News & Press

Court asked to commit ex-foster parent
Teens victims of sex offenses
By Gary V. Murray, Worcester Telegram & Gazette
April 27, 2007

WORCESTER— Prosecutors are asking that a former foster parent convicted of having sexual relations with teenage boys in his care be committed to the treatment center at Bridgewater State Hospital as a sexually dangerous person.

Ronald L. Hewitt, 62, of 270 Sunderland Road, could be committed for one day to life upon a judge or jury’s determination that he suffers from a mental abnormality or personality disorder that makes him likely to commit another crime of a sexual nature if not confined to a secure facility.

According to a petition for commitment filed in Worcester Superior Court by District Attorney Joseph D. Early Jr., Mr. Hewitt was found guilty in May 2003 of rape, indecent assault and battery, two counts each of disseminating obscene material to a minor and disseminating harmful material to a minor, indecent exposure and indecent behavior. The victims were three teenage boys who had been placed with Mr. Hewitt in 2001 in his capacity as a foster parent with the Safe Homes program.

Mr. Hewitt was placed on probation for 10 years. While on probation in 2005, Mr. Hewitt was charged with disseminating obscene material to a minor after meeting a 16-year-old boy at a Dunkin’ Donuts on Grafton Street and slipping the youth a note directing him to a Web site depicting teenage males in sexually explicit poses.

As a result of that charge, Mr. Hewitt was found in violation of the terms of his probation in Worcester Superior Court and was sentenced on Sept. 20, 2005, to 2 years in the House of Correction. On Dec. 19, 2005, he was sentenced to a consecutive 6-month jail term in Central District Court on the 2005 dissemination charge.

Accompanying the prosecution’s petition for commitment is a report by psychologist Mark Schaefer suggesting that Mr. Hewitt suffers from a deviant attraction to teenage boys and is sexually dangerous.

Judge C. Jeffrey Kinder found probable cause to believe that Mr. Hewitt is a sexually dangerous person after a hearing last week. Judge Kinder committed Mr. Hewitt to the Massachusetts Treatment Center for up to 60 days. Mr. Hewitt had been scheduled to be released from custody May 12. During the 60-day commitment, he is to be evaluated by two qualified examiners who will offer opinions on whether he is sexually dangerous.

Based on those opinions, the prosecution could either withdraw its petition for the civil commitment or request a trial to determine whether Mr. Hewitt is sexually dangerous.

Mr. Hewitt’s appointed lawyer, Bruce E. Hopper, argued against the temporary commitment of his client during the April 19 probable cause hearing. Mr. Hopper said Mr. Schafer’s assessment was incomplete because the psychologist did not interview Mr. Hewitt. Mr. Hopper also contended that Mr. Hewitt’s age and poor health made him less likely to re-offend.

Assistant District Attorney Matthew J. Mullaney said the evidence, including the fact that Mr. Hewitt committed a second offense while on probation, suggested he was likely to commit another sex crime if released into the community.