In a disturbing turn of events, a convicted sex offender in Charlotte has been arrested for violating the terms of North Carolina state sex offender laws after he was found to be assisting a team of 6-8-year-olds.
As reported by the Charlotte Observer and Associated Press, among other sites, 34-year-old Dirk Walker Monseur Jr. was arrested on felony charges of violating sex offender laws for being in contact with children. The charges arose after the parents of some team members at the Granite Falls Parks and Recreation Department reported that Monseur Jr. was volunteering to help with the team, a routine practice for parents of players on the team.
While Monseur Jr. isn't a parent of any of the players on the team, he reportedly is in a relationship with the mother of three of the team's young athletes.
Monseur Jr. has already spent 2 1/2 years in a Florida prison for violating terms of sex offender laws after he failed to register as a sex offender. This new felonious violation could land him even more time behind bars, even though there is no sense that he perpetrated any kind of crimes on the children in question.
That holds little importance when it comes to North Carolina's sex offender laws, however. The state regulations make it illegal for any registered sex offenders to be on the premises of any location that is "intended for the use, care or supervision of minors."
According to the Observer, the list of banned locations for sex offenders also includes anywhere minors meet for scheduled recreational, social or educational programs. Needless to say, Monseur Jr.'s involvement with a youth team falls squarely in this latter category.
Even if Monseur Jr. did nothing wrong, as is believed, the fact that a registered sex offender could so easily volunteer for an organization that was focused on helping children is truly concerning. It's hard to tell where additional checks need to be put in, but they clearly should be instituted somewhere.
For the time being, at least parents whose children are taking part in the Granite Falls Parks and Rec league can be confident that their young athletes are again safe for the remainder of the season.
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