Representatives John Keenan and Denis Guyer
BOSTON – Freshmen legislators Representative John Keenan and Representative Denis Guyer today filed legislation aimed at notifying the residents and staff of extended care facilities when a registered level-three sex offenders move in. They were joined by thirty-five other Representatives and Senators, including some members of leadership, who cosponsored the bill. The legislation would give the operators of extended care facilities in Massachusetts the information and flexibility they require to set the policies and procedures that will best protect the safety of their staff and of the other clients. “Currently, no state regulations exist for dealing with sex offenders in nursing homes” said Representative Guyer (D-Dalton). “I was contacted by a constituent who was concerned about this matter and found out that while police have to post fliers with the sex offender’s picture in schools and police stations, police didn’t have to notify the person sleeping in the same room at a nursing home.” “Considering our growing elderly population, this bill is critically important to provide a safe living environment for our seniors and peace of mind for their families,” said Representative Keenan (D-Salem), a member of the Judiciary Committee and a former prosecutor in the Essex County District Attorney’s office. The rape of a 90-year-old man by his roommate who was a level-three sex offender in February at a Norwood nursing home highlights the problem. The Boston Globe on February 10th reported that while police had posted information about the threat at local schools, they did not notify his roommate. The lack of regulation keeps extended care facilities from revealing the sex offender status of their clients to others working and residing in the facility. The legislation amends the Commonwealth's statutes concerning the sex offender registry to require that any registered sex offender who moves into a long term care facility - specifically a nursing home - notify the local police department of the town where the facility is located within 24 hours of their arrival. For level two and level three offenders, the police department is then required to disseminate that information to the director of the care facility. For a level three offender, the director is then permitted to inform the facility's staff, employees, other residents, and the other residents' immediate family members of the offender's identity and description.
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