BARRON, Wis. — The man who kidnapped Jayme Closs and killed her parents in northern Wisconsin has been moved to a prison in New Mexico.
Press-Gazette Media reports the New Mexico Corrections Department has confirmed Jake Patterson has been transferred to one of its prisons from the Dodge Correctional Institution in Waupun.
Wisconsin corrections officials recommended that Patterson be sent to a maximum-security prison out of state due to concerns for his safety due to the notoriety of the case. The 22-year-old convict was moved July 15, but Wisconsin Department of Corrections officials refused to say where he was relocated and removed Patterson from its online inmate locator.
The Green Bay Press Gazette reports that Patterson also does not appear in a search of the state's online sex offender registry despite being assigned to it after his conviction. A version of his Wisconsin file can still be found through the federal sex offender registry.
Patterson's case file in Barron County is still available through the state's circuit court website, but it hasn't been updated since late May.
A judge sentenced Patterson to life in prison in May for fatally shooting James and Denise Closs in their Barron home, and holding 13-year-old Jayme captive for 88 days in the Town of Gordon.
The Department of Corrections decides on a case-by-case basis whether someone can be included on the inmate locator, spokeswoman Molly Vidal told the Press Gazette in an email. Inmates moved out of state, like Patterson, are often transferred for safety and security reasons.
"A balancing test is done on a case-by-case basis to ensure the safety of incarcerated individuals and facility staff is balanced with the general public’s 'need to know,'" she said.
Vidal also noted that victims can register with the department's Office of Victim Services to receive notifications about the inmate who committed crimes against them or their loved ones.
