SALEM, Mass. — Convicted child rapist Wayne Chapman has filed a petition with Essex Superior Court and the Department of Correction to review his status as a sexually dangerous person.
The Dec. 4 filing paves the way for a hearing to determine if Chapman still would be a danger to children if he were released.
Chapman's attorney, Neil Brafman of Brockton, refused to comment.
Chapman, 61, is permitted by law to file annually for a review of his status. The last review on his status as a sexually dangerous person ended with a jury deciding unanimously, in October, against letting him go.
He remains at the Massachusetts Treatment Center in Bridgewater, where he has been held since 2004, after he served a 30-year sentence for raping two Lawrence boys in 1975 in a wooded area near an exit ramp off Interstate 495.
He continues to be held after his sentence because state law allows for the continued incarceration of people deemed dangerous under what's known as a civil commitment.
Chapman has admitted to raping 50 to 100 boys, and has been charged or convicted on a number of other child-sex cases in different states.
Prosecutors claim that Chapman has a high chance of re-offending, while his defense attorneys have portrayed him as a frail, old man in a wheelchair.
According to Diane Wesson at the Department of Correction, Chapman filed a Section 9 annual petition for discharge on Dec. 4 in Essex Superior Court in Salem. She said no hearing has been scheduled.
