Dec
10

Attorney Crouch Secures Protection For Level 2 Sex Offenders Seeking Reclassification

In Doe No. 326573 v. Sex Offender Registry Board, 477 Mass. 361 (2017), the Supreme Judicial Court issued a crucial decision protecting the rights of sex offenders to seek reduction in their classification levels. Boston sex offender attorney Attorney Crouch represented the plaintiff in Doe No. 326573 and secured a key victory for due process and the rights of Massachusetts Level 2 sex offenders.

The court had previously stopped the Sex Offender Registry Board (SORB) “from publishing on the Internet the registry information of any individual who was finally classified as a level two sex offender on or before July 12, 2013, unless the individual is subsequently reclassified a level two or level three sex offender.” In Doe No. 326573, the SORB contended that, when it unsuccessfully seeks after July 12, 2013, to reclassify a level two sex offender as a level three sex offender, the individual is reclassified a level two sex offender it may therefore publish the individual’s registry information on the Internet.

Attorney Crouch argued and the court agreed that a sex offender is “reclassified” only where a hearing officer allows SORB’s motion to increase his or her classification based on new information indicating an increased risk of sexual recidivism, not where the hearing officer denies the SORB’s motion for reclassification and retains the earlier level two classification. The court wrote:

In essence, SORB’s argument is that, when it moves to reclassify a level two offender who was classified on or before July 12, 2013, it is “heads, we win, tails, you (the offender) lose.” If SORB prevails on its motion to reclassify the offender from level two to level three based on its new information, it may publish the offender’s registry information on its Web site on the Internet. If it fails to prevail on its motion, the offender will be reclassified a level two offender, and it may publish the offender’s registry information on its Web site on the Internet. We decline to adopt such a rule. The denial of SORB’s motion to reclassify level two offenders who were finally classified on or before July 12, 2013, cannot transform them “into something akin to level ‘two and one-half’ offenders.” Such a result would not respect our conclusion in Moe that retroactive application of the 2013 amendments requiring Internet publication of registry information for these level two offenders “would be unreasonable and inequitable, and therefore unconstitutional as a violation of due process.” Nor does it respect the gravity of Internet publication of an offender’s registry information, which magnifies the “risk of serious adverse consequences to that offender, including the risk that the sex offender will suffer discrimination in employment and housing, and will otherwise suffer from the stigma of being identified as a sex offender, which sometimes means the additional risk of being harassed or assaulted.”

At oral argument in the case, the SORB also agreed to stop its long-standing practice of putting Level 2 offenders who were classified before July 12, 2013, on the internet if their reclassification motions were denied. This was a key issue for many Massachusetts Level 2 sex offenders who were worried about negative consequences following a reclassification request. In its decision, the court struck down the SORB’s practice:

We also decline to adopt SORB’s argument that, where a level two offender who was classified on or before July 12, 2013, moves to be reclassified as a level one offender, the denial of his or her motion means that the offender has been subsequently reclassified a level two offender and his or her registry information may now be published on the SORB Web site. Under the regulations in effect when Doe No. 15890 moved to reduce his classification, his failure to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that his classification should be reduced based on new information does not transform his level two classification into “something akin” to a level two and one-half classification. It means simply that his motion for reclassification is denied. If it meant more, level two offenders who were classified on or before July 12, 2013, would be deterred from ever seeking to move to reduce their classification level, because the denial of that motion would result in publication of their registry information on the SORB Web site on the Internet.

Expanding the dissemination of information of Massachusetts Level 2 sex offenders would be devastating for many registered offenders. It would vastly expand the number of Massachusetts sex offenders whose home, work, and educational information is splashed across the Internet and will reduce the utility of the site run by the Sex Offender Registry Board, which presently only lists the highest risk Massachusetts Level 2 and 3 sex offenders.

If you are a Level 2 sex offender in Massachusetts and have questions regarding your Massachusetts sex offender classification or wants assistance in reviewing or seeking sex offender reclassification, you need a Boston sex offender attorney. Please contact Attorney Crouch at (617) 441-5111 or email him to set up a free, initial consultation. To request further information please contact us.

Dec
10

Supreme Judicial Court Strikes Down Residency Restrictions For Sex Offenders

In Doe v. City of Lynn, 472 Mass. 521 (2015), Attorney Crouch filed an amicus brief on behalf of numerous advocacy groups, including the Jacob Wetterling Resource Center and the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers, challenging a local ordinance in the City of Lynn that prohibited sex offenders from living in a vast majority of the city. In the case, the Supreme Judicial Court struck down the ordinance restricting the rights of sex offenders to live in the city. The court’s decision resulted in the statewide elimination of so-called residency restrictions, those which prohibit sex offenders from living within certain distances of schools and other locations. The court held that the ordinance would have a negative effect on the monitoring of sex offenders and would undermine the effectiveness of the law’s classification system. The court found that as a supervised and stable home situation has been recognized as a factor that minimizes a sex offender’s risk of reoffense, the disruption caused by the ordinance would be inconsistent with the Legislature’s goal of protecting the public. As the court aptly said in its decision,

As a final observation on the legislative choice to define the sex offender residency restriction narrowly, we note the grave societal and constitutional implications of the de jure residential segregation of sex offenders. Except for the incarceration of persons under the criminal law and the civil commitment of mentally ill or dangerous persons, the days are long since past when whole communities of persons, such as Native Americans and Japanese-Americans, may be lawfully banished from our midst. Also, because of the tension between a sex offender’s liberty interest, and the imperatives of public safety, the Legislature has demonstrated a concern for careful crafting of laws in a field fraught with constitutional peril. For this reason as well, the Legislature cannot have intended to permit local regulation of sex offender residency.

