<<Jones pleaded guilty to child sexual abuse in 1989 and served about seven
months in prison, said Joseph Sviatko, a spokesman for the Baltimore state's
attorney's office. He pleaded guilty in 2002 to a sex offense involving a
15-year-old boy and was sentenced to a year in prison, Sviatko said.>> Why were
the sentences so short?


Boy's Body Found, Sex Offender Arrested Boy's body found on golf course near his
Md. home; Sex offender arrested
BALTIMORE, Aug. 1, 2006
By BEN NUCKOLS Associated Press Writer
---------------------------------
(AP)

(AP) An 11-year-old boy missing since last week was found slain early Monday on
a golf course near his home, and a twice-convicted child sex offender was
arrested in his death, police said.

An autopsy was being performed on the body of Irvin Harris to establish the
cause of death.

Hours after finding the body, police arrested Melvin Jones Jr., 52, inside a
downtown fast food restaurant after they got an anonymous tip that he was there.
He was charged Monday night with first-degree murder and other crimes, according
to Nicole Monroe, a police spokeswoman.

Col. Fred Bealefeld, the department's chief of detectives, described Jones as
the Harris family's friend and said there was "every indication" that Irvin's
mother knew about Jones' 2002 conviction for having sex with a teenage boy.

"I'm blaming myself right now," Irvin's mother, Shanda Harris, told WBAL-TV. "By
trusting Melvin, now my son is gone."

Jones pleaded guilty to child sexual abuse in 1989 and served about seven months
in prison, said Joseph Sviatko, a spokesman for the Baltimore state's attorney's
office. He pleaded guilty in 2002 to a sex offense involving a 15-year-old boy
and was sentenced to a year in prison, Sviatko said.

The victim in the 2002 case met Jones when he was walking home from school, and
the two had sex several times over a period of about 18 months, according to
court documents. Jones told police while being questioned "that he was a
pedophile who needed help," the court documents state.

Jones registered as a sex offender after his 2002 conviction and was on
probation, Sviatko said.

Irvin was last seen by his family Friday around noon, when he left for his
summer job at a nearby grocery store, Moses said. His body was found before
daybreak in a densely wooded section of the Clifton Park Golf Course, out of the
sight of golfers.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/08/01/ap/national/mainD8J7BMD81.shtml


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