The truth is Stearns County failed our children as well as the child in Massachusetts . Had they done their jobs 20 years ago this man may still be behind bars. At the very least he would still be a Registered Sex Offender and unable to be in the position to reoffend.
Matthew Feeney Slipped Through Their Fingers
When Will Our Justice System Punish Child Molesters?
Matthew Feeney, a famous casting director from the Twin Cities, has been arrested in Florida on child molestation charges. As reported by New Faces, this is not the first time. In fact, he was convicted 20 years ago in Aitkin County, MN of molesting three children. What they do not tell you, upon his release from a minimal sentence, he was immediately taken into custody and transferred to Stearns County, MN. He was brought in on charges of molesting an additional eleven children. Officials in Stearns County decided that the public’s interests had been served and simply made a plea bargain to misdemeanor charges and gave Feeney probation.
In the years since, Feeney began a career as an entertainer. He had gigs as a comedian, actor and eventually a casting director. He has been credited with helping hundreds of children get their start in the business. He has even worked on commercials for the Minnesota Twins.
Upon learning of what he had been doing, I contacted several news agencies asking them to investigate how a sex offender could end up back in this position of power over children. Their response… having received none, I can only assume they had no interest in protecting children.
This is a man who lured children in over 20 years ago with his decked out ex-police car.(He was an EMT and had lights, push bumpers and police radio) Children thought it was great. Soon after he became the Youth Minister for St. Joseph Catholic Church, another way to access children.
The truth is Stearns County failed our children as well as the child in Massachusetts. Had they done their jobs 20 years ago this man may still be behind bars. At the very least he would still be a Registered Sex Offender and unable to be in the position to reoffend.
Unlike New Faces, who won’t judge this man. I will! I wish I could have done more to prevent this from happening again. Unfortunately the authorities, as well as the media didn’t seem interested in our children’s safety. I only hope that, if found guilty, Massachusetts ‘s judicial system won’t make the same mistakes as Minnesota’s did. This man needs to be put away for a long, long time.
He has since turned himself in once again in Minnesota. Just goes to show that someone like this cannot be rehabilitated!! I’m afraid to even guess how many more victims are still out there. Again blame Stearns County, MN officials. Ask them why they felt probation was enough punishment?
Source: http://voices.yahoo.com/mathew-feeney-slipped-through-their-fingers-will-11461654.html
