Maryland's convicted sex offenders can expect to find their names and addresses posted on the Internet under legislation headed for passage in the General Assembly.
Identical bills authorizing the state prison system to create such a Web site cleared the House and Senate yesterday, virtually assuring final Assembly approval. Gov. Parris N. Glendening said he had no objection to the legislation and would sign it into law.
During spirited debate over the bills, supporters promised that the postings would be a valuable tool for parents.
"This puts this information directly in parents' hands," said Sen. Timothy R. Ferguson, the Frederick County Republican who sponsored the bill. "This is not just a bill for victim's rights, it's a bill that prevents people from becoming victims in the first place."
Similar Web sites in 10 states post the names and addresses of sex offenders, often accompanied by photographs. A recently constructed page listing Virginia's registry has proven popular, drawing 260,000 visitors in the first week.
Still, yesterday's votes in Annapolis did not come easily. A number of legislators said posting Maryland's registry of roughly 500 convicted sex felons could lead to some unwelcome and unexpected consequences.
Del. Clarence Davis, an East Baltimore Democrat, argued that an Internet posting could potentially be full of mistakes and lead to actions against innocent people. He noted that, in cases of incest, children who were victims could have their identities publicized.
"It's going to impact the entire family and the associates of that particular person," Davis said.
The Web site concept is an expan- sion of state and federal legislation known as Megan's Law, named for 7-year-old Megan Kanka, who was raped and strangled by a convicted child molester who lived in her New Jersey neighborhood.
Those statutes require police to keep a registry of offenders and to tell neighborhood groups when a sex offender moves nearby.
Some legislators said they worry about the accuracy of the state's list, noting several instances around the nation in which people have been misidentified as sex offenders, even without Internet postings.
In one such case, a misleading notification went out in Harford County after an offender listed her sister-in-law's address on her forms.
"It was a nightmare," said Stephen W. Lutche, a lawyer hired by Kimberly L. Griffin after her home address was mistakenly added to the Maryland list. "Her address went out to neighborhood groups for miles around."
As a result, Lutche said, his client received death threats and had her house pelted with debris.
Concern about the site also came yesterday from the medi- cal community. Dr. Fred Berlin, a psychiatrist who founded the Johns Hopkins Sexual Disorders Clinic, said the embarrassment of being posted on a Web site could hurt the chances for sex offenders to recover.
"Many folks who have a prior history can get a fresh start and don't pose a risk," Berlin said after hearing of the vote. "One reason they do succeed is they are not feeling stigmatized and disenfranchised. So something like a Web site could be counter productive."
Sen. Brian E. Frosh, a Montgomery County Democrat, relayed those fears on the Senate floor, saying he believes "we've driven sex offenders underground, so they'd rather risk jail than [seek help and] be exposed."
During one of the session's more contentious moments, Sen. Nathaniel J. McFadden confronted Ferguson with the notion that sex offenders have become easy political targets. "This is one of those feel-good, ultra-conservative pieces of legislation that doesn't really attack the problems that these individuals have."
Ferguson shot back: "You know who feels good? Parents."
The bill cleared the Senate by a vote of 28 to 19. The House passed it 83 to 54.
Pub Date: 3/10/99