Sexually victimized woman as an indignant child by the attacker's early release

Lake Charles, at. (KPLC) -The years ago, a man convicted of a sexual crime against a child in Jeff Davis parish was sentenced to seventeen years in prison. But it was released early.

The victim in this case is upset because she has not been announced that she was released and she speaks to try to prevent her from happening with other victims.

Gerald Joseph Johnson pleaded guilty of indecent behavior with a minor -to the sexual acts he committed with Mandi Langley from eight years to fourteen in the 90s. Now he is 77 years old.

“His initial accusation was the aggravated incest, which includes step -grandchildren and I had to fight a lot for my 17 -year -old sentence. And I expected all the 17 years to be served, “Langley said.

Johnson I refused the freedom of freedom at least twice- so Langley was shocked to find out that he was released on what is called “good time” because of the law that was in effect when the crimes occurred and was not even notified. She found out by chance: “If I didn’t find out as I did, I would not have officially notified it until it was issued by certified letter,” she said.

. The law was changed in 1999, forbidding sex criminals to be eligible for good time.

At Johnson’s latest conditional hearing in 2023, the lawyer of district Jeff Davis, Lauren Heinen, spoke against his release.

“The DA Bureau is here to stay with Mandi and will be here at every conditioned freedom hearing until Gerald Johnson executed all the 17 years of sentence,” Heinen said.

The chairman of the Board of Directors, Tony Mirabella, told Johnson that he cannot vote for conditions of conditional freedom because he does not show remorse:

“You have been guilty, it is very clear to me that you have committed these offenses, but you cannot add it. You continue to deny it, “he said.

“I have been in the fifty -year -old criminal justice system. I was a prosecutor, I was a defense lawyer, I was a judge. Now I’m sitting on board of conditional freedom. The only thing I know about sex criminals is, until they admit and add what they have done, will be a problem, ”said Mirabella.

Langley believes that the victims’ bill must be implemented.

“Our justice system has the draft law of the victim in force for a specific reason, and in the victim’s draft, he states that sexual crimes will be notified at least sixty days before release,” Langley said.

“All victims are worth having notifications before their offender is released from prison, so that they can properly prepare mentally and emotionally,” she said.

I contacted the Department of State Corrections to find out the circumstances around Johnson’s release, the conditions for his release and why Langley was not notified. So far, we are still waiting for an answer.

We know that Johnson has to register as a sexual offender and that he has made an appointment to do this at the Beauregard sheriff’s office. It seems that he will live with a relative in Beauregard parish.

Jeff Davis district lawyer launched the following in response to Johnson’s early release.

The 31st 31st Office of the Judicial District Lawyer wants to address the public problems following the early release of an inmate who has been convicted for a sexual crime. According to the correction department, the individual was issued before completing his complete sentence due to “good time” credits under Law 138 (starting January 1, 1992).

This case highlights the challenges faced by the victims by sailing in the criminal justice system after awarding, especially in terms of time calculations that determine the real period of incarceration of an offender.

“Our office gives priority to victims’ rights,” said Lauren Heinen, district lawyer for Jefferson Davis Parish. “This situation offers an important perspective for legislators about what victims, survivors and their families experience and fear when an offender is released earlier than expected.”

District Advocate Office wants to emphasize more concerns about the current system:

The correction department The time calculations have been changed several times over the years, creating a moving target that is exceptionally difficult to explain to their victims and families.
While recent legislative efforts have improved transparency, historically our laws on time calculations have been convoluted and inconsistent. This inheritance of complexity makes it difficult to provide the victims accurate information about how long an offender will actually serve, because these calculations are determined by the correction department after conviction by formulas that have been changed several times over the years.
In this case and others, even the correction department has miscided the release data due to the convoluted nature of time calculations in accordance with different laws adopted over the years.

“When the victims present and go through the difficult process of participating in the criminal justice system, it deserves clear and accurate information about what to expect,” added Heinen District Lawyer. “Our justice system should offer clear directives on the prison that the victims understand and rely on.”

The district lawyer’s office recognizes progress, but believes that they are still a significant work. “We are moving in the right direction, but there are more work,” said Heinen District lawyer. “We will continue to plead and help their victims and families at the best skills. We will also continue to work with our legislators to address the problems with problems in the law and to provide clarity and assistance, as needed. “

The office encourages anyone who has concerns about the impact of the computing laws over time on the rights of the victims to contact the state legislators.