Tim Ryan, tryan@wolfrivermedia.com
A convicted sex offender from the Milwaukee area will be released into the Birnamwood community next week over the objections of Shawano County authorities.
Reuben Adams, 54, was recently ordered released into the custody of the state Department of Health Services by Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge William Pocan.
The state is placing Adams at N8995 Bluebird Road, Birnamwood, starting Nov. 2.
Adams was convicted in a 1989 case in Milwaukee County of second-degree sexual assault of a child. He sexually assaulted an 11-year-old female acquaintance and a 16-year-old girl who was unknown to him, according to the Shawano County Sheriff’s Department.
Sheriff Adam Bieber said the department raised objections to Adams’ placement in the county at a meeting with state officials earlier this week, but to no avail.
“I guess it doesn’t matter what our concerns are,” he said.
Bieber said judges have the authority to overrule a state statute specifying that sex offenders be placed in their home area.
“They were told to look for other locations for him, and Birnamwood was available,” Bieber said.
Law enforcement agencies routinely notify the public of convicted sex offenders moving into the community under state statutes that allow for public notification when law enforcement feels it is warranted.
The sheriff’s department’s notification Thursday took the rare step of also letting the public know that the department is not happy about the placement.
Bieber said he specifically wanted the notification to express the department’s concerns.
“Everyone should be concerned,” he said. “He seems to be a dangerous sex offender.”
Bieber noted that Adams’ victims were not relatives, as in many sex offense cases, but an acquaintance and a girl who was unknown to him.
“This is different from other sex offender releases,” he said. “We’d rather this not happen, but it’s beyond our control.”
Adams will be under supervision of the Wisconsin Department of Corrections and will be electronically monitored. He is required to register with the Wisconsin Sex Offender Registry Program for life.
Bieber directed questions from the public about Adams’ placement to state officials.
He said they can contact Jason Cram, department of health services supervised release program manager, at 608-240-8810.
A call placed to Cram by the Leader on Thursday was not returned by press time.
The public can also query the Wisconsin Sex Offender Registry online at http://offender.doc.state.wi.us/public.