A Hamilton County man convicted more than 25 years ago of sex abuse in Kentucky and Ohio has won at least a temporary respite from law enforcement officials' demand that he register as a sex offender.

Chancellor Frank Brown extended a temporary restraining order prohibiting state and/or local officials from enforcing the Tennessee Sex Abuse Registry requirement in this case for 15 days, while he weighs the complicated legal arguments raised by the parties.

The Hamilton County man, who is identified only as "John Doe" in Chancery Court records, did not attend Tuesday's Chancery Court session to hear arguments in his lawsuit against Sheriff Jim Hammond and Detective Jimmy Clift, Tennessee Attorney General Robert Cooper and TBI Director Mark Gwyn.

"Obviously, his attending would defeat the whole purpose of this litigation," explained attorney Jerry Summers on behalf of the unnamed petitioner, who desperately wants to prevent the public from learning about his criminal history.

Attorney Summers said his client was convicted of misdemeanor sexual abuse in 1982 in Kentucky and of felony abuse shortly afterward in Ohio.

After serving his sentences, the man moved to Hamilton County in 1989 and has lived here - without being charged with any additional crimes - ever since, the attorney told Chancellor Brown.

"This is an exceptional case," Mr. Summers said, arguing that requiring his client to register now as a sex offender would result in a "media frenzy" and destroy the man's reputation as a law-abiding professional in the community.

"If this restraining order is lifted, his name is out," the attorney said. "Even if we prevail later on, it won't make any difference. It's kind of like we're going on a witch hunt."

But Tennessee Assistant Attorney General Ben Whitehouse, arguing for the state, said what would be unfair and inequitable would be to waive the enforcement of the state law in this one case.

"There are 17,850 people currently on the registry," the state attorney noted. "How is (Mr. Summers') client any more special than those 17,850?"

The state attorney said it is unclear at this point where the case should be tried, since Mr. Summers has raised a wide variety of legal arguments.

"We want to make sure we get this case in the right court, whatever court that is," General Whitehouse commented.

He agreed with a request by the Hamilton County Sheriff's Department that it be removed as a defendant, since questions regarding the constitutionality of the state statute are beyond the purview of local law enforcement.

Further, General Whitehouse said, if the sheriff's department is removed, then the case should be moved to Davidson County, which has jurisdiction over such constitutional challenges.

Chancellor Brown agreed to remove Detective Clift as a defendant, saying he is not a necessary party to the lawsuit. Sheriff Hammond, however, was not excluded.

The judge said he will file a memorandum of opinion on the issues raised by the attorneys in the near future. He indicated, however, that he does not expect the case to end there.

The state appeals court in Knoxville is "just up the road," he told the attorneys.