| In late February 2003, Jeff Welch was tried and convicted of two counts of child molestation in Maricopa County, Arizona (Case No. CR2001-097224). In March 2003, Jeff Welch was also tried and convicted on child-pornography charges (Case No. CR2002-097527. He was sentenced to serve a total of 242 years in prison. |
Jeff Welch was sentenced to 10 years in state prison after admitting in July 1987 that he had sexually abused a six-year-old girl in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. In 1983, in Clarksville, Tennessee, he pleaded guilty to "attempted aggravated sexual battery," after he was charged with abusing three girls under age 13.
Jeff Welch will be released on March 25 after serving 6® years in the Middle Tennessee Reception Center in Nashville. He was denied earlier parole because of Tennessee's strict standards for release of sex offenders. He earned more than three years' sentence reduction for good behavior and for working as an editor and writer for the prison newspaper.
Upon his release, Jeff Welch will not be subject to any supervision by Tennessee authorities. He plans to travel widely for at least five weeks. In the past, Jeff Welch said that he planned to move to Phoenix, Arizona, but he recently wrote that he hopes to move instead to a foreign country.
Jeff Welch has told relatives that he plans to move to Phoenix after he is released from prison. He has already made inquiries to colleges in the area, and says he hopes to eventually work as a journalist.
In September 1990, Jeff Welch even wrote about his fondness for Phoenix in the prison newspaper, where he has worked as a writer and editor to earn sentence reduction credits. "My ideal place would be Phoenix, mostly because of the weather," he wrote in the article, which was titled "Anywhere else is better."
Despite his identification of Phoenix as his destination, it is likely that Jeff Welch will seek a smaller city nearby. In the past, he has usually lived in small cities and mid-size towns.
Jeff Welch is being released from prison in Tennessee after serving over six years of a 10-year sentence. Although he was denied parole because of the state's strict parole standards for sex offenders, he earned more than 3 years' sentence credits for good behavior and for working on the prison newspaper. His entire sentence was served at the Middle Tennessee Reception Center in Nashville.
Jeff Welch was convicted in 1987 of sexually abusing a six-year-old girl in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. In 1983, he pleaded guilty to "attempted aggravated sexual battery" after being charged with molesting three girls under age 13 in Clarksville, Tennessee.
Although his record shows only those two adult convictions, Jeff Welch has a long history of child molestation, according to his brother, who is now a California attorney.
Although Jeff Welch has discussed plans to move to Arizona or New Mexico for several years, in late January he wrote that his plans had changed and that he would move instead to a foreign country. His brother believes that letter was written to discourage publicity about Jeff's actual plans.
Jeff Welch will be released from state prison in Nashville, Tennessee on March 25, and is expected to travel to a number of Wisconsin cities in April.
Jeff Welch will likely spend much of his time in Marshfield, Wisconsin, where he will visit a number of relatives.
He is also expected to visit relatives in Madison and nearby Waterloo, and in DePere and Shawano (near Green Bay). Another likely destination is Port Washington (north of Milwaukee), where Jeff Welch lived with his family from 1964-1971.
Jeff Welch may also visit cousins elsewhere in Wisconsin and in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area.
Welch was convicted of aggravated sexual battery in 1987 after admitting that he sexually abused a six-year-old girl in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. In 1983, he pleaded guilty to of "attempted aggravated sexual battery" after being charged with sexual abuse of three girls under age 13. Jeff Welch has also sexually abused many other children, according to his brother.
Jeff Welch may meet with his brother in Pleasanton to divide property inherited from their father. Jeff Welch also plans to visit his mother in Santa Cruz.
Jeff Welch will be released from state prison in Tennessee after serving 6® years of a 10-year prison sentence for sexually abusing a six-year-old girl in Murfressboro, Tennessee in 1987. In an earlier 1983 conviction, Jeff Welch pleaded guilty to "attempted aggravated sexual battery" in Clarksville, Tennessee, after being charged with sexually abusing three children under the age of 13.
Jeff Welch sexually abused his younger brother and several other children in Massachusetts while he was under the age of 18, according to his brother, who is now an attorney in Pleasanton, California.
After his release from prison, Jeff Welch plans to travel for at least five weeks. He recently wrote that he may travel longer, or may move to a foreign country. In the past, he said he planned to move to Phoenix, Arizona.
