Teen Forced To Tell Parents Of Any Girl He Dates That He Is A Sex Offender

[matcom]

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The Public Defender's Office plans to ask the state Supreme Court to review the ruling. Spokesman Tom Rosenthal said, "We are concerned this may be adopted in other cases. We really don't want to see that happen."

It is a case that involves conflicting state policies. State law protects the confidentiality of juvenile delinquents in order to foster their rehabilitation. But since the 1994 rape and murder of Megan Kanka, the state has developed an elaborate system for warning schools and neighbors about sex offenders in their midst.

Those conflicting policies were evident in yesterday's appeals court ruling, which took pains to protect the anonymity of the teenage sex offender, identifying him only as "D.A." It did not disclose his home town, age or details of his offense. It revealed only that when he was sentenced on Feb. 26, 2004, he was given credit for 102 days spent in juvenile detention and ordered to have no unsupervised contact with children 10 or younger. All other records in the case are sealed.

But the opinion also recognized the goal of protecting the public.

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