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| Sex Offender Registry law gets added teeth |
| By Lowell Sun |
| Published: 12/01/2003 |
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When Lowell, Mass. police caught up with an intruder in a bathroom at the Moody School last week, they quickly discovered that the man was a convicted sex offender. James F. Henry had prior arrests for indecent exposure and being a Peeping Tom, and was convicted in 2000 in New Hampshire for masturbating while watching children, police said. Although Henry was discovered in the school before he had any contact with children, Lowell Police Superintendent Edward F. Davis III said the information about his record immediately available to authorities through the state's Sex Offender Registry database helped police determine they were not dealing with a simple trespasser. At a Statehouse press conference last week, Davis joined Gov. Mitt Romney as he announced his plans to sign legislation meant to toughen the state's Sex Offender Registry law. The new measures will allow the state to disseminate information about Level 3 sex offenders those considered to pose the highest risk to commit another sex crime on the Internet, and mandate that all sex offenders register 48 hours before being released from jail. Photos and addresses of Level 3 offenders could be available on the Internet in a matter of weeks, Romney said. Lawmakers enacted changes to the law as part of a $102 million supplemental budget passed last week. After taking office, Romney's staff took steps to begin posting the information on the Web. But the move was challenged in court by the Committee for Public Counsel Services (CPCS), the agency charged with representing indigent sex offenders in their classification hearings before the state board. The court issued an injunction to prevent the launch of the Web site and said such a proposal required legislative approval. Lawmakers who supported the measure included it in the supplemental budget, which was approved last week. Romney said the Sex Offender Registry Board will draft rules and regulations to govern the new practice, and will then ask a judge to lift the injunction. He said he expects opponents to challenge the new measure. |
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