Sex offender registry board a 'public safety failure,' state auditor says

BOSTON — Hundreds of sex offenders are unaccounted for in Massachusetts, a recent audit of the Sex Offender Registry Board has found.

The state’s auditor on Beacon hill Tuesday, calling for more oversight after an alarming report.

More than 1,700 sex offenders are living in the shadows in Massachusetts, according to the audit.

At an oversight hearing, State Auditor Suzanne Bump placed the blame squarely on the state’s board.

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“It is not simply a story of a bureaucratic deficiency, it is a public safety failure,” Bump said.

Bump testified the SORB doesn't cross check with other state agencies for addresses. She says if they did, they would've located 39 unaccounted for offenders who her staff were able to easily track down.

“They do not see as urgently as we do a need to affirmatively go out and seek information,” Bump said after the hearing Tuesday.

But the secretary of the executive office of public safety, which oversees SORD, says it's not an investigative agency. He says that's the job of law enforcement.

“SORB doesn't have any investigative function,” Secretary Daniel Bennett said. “You know what I need from SORB? I need a sheet -- SORB is the keeper of the records.”

Secretary Bennett also says rulings from the state's highest court prevented SORB from classifying 842 sex offenders because of notification rules. While another SJC ruling allowed 500 offenders to be removed off the public lists while awaiting new classification hearings.

Still, lawmakers called for systemic changes Tuesday. One even called for the ability to freeze a sex offender's assets until he or she registers.

The state auditor will likely ask the registry board to follow-up in six months with any changes it has made.

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