Judge Thomas P. Billings wrote in his decision that the state's sexual offender notification law does not specifically allow for the Internet postings.
The ruling can be appealed, but Gov. Mitt Romney said it is more likely he will file legislation to expand the law to include Internet postings.
"I fundamentally think that the citizens of Massachusetts deserve to have the names and faces of people who are dangerous sex predators available to them so we can protect our children and we can protect our families," Romney said Wednesday.
A representative of the Committee for Public Counsel Services, which opposes the online postings, was not immediately available for comment.
The photographs of about 350 Level 3 Massachusetts sex offenders were scheduled to be posted online May 15 under an expansion of the state's version of Megan's Law. Lawyers for the sex offenders requested and were granted a temporary restraining order earlier this month delaying its implementation.
Level 3 sex offenders are described under state law as people who are at high risk to offend again and who are considered a danger to the public.
Under the law, citizens could access photos, names, home and work addresses of high-risk sexual offenders who live or work in their community, as well as the crime for which they were convicted.
Detailed information on Level 3 sex offenders is still available to the public by visiting local police departments. Information about sexual offenders is available online in 34 states.
The judge wrote in his decision that the law does not specifically allow for dissemination of the information over the Internet.
"The act's omission of any mention of Internet dissemination, and it's careful delineations of the permitted methods of public inquiry, bespeak a Legislative intention to stop short of full disclosure to anyone in the world with an Internet connection," the decision said. "The proposed Web site would go beyond what the Legislature has authorized."
The judge also noted that in other states information gleaned from online sex offender registries has been misused.
Civil libertarians and defense attorneys have opposed "Megan's laws," arguing they deny individuals the right to clear their name after serving their sentences. The laws were named after Megan Kanka, a 7-year-old New Jersey girl raped and killed in 1994 by a convicted sex criminal who lived in her neighborhood.
Massachusetts' version of Megan's law was thrown out in 1999 by a Superior Court judge who said the state must grant each sex offender an individual hearing before forcing them to reveal personal information.
The state's highest court reversed a portion of that two years later, saying individuals convicted of sexual offenses could be required to provide their names and addresses to the registry without a hearing.
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