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November 13, 2009

Earl preliminary hearing set

By Krystal J. Carman

November 13, 2009 — A preliminary hearing has been set for an 18-year-old Topeka man accused of molesting four Rogers County children.

Tyler E. Earl remains behind bars in the Rogers County Jail charged with three counts of lewd molestation and one count of sodomy. Earl was arrested in August in Shawnee County (Kansas) after a tip was given to the Rogers County Sheriff’s Office on Earl’s whereabouts. He is being held in lieu of a $300,000 bond, $75,000 per count.

A preliminary hearing, to determine if Earl committed a crime and whether he will be bound over for trial, is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Dec. 21 in front of Judge Erin Oquin.

According to the affidavit filed by Owasso Police Detective Kelli Boatman, an officer responded to a complaint by a mother who said on June 13, Earl was staying the night at her home and babysitting her three children, ages 6, 8 and 11. Another child, age 13, also stayed the night at the home with the children.

The mother told the officer that her children had told her Earl had touched them inappropriately, including touching the 6-year-old female victim in the shower after pulling her hair. The male victims, ages 8 and 11, told their mother Earl had climbed into bed with them and touched them inappropriately. The mother added that when she and her husband returned home on June 14, they found Earl holding their 8-year-old son by the throat against the wall, the officer reported.

On June 22, the officer spoke with the 13-year-old’s mother who stated her son told her Earl was a homosexual and had performed oral sex on the boy June 13. In addition, Earl allegedly provided the teenager alcohol to drink and the juvenile became drunk. Since the time of the incident, Earl has been allegedly sending the 13-year-old messages via Myspace.com trying to exchange phone numbers, according to the affidavit.

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