Jetseta Gage
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Jetseta Marrie Gage (August 25, 1994 - March 24, 2005) was a Cedar Rapids, Iowa child whose kidnapping, rape and murder prompted major changes in sentencing laws for those who commit child sex crimes in Iowa.
Roger Bentley, a convicted sex offender and friend of Gage's family, was arrested in connection with 10-year-old Jetseta's death. He was convicted of first-degree murder and first-degree kidnapping on January 31, 2006. On February 24, he was sentenced to two consecutive mandatory sentences of life in prison without parole.
Prosecutors alleged that Bentley took Gage from her home to a run-down trailer in rural Johnson County, Iowa, where he raped and killed her. An AMBER Alert was issued shortly after Jetseta was discovered missing, and Bentley was arrested a day after she was reported missing. Investigators found Jetseta's body inside a bathroom cabinet inside the trailer.
Bentley's trial was moved to Scott County on the defense's change of venue motion because of extensive pre-trial publicity; local media dubbed the case "Justice for Jetseta." During his trial, prosecutors linked DNA evidence found on Jetseta's body to Bentley, while the defense (which did not call any witnesses) claimed there was no eyewitnesses to the crime or direct evidence. It took just more than two hours for the jury to arrive at its guilty verdict.
Bentley’s brother, 34-year-old James Bentley, was indicted in November 2004 on felony sexual abuse charges after authorities alleged he sexually abused Jetseta between 2002 and 2004. James is currently awaiting trial, which is expected to begin at the Clarke County courthouse in Osceola in August.
[edit] Reaction to Jetseta's death
Iowa citizens and legislators reacted with outrage after reports of the brutal circumstances of Jetseta's death became public. In 2005, the Iowa General Assembly passed a bill extending prison sentences and strengthens supervision of sex offenders – through methods such as electronic monitoring – upon their release from prison.
Also, numerous local governments throughout the state moved swiftly to enact stricter residency restrictions for sex offenders. Like a number of other states, Iowa already had a moratorium barring those on the sex offender registry from living within 2,000 feet of a school or state-registered day care center, and local officials proposed expanding the buffer zone to such child-oriented places as libraries, parks and swimming pools. While some cities and county governments passed such ordinances, other governments – such as the city of Davenport and Scott County – were cool to the proposal and ultimately did not enact the tighter restrictions.
Critics contended that the stricter residency proposals had several flaws, most notably:
- Those on the sex offender registry for less-severe cases – such as a 19-year-old boy charged after having consensual sex with his 15-year-old girlfriend – would face the same residency restrictions as a violent predator.
- It would not prevent offenders from going to a school (e.g., to attend a sporting event) or other locations covered by the proposed residency restrictions; rather, it would merely preclude them from declaring residency near those places.
In January 2006, 45 members of the Iowa Senate – 23 Democrats and 22 Republicans – co-sponsored a bill increasing the penalties for those convicted of certain sex crimes, including lascivious acts with a child and sexual exploitation of a minor. Under the proposal, a first-time offender would face a mandatory minimum 25-year prison sentence upon conviction.
Many Iowans, including Jetseta's family, have called for a restoration of the death penalty, particularly for crimes in which children are raped and killed. Iowa abolished capital punishment in 1965, and is one of 12 states that currently do not have a death penalty. A GOP-sponsored bill failed to pass in 2005, and no action has been taken since.
[edit] External links/Sources
- [1] – Day 1 of trial coverage, Iowa City Press-Citizen, January 27, 2006.
- [2] – Day 2 of trial coverage, Iowa City Press-Citizen, January 28, 2006.
- [3] – "Jury finds Bentley guilty," Iowa City Press-Citizen, January 31, 2006.
- [4] – "Sex offenders could get 25-years-to-life sentences,' Quad-City Times, January 27, 2006.
- [5] – "Possible High Court test seen in Iowa," Associated Press (published in the Quad-City Times), November 12, 2005. Article accessed January 27, 2006.
- [6] – "City cool to sex offender law expansion," Quad-City Times, December 8, 2005. Article accessed January 27, 2006.
- [7] – "County won't expand sex offender law," North Scott Press, November 23, 2005. Article accessed January 27, 2006.
- [8] – "Life in prison not enough for Jetseta's family," Quad-City Times, February 1, 2006.
- [9] "Bentley convicted; Jetseta's family calls for death penalty," Des Moines Register, February 1, 2006. Article accessed February 2, 2006.
