Blowing the Dust Off Some Files. The Robert Dowe Coleman Controversy.
In response to this alarming issue I took a field trip to Frank Crowley and sorted through microfilm files from an era long ago. This photo is practically me, minus the fro.
So without a crash course in legal forensics, here’s what I’ve got.
It looks like Robert Dowe Coleman’s record began in 1980 when he plead guilty to sexual abuse of a child under the age of 17. He was sentenced to 2 years in the slammer and somewhere along the way ended up doing some hard time working on a prison farm (thanks to a few antique 1980s processes it’s hard to get super clear dates but it appears he served just under a year). He got out on probation after a bunch of people wrote character reference letters to the judge. You might find the letters chilling to read in 2010 as they spotlight some twisted views of pedophiles at that time if the perp was otherwise “a good person.”
Then it looks like in 1983 his probation was revoked after he plead guitly to sexually abusing another boy under the age of 17. So Coleman returned to the slammer with a sentence of 5 years. Files are fuzzy as to how long he actually served.
Then in 2006 another male came forward alledging that he was abused by Coleman in 1996. That case was later dismissed because the victim wouldn’t testify. It appears all three of the boys were 13-15 years old at the time and have ties to the Park Cities- their names are redacted.
UPPD was the filing agency listed on this 1983 True Bill of Indictment. So I think it’s safe to say that Coleman has been on University Park law enforcement radar for at least 27 years. But only on neighborhood radar for 2 weeks?
63 comments to "Blowing the Dust Off Some Files. The Robert Dowe Coleman Controversy."
Extremely thorough reporting, many thanks. I guess the one follow up question I would have for Chief Adams is that, given this history, how in the world could there have been a question as to whether he should have been registered as a sex offender? And maybe there is a delay, but he is still not on the registry.
I also agree with your comments on the chilling character references. The Catholic priest writing him a reference after meeting him two times is expecially eerie, given the churches history of struggles with sexual abuse.
But all of that aside, it’s time that this creep is outed, and known, and identified. Taping children two weeks ago? We’ve got to find a way to get this abomination back in jail.
Sick & D – you are right…’REPEAT OFFENDER’ and not on the registry is ridiculous
And you nativists, who have lived here for decades and decades, what do you remember about this guy?
Agreed. They chose to address the “pain and torture” that that creep was undergoing in prison over the protection of children. I pray that Harry Coleman’s children weren’t terrorized by this creep, because their father certainly wasn’t going to protect them from his brother.
I’m sorry, even in the 80′s they knew it was wrong, and should have protected the children.
There are often perps all around your kids. Perps are often community leaders, neighbors or other people you might hold in high regard.
One of my perps as a child was a priest that I adored. I worked in youth ministry at my local parish, attended retreats and most every church function all through high school and college. Because I was from an abusive home, I had fled to the church to escape that home only to land in the lap of this priest. He sexually abused me for years.
The priest denied everything and is still a priest today.
On my long 20 year journey through sexual abuse recovery, I realized that many other kids were sexually and physically abused in their upper middle class homes where the parents were community leaders, siblings were high achievers and otherwise an awesome appearing family on the outside. No criminal history of any type in the family.
What I am not doing a good job of saying here is that there are often perps in the midst who are community leaders or in other offices like a priest of elected official so kids might think they are automatically safe just because of the “role” the perp holds.
There are perps out there who never hit any “list.” They don’t have a criminal history and your kids are exposed to them. I know everyone is different, but my offenders were in the church, my family and in the political arena.
This is off topic a bit but point was to say elite neighborhoods often hold undocumented perps.
I am almost 50 and still trying to recover from the abuse and the trauma of those who knew, and did nothing because the offenders were too elite to be charged.
Why is he not a registered sex offender? I like many others have checked that website many times over the years (and been relieved that by comparison we have so few in our area – talk about false relief!) Did I miss something reading all this, did Chief Adams answer that?
A 16 year old girl who “sexts” a pic to her bf has to register as a sex offender/child pornographer.
