Wednesday, May 8, 2013
Legislation filed in aftermath of John Burbine arrest aims to fix weaknesses in the state's sex offender registry system.
Local lawmakers and Wakefield’s chief of police were among those calling for changes to the state’s sex offender laws during a Tuesday hearing at the State House. State Senator Katherine Clark, who represents Wakefield, chaired the Joint Committee on the Judiciary hearing, focused on a bill she and Rep. Paul Brodeur are sponsoring. The legislation aims to address weaknesses in the sex offender registry system that were brought to light by the John Burbine child sex abuse case. Wakefield Police Chief Rick Smith testified at the hearing and was quoted in a Boston Herald report talking about how last summer a parent came to the station asking for information Level 1 sex offenders – and was unable to do so. “They came to the window and asked…
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Former Wakefield resident facing 100 child sex charges in Middlesex County also has case in Essex County after accuser came forward.
Accused child molester John Burbine has pleaded not guilty to new charges of rape of a child and indecent assault and battery on a child under 14 in Essex County. Early Wednesday, a not guilty plea was entered on Burbine's behalf in Salem Superior Court and he was ordered held without bail. These charges were filed after a male accuser came forward with allegations against Burbine shortly after learning of his arrest late last year. He has been held at the Billerica House of Correction since around that time. A spokeswoman for the Essex County District Attorney's office, Carrie Kimball-Monahan, told Wakefield Patch that this accuser is a male and that his allegations against Burbine cover a four-year span back in the early 1990s. The next …
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
John Burbine's attorney has asked a judge to dismiss eight of the 100 charges filed against him.
The lawyer for accused child molester John Burbine has asked a judge to dismiss eight of the 100 charges his client is facing, saying his own client reached a "level of deviancy and perversion" unanticipated by the law, given the very young age of the victims. Attorney Bill Barabino has filed a motion to dismiss six counts of aggravated rape of a child and two counts of dissemination of matter harmful to minors. This would still leave Burbine facing some 92 counts. His wife, Marian, faces additional charges of reckless endangerment of a child for operating an illegal day care center in Wakefield where many of the victims' families were clients. After today's hearing in Middlesex Superior Court, Barabino told Wakefield Patch he believes …
Friday, March 29, 2013
Three bills seeks now in the Joint Committee on the Judiciary would make public the names of lower-level sex offenders.
This week's state auditor report that a large number of sex offenders live at addresses registered as childcare facilities has only fueled the effort on Beacon Hill to publicize the names of all those who've committed sex crimes. "The auditor's recent findings should serve as a catalyst to pass targeted legislation which protects the Commonwealth's citizens from dangerous sex offenders," House Minority Leader Brad Jones Jr. (R-North Reading) said in a statement Wednesday. "The report published today is an unfortunate example of why comprehensive sex offender legislation I filed will, in part, open the lines of communication between the Department of Early Education and Care and the Sex Offender Registry Board." Jones' bill is one of …
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
State audit finds 119 Level 2 and 3 sex offenders living at addresses registered as child care providers. Also, background checks not being done in some cases.
A new report from State Auditor Suzanne Bump suggests that a surprisingly large number of sex offenders statewide may be living in properties also used as childcare facilities. According to the report, the recent audit found 119 Level 2 and 3 sex offenders living at addresses that were also registered with the state as child care providers. The audit took place over 15 months from July, 2010 through September, 2011. “While we recognize that all 119 may not pose a problem because some of the information in the sex offender registry may be outdated, we believe that routinely conducting this match will serve to better ensure the safety of children in (Department of Early Education and Care’s) programs,” stated the report. Meanwhile, the …
Facing 100 charges involving child sex abuse in Middlesex County, an accuser in Essex County has now reportedly come forward.
Accused serial child sex abuser John Burbine is now reportedly facing additional charges in Essex County. According to a Wednesday Salem News report, a new accuser, a boy from Saugus, has stepped forward with allegations about actions that would have occurred from May of 1990 to January, 1994. The accuser reportedly came forward after seeing the initial media coverage in the case. In Middlesex County, Burbine is already facing 100 counts stemming from the alleged sexual abuse of children. Burbine and his wife Marian were proprietors of the Waterfall Education Center in Wakefield, which offered tutoring and daycare services despite not being fully licensed to do so. Mrs. Burbine is facing six counts of reckless endangerment of a child and …
Friday, March 22, 2013
Wife of accused child molester John Burbine made court appearance Wednesday.
Marian Burbine, the wife of accused serial child molester John Burbine, now has an expected trial date of Aug. 9. She faces six counts of reckless endangerment of a child, and two counts of operating an unlicensed day care business. Appearing with his client at a Wednesday afternoon hearing at Middlesex Superior Court, attorney John Ruehrwein told the court that he was seeking additional time because of the large amount of evidence associated with the case. The previous trial date for Mrs. Burbine had been June 25. Mrs. Burbine is next due back in court on April 25 for a suppression hearing, with a pre-trial conference set for July 30. Ruehrwein told the court that there would be a motion to suppress, but that a decision on a motion to …
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Wife of John Burbine, facing charges for illegal day care, had court date initially set for Wednesday.
A pre-trial conference for Marian Burbine is now set for Thursday, March 21 at Middlesex Superior Court in Woburn. Mrs. Burbine's latest court date had initially been set for Wednesday, February 13th. She has been under house arrest in Wakefield since late last year, charged with six counts of reckless endangerment of a child and two counts of running an illegal day care business - the former Waterfall Education Center in Wakefield. Mrs. Burbine's husband, John, has pleaded not guilty to about 100 counts involving the sexual abuse of children who were pupils at the former day care and tutoring business. The next step in John Burbine's legal case is expected to be an April 13th motion to dismiss, with a tentative trial date set for early …
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Middlesex County Sheriff Peter Koutoujian and Andover Democratic State Senator Barry Feingold propose bill based on existing state drug and human trafficking laws.
Newly-proposed legislation in Massachusetts could set the stage for certain sexual predators in the state to have their assets seized. According to an announcement from Middlesex County Sheriff Peter Koutoujian, he and State Senator Barry Feingold, an Andover Democrat, have proposed the bill, said to be modeled on existing state controlled substance and human trafficking laws. The announcement also comes in the spotlight of the ongoing John Burbine child sex abuse case. Burbine, a former Wakefield resident, is facing more than 100 counts of child sex abuse stemming from his work at his wife's one-time illegal daycare business. The legislation would allow, with court permission, for items such as cameras, cell phones and computers that are …
Saturday, January 26, 2013
Shana Rowan, executive director of USA Families Advocating an Intelligent Registry, provided this opinion piece in light of recent media coverage and legislative proposals surrounding the John Burbine case.
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Saturday, January 26
By now, all of Massachusetts and much of the country has heard about the gruesome allegations against John Burbine; a man accused of videotaping himself sexually abusing 13 young children. He’s also a Level 1 registered sex offender, which has understandably led lawmakers to respond with proposed legislation aimed at preventing such a crime from happening again. Unfortunately, as is often the case following high-profile child sex crimes, well-intentioned legislators respond with broad-brush proposals and political placebos that may make constituents feel good, but don’t actually do anything to protect the public. Because Burbine was classified as a low risk Level 1 offender, the knee jerk emotional response has been that there must …
Pat
7:34 am on Thursday, May 9, 2013
These changes are just going to cause more legal challenges to the registry more ›