HAVERHILL, Mass. — The son of the local city council president charged with rape received permission Monday from a juvenile court judge to visit two out-of-state colleges for orientation sessions even though he has yet to be tried.

Juvenile Judge Jose Sanchez approved the request on the legal principle that John S. Michitson, 17, is presumed innocent until proven guilty. His father, John Michitson, is a longtime member of the city council.

Defense attorney William Korman told the judge at a pretrial hearing the teenager’s father will accompany him to the orientations. The judge said the younger Michitson must continue to wear a GPS monitoring device and be with a parent at all times.

Michitson was indicted Dec. 1 by an Essex County grand jury on three counts of rape and one count of strangulation or suffocation. He was arraigned on the charges in juvenile court on Feb. 6.

The elder Michitson and his wife were in the courtroom, just behind their son, during Monday’s court proceeding.

College orientation sessions are conducted for prospective students. The names of the colleges the younger Michitson plans to visit were not disclosed.

Haverhill is a former mill city of 62,000 located 35 miles north of Boston.

Details for this story were provided by The Eagle-Tribune, North Andover, Mass.