May 20—A man convicted 20 years ago with child sex crimes was found loitering at a school in Decatur on Saturday and charged with violating Alabama’s sex offender registration law after being discovered without a required state ID, according to a Decatur police officer’s affidavit.
The affidavit said Joseph Matthew Russell, 45, was convicted on April 5, 2005, of sexual misconduct with a child in Cullman County, police said, and on Sunday an officer observed him loitering at Decatur High School.
“When asked for his Alabama ID, Russell stated that he did not have one,” the affidavit said.
Russell was charged with failing to register as a sex offender and failing to keep his registration information current. He is being held in lieu of a $5,000 bond at the Morgan County Jail.
— wesley.tomlinson@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2442.