediate proximately to kids and gives these predators positions of authority while interacting with kids. That is a combination just looking for trouble." more ›

"There are 74 perverts living in city housing projects," the Daily News announced this morning, which is actually a good thing because it's down from 126 last year. Senator Jeff Klein thinks that number just isn't low enough, saying, "I think we should all agree that one sexual offender living in a Housing Authority development is one too much [sic]." He and Sen. Diane Savino are pushing a new state law that would require the Housing Authority to notify the police if a level 2 or 3 sex offender registers at an HA address. Meanwhile, check out just how many sex offenders are living in your neighborhood. more ›

Since everyone loves the online database that maps and gives rap sheets for rapists and pedophiles, the state of New York is taking it one step further. Now, you can sign up (at this website) to be contacted by text message, email, fax or phone when one of NY's high- or moderate-risk sex offenders moves within striking distance. (Then you can set special ring tones to go along with the notifications!) The sex-offender alerts are a new feature of the Emergency Management System, which also lets New Yorkers know about road closures, storms and—conveniently for the pedophiles—missing children, according to the Poughkeepsie Journal. The AP says there are more than 30,000 registered sex offenders in the state. more ›

The Borough Park rabbi/travel agent accused in hundreds of incidents of sexual abuse was convicted yesterday of molesting a 16-year-old student. Baruch Lebovits could be sentenced to 32 years in jail, after being found guilty on eight counts. "I understand that there are a significant number of Jewish holidays coming up,” said the judge. “And I am sorry." The young victim testified that in 2004 Lebovits offered to let him drive his car, then unzipped his fly and performed oral sex on him. Among the rabbi’s other alleged victims is a young Hasidic man who committed suicide on his honeymoon, by jumping from the seventh story of a hotel. more ›

A level three sex offender who served 14 years for sexually abusing girls ages five to seven no longer holds the keys to 50 Manhattan apartments. Shortly after his release from prison in 2001 William Barnason was hired as the super for several Upper West Side buildings, where female tenants complained he tried to coerce them into sex-for-rent arrangements, but now he’s gotten the boot. “Mr. Barnason is no longer employed as the superintendent and will be moving out of the building he lives in the near future," said a lawyer for the child rapists’ employer. more ›

Only after a 22-year-old patient at the Bronx Psychiatric Center accused an employee of sexual abuse, did the facility realize it had hired a registered sex offender. According to the Daily News, the hospital wasn't aware that therapy aide trainee John Washington had a criminal record for "lewd assault and sexual battery against an underage male," even though he checked a box on his job application noting he had been convicted of a crime. A spokeswoman noted that Washington "did not describe an assault of any nature" when asked about his record, and said "[v]erification is not a requirement." After a probe, Bronx prosecutors did not press charges against Washington, who has resigned from his job. Last week, a 14-year-old boy said an employee and another patient sexually abused him in the state-run hospital. more ›

The convicted child rapist and Upper West Side building superintendent accused of soliciting sex from female tenants no longer has access to keys to dozens of apartments. According to the Post, landlord Stanley Katz is "evaluating what he's going to do" about Level 3 sex offender Williams Barnason, who is the super at three buildings on West 73rd and West 75th streets. For now, the super "has no access to the keys." Barnason served 14 years in prison after pleading guilty to raping, sodomizing and sexually abusing girls as young as five years old. Some tenants allege that Barnason offered to pay their rent and deposits if they would have sex with him. A Manhattan lawmaker has proposed legislation that would bar high-risk sex offenders from working as supers. more ›

Following allegations that a convicted child rapist has used his job as an Upper West Side building superintendent to pressure tenants into having sex with him, a state assemblyman has proposed legislation that would keep high-risk sex offenders from getting jobs as supers. "To have someone who has done such monstrous things to have the key to your apartment—it would strike fear in me," said Assemblyman Micah Kellner (D-Upper East Side). more ›

You may recall, with revulsion, the arrest last January of 27-year-old Brighton Beach high school teacher Alexander Kravitz, who was busted in a Queens hotel room where he hoped to make a porn video with a 14-year-old girl. But the girl did not exist—Kravitz had been communicating with an undercover detective online for six weeks, using the screen name EVRYDAYGURLS to send lurid messages and X-rated video to the "girl." After the arrest, police found a porno collection which included images of sex with children ranging from in age from 13 to infants...stashed in the Gravesend house he shared with his mother and sister. more ›

Sex offenders love networking on Facebook and MySpace just like everybody else, but a 2008 law called the Electronic Security and Targeting of Online Predators Act (e-STOP) put tight restrictions on their Internet use—especially if their prior offense involved a minor. In the first major crackdown since the law went into effect, 3,533 registered New York state sex offenders have been purged from Facebook and MySpace, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo announced yesterday. more ›

