SHIRLEY, MASS. (WHDH) - Convicted child rapist Wayne Chapman faced a judge Wednesday morning after he was arrested in prison on lewdness charges just days before he was set to be released.
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Chapman, 70, was arrested Wednesday morning by corrections officers and state troopers on charges of indecent exposure, lewd, wanton and lascivious acts and open and gross lewdness and lascivious behavior, according to a spokesman for the state’s Department of Correction.
His arrest stems from two alleged incidents at MCI-Shirley on June 3 and 4 during which he allegedly exposed himself and touched himself within full view of a nurse.
The nurse who said Chapman touched himself in front of her said she felt he was doing it deliberately and told police she felt “violated and disgusted by his behavior,” according to court documents.
Court documents show Chapman was laying in his cell with “no pants or underwear on” and “had to be told several times to cover up and stop.”
Chapman was arraigned on the new charges Wednesday in Ayer District Court. A not guilty plea was entered on his behalf and he is due back in court June 27.
Chapman, who was convicted in 1977, lured young boys into the woods by pretending he was searching for his missing dog and then sexually assaulted them, court records say. He was set to be released in the coming days after two experts who recently examined him concluded he was no longer dangerous and should be released.
Justice Scott Kafker of the Supreme Judicial Court said in a ruling earlier this week the proper requirements governing Chapman’s release were followed under the law.
Wendy Murphy, an attorney for victims, blasted the decision and filed another bid on Monday to block his release.
In a statement Tuesday, Murphy said she and the victim “are very pleased that Wayne Chapman will not be released.”
“I spoke with victims this morning. They were relieved and very emotional. One was sobbing,” Murphy said in a statement. “I am not surprised by this development. Chapman has committed other sex offenses while behind bars, including one as recently as this March involving the same conduct for which he was charged today — indecent exposure and lewd conduct. It boggles the mind that not one but two qualified examiners could find this man not sexually dangerous. The absurdity of their decisions is why we have been fighting so hard to prevent his release.”
Murphy went on to say, “Although Chapman will not be released, we will continue to press our appeal in the hope that the Supreme Judicial Court will take this opportunity to clarify it’s Johnstone decision from 2009, which gives qualified examiners far too much power to decide the fate of men like Wayne Chapman.”
A court document found Chapman had at least 50 victims, and Chapman has said he raped up to 100 children.
Chapman’s case has prompted Gov. Charlie Baker to file a new bill that would overhaul the process of releasing sexually dangerous individuals.
The bill would require a court hearing over whether a sexually dangerous person should be released. Current law requires an individual held under civil commitment be released when two qualified examiners determine the person is no longer sexually dangerous, even if other experts disagree.
“In some respects, I’m relieved that he seems to have committed additional crimes that will put him back in front of a courtroom,” Baker said. “Guys like this, they really shouldn’t be out.”
Chapman was ordered held without bail.
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