Jeremy Semprebon, a registered sex offender, was arrested on August 14, 2008 on five counts of “Prohibition from Child Care Services of Persons Convicted of Certain Offenses,” which are all felony charges.
Semprebon was working for a non-profit agency in New Hampshire called AIDS Response Seacoast where he was working as an education coordinator. Police say that he had access to minors at least two times this past spring as part of his job and he failed to let the agency know of his prior conviction; Semprebon was found guilty of aggravated rape against a 5-year old child in 1995.
New Hampshire’s Department of Health and Human Services is now reviewing its contract policies after learning of this incident. Three-fourths of Semprebon’s salary was paid by a grant issued to AIDS Response Seacoast through the DHHS. Because his job description was to educate adults about AIDS and HIV prevention, no background check was required.
Director of Public Health, Dr. Jose Montero, has stated, “We are reviewing the policy and trying to have a fair policy, but the fact that someone has something in their background doesn’t mean they shouldn’t have a job.”
As a result of the Semprebon incident, DHHS is now considering running background checks on applicants to reveal crimes or offenses applicable to the specific positions. Furthermore, AIDS Response Seacoast is now conducting background checks and has made their hiring practices stricter.
Police were able to identity Semprebon as a registered sex offender because of the business card he carried. However, that business card was not approved, nor issued by AIDS Response Seacoast.
Finally, AIDS Response Seacoast’s reputation is now in danger as it has been alleged that the agency discovered Semprebon’s sex offender status last fall, but did not tell its partners. Authorities do not know how many other non-profit agencies Semprebon had contact with, but they do know he worked with the Feminist Health Center in Greenland, New Hampshire.
Thankfully, it does not appear that any harm came to anyone connected with Semprebon. On the other hand, one quick, low cost background check could have saved a non-profit organization from negative publicity and a loss of reputation.
Semprebon’s sex offender status can be found here.
