In the News
Sex offender receives probation
Sentencing rules had called for 12 years in prison
By Steve Fry
THE TOPEKA CAPITAL-JOURNAL
Friday, May 25, 2007
A 34-year-old man convicted of soliciting what he thought was a 13- or 14-year-old girl for sex
via an Internet chat room was placed on probation rather than being sentenced to 12-plus
years in prison based on a psychiatrist's findings he wasn't a pedophile or likely to repeat the
offense, the sentencing judge said Thursday.
The defendant, Federico Mendoza, of Hutchinson, was indicted Aug. 18 by the Shawnee
County grand jury on charges of attempted rape and electronic solicitation of a child.
A prison term of 12 years and three months for Mendoza would have been "excessive," given
the circumstances of the case, District Judge Matthew Dowd said Thursday.
Mendoza was one of seven men arrested in August during a three-day sting operation in which
they went to a south Shawnee County home for what they thought was sex with a young teen.
Instead, sheriff's deputies and police officers arrested the men at a house in the Montara
neighborhood.
Indicted on Aug. 18, Mendoza pleaded no contest on Jan. 10 to the electronic solicitation
charge, and as part of a plea agreement, the attempted rape charge was dismissed, according
to court records.
Based on the Kansas sentencing grid, Mendoza, who had no prior felony convictions, faced a
presumptive prison time ranging from 12 years and three months to 13 years and nine months.
However, defense attorney Chris Joseph made a motion seeking to put Mendoza on probation.
According to Joseph and court records, Mendoza suffered from untreated bipolar disorder
when he was arrested.
Bipolar disorder, which also is called manic-depressive illness, is a brain disorder that causes
severe shifts in a person's mood, energy and ability to function, according to the National
Institute of Mental Health. On May 9, Dowd sentenced Mendoza to 12 years and three months,
then placed him on probation for three years.
On Thursday, Dowd said there was no harm to anyone in the case, and the psychiatric input
on Mendoza's behalf "was very strong that he was not a pedophile or susceptible to repeating
that offense and that he was not attracted" to children.
"I felt the harm to the community was not significant," Dowd said.
The judge said he thought the punishment passed by the Legislature "was excessive" for this
offense, this offender and these circumstances.
Mendoza is undergoing productive psychiatric treatment, Dowd said. Dr. Stephen Peterson, a
psychiatrist, testified during the sentencing and wrote a 25-page evaluation of Mendoza.
District Attorney Robert Hecht said he was "disappointed" and "somewhat surprised" Mendoza
was placed on probation.
Some people think that since there wasn't a victim, the electronic solicitation conviction was
less serious, Hecht said.
If law enforcement can prevent a crime, "isn't it better to arrest someone and isolate them? Or
should we sit back until the planes hit the towers?" Hecht said.
Joseph said placing Mendoza on probation "absolutely was appropriate."
An offender who solicits a child face to face in Kansas would get a shorter sentence than an
offender doing so on the Internet, Joseph said.
"It's so disproportionate, it doesn't make sense," Joseph said.
The sting was conducted by the Shawnee County Sheriff's Office, Topeka Police Department
and USCyberwatch.com, a nonprofit organization that uses the Internet to catch online sexual
predators.
In the sting, profiles and photographs of what were identified as Topeka girls were posted
online; volunteers posing as girls manned computers; and the men would initiate talk about
sex, the sex acts they wanted, ask where they could meet the girls, and set up a time to arrive
at the house.
Steve Fry can be reached at (785) 295-1206 orsteve.fry@cjonline com.
Copyright 2007 The Topeka Capital-Journal
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