WCCO Investigates Minnesota's Sex Offender Program

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – For more than two decades, Minnesota's most dangerous sex offenders have been locked up a second time after serving prison sentences.

They've been committed to indefinite detention in treatment programs after parole.

But now, more than 700-sex offenders are suing the state saying that's unconstitutional.

A WCCO investigation found that Minnesota taxpayers have spent $2 billion on a sex offender program that critics, and the offenders themselves, say is a waste of money.

The investigation also found repeated warnings that could have saved taxpayers millions were ignored, and that when a top administrator tried to cut costs his efforts were rejected.

Kevin Nelson is a civilly committed sex offender.

WCCO interviewed him at the state's Moose Lake sex offender treatment center where he has been held in a maximum security facility for seven years. He spoke about his offense.

"I sexually assaulted my girlfriend's young daughter up to her teenage years," Nelson said. "I was a pretty terrible person back then."

Minnesota taxpayers pay $124,000 a year to keep Nelson locked up at the Moose Lake facility. WCCO asked him what he thought about that cost.

"It's outrageous," Nelson said.

Nelson is one of more than 700 offenders locked up indefinitely in the states sex offender treatment programs at Moose Lake and St. Peter. In the seven years he has been there taxpayers have paid an estimated $700,000 to house him.

"That is more money than I can imagine. I couldn't visualize that kind of money," he said.

But if Nelson had been locked up at the state prison just a half mile away, the annual cost would have been just $31,000 a year That's $93,000 less than it costs the state to house him now.

The reason for the big cost difference?

The state said it's because of all the treatment the offenders are getting. But Nelson said he has never gotten any treatment because he has chosen not to.

"What they have here is not sex offender treatment. They're playing with crayons, hula hoops and sandboxes," he said.

Nelsons has a unique perspective.

He showed WCCO the certificate he received saying he graduated from a Department of Corrections sex offender treatment program in 2003.

"What I did as treatment is nothing like what they do here," he said.

Nelson said the state actually bills the offenders for part of their stay.

"This is almost one year's worth of my stay and it's $107,099.60. Its $341 a day," he said.

And like the other offenders, he can't pay. So, taxpayers do.

WCCO asked if part of his year's cost could really amount to $107,000.

"Absolutely not," he said. "I don't know where all the money is going."

Nelson is not the only one who has raised questions about spending in the program.

In a 2014 deposition former top Moose Lake administrator Dennis Benson said, "I never had an easier time getting money," and that politicians actually rejected his efforts to cut costs.

"This has been a program that has had no constraints on its expenditures," Eric Janus, Dean of William Mitchell College of Law, said.  "I blame the political leaders in this state."

Janus points the finger at governors Ventura, Pawlenty and Dayton as well as the Minnesota legislature for ignoring repeated warnings that the program was wasting money, but also putting the state at risk for a legal showdown that was going to cost even more.

"Fifteen to 20 years ago it was clear that this program was out of control and not doing what it was supposed to be doing. We should have been on top of it then. Now we're going to pay the price," Janus said.

The price Janus is referring to is about to come due.

The 700 offenders locked up in the program, including Nelson, are suing the state of Minnesota saying their detention is unconstitutional.  A ruling in the case is expected at any moment, and the offenders are widely expected to win.

Judge Donovan Frank is expected to order an overhaul, including an evaluation of every offender and the eventual release of others

Offenders could even get individual payouts.

"If it is proven that people were held unconstitutionally, it's possible that there are damages," Janus said.

Back at Moose Lake, it's enough to make Nelson wonder

"It's outrageous. The taxpayers should be screaming to their politicians about it," Nelson said.

Dayton's budget is anticipating that the state will lose the lawsuit and the governor is asking for $11 million in additional money to hire evaluators to assess all the offenders.

The judge's ruling is expected anytime in the next few weeks.