Speaking of "Success Stories"....Keep in mind, as you read about Andrew Klepper, PV's Exclusionary Criteria.
Peninsula Village is unable to help every adolescent. Some problems that we cannot treat are:
* Intelligence below the average range (Full Scale IQ below 90)
* History of fire setting and pyromania
* Sexual Offenders / Sexual Disorders
* History of chronic/severe physical aggression including use of weapons
* Physical or medical condition that would hinder participation in vigorous, outdoor activities (diabetes, epilepsy)
* Homicidal intent at time of admission
* Psychotic Disorders
* Pregnancy (females)
* Impairment resulting from traumatic brain injury / Neuro-psychiatric issues
* Eating disorders that are not medically stable
A 16-year-old former Walt Whitman High School student yesterday admitted to participating in a brutal sexual assault on an escort as part of a plea bargain that allows him to serve five years' probation.
Andrew G. Klepper pleaded guilty as an adult to charges that he and two fellow students lured the woman to Klepper's home Nov. 8, attacked her with a baseball bat, threatened her with a knife, then sodomized her at knifepoint with the bat handle and a large ink marker. They also stole at least $2,100 from the victim and threatened to harm her if she told anyone, authorities said. Klepper, who received a
suspended 15-year prison sentence, could go to prison if he fails to meet the terms of his five-year probation, the maximum probation period allowed by law. He also agreed to attend an
out-of-state residential treatment facility*and a boarding school for troubled youths.
*According to Andrew's MySpace it was CEDU Running Springs, Ca.Klepper, who was 15 at the time, pleaded guilty as an adult to robbery, which carries a maximum term of 20 years; first-degree assault, which carries a maximum 25-year sentence; and a misdemeanor charge of fourth-degree sexual offense, reduced from first-degree sexual offense.
Charges of first-degree rape, false imprisonment and first- degree sexual offense were dropped. The sexual offense that he pleaded guilty to also does not require him to register as a sexual offender.
Klepper has been undergoing treatment at Peninsula Village, a residential clinic for youths in Tennessee, at his parents' expense since Nov. 14. After another year to 18 months there, he is expected to enroll in a boarding school specializing in treating troubled youths.
Gansler also said the victim agreed with the disposition. "He will be locked up and away from the community for at least two years*," Gansler told reporters. "We think it's a very severe sentence. We would take the position that it's not a 'walk' at all."
*He was out of PV in a few months... Tennessee has refused to allow a Montgomery County teenager who took part in the sexual assault of a call girl to continue receiving treatment there, and Maryland correctional officials have asked a judge to force his return to Maryland.
Andrew G. Klepper, 16, a former Walt Whitman High School student, began treatment at Peninsula Village in Tennessee soon after he was released on bail following the November assault.
He avoided jail in a plea bargain in May that included his pleading guilty and agreeing to continue treatment at the facility. But Tennessee authorities have refused to assume responsibility for Klepper's supervision, and without that he is not permitted to remain in the state, according to court documents and correctional officials.
As a result, agents in Maryland's Division of Parole and Probation have asked for an arrest warrant to compel his return to Maryland.
"The fact of the matter is, Tennessee did not want this young man under any conditions," said Mark Vernarelli, a division spokesman.
Peninsula Village is a coeducational facility, located near Knoxville in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains, that treats severely troubled youths with six to eight weeks in a locked admissions unit and then intensive group therapy in an outdoor setting, according to its Web site. The cost of the facility was borne by Klepper's parents -- Martin Klepper, a lawyer, and Abby Jean Golden, a school guidance counselor.
Under the terms of his plea bargain, the Potomac youth was to continue treatment at Peninsula Village for another year to 18 months before enrolling in an unspecified boarding school* that specializes in handling troubled youths.
*
Why unspecified? CEDU wasn't proud to have him enrolled at their facility?His five-year term of probation was to be carried out under the guidance of his treating psychiatrist, Lance D. Clawson, in consultation with the office of Montgomery County State's Attorney Douglas F. Gansler.
But the terms of his probation ran afoul of the Interstate Compact for Adult Offender Supervision, which says that a convicted offender cannot leave his home state unless the state to which he is sent agrees to supervise him, according to Maryland parole and probation officials. Tennessee officials pointed out that Klepper had no family ties, no permanent residence and no employment in Tennessee.
On Friday, parole and probation agent John Hafer filed court papers asking Circuit Court Judge John W. Debelius III, who sentenced Klepper, to issue an arrest warrant forcing Klepper's return. As of yesterday, the warrant had not been signed, Vernarelli said.
After Tennessee rejected Klepper, the judge conducted a "hearing" in chambers in an attempt to modify the terms of Klepper's probation to satisfy Tennessee officials.
The judge changed Klepper's probation status from "supervised" to "unsupervised," but that modification also ran afoul of Tennessee, parole and probation officials said.
On June 17, a letter was mailed to Klepper, advising him to return to Maryland. That letter was received by officials at Peninsula Village two days later, but on Hafer's instructions, the letter was not given to Klepper, pending the outcome of the June 19 meeting with Debelius.
After Tennessee again rejected Klepper, Maryland probation officials notified Jean Bolding, Klepper's caseworker at Peninsula Village, to give him the letter.
But Bolding, on the instructions of Klepper's attorney, Paul F. Kemp, did not release the letter, and parole and probation requested a warrant, the papers say. Bolding also did not return a call seeking comment. Gansler is vacationing in Maine. Calls to John McLane, Gansler's director of communications, and the two assistant state's attorneys who handled the case were not returned yesterday. Calls to Kemp were not returned. Mitchell S. Ettinger, who also represented Andrew Klepper, was out of the office yesterday.
Under the terms of a plea bargain, Circuit Court Judge John W. Debelius III sentenced Klepper to 15 years in prison, suspended the sentence and ordered Klepper to serve five years' probation. He directed Klepper to continue treatment at Peninsula Village, a residential treatment center in Tennessee and, afterward, to attend a boarding school for troubled youths. He ordered that Klepper's five-year probation be supervised by court-appointed psychiatrist Lance D. Clawson, in consultation with the office of Montgomery County State's Attorney Douglas F. Gansler.
But Tennessee has refused to accept responsibility for Klepper's treatment, and Maryland officials have asked for a bench warrant to compel his return.
Gansler said yesterday that the sentences for the three were tailored to fit their level of involvement in the crime, their criminal histories and their ages.
"Klepper got the most severe sentence because he certainly was the most culpable," Gansler said.
Gansler said Klepper has three adult criminal convictions and substantial jail time hanging over him if he fails to carry out the terms of his probation.
Sex offender ruling: A Montgomery County judge ruled yesterday that a Potomac teenager serving probation for sexually assaulting a female escort can continue treatment at a private, out-of-state facility. The ruling was made after concerns that the youth was violating an interstate compact dealing with the supervision of criminals on probation or parole.
Circuit Court Judge John W. Debelius III said yesterday that Maryland and Tennessee have agreed that Andrew G. Klepper's probationary sentence no longer runs afoul of the interstate compact. The judge issued an interim order July 30 saying that Klepper is "unsupervised" and relieving Maryland corrections officials of the duty of supervising him.
Maryland corrections officials -- mindful of a freed Prince George's County convict who killed a Denver woman in 1999 while receiving drug treatment at a private center in Colorado -- had sought an arrest warrant to bring back Klepper. The judge declined to issue the warrant.
On Nov. 8, Klepper, then 15, and two former Walt Whitman High School students lured the 25-year-old woman to his home to act in a porn movie, then sexually assaulted and robbed her.
The latest on Andy? You won't believe this, plus you get to see what the monster looks like:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/co ... =rss_metro