A convicted serial child rapist in Massachusetts who was set to be released from state custody despite protests from his victims faced a judge Wednesday morning after he was accused of exposing himself in prison.
A not guilty plea was entered on behalf of Wayne Chapman during his brief appearance inside Ayer District Court, where a judge ordered him to be held without bail pending his next hearing later this month.
Chapman, 70, was arrested by Massachusetts Department of Corrections officers at MCI Shirley on Wednesday for incidents that allegedly happened on June 3 and June 4.
He was arraigned on charges of indecent exposure, lewd, wanton and lascivious acts, and open and gross lewdness and lascivious behavior.
He will remain in DOC's custody pending his next hearing, which is slated for June 27.
A Chapman attorney had previously said that his client would be released as soon as housing could be secured. However, Chapman's new attorney for the Wednesday's allegations called the charges convenient.
Chapman was laying on his bed in his prison cell when exposing his genitals on June 3, and he was seen touching himself sexually in his cell the following day, all while in front of a nurse's station, according to court documents. A nurse reported she thought Chapman's alleged actions "were deliberate and she felt violated and disgusted by his behavior," the documents said.
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Convicted of raping two boys in Lawrence in 1977, Chapman had been approved for release after more than 40 years in state custody last month following a determination from two examiners that he was "no longer sexually dangerous," and a justice on Massachusetts' highest court denied a petition from victims to block his release earlier this week.
At a Wednesday afternoon news conference, lawyer Wendy Murphy, who represents some of the people victimized by Chapman, said she will continue her appeal with the Supreme Judicial Court to keep Chapman in jail.
"It's our understanding that he (Chapman) is going to seek to be released on personal recognizance, or could, on June 27," Murphy said. "So we're going to continue to pursue our appeal because if that were to happen we want to have another way of holding him."
Murphy introduced R.D., one of the Lawrence, Massachusetts, boys who was raped by Chapman in 1977 when he was 11-years-old. R.D. shared his reaction when he got word of the Chapman news.
"This morning's news was good news for me today," he said. "People like Wayne Chapman should never be able to get out of jail. They need to be incarcerated until they can no longer offend. Who knows when that is? Obviously, he can still offend.
In a statement, Murphy said victims were "relieved and very emotional," including one who sobbed upon learning he faced new charges.
"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 to so hard to prevent his release," Wendy Murphy said. "This is not a frail man with a walker. This is a dangerous man with no conscience -- who used knives, rope, and duct tape on his child victims, and boasted about feeling pleasure in their pain."
Meanwhile, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker announced his office had filed legislation to increase penalties for child rapists and require more stringent reviews for sex offenders before being released by the court system.
Chapman lured as many as 50 young boys into the woods over a 10-year span by pretending he was searching for a missing dog and then sexually assaulted them, according to court documents.
He is also a suspect in the 1976 disappearance of Andy Puglisi, a 10-year-old Lawrence boy who was never seen again after heading to a pool.
One of Chapman's victims in 1977 described to reporters on Monday how his life had changed forever after he was raped by Chapman when he was 11.
"That day, I was introduced to fear, pain, anger, resentment, guilt, shame," the man, who was only introduced as Steve, said. "I was given a life sentence that day, and I think the offender should be given the same."
