Child molester Martin Anthony Eck will be behind bars for 20 years, according to this morning's Joplin Globe.
Eck pleaded guilty to two counts of statutory sodomy in connection with incidents involving a 12-year-old girl. The Globe also reported that Eck had been convicted of child molestation 11 years ago in Gordon County, GA. He was sentenced to 20 years, but the sentence was suspended and he was allowed to move to Joplin a few years later, where he was under the supervision of the probation office here, according to the article.
What the Globe's story did not mention, is that even though Eck will remain behind bars, he is nowhere near done causing problems. In August, The Turner Report detailed how he was suing Jasper County Sheriff Archie Dunn and the Jasper County Commission among others because of the poor dental care he has received while in custody here.
Here was what was written on this site at that time:
"In a case that might be deemed laughable if it weren't so pathetic, a Jasper County Jail inmate awaiting trial on child molestation charges is suing Sheriff Archie Dunn for denying him dental care. According to the petition, which was filed Thursday in the U. S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri, Martin Anthony Eck, 41, Joplin, is asking for $100 million. Those must be some teeth he has.
"Eck has been in jail in lieu of $25,000 bond since he was arrested in April. According to Jasper County court records, he is charged with four felony counts: two counts of statutory sodomy in the first degree and two counts of child molestation in the first degree. His bond was initially set at $100,000, but was reduced.
"Eck told what happened to him in his petition. 'I arrived at Jasper County Jail on April 2, 2004,' he wrote. 'I told the booking officer that I had bad teeth that needed taken care of. I was told at that time Jasper County Jail did not have a dentist. I filed a grievance on May 12, 2004, and got no response. I told the nurse numerous times and have written the sheriff on July 15, 2004.
" 'I still have not seen a dentist. As I understand it, it is the County Commission's job to make sure health care is available. It's been four months, still no dentist.' "
According to records for the U. S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri, Eck's lawsuit is ongoing. He has been allowed to filed as a pauper, meaning that his effort to seek compensation for his dental problems will be funded by Missouri taxpayers.