Neighborhood Watch works!
Questioning neighbors lead to local apprehension
By Debbie Lowe Staff writer

Several weeks ago Carroll County Sheriff Tony Burns and Maj. Tobe Leazenby attended a Neighborhood Watch meeting in Jefferson Township. The meeting seemed routine with several procedural questions from neighbors about what to do in different situations.

One question stood out to the two seasoned law enforcement officers. Neighbors wondered what to do about a possible "peeping tom." The discussion led to a revelation that two female juveniles might be visiting a local residence and the occupant was rumored to be a sex offender.

Acting on the inquiry, the department checked into 27 yearold Charles R. Davidson's information utilizing jail records and the Indiana Sex Offender Registry. It was discovered Davidson listed home addresses in both Carroll and Howard counties when he last registered with the Carroll County jail. Davidson claimed to be employed at Tyson Foods in Logansport, which meant he should be registered in Cass County, as required by Indiana statute.

Carroll County address verification visits by two different deputies, Sgt. Dennis Randle and Deputy Tony Liggett, on two separate occasions proved unsuccessful. An address verification with police in Howard County was also unsuccessful as was an employment check at Tyson Foods. It was discovered Davidson was last employed there in July 2007.

An investigation through the Carroll County Prosecutor's Office revealed Davidson's employment at Indiana Packers Corporation since October, which he was required to report to local authorities. He was located by Leazenby Dec. 6 and taken into custody on two criminal counts of failure to register as a sex offender, both Class D felonies.

His court date is Dec. 27 at 6 p.m. in Carroll Superior Court.

Davidson bonded out of the Carroll County Jail with a $5,000 surety bond.

"A simple question at a community meeting turned out to be pivotal in locating this offender," Burns said. "The additional 'eyes' and 'ears' of our community were an asset for us in apprehending this subject."

"We want to send a stern message to sex offenders," he concluded. "If they move or change employment, they must notify us. If they don't, they will be located and arrested."