Jeff Welch, who lived in Westborough from 1972-1977, will be released from state prison in Tennessee after serving 6® years of a 10-year prison sentence for sexually abusing a six-year-old girl. That 1987 felony conviction was his second as an adult.
Jeff Welch sexually abused his younger brother and several other children in Westborough and Shrewsbury while he was under the age of 18, according to his brother, who is now an attorney in California.
In 1983, Jeff Welch pleaded guilty to "attempted aggravated sexual battery" in Clarksville, Tennessee, after being charged with sexually abusing three children under the age of 13. In 1987, he was convicted of sexually abusing a six-year-old girl in Murfressboro, Tennessee and was sentenced to 10 years in state prison.
After his release from prison, Jeff Welch plans to travel for at least five weeks. He recently wrote that he may travel longer, or may move to a foreign country. In the past, he said he planned to move to Phoenix, Arizona.
Residence & Employment History. Jeff Welch moved with his family from Wisconsin to Massachusetts in 1971, living for one year in Shrewsbury and then from 1972-1977 in Westboro, Massachusetts (midway between Worcester and Framingham; about 40 miles from Boston). He was graduated from Westboro High School in June 1977, and worked part-time at a local convenience store during the fall of 1977.
Jeff enlisted in the U.S. Air Force in late 1977. After basic training and technical training, he was stationed at Griffiss Air Force Base in Rome, New York, where he remained until his discharge in late 1981. During the latter part of his Air Force service, he failed certification for his technical job and was re-assigned to other work; he wrote for the base newspaper and worked at an on-base roller skating rink. After his discharge in November 1981, Jeff sold vacuum cleaners door-to-door in Rome, New York.
In early 1982, Jeff Welch suddenly moved to Hollywood or North Hollywood, California, concealing his whereabouts from his family. At that time, he apparently worked at a roller rink in North Hollywood. In the spring of 1982, Jeff Welch, called his father, who then lived in Tennessee, seeking money to move to Tennessee.
Jeff Welch lived in Clarksville, Tennessee from 1982 until approximately 1986. He attended Austin Peay State University, with a stated goal of becoming a teacher (until his first adult conviction, described below). From 1986 to 1987 he lived in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. During this time, he worked in a number of different pizza restaurants and in a motel.
First Adult Conviction. Jeff Welch's adult criminal record starts in 1983, when he molested three young girls in Clarksville, Tennessee. The indictment charged three counts of aggravated sexual battery, alleging that he molested three girls, all under the age of 13, in July 1983. Montgomery County court records, file no. 21085.
On November 2, 1983, Jeff Welch pleaded guilty to one count of "attempted aggravated sexual battery," and was given a five-year sentence, suspended to time served (105 days) plus 5 years' probation. The judge also required that Jeff undergo "in-depth counseling" at a local mental health center. Jeff Welch did not pursue "in-depth counseling." Jeff's probation officer later reported several violations (including travel out of state) involving contact with children.. Probation Violation Report dated March 25, 1987; Montgomery County court records, file no. 21085.
Second Adult Conviction. By March 1987, Jeff Welch had relocated to Murfreesboro, Tennessee, where no one was aware of his record of child sexual abuse. On March 20, 1987, he volunteered to care for three children while their mother worked, and he used that opportunity to molest a six-year-old girl. Montgomery County court records, file no. 21085; Rutherford County court records, file no. F-16492.
Jeff Welch pleaded guilty to aggravated sexual battery, and on July 7, 1987, he was sentenced to 10 years in state prison. Although he applied for parole at least twice, parole was denied because of Tennessee's extremely strict parole standards for sex offenders. Due to credits earned in prison, Jeff Welch will be released from prison in late March, 1994. He will not be subject to any parole or probation conditions, and will be free to travel and move anywhere he wishes.
Jeff Welch's Plans. In mid-April, Jeff plans to visit relatives in Wisconsin (and possibly adjacent states). In mid- to late May, Jeff plans to travel to the San Francisco area, where his mother and brother live. Although he long expressed a desire to move to the Phoenix area, he disclaimed this in January 1994, writing that he will move to a foreign country instead.