The case is an an important one for Massachusetts sex offenders. Residence and work restrictions remain challenging situations for Massachusetts Level 1 and 2 sex offenders who rely on the Sex Offender Registry Board, to properly classify individuals and differentiate them from Massachusetts Level 3 sex offenders.

If you are a Level 1 or 2 sex offender in Massachusetts and have questions regarding your Massachusetts sex offender classification or wants assistance in reviewing or seeking sex offender reclassification, you need a Boston sex offender attorney. Please contact Attorney Crouch at (617) 441-5111 or email him to set up a free, initial consultation. To request further information please contact us.

Feb
26

Massachusetts Sex Offender Registry Board Updates Its Regulations

The Massachusetts Sex Offender Registry Board recently implemented a substantial revision to its long outdated regulations. This revision follows many years of direction and then criticism from the state’s highest courts, including the Supreme Judicial Court in numerous decisions. The new regulations reflect the recent Supreme Judicial Court’s decision in John Doe No. 380316 vs. Sex Offender Registry Board, 473 Mass. 297 (2015), in which the court struck down the Sex Offender Registry Board’s use of the preponderance of evidence standard in Massachusetts sex offender classification hearings. Attorney Crouch participated in the Doe No. 3803816 case, arguing for the clear and convincing evidence standard on behalf of the Committee for Public Counsel Services.

For those individuals seeking sex offender reclassification or classification in Massachusetts, it is important to be aware of these changes.

As a result of these extensive changes to the Massachusetts sex offender registration law by the Board, as well as by the legislature and the courts, it is important for sex offenders in Massachusetts to consult with a Massachusetts sex offender attorney about legal assistance with their classification and sex offender reclassification matters. If you are interested in speaking with a Massachusetts sex offender attorney please contact Attorney Crouch at (617) 441-5111 or email him to set up a free, initial consultation.

Feb
26

Massachusetts Changes Classification Standard For Sex Offenders

In a major decision that is likely to fundamentally change the classification of sex offenders in Massachusetts, the Supreme Judicial Court recently struck down the Sex Offender Registry Board’s use of the preponderance of evidence standard in classification hearings. In John Doe No. 380316 vs. Sex Offender Registry Board, 473 Mass. 297 (2015), the court held that amendments to the sex offender registry law means that risk classifications have far greater consequences than before, such that due process now requires that offender’s risk level be proved by higher clear and convincing evidence standard.

Attorney Crouch participated in this case, filing an amicus brief on behalf of the Committee for Public Counsel Services.

Since 2013, Massachusetts has changed a number of laws related to the classification and reclassification of Massachusetts sex offenders, especially for Massachusetts Level 2 sex offenders.

For those individuals seeking sex offender reclassification or classification in Massachusetts, it is important to be aware of these changes.

As a result of these extensive changes to the Massachusetts sex offender registration law by both the legislature and the courts, it is important for sex offenders in Massachusetts to consult with a Massachusetts sex offender attorney about legal assistance with their classification and sex offender reclassification matters. If you are interested in speaking with a Massachusetts sex offender attorney please contact Attorney Crouch at (617) 441-5111 or email him to set up a free, initial consultation.

Jan
25

Recent Changes To Massachusetts Reclassification Of Sex Offenders

Since 2013, the Massachusetts has changed a number of laws related to the classification and reclassification of Massachusetts sex offenders, especially for Massachusetts Level 2 sex offenders.

For those individuals seeking sex offender reclassification in Massachusetts, it is important to be aware of these changes. Where reclassification hearing were once decided entirely on paper by the entire Sex Offender Registry Board, each reclassification request will now result in a hearing to be held in front of three hearing examiners.

As Fox25 Boston and other news outlets have reported, Supreme Judicial Court Justice Ralph Gants ruled in July that pictures of moderate-risk Level 2 sex offenders can be posted on the state’s Sex Offender Registry Board website, as long as they were classified after the law went into effect on July 12.

The battle over publicizing information about Level 2 sex offenders online hit the Supreme Judicial Court Tuesday, where the state’s public defenders sought an injunction barring the state from putting the information on the Internet.

Names, pictures and crimes of high-risk Level 3 sex offenders in Massachusetts are already online, but it’s not so easy to find out about one of the more than 6,000 Level 2 offenders, those deemed a moderate risk to re-offend. That information can be obtained only by physically visiting a police station.

The law to publicize Level 2 offender information was part of the new budget, signed into law this month by Gov. Deval Patrick.

It’s not known how many Level 2 sex offenders have been classified since July 12 and when the Sex Offender Registry Board will put that information online.

Justice Gants referred the case to the full Supreme Judicial Court, which recently heard arguments on whether to place Massachusetts Level 2 sex offenders on the Internet and will decide the case in early 2014.

Of the possible outcomes, the court may decide to place all Level 2 sex offenders online or it may limit Internet dissemination to individuals receiving a classification or reclassification decision after July 12, 2013.

As a result of the legislature’s recent changes to Level 2 sex offenders in Massachusetts, it is important for Level 2 sex offenders in Massachusetts to consult with a Massachusetts sex offender attorney about the possibility of seeking sex offender reclassification.

In light of these changes, many Level 2 sex offenders are seeking reclassification, leading to a backlog of cases. If you are interested in seeking reclassification, please contact Attorney Crouch at (617) 441-5111 or email him to set up a free, initial consultation. To request further information please contact us.

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