Judge Refuses to Restore Offender Registry During Appeal
Originally published by The Associated Press, June 5, 2001
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — A federal appeals court refused an emergency request from Connecticut officials to suspend a ruling that forced the state to remove the ''Megan's Law'' list of sexual offenders from its Web site.
Citing a threat to public safety, Attorney General Richard Blumenthal sought an emergency court order Tuesday that would have allowed the state to resume posting the list while its appeal is heard.
The list was taken down in May after a federal judge said the state law on the database was unconstitutional.
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals voted 2-1 to deny Blumenthal's request, the attorney general said. The court did grant a request for an expedited appeal, which will be heard in July.
Blumenthal said he was disappointed.
''We will strongly and vigorously pursue this appeal, because we believe the district court decision is dead wrong and dangerous, and information about convicted sex offenders should be available freely to Connecticut citizens,'' Blumenthal said in a statement.
The registry contained the name, address and in most cases, photographs of nearly 2,100 convicted sex offenders.
U.S. Judge Robert Chatigny ruled in April that the registry law violated due process rights by not allowing offenders to prove they are not dangerous and do not belong on the list. The Connecticut Civil Liberties Union had challenged the law on behalf of ''John Doe,'' a convicted sex offender who said the registry wrongly implied he was a danger to the public.
Blumenthal appealed the decision, saying it undermined public safety.
''Unrestricted access to the registry is in the best interest of our children indeed it is important for their safety,'' he said at the time.
Under Chatigny's ruling, police still have access to the online database, and sex offenders are still required to register with local police.
Police can use the registry in criminal investigations and to inform schools or individuals of a specific sex offender living in the area, but they cannot disclose whether the offender is on the registry.
Blumenthal called that last aspect of the ruling confusing, and said it could result in police refusing to inform the public about the identity and whereabouts of sex offenders.
The Web site was getting about 150,000 hits per month, state officials said.
