Minutes from 5/9/16 Meeting

Special Commission to Reduce the Recidivism of Sex Offenders
May 9, 2-16, 9:30-11:30 am
One Ashburton Place, 21^st Floor Conference Room, Boston, MA 02133

Meeting Minutes

Materials provided or presented at Commission Meeting:

5/9/16 Meeting Agenda

Chairman Brodeur’s Amendment to the Introduction

4/4/16 Draft Meeting Minutes

Actuarial Working Group’s Alternative Introduction

Commissioners Present:

Co-Chair William N. Brownsberger, State Senator

Co-Chair Paul Brodeur, State Representative

Evandro Carvalho, State Representative (present for middle of meeting)

Robyn Kennedy, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Children, Youth, and Families

Larni Levy, Esq., Committee for Public Counsel Services

Nancy Connolly, Psy.D., Program Director, Mentally Ill/Problematic Sexual Behavior, Program of the Department of Mental Health

Raymond Knight, Ph.D., Gryzmish Professor of Human Relations, Department of Psychology, Brandeis University

Laurie L. Guidry, Psy.D., President, Center for Integrative Psychological Services, Inc., and President, Massachusetts Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers (joined by conference call)

Maureen Gallagher, Director of Policy, Jane Doe, Inc.

Kevin Hayden, Chair, Sex Offender Registry Board

District Attorney Marian Ryan (not present at beginning of meeting)

Robert Kinscherff, Ph.D., Esq.

Commissioners Absent:

Joan B. Lovely, State Senator (represented by non-voting designee, Grace Harrington)

Edward J. Dolan, Commissioner, MA Probation Service (represented by designee Brian Mirasolo)

Secretary Daniel J. Bennett (represented by designee David Solet)

_____________________________________________________________________

The Commission approved the draft minutes from the 4/4/16 meeting of the Special Commission to Reduce the Recidivism of Sex Offenders. Commissioner Kennedy asked that the record reflect that EOHHS’s vote not to extend the number of meetings from the previous meeting should not be construed as unwillingness to engage in future conversations and in fact they look forward to continued conversation. Chair Brownsberger indicated that that statement likely reflected the feelings of all Commissioners.

The following reflects the votes taken and decisions made by the Commission with respect to finalizing the Commission’s final report:

The Commission agreed to include the EOHHS statement on interagency cooperation in the final report.

Chair Brownsberger proposed that the Commission allow optional additional statements, not to exceed 500 words, to be submitted by Commissioners by close of business next Monday, for inclusion in the final report. This proposal was approved unanimously among all those present and voting.

Commissioners Bennett, Brownsberger, Brodeur, Connolly, Kennedy, Hayden, and Ryan voted to endorse the statement on actuarial risk assessments and data collection offered by SORB.

Commissioners Guidry, Kinscherff, Knight, Levy, and Gallagher joined the statement on actuarials offered by Commissioners Guidry, Kinscherff, Knight, and Levy.

Commissioners Guidry, Kinscherff, Knight, Levy, Gallagher, and Brownsberger joined the statement on assessment and disposition of special populations offered by Commissioners Guidry, Kinscherff, Knight, and Levy.

Commissioners Guidry, Kinscherff, Knight, Levy, and Gallagher joined the statement on data collection offered by Commissioners Guidry, Kinscherff, Knight, Levy, and Gallagher.

Commissioners Bennett, Carvalho, Gallagher, Ryan, Brownsberger, Brodeur, Kinscherff, Knight, Guidry, Dolan, Connolly, Kennedy, and Hayden (or their designees) voted to adopt Chair Brodeur’s proposed amendment to the introduction.

Commissioners Gallagher, Brownsberger, Kinscherff, Knight, Guidry, and Levy voted to endorse the Commission’s statement relative to sentencing.

Commissioners Gallagher, Brownsberger, Kinscherff, Knight, Guidry, and Levy voted to endorse the Commission’s statement relative to collateral consequences.

Commissioners Bennett, Carvalho, Gallagher, Ryan, Brownsberger, Brodeur, Kinscherff, Knight, Guidry, Levy, Connolly, Kennedy, and Hayden (or their designees) voted to endorse the Commission’s statement relative to prevention.

The Commission agreed that the introduction should be updated to reflect that not all Commissioners endorsed the Commission recommendations. The table of contents and introduction needed to be changed to reflect the addition of the EOHHS statement on interagency cooperation. The introduction also needed to be changed, the Commission decided, to indicate that the summaries of presentations did not necessarily reflect the views of the Commissioners, but rather the views each presenter.