Names Of Md. Juvenile Sex Offenders Could Be Made Public

ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- In a controversial move, the Maryland Legislature is considering changing state law and making the names of juvenile sex offenders public.

The measure was prompted by the case of a 13-year-old Bethesda boy who sexually abused two young boys that had been in his care.

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The Hunter family said they hired the teen to baby-sit only to later learn from their 3-year-old son that the baby sitter had molested him.

"Over the course of six weeks, we learned that the abuse had been extensive. It was everything you can imagine it could be and also includes some events with my middle son," the victim's mother Michele Hunter said.

Hunter said she also learned that the teenager was arrested and convicted as a juvenile for a separate sex offense. She said she notified other neighbors of the incidents, including neighbor Elizabeth O'Kelly who said she had also used the teenager as a baby sitter.

"If it hadn't been for them we could have been the next victim's family. My son is the same age as one of the other victims," O'Kelly said. "You know, I was concerned for the community as a whole. You know, there's no way to find out that there are offenders who live nearby whether their juveniles or adults."

Officials said current Maryland law wipes a juvenile abusers record clean when he or she is released from a residential treatment center.

Hunter testified before Maryland Senate and House committees on behalf of bills that would allow police to unseal the juvenile record of offenders who were at least 13 when they committed a sex crime.

"The safety of our community and children outweigh the privacy rights of these predatory juvenile sex offenders who are right now protected under law in Maryland," she said.

Officials said the bill to add juveniles to the registry of sex offenders has been reported favorably from the judicial proceeding committee to the full Senate, where a final vote could be taken this week.

"What it will do, it will allow us to keep track of very dangerous individuals -- and there are only a small number -- but very dangerous individuals who begin their career of abusing kids while they're kids," said Democratic Sen. Brian Frosh of Montgomery County.

"I am so thrilled that the Senate has been supportive of this and recognizes how incredibly important it is to the children of Maryland," said Hunter.

The Hunter family now lives in Orlando, Fla. Michele Hunter said the bill faces an uphill battle in the Maryland House of Delegates. She said supporters of the juvenile sex offender bill are conducting a massive petition and e-mail campaign.

Thirty-two states, including Virginia, already have similar laws.