SWAMPSCOTT, Mass. — A ruling by Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court that raised the legal standard to classify sex offenders has caused many names to be removed from the sex offender registry.
While many await to be reclassified, level 2 and 3 offenders are no longer on the public website.
Such is the case of Giovanni Rossi of Swampscott, a convicted sex offender who allegedly assaulted a woman after posting an ad to Craigslist for an apartment rental last week.
According to police, a woman came by his apartment on Humphrey St. Wednesday night. After they had a few drinks, police say Rossi violently assaulted her.
Sgt. Tim Cassidy from the Swampscott Police Department says she was "struck on the head, her shirt was ripped" and that she was hit on the temples.
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Last August, the state claimed the names of 300 sex offenders had been removed from the public website and were still awaiting hearings for reclassifications.
Swampscott Police say Rossi had actually admitted to them he was a sex offender prior to allegedly committing this crime. According to court documents, he had walked into the police department and told them he was awaiting his reclassification weeks before.
It has been nearly a year and a half since the reclassification and Rossi's hearing isn't scheduled until next month.
The state told Boston 25 News the reason for the hold-up was due to the "sheer number of hearings," despite having "added staff" to try and speed up the process.
However, in the meantime, it's frustrating for both the general public as well as police to suffer with the lack of information.
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"Well obviously people need to know if people are sex offenders, so it certainly makes our job a little more difficult," says Sgt. Cassidy.
The state has not yet provided an updated list on how many names are still awaiting hearings.