After Jeff Welch's father died in August 1990, Jeff inherited more than $60,000 cash, and has successfully invested that money while in prison. In August 1991, he wrote that he expected to have about $100,000 in cash available by the time of his release from prison in 1994.
"For twenty years, my brother has used our family's silence as a weapon against many victims," said Mark Welch. "Jeff Welch has moved from one community to the next, and I believe he may have left victims in every city."
Jeff Welch's History of Child Molestation: "My brother sexually abused me for more than a year while I was a child, in Massachusetts," said Mark Welch. "I know of several other victims who were definitely abused, as well as many others whom I suspect Jeff abused."
"I don't really know how many children Jeff has molested," said Mark Welch. "He has always had close contact with children."
"After Jeff graduated from high school and joined the Air Force in 1977, he coached youth sports teams in Rome, New York, and he even worked on the Air Force base, at a roller skating rink."
"Our family always felt this sense of paralysis, because this was something unspeakable that Jeff was doing. And because it was unspeakable, it just kept happening."
Jeff Welch Is Arrested: "When Jeff was arrested in 1983 for molesting three children in Clarksville, Tennessee, I felt an incredible sense of relief that it was finally over, but also guilt that I hadn't done something to stop him," said Mark Welch.
"Jeff pleaded guilty to attempted aggravated battery. He got a suspended sentence and an order to go to a mental health clinic."
"When I visited the next year, Jeff said he had already stopped going to the mental health clinic because he hadn't ever molested those children and the clinic told him he didn't need to go back anymore."
"And then I knew that it still wasn't over," said Mark Welch.
"Jeff moved to Murfreesboro, Tennessee, where no one knew about his past," said Mark Welch. "He just melted into the community. And then in 1987, Jeff was arrested and pleaded guilty to aggravated sexual assault, and was sentenced to 10 years in state prison."
"After my father died in 1990, I got a copy of Jeff's court file, and read what he'd done, and how this little six-year-old girl had told her mother right away," said Mark Welch. "I remember reading that court file and thinking about how wonderful it was that a six-year-old girl had that much courage, and felt that safe about her family."
"And then I felt such a sense of despair and sadness. I wondered how many other little girls and little boys Jeff hurt, and how their pain must still continue."
Jeff Prepares for Release: "While I was handling my father's estate, Jeff was already beginning to make plans for his release in 1994, and it was clear to me that he planned to just move somewhere new where he would not be known."
"Jeff even wrote that he invested his inheritance so well that he expected it to grow to $100,000 by the time he was released in 1994."
"It frightened me to think that when Jeff is released from prison, he will not be subject to any supervision at all," said Mark Welch. "He is legally free to go anywhere he wants. He can do anything he wants. And I know what he wants."
"Jeff mentioned several times that he planned to move to Phoenix," said Mark Welch. "But then suddenly in January he wrote that he won't move to Arizona or New Mexico, but to a foreign country. I think he wrote that to discourage me from publicizing his release."
"Jeff also wrote that before he moves anywhere, he plans to travel for a while," said Mark Welch.
"I know that as a convicted sex offender, he will have to register with the local police anywhere he lives, but I know that he won't have to register if he's just traveling around," said Mark Welch. "And so I can see why he wants to travel around first, because he'll be anonymous and free to do whatever he wants. No probation officer, no parole officer, no restrictions at all."
Speaking Out: "As Jeff kept writing to me, all I could think was how he would use every opportunity to molest more children," said Mark Welch.
"Every letter and phone call from Jeff made me feel sick and afraid. He would write things he knew upset me, just to show me how he wasn't changed at all. It felt like he wanted me to know, and he wanted me to feel paralyzed and responsible."
"And over time, I gradually realized that I just couldn't let him do that," said Mark Welch. "I couldn't let Jeff torture me by telling me where he was going, making me suspect and worry that he was molesting more children, and yet leaving me without any proof."
"I don't need proof of what Jeff is going to do," said Mark Welch. "I just know what my heart and my head tell me about it. I believe that my brother will seek out situations so he can molest children. And I believe that if I speak out, I might be able to reduce his opportunities. And so I am speaking out."
"I am sending a packet of information about my brother to every media outlet and every police department in every city I expect him to visit, and I am going to do my best to see that he can't just disappear into some unsuspecting city so he can victimize more children."