Governor appoints sex offender advisory board
Gov. Martin O'Malley announced today the appointment of six members to the newly revived Sexual Offender Advisory Board, which had lain dormant since being established by law in 2006. Last week, he tapped former Attorney General J. Joseph Curran Jr. as the board chairman. Curran, who is O'Malley's father-in-law, has studied sex offender reforms for years and favors civil commitments for certain predators.
From O'Malley's statement on the appointees:
"The new members of the Board announced today have one thing in common: a strong desire to protect our most vulnerable citizens – our children," said Governor O’Malley. “I am confident that their combined knowledge, background and expertise, and their advocacy of our legislation to impose the strictest standards of supervision of sex offenders will help strengthen our efforts to ensure that Maryland’s children are protected.”
The six are (with brief bios from governor's office):
Michele J. Hughes, Victims Advocacy Group – Ms. Hughes serves as the Executive Director of the Life Crisis Center, a non-profit, 24-hour facility which provides comprehensive support services to victims and child victims of domestic violence, rape, and sexual assault on Maryland’s lower Eastern Shore.
Annette L. Hanson, M.D., Mental Disorders Expert– Dr. Hanson is a Board Certified psychiatrist at the Clifton T. Perkins Hospital Center, where she has worked since 1989.
Karla N. Smith, State’s Attorney – Ms. Smith is the Chief Attorney for the Family Violence Division of the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office, where she is responsible for the prosecution of all child abuse, domestic violence, vulnerable adult abuse, and physical elder abuse cases.
David Walsh-Little, Esquire, Criminal Defense – Mr. Walsh-Little is an Assistant Public Defender in the Felony Trial Division of Baltimore City.
Laura Estupian-Kane, Ph.D., Sex Offender Treatment Provider – Dr. Estupian-Kane, a licensed psychologist, holds her own private psychology practice focusing on the assessment of adolescents who have committed sexual offenses and/or are involved with the juvenile court system.
J. Patricia Wilson Smoot, Citizen – Ms. Smoot is currently the Deputy State’s Attorney for Prince George’s County and has served in that role since December 2002.
Comments
I think this board will do alot of persons greatly. I think its way overdue!
Posted by: margie | February 1, 2010 5:24 PM
Why not include Mike Miller's son to the board?
He has to be qualified for something to do here in Maryland to keep his daddy happy.
That's right Owe Malley already made him a judge.
And hardly a peep from THE SUN.
Posted by: jay | February 1, 2010 6:03 PM
That blue ribbon advusory board is stack with people who do not care about the victims or their families, especially Mr Curran. Nothing but lawyers and special interest psychobabblers who want to let sexual prediators out to terrorize the people. The already blew it when they let out several prediators before the kill several other child over the last couple of years. All we are going to get is a lot of rhetoric and not substance. O'Malley politics at its best.
Posted by: Robert | February 1, 2010 6:05 PM
Puke..I mean Puh-leese. Joseph Curran, the father in law..pathetic. Mike Miller's little boy for a judge.
Didn't Burris the senator from Illinois get chastised for selling his soul for a seat?
O'Murder and Urhlich are weasel's. People can we PLEASE REVOLT and stop voting for this trash.
Tell me who on the board is a regular joe who has or had a day to day interaction; passion about this issue?
NONE.. We condone the rape of children in America...and this board won't do much to change that.
Oh, they might ask each of us to take a child rapist home for love and nurturing..rather than put the daddy's, mommie's, uncles, teachers in jail and let justice REALLY have at them....
Are you not SICK of these political scum bags???
If not, then you deserve just the government you have allowed..I don't deserve them.
Posted by: G. Basimane | February 1, 2010 6:45 PM
I don't care what Curran has studied. He is another that has no use for the US Constitution. He should be nowhere near this issue.
See "A Farewell To Arms"
http://openlibrary.org/b/OL6832414M/farewell_to_arms
Posted by: Voters Ignorance | February 1, 2010 7:49 PM
So after blaming the former chair of the advisory board, after blaming the legislature and after blaming the newspaper for bringing it up, Gov-asleep-at-the-switch finally decided to do his job? I suppose better late than never, but this was truly a tragedy that O'Malley abdicated his responsibility and then spent two weeks blaming everyone else. But hey, we elected this partisan wannabe rockstar.
Posted by: Johnathan | February 1, 2010 11:46 PM
One 'type' never represented on these panels are the falsely accused/ wrongfully convicted.
NOBODY appreciates the Constitution, or due process rights like a person who went to prison for something they didn't do.
Plenty of people have been exonerated by DNA. Allow one on your panel. They know what 'fair and balanced' is all about.
Posted by: SgtMom | February 2, 2010 11:00 AM
I find it funny that the state and many of you do not get it the word sex offender does not = child molester. This state has spent millions on the sex offender registry, only to find out that all the studies todate show that over 95% of those arrested for sexual assault have never been arrested before for anything. And that 90% of those who are sexualy assaulted, know the offender very well and in over 50% of the cases are related to them. Sex Offender registrys should only list those who are the most likely to reoffend, this is can be found out though testing that is avaliable today.
Posted by: Tim P | February 2, 2010 11:33 AM
MOST men (usually) who are on the registry now are not dangerous pedophiles !!
Most who are on there SHOULD NOT be on there but because of the hysteria brought about by unscrupulous politiicans, drama-driven news and nutcase obsessive people have brought about laws so that now we have these as the majority on the registry: Romeo-Juliets (19yr. old boyfriend w/ 15 or 16 yr. old very willing girlfriends, guys caught urinating in public (gasp !!!!), streakers, tons of boys and men who downloaded porn ...."child" porn (which means it USUALLY had a 14 or 15 yr. old POST PUBESCENT in there and would most men question the age or CARE?? but yet they never had sex with underage girls,etc. and then even if they are sleazebags, men who get caught having sex with a teen prositute who lied about her age to him and the cops (lots of these)....****, yes. Dangerous-unlikely.
Little distinctions have been made about these people and MOST of the level 3's became level 3s not because they are truly dangerous but because of the fact that the judges had their ability to make distinctions in these kinds of cases taken out of their hands and the states attorneys had a field day to look ''TOUGH ON CRIME"...so now many of these not dangerous people can't get jobs, have to move from their homes, lose their families,etc.etc.etc. and are on the public whipping-shame post forever in many cases..people who are NO DANGEROUS.
But with the BLOATED REGISTRY, I bet the Garrido's out there love it...
Posted by: patricia w | October 4, 2010 8:38 PM