Mark Millican
Three Whitfield County men pleaded not guilty to felony sexual crimes in Superior Court on Monday.
• Paul Timothy Needham, 43, of 3631 Susan Lane in Tunnel Hill, faces nine counts of child molestation/aggravated child molestation, two counts of enticing a child for indecent purposes, aggravated sexual battery, possession of less than an ounce of marijuana, computer pornography, obscene Internet contact with a child and criminal attempt to commit child molestation.
Referred to as a “traveler case” for alleged crimes in more than one county, Needham signed a waiver from the jail and did not appear in the courtroom of Judge Robert Adams to plead. His case may appear on calendar call on Jan. 5, said circuit public defender Mike McCarthy, who is representing him. At calendar call attorneys say whether the case is ready for trial.
“There will be a lot of discovery involved from different counties,” McCarthy said, “so it may be after January.”
Needham faces similar charges in Catoosa County, authorities said. His arrest in September of 2008 was the result of an investigation by the Innocent Images Task Force, which targets child sexual exploitation and child pornography on the Internet.
• Ferdin Israel Lorenzo-Jose, 38, of 630 Fourth Ave., apartment 2, in Dalton, is charged with statutory rape and child molestation from an incident in August that allegedly involved a 15-year-old girl. He pleaded not guilty in the courtroom of Judge Jack Partain.
Lorenzo-Jose is from Guatemala and has an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) hold on him at the county jail. His trial is set for Dec. 14.
• Clebourn Green Baker, 52, of 2110 Whaley Drive in Dalton, faces charges of aggravated sexual battery and sodomy before Partain. He allegedly assaulted an adult relative on Oct. 6 while she was sleeping, and was released on a $3,000 bond on Oct. 7. Baker’s trial is also set for Dec. 14.
