Arciero Calls for Level Two Sex Offenders' Information to be Posed Online

The following was submitted by State Rep. Jame Arciero.

State Representative James Arciero has filed legislation to expand citizen access to level two sex offender information by making such data available online.  

“This will be my top public safety priority in the upcoming legislative session.   This simple act will move us forward in protecting families and children in our neighborhoods,” said Arciero, who sponsored similar legislation last year with former State Representative Lewis Evangelidis, who recently became Worcester County Sheriff.   “Level 2 offenders are dangerous people and we need to have all the tools available to protect our communities.” added Arciero.

Laurie Myers, president and founder of Community Voices, said the bill will ensure that the most current information regarding sex offenders is available to the general public via the internet.   “The safety of my community doesn't end at the town line.  As parents we travel to different communities with our children and should have access to the information without having to visit the police department to fill out a form every time we want it.  Sex offenders use the internet to prey on children, it only makes sense that parents be allowed to use it to keep our communities safe." said Myers.  

Her organization, Community Voices, is a citizens group founded in 2004 which is dedicated to supporting, advocating and representing victims and survivors of crime; and specializes in sexual assault and internet safety.   Her group is supporting the passage of the measure.

The legislation will bring Massachusetts in compliance with the federal Adam Walsh Act and enable the Commonwealth to access Byrne Grant funding.  Failing to do so could jeopardize nearly $600,000 in critical funding.   The bill will simply allow for the posting of level 2 offender information on the internet.

The Massachusetts Sex Offender Registry Board is charged with determining the danger level associated with a sex offender’s crime and proclivity to re-offend. They rank offenders on three different levels:  Level One offenders are deemed to have a low risk of reoffending.  Level One offender information is not available to the general public, only to the police, several state agencies and the FBI.  Level Two offenders have a moderate risk of re-offense.  Their crimes are considered a danger to the public, but due to their moderate risk of re-offense, their information is available to the public only at the local police department.  Level Three is for those criminals whose crimes pose the greatest risk to the public safety and are highly likely to re-offend.  Their information is available on-line to all interested individuals.  Those individuals designated as Level 2 offenders have in the past been convicted of such crimes as the rape of a child with force, indecent assault and battery on a child under the age of fourteen years and other crimes against children. 

In order to build the necessary support for passage of the measure on Beacon Hill, Representative Arciero has actively courted the support of local and county officials and was successful in receiving their support.  Middlesex Sheriff Peter J. Koutoujian said, “The Massachusetts Sex Offender Registry Board deems Level 2 sex offenders dangerous, yet members of the public cannot easily access information about their whereabouts.  Representative James Arciero’s legislation is a common-sense measure to increase public safety by making such information readily available. I applaud him for his leadership on this issue.”

Worcester County Sheriff Evangelidis, who supports the bill and was a sponsor of the legislation during his tenure in the Massachusetts House of Representatives said, "People should not be forced to jump through hoops and red tape when it comes to obtaining public information on sex offenders that may be living in their community. Anything we can do to make this information more accessible will only increase the public’s safety."

Littleton Police Chief John Kelly said “I believe it is one of our fundamental responsibilities, as a society, to protect our children and those that have and may be victimized by sexually deviant perpetrators. The foremost proactive manner in which to do this is through information and education and this proposed legislation will do just that, allow us to make additional safeguarding information available to those we serve.  Representative Arciero’s legislation will make Massachusetts compliant with the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006.”

Chelmsford Police Chief James Murphy said making Level 2 sex offender information more widely available to the general public would be a public safety benefit.   While Westford Police Chief Thomas McEnaney said that this bill will help his department to deal with dangerous individuals in his town noting that the issue was a major public safety concern last year.  

“Last year, we had a situation in which several residents were concerned that sex offender information available from other states’ monitoring systems was better than that which could be obtained from the Massachusetts’ system.  I am hopeful that we can move in the direction of greater awareness of potentially dangerous individuals so that citizens can take the necessary precautions for themselves and their families” said Chief McEnaney. 

Subsequently, Representative Arciero was contacted by dozens of concerned Westford residents in early 2009 about the situation in Westford.  It was determined that a certain individual, originally from Westford, had moved to Florida where he was convicted of a sexual offense crime.  The offender later moved back to Westford.  While his information was available online from the state of Florida, similar information was not available in Massachusetts.  In order to deal with the issue and the citizen’s concerns, a public forum was organized in which these topics could be addressed.   One result of the forum was the decision to file legislation to move forward by changing the law to all for the placing of Massachusetts Level 2 offender’s information online. 

It is believed that enactment of the law would result in the saving of the taxpayer’s money by eliminating many of the proceedings regarding changing classification. 

The measure has over 36 legislative co-sponsors and will now be assigned to the Joint Committee on the Judiciary.  It is expected to have a public hearing in the next few months.  “With the support of members from both the House and Senate and backing from both Republican and Democratic members, I think we can put together a strong bipartisan and bicameral coalition to get the necessary votes to make this happen.” concluded Representative Arciero.