Ten years ago Demetrius Edwards pleaded guilty to raping a 13-year-old Brooklyn girl at gunpoint. According to the justice system, his debt to society has been repaid, so he was recently released from prison and moved into his parents' apartment, about 100 feet from the St. Raphael Elementary School on 37th Street in Queens. It's no surprise parents are panicking, but although Edwards is a sex offender with a record and a "Level Three" status—which means he's at "high risk to commit another sex crime"—nothing in the law prohibits him from living by the school. more ›

A good, if gross story about the police nabbing a serial pervert yesterday. According to the AP, the police arrested Darrel Corian "on charges of persistent sexual abuse and forcible touching." At around 9:05 a.m., police officers Michelangelo Hidalgo and Amauris Santana, who were on plainclothes assignment (part of the Anti-Crime patrol), observed Corrian acting suspiciously on the southbound platform of the 42nd Street-Lexington station at Grand Central. They followed him onto a 5 train. "Police say officers caught him rubbing his exposed penis up against at 19-year-old woman's backside, and arrested him." What's more, he had been paroled just two weeks ago "after serving time for persistent sexual abuse and was supposed to stay off buses and subways." Last month, a suspected subway perv with a long rap sheet was arrested with the help of his victim's cellphone photo of him. more ›

A sex offender who had lost his teaching license a little over a year ago for making sexual advances online to several adolescent boys was apparently up this old tricks again while working for E-ZPass. After a supervisor spotted Bradley Dieffenbacher's picture in an article about sexual predators, he had the company's computers searched and discovered that once again the former middle school teacher was sending hundreds of instant messages while searching for sex with minors—17 pages worth at his new job. The Daily News says that it is unclear how long Dieffenbacher was working at E-ZPass, but he was fired immediately after the new material was uncovered and then turned over to the Department of Probation. Dieffenbacer had been arrested last year after police found IMs where he had sexual conversations with several of his former students and attempted to have one masturbate while being filmed by a web cam. He will now head back to jail before his next stab at a new public sector career. more ›

Hours after a Long Island teacher was released from jail after serving time for her relationship with a 16-year-old student, she was arrested again because authorities found she contacted him while behind bars. A year ago, Wantagh High math teacher Heather Kennedy was charged with statutory rape after an interlude with the student in the Massapequa High School parking lot (he later confessed to his dad, who called the police). She faced additional charges a few months later when authorities found that Kenney had sex with the student repeatedly (at her grandparents' house, at a friend's house) after she pleaded guilty. Now Newsday reports, "Authorities said they became aware Friday night that Kennedy had written the letters"—which were given to the teen by a third party—"and they arrested her at her home at 2 a.m. Saturday." Kennedy, who must give up her teaching license and register as a Level 3 sex offender, was scolded by the judge, who said, "Your conduct, based upon your position in society, is very serious. We certainly have to discourage it from ever happening again." more ›

Suffolk County DA Thomas Spota is concerned that convicted sex offender Robert Musmacker has exposed a 16-year-old boy—and potentially other victims—with the virus that causes AIDS. Musmacker was pulled over for speeding two weeks ago and, Newsday reports, the "trooper took note of the driver's 16-year-old passenger, along with Musmacker's undone belt buckle on his pants." The tropper then found that Musmacker was a high-level sex offender and the boy "revealed not only that he'd had sexual contact with Musmacker on several occasions, but also that Musmacker has AIDS." Spota told the AP, "This is a very, very tragic case. We believe he definitely had sexual contact with other young males. This could possibly develop into a significant number." He urged other possible victims to contact the New York State Police Major Case Bureau at 631-756-3390. And Musmacker was charged committing a criminal sex act, endangering the welfare of a child and several traffic violations. more ›

As the search continues for missing Brooklyn woman Laura Garza, police say they have found a bleached section of carpet along Route 17 in Bloomingburg that appears to be the same one that was missing from Michael Mele’s apartment in nearby Wallkill. While police wait for it to be tested, a spokesman said, “It is anticipated that it will be significant.” The discovery came a few days after police questioned Mele’s girlfriend, who had allegedly helped him remove the carpet the day after Garza disappeared. more ›

As the investigation continues for the missing body of Laura Garza, the 25-year-old last seen leaving the nightclub Marquee early Wednesday morning, the details that have come in are not very pretty. Police are still searching around the Wallkill home of Michael Mele, the Quizno's franchise owner and convicted sex offender Garza was last spotted leaving the club with. Yesterday they found a woman's shoe near Mele's apartment in the dumpster he was seen scouring through in recent days, a piece of cloth resembling women's undergarments in a nearby shrub and bite marks and scratches on Mele himself. more ›