Appeals Court Affirms Provisional Release from Sex Offender Program

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The state Court of Appeals has upheld a judicial panel's decision to provisionally release a man from the Minnesota Sex Offender Program.

Jesse Lee, formally known as Dennis Wiesinger, pleaded guilty in 1976 to kidnapping and raping a woman in Ramsey County.

He was civilly committed and asked for a provisional discharge from the sex offender program in 2013. It was granted, but the state says the judicial appeal panel erred because it relied on a witness with inaccurate information.

The appeals court says the evidence as a whole supports the panel's findings. The state is exploring its legal options.

The Minnesota Sex Offender Program was recently deemed constitutional by a federal appeals court, reversing a lower court ruling that said it violated offenders' rights because few people are ever released.