Friday, July 3, 2009

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Review faults prosecutor in NH offender release

MANCHESTER, N.H. -- A court review says three violent sex offenders were released as New Hampshire authorities worked to keep them behind bars because prosecutors did not make it clear to judges that deadlines had to be met to keep them confined.

But Hillsborough County Attorney Marguerite Wageling said the review, written by Senior Superior Court Justice Bruce Mohl, was an attempt to distance the court from the problem. Wageling told the New Hampshire Union Leader she did nothing wrong.

Earlier this year, Hillsborough County Superior Court judges freed three offenders after they finished their prison sentences. Wageling was trying to keep them confined under a 2-year-old law pertaining to violent sexual offenders. Judges did not meet deadlines in the law and the men were released.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)