ST. PAUL- Thirteen flat-screen TVs ordered removed from a Minnesota sex offender treatment facility will wind up in Veterans Homes instead.
Governor Tim Pawlenty lashed out earlier this week after media reported that 25 deluxe TVs had been installed in common areas of the Moose Lake facility, which houses sex offenders. The governor said Friday on his radio show that 13 of the 50-inch TVs are bound for veterans homes in Minneapolis, Fergus Falls, Hastings and Silver Bay. The rest are likely to be sold.
Pawlenty said discipline is still being discussed for employees involved in the purchase.
"I think it was a dumb decision and we're making the best of it," he said.
Bonnie Martin, a spokesman for the state Department of Human Services, said an investigation into the purchase continues but the employee or employees behind it haven't been publicly named.
The TVs were purchased as part of an upgrade to the 400-bed Moose Lake facility, which confines offenders the courts have deemed dangerous and likely to commit new sex crimes. The offenders sent there have completed their prison terms.
An administrator for the treatment program has said the TVs have clinical value because patients can be watched to see how they respond to what's on TV. Pawlenty questioned why high-caliber TVs are needed. Each cost $1,576, plus a $706 mounting bracket.
Gil Acevedo, deputy commissioner of Veterans Affairs, said his agency had been working to upgrade televisions in the five state-run homes. A nonprofit group already helped get new sets for the home in Luverne.
"We were very fortunate these became available to us," Acevedo said. "That really works out perfect for us."
The residents, mostly World War II and Vietnam War veterans with conditions ranging from dementia to chemical dependency, now rely on big-bulb TVs in their common areas to watch shows, have movie days or rehabilitate using Nintendo Wii.
(Copyright 2009 by the Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