But this guy has been running around without anyone having to know?
I know this will not sound logical (because it is not logical) but I feel sadness for the offender’s family as well here. I know with my own family, my parent was a really great guy most of the time and was an all around great Dad when he was older. He is in his 80′s now and has been great for decades. I know that some perps hit alcohol and become perps and others hit obstacles in their lives and become perps. I am not an expert, but I know my Dad was no longer a perp as I got older. I know he was abused as a child. He went to therapy and got better.
I feel sorry for the family because I know that when I came forward, just to them (not outside the family) they were just destroyed. And, it was like I destroyed them, not my Dad. Those good things were true about my Dad but the bad things happened too. Later, he was good and I held that past to myself not wanted to tarnish the family.
My whole family knows it happened but we have not discussed it for two decades. The family moved on.
As far as the priest goes, that killed me spiritually. Not from the priest abuse but more from the church fighting me once I did come forward. Even the youth minister who walked in on him abusing me testified on my behalf, but the church ruled in the priest’s favor. They knew I would not go public because of backlash on my family. The priest was aware of my home abuse and if I went forward about him, he would go forward about my family.
That deal last week where the priest was arrested for trying to kill the boy who came forward really upset me because even after all these years, I was afraid of the same thing happening to me.
Those politicians have been out of office for decades too but I did tell law enforcement and they too did nothing saying I could not prove it despite other kids coming forward too.
I’m not sorry it all happened because it made me focus on God and not the church and understand that there is a problem with perps getting away with abuse in our government. Now, I quietly serve as an advocate of children abused by former politicians.
Abuse is not all black and white. It is gray really. It is gray because often, the children love their offenders or love the people it would hurt if they came forward like the mom and siblings. Or, they love the country and people would call them anti American if they tried to push the issue about politicians who abuse kids.
Believe me….it is a very tough issue. I am just moving out of the gray area, into the light area and it is a relief.
Good job on this one, Merritt.
1) Why was Robert Coleman originally not required to register as a sex offender? It seems like every other sex offender was required to register. I assume the Chief can provide us with that information.
2) What change in the latest Texas Legislative session now requires him to register?
3) After the changes from the Legislative session, what is the process for them to actually register? A letter sent to their house, a police visit letting them know they need to come in and register, the honor system?
4) Are there more offenders in the neighborhood that are now required to register? If so, will the authorities let them know, or is it up to the neighborhood moms to do this?
5) How long will it be until Coleman shows up in the offender data base?
Also, thanks Merritt for letting us know about this. Two thumbs up!
First letter – Someone named “Joni” who lived on Glenwick in October 1980
Second letter – The Reverend James _____ at St. Michaels (!), who was there in October 1980
Third Letter – Written by Harold Garvin of the law firm Garvin, Bonney, Weaver & Corley in Duncan, Oklahoma (his last name is redacted in the signature line, but his full name appears in the letterhead)
Fourth Letter – Someone from _____ Oil Company, which had an office in Suite 4800 of the First National Bank building (now the decrepit 50 story building with the vertical white stripes at 1401 Elm Street next to Renaissance Tower)
Fifth Letter – His brother, Harry Coleman, as discussed in other comments.
Sixth Letter – Someone named “Jerry” who lived on Centenary in October 1980
I guess it would be a nice parlor game for some of the old timers to figure out who these people are. Or if anyone really cares, they could show the same get-up-and-go as Merritt and make a trip down to the courthouse.
I always check this website before moving homes. We previously lived in Greenway Parks area, which has 16 sex offenders.
Hope this website helps. It has their name, address, and picture. http://www.familywatchdog.us
There are more than 1,400 in Dallas and I hope that our society will get tough on crime and prevent repeat offenders.
Good work bring light to this.
Very disturbing that two priests would opine on Coleman’s character despite admitting they only had met him a few times. Even more disturbing is his brother’s description of Coleman as a “victim of circumstance”.
