Exotix
12-01-2010, 6:15pm
Gov. Tim Pawlenty pardoned serial child molestor that molested again.
Today
Pawlenty seeking perjury investigation against sex offender he helped pardon - TwinCities.com (http://www.twincities.com/ci_16751983)
Gov. Tim Pawlenty says the sex offender that he joined in pardoning two years ago may have committed perjury to get his criminal record wiped clean.
If so, the governor wants him prosecuted for that offense in addition to new molestation charges.
Pawlenty said he sent letters to prosecutors Wednesday urging them to investigate whether Jeremy Giefer of Vernon Center lied to the state pardon board to have his criminal record expunged.
Last month, Giefer was charged with sexually abusing a girl more than 250 times before and after he was pardoned in 2008.
"If the current allegations against him result in a conviction or any indications of criminal behavior, he perjured himself and lied to us and may have committed other forms of fraud or misrepresentation before a governmental agency or board," the governor said.
If that's the case, he said Giefer should be charged with lying under oath.
Pawlenty was a member of the three-person board that pardoned Giefer, now 36. The other pardon board members were Attorney General Lori Swanson and then-Chief Justice Eric Magnuson of the Minnesota Supreme Court.
In 1993, Giefer was convicted of having sex with his 14-year-old girlfriend, whom he later married. He served 45 days in jail and was free when the pardon was granted.
Last month, Giefer, now 36, was charged in Blue Earth County District Court with 12 felonies, including five of first-degree sexual conduct. The complaint says the victim told police the abuse began when she was 9 and continued until she was 16.
In applying for the pardon, Giefer signed a statement under oath that he had remained law-abiding since his 1993 conviction, Pawlenty said.
If the latest allegations against him are true, his statement to the board was "obviously a lie."
Bluestem Prairie, a blog that covers rural Minnesota news, first revealed the connection between Giefer and Pawlenty on Sunday.
The connection could have political fallout for the governor, who is preparing for a possible campaign for president in 2012.
The pardon could become fodder for rivals' attack ads that portray him as a phony conservative Republican who pretended to be tough on crime but pardoned a sex offender who subsequently assaulted a girl.
The pardon has been widely reported on political blogs and websites across the country this week.
Asked if he was concerned about the political implications, Pawlenty replied, "I don't think about it in those terms.
My thoughts are first to the family and to the victim involved.
"I spent a good deal of my career cracking down hard on sex offenders.
I think they are some of the most heinous criminals in our society, and the behavior in this case is sickening, and the allegations here break my heart for the victim involved."
He said the board would not have pardoned Giefer if it had been aware of the latest sexual abuse charges. He noted that during his tenure the board has never released anyone from prison or jail early. Pardons have been granted only after sentences were served.
He notified Ramsey County Attorney Susan Gaertner and Blue Earth County Attorney Ross Arneson about the possible perjury because the pardon board met in Ramsey County and Giefer may have signed a false oath in Blue Earth County.
He said Swanson agreed prosecutors in those counties have jurisdiction in the case.
http://reason.com/assets/mc/psuderman/2010_08/pawlentydeadfish.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3318/3454775972_9e83e7d1b1.jpg
Today
Pawlenty seeking perjury investigation against sex offender he helped pardon - TwinCities.com (http://www.twincities.com/ci_16751983)
Gov. Tim Pawlenty says the sex offender that he joined in pardoning two years ago may have committed perjury to get his criminal record wiped clean.
If so, the governor wants him prosecuted for that offense in addition to new molestation charges.
Pawlenty said he sent letters to prosecutors Wednesday urging them to investigate whether Jeremy Giefer of Vernon Center lied to the state pardon board to have his criminal record expunged.
Last month, Giefer was charged with sexually abusing a girl more than 250 times before and after he was pardoned in 2008.
"If the current allegations against him result in a conviction or any indications of criminal behavior, he perjured himself and lied to us and may have committed other forms of fraud or misrepresentation before a governmental agency or board," the governor said.
If that's the case, he said Giefer should be charged with lying under oath.
Pawlenty was a member of the three-person board that pardoned Giefer, now 36. The other pardon board members were Attorney General Lori Swanson and then-Chief Justice Eric Magnuson of the Minnesota Supreme Court.
In 1993, Giefer was convicted of having sex with his 14-year-old girlfriend, whom he later married. He served 45 days in jail and was free when the pardon was granted.
Last month, Giefer, now 36, was charged in Blue Earth County District Court with 12 felonies, including five of first-degree sexual conduct. The complaint says the victim told police the abuse began when she was 9 and continued until she was 16.
In applying for the pardon, Giefer signed a statement under oath that he had remained law-abiding since his 1993 conviction, Pawlenty said.
If the latest allegations against him are true, his statement to the board was "obviously a lie."
Bluestem Prairie, a blog that covers rural Minnesota news, first revealed the connection between Giefer and Pawlenty on Sunday.
The connection could have political fallout for the governor, who is preparing for a possible campaign for president in 2012.
The pardon could become fodder for rivals' attack ads that portray him as a phony conservative Republican who pretended to be tough on crime but pardoned a sex offender who subsequently assaulted a girl.
The pardon has been widely reported on political blogs and websites across the country this week.
Asked if he was concerned about the political implications, Pawlenty replied, "I don't think about it in those terms.
My thoughts are first to the family and to the victim involved.
"I spent a good deal of my career cracking down hard on sex offenders.
I think they are some of the most heinous criminals in our society, and the behavior in this case is sickening, and the allegations here break my heart for the victim involved."
He said the board would not have pardoned Giefer if it had been aware of the latest sexual abuse charges. He noted that during his tenure the board has never released anyone from prison or jail early. Pardons have been granted only after sentences were served.
He notified Ramsey County Attorney Susan Gaertner and Blue Earth County Attorney Ross Arneson about the possible perjury because the pardon board met in Ramsey County and Giefer may have signed a false oath in Blue Earth County.
He said Swanson agreed prosecutors in those counties have jurisdiction in the case.
http://reason.com/assets/mc/psuderman/2010_08/pawlentydeadfish.jpg
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3318/3454775972_9e83e7d1b1.jpg