Thursday, December 13, 2012
We are just as shaken up as the rest of the town about the recent revelations of child abuse at the hands of a day care provider in Wakefield. This week, we share our thoughts on what we do to keep our kids safe.
Editor's Note: This week's Parent Yap column discusses the sex abuse case against John Burbine of Wakefield. On Thursday, he pleaded not guilty to 100 counts of child sexual abuse. Along with covering the legal aspects of this case, Wakefield Patch has also spoken with a number of people who met the Burbines. For example, this mother met Burbine a couple of times at an area play group, and this one found nothing when she checked for Burbine on the sex offender registry because he was classified as level 1. Complete coverage of the case can be viewed at this topic page. Melissa Schools You know how, sometimes, when it’s been revealed that a person is a murderer, neighbors react with shock, and say something like, “But he was always so quiet…
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
John Burbine was arraigned Wednesday morning and pleaded not guilty to numerous charges. He is due back in court on Jan. 15.
John Burbine pleaded not guilty to 100 child sex abuse charges at his arraignment Wednesday morning in Middlesex Superior Court in Woburn. The Wakefield man was arrested earlier this year and charged with numerous abuse violations involving children primarily under the age of 3. Burbine spent much of the hearing looking straight ahead behind glass in a separate room, answering questions primarily with one-word responses. Unlike in the booking photo released by the District Attorney's office earlier in the month, his hair was almost completely white, with black eyebrows. He was accompanied by his attorney, Bill Barabino of Wakefield. The defense waived a dangerousness hearing in this case, which means that Burbine will have no bail for 90 …
With arraignment of John Burbine expected at 9 a.m. Wednesday morning, another round of heavy media presence is likely in town.
Longtime level 1 sex offender and accused serial child sex abuser John Burbine apparently spent years living within easy walking distance of a playground, based on a look at Wakefield on Google Maps. Burbine is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday morning in Woburn Superior Court. Burbine was reportedly classified a Level 1 sex offender back in 1989 after conviction on three counts of indecent assault on three young boys, and had two more unprosecuted allegations made against him in 2005 and 2009. His home on Second Street, according to Google Maps, is no more than a quarter mile away from the Nasella Playground by walking down Preston Street onto Rte. 129. At the same time, Nasella Playground and Second Street are only about 300 feet …
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186 Water St, Wakefield, MA
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Send letters to the editor and local opinion pieces to william.laforme@patch.com.
- GOVERNMENT
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Wednesday, December 12, 2012
The following is an opinion piece from State Senator Katherine Clark: Last week, a Wakefield man was charged with 100 counts of child abuse and sexual assault involving very young children. These hideous allegations are deeply disturbing. Our primary concern is for the children and their families and providing them with the support and help they will need. At the same time, we also must examine how we can strengthen our system to prevent the exploitation and abuse of children and other vulnerable populations. To assess the need for changes in our laws, I have been working with Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone, local law enforcement, and the Wakefield legislative delegation to examine our system of classifying sexual offenders and…
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
John Burbine of Wakefield to be arraigned Wednesday morning at Woburn Superior Court on nearly 95 child sex abuse charges.
The Wakefield man at the center of one of the worst child sex abuse cases in recent memory will be arraigned Wednesday morning at Woburn Superior Court. Burbine, 49, faces a total of 95 charges stemming from the alleged abuse of children receiving day care or tutoring services from his wife's business - which was not completely registered. Marian Burbine, 46, will make her own court appearance on Dec. 20 for a pre-trial hearing. She faces six counts of reckless endangerment of a child, and two counts of operating an unlicensed day care business. Mrs. Burbine has reportedly been under house arrest in Wakefield while the Boston Globe reports that her husband is currently in the Billerica House of Corrections. The District Attorney's office …
Friday, December 7, 2012
John Burbine, 49, is a level 1 sex offender accused of filming himself in various sexual activities with young children.
A Wakefield husband and wife are facing numerous charges in connection with an illegal day care service that subjected at least 13 children - one of them just days old - to horrific sexual abuse that was recorded on video. On Thursday, Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone announced the indictments of Wakefield residents John Burnbine, 49, and his wife, Marian Burbine, 46. The two were proprietors of the Waterfall Education Center, which reportedly offered home-based services to clients ranging from day care to group care and tutoring and babysitting. The business reportedly had some employees as well, although Leone indicated that no complicity has been found at this point among them. "In my 14 years in Middlesex County, I have never …
Thursday, December 6, 2012
John Burbine of Wakefield, facing numerous child sex charges, was a Level 1 sex offender. A Wakefield mom reports she checked out Waterfall Education Center two years ago and found nothing.
A Wakefield mom whose son was tutored by an illegal day care business where more than a dozen children may have been sexually abused says she checked out the proprietors' background — and found no red flags. On Thursday afternoon, news spread quickly through the region about the indictment of a Wakefield couple for numerous charges stemming from an illegal day care operation where graphic child sexual abuse occurred and was even recorded. Woman's Son Was Tutored There for Two Years John and Marian Burbine were the proprietors of Waterfall Education Center, which offered tutoring and day care to children in numerous area towns. The Middlesex County District Attorney's office alleges that at least 13 children were abused there while under …
Tricia
12:55 pm on Friday, December 14, 2012
As a parent of a son who was abused at age 10, I can tell you that the only thing that could have protected him was more education. If a child is old enough to go away to camp (by the way an elite camp that all my boys attended in Minnesota) they are old enough to be told that these people exist. You have to go beyond good touch bad touch. You have to go into exactly what some people might do and… more ›