Thanks, Merritt, for staying on this story. And kudos to James T for admitting his first reaction to the news was wrong.
Does anyone have a current photo of Coleman?
Again Merritt from our family & on behave of the latest “victims” and yes they are victims, Thank you! We will all be watching Robert Coleman to make sure you NEVER harm another child.
thank you so much for your careful work and disclosure.
Please continue on this issue.
We have many unanswered questions and we must do what we can to safeguard our neighborhoods.
Certainly a man with a criminal record involving children\should not be able to walk around and film children and offer them money!
We know that this is a pattertn of dangerous behavior.
I feel the police have not been doing their duty in protecting our children.
I do not live in the city but have children that attend H.P. schools and have to point out some observations. It appears the community overall has a false sense of security. I see kids walking back and forth from school without supervision, selling lemonade to strangers on the corner without a parent in sight. Those are just a few of the examples that can be seen on any given day in the park cities. A child abductor could pull them into a vehicle and be gone in a matter of seconds. Every year there are between 40-150 child victims of abduction, by a stranger, that are killed each year in the U.S. In those cases 44% were killed within the first hour, 76% were killed within 3 hours, 88.5% were killed within 24 hours, 99% within 7days and 100% within 30 days (Taken from The National Center for Missing and Abducted Children). My point in sharing those numbers was to bring home the fact that if a child is abducted time isn’t on our side. Those numbers should scare you as parent.
CHILD RAPIST being a potential threat to the children of the Park Cities? Who’s child is next? Where is the alarm??
Where is the education of our citizens and children in our schools, church’s, etc. Robert Coleman’s picture should be published so everyone can be aware of this RAPIST.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/120410dnmetoffendervideo.419b2b8.html
But for people to blame Chief Adams and the mayor, etc., because Mr. Coleman is legally allowed to live here is just beyond bizarre. Everyone just needs to get a grip on sanity for a second.
http://www.lbb.state.tx.us/PubSafety_CrimJustice/6_Links/SexOffender.pdf
i confronted a creepy dude in a green van late last summer while riding bikes w/ my kids. he told me he was looking for a church. yeah right.
great, so now our children can’t walk or ride bikes to school or for fun, can’t go to a friends house alone, can’t play in the yard, have lemonade stands, or any of that ever again!
Just one bad apple ruins the whole barrel for the neighborhood & society. Akin to a terrorist – holding us hostage & ruining our lives forever.
now our children will be couch potatoes’ growing obese and having little social interaction.
cheers to the father who tried to chase him down, and all others for noticing him.
confront suspicious characters. ask them questions & take note. let them know you are suspicious.
society, is this what it has come to?
One evening I read an article in the DMN about the sex offender registry and it had a link. I pulled it up and put in our zip code and there were a hand full of registered offenders – I had one of the pictures on the monitor when the ex walked in and saw the picture and said “Hey, that’s Don from the UP pool.” I explained to her why his picture was on the monitor. He had been convicted of violating two girls who were around 12 years old at the time I believe. He was given 10 years probation. I never confronted Don but all communication with him by the ex stopped and he eventually moved. I always wondered why a registered sex offender was allowed to live right across from a public swimming pool and next to a park for children but I figured it was legal since he was registered.
At the time I read about sex offenders and it seems that someone had written that the average offender commits nearly 50 offenses before being caught.
@James Tucker – relocating just allows a sex offender to be less obvious at his new residence.
I BELIEVE WE SHOULD AVOID USING ATTORNEYS WHO REPRESENT CHILD MOLESTERS AND GET THEM OFF. HOW MANY BOYS WERE AFRAID TO COME FORWARD?
I am with you. I will help you make the signs. I wouldn’t mind sneaking one into HIS front yard. He wouldn’t see anyway, b/c he keeps all his window shades down and no lights on. I know b/c I have walked and driven by his house a million times since moving here 12 years ago.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/DN-upupdate_04met.ART.State.Edition1.4cff531.html
http://parkcitiesblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/12/university-park-cases-raises-q.html
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