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Sex offenders registry term paper
Statistics on sexual offender registries
Sex offenders registry term paper
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Sex offenders have been a serious problem for our legal system at all levels, not to mention those who have been their victims. There are 43,000 inmates in prison for sexual offenses while each year in this country over 510,000 children are sexually assaulted(Oakes 99). The latter statistic, in its context, does not convey the severity of the situation. Each year 510,000 children have their childhood's destroyed, possibly on more than one occasion, and are faced with dealing with the assault for the rest of their lives. Sadly, many of those assaults are perpetrated by people who have already been through the correctional system only to victimize again. Sex offenders, as a class of criminals, are nine times more likely to repeat their crimes(Oakes 99). This presents a problem for the public, as potential victims, and the legal system which is entrusted by the public for protection. It would be irresponsible for the legal system to ignore the criminal class of sex offenders, for they are subject to a recurring physiological urge that requires the use of effective restraints that would curb the habitual repetition of episodes producing the harmful consequences to the public(Schopf 95). In light of this realization, steps beyond treatment have been taken to reduce the recidivism rate of sex offenders. Notification laws, special supervising techniques by parole officers, and both surgical and chemical castration are techniques used in various forms in this country and abroad with success. However, notification laws and both forms of castrations have not come about without criticism on constitutional grounds. Any criticism should take into account the extraordinary recidivism rates found only in the criminal class of the s... ... middle of paper ... ...Interpersonal Violence, Vol. 15. pp. 279-290 Martin, R. (1996). Pursuing Public Protection Through Mandatory Community Notification of Convicted Sex Offenders: The Trials and Tribulations of Megan's Law. The Boston Public Interest Law Journal, Vol. 6, Issue 29 Oakes, S. (1999). Megan's Law: Analysis on Whether it is Constitutional to Notify the Public of Sex Offenders Via the Internet. The John Marshal Journal of Computer and Information Law Sampson, E. (1999). Supervising Sex Offenders: Alternatives to Incarceration, Bethpage, Vol. 5, pp.6-7 Schopf, S. (1995). "Megan's Law": Community Notification and the Constitution. Columbia Universtiy School Journal of Law and Social Problems, 29 Seto, M. & Barbaree, H. (1999). Psychopathy, Treatment Behavior, and Sex Offender Recidivism. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, Vol. 14, pp.1235-1248
Witt, P., Greenfield, D., & Hiscox, S. (2008). Cognitive/behavioural approaches to the treatment adult sex offenders. Journal of Psychiatry & Law, 36(2), 245-269, retrieved from EBSCOhost
Megan's Law - Protection More Important than Privacy? In 1994, twice-convicted sex offender Jesse Timmendequas raped and murdered Megan Kanka, a seven-year old girl who lived across the street. In reaction to this emotionally-charged crime, Megan's home state of New Jersey ratified a community notification bill - dubbed "Megan's Law" - just three months later. This fall, a national version of the law went into effect, mandating that all fifty states notify citizens in writing of the presence of convicted sex offenders within their communities. Certainly, society has a responsibility to protect children from sexual offenders, and many feel that Megan's Law is the best course of action.
Sex offender notification laws have been among the most widely discussed and debated criminal justice policy issues in recent years. Numerous studies have been conducted on various views of sex offender notification laws. A vast majority of these studies have mixed research, some showing that sex offender notification laws are more beneficial than harmful and should continue, and others showing the exact opposite. Reasons such as public safety, the fear factor, and the hope for future recidivism to go down are some examples of why many believe that sex offender notification laws are beneficial to society. Others believe that such laws are a continuation of punishment for those who were convicted of a sex offense.
In the event that a prisoner (particularly a sex offender) does complete rehabilitation, he carries with him a stigma upon reentering society. People often fear living near a prior drug addict or convicted murderer and the sensational media hype surrounding released felons can ruin a newly released convict’s life before it beings. What with resident notifications, media scare tactics and general concern for safety, a sex offender’s ability to readapt into society is severely hindered (554). This warrants life-skills rehabilitation applied to him useless, as he will be unable to even attempt to make the right decision regarding further crime opportunities.
It is typically thought that sex offenders are the type of individual that needs to be tried in our courts and then sentenced because there is really no hope for an individual that harms the most innocent of our society. But there just may be an exception to this way of thinking. Juveniles who at one point themselves may have been victims, and as they have grown into adolescence not knowing why they are thinking the way they are, turn around and abuse others. Then what happens is that these adolescents once found out, are then tried in our courts as adults because in the mind of the court they are committing an adult crime. But there are alternatives for these juveniles that are being placed in our court system. Because at this stage in their development they are more receptive to treatment options and there are treatments available with valid research to substantiate them. Our judicial system just needs to recognize these options in order to try to lessen the amount of trauma inflicted on these already potentially traumatized individuals.
Many resources go into the prevention and management of sex offenders. However, very few effective programs exist that decrease the likelihood of reoffending. Through the use of meta-analyses, Seto and Lalumiere (2010) evaluated multiple studies that examined sex offenders. Emphasis was put on etiological explanations in the hopes of identifying factors associated with sex offending. Seto and Lalumiere’s (2010) findings help in creating effective programs to decrease recidivism rates.
Zilney, L. J., & Zilney, L. A. (2009). The Case of Megan Kanka. Perverts and predators: the making of sexual offending laws (p. 86-91). Lanham, Md.: Rowman & Littlefield.
The acceptance that the court system often treats female offenders differently than male offenders is an accurate statement; however, it comes with many caveats. Generally, the public views women as nurturers, motherly and incapable of harming a child. Research indicates that female sex offenders capable of committing such acts have serious psychiatric and psychological problems. In comparison, research indicates male sex offenders are more callous, more antisocial, and promiscuous, involved in the criminal justice system, and have more victims (Miccio-Fenseca, 2012, slide 7). The consensus is that men commit their acts for sexual pleasure while women commit their acts due to psychiatric and psychological problems. Law enforcement, juries, and judges tend to empathize more when there are additional mitigating factors such as emotional or psychological problems. Due to these mitigating factors, it appears treatment of female sex offenders is more lenient than male if their crimes are similar in nature. Research by Miccio-Fenseca (2012) indicates that in comparison to their male counterparts, “female sex offenders rarely use force or violence far less than often…rarely use threats of violence to silence victims…rarely use threats o...
The sex offender’s registry plays on parent’s emotional instincts to protect their children instead of really protect them. It gives parents a false sense of protection. The regis...
Rehabilitate, and develop, both of the utmost substance when observing the ways in which a sex offender registry are and
In the United States, as a condition of parole, sex offenders are typically required to register with law enforcement officials when released from prison. These officials notify the public of the offender’s release back into society and provide them with information such as the offenders address, and other personal information. Research indicates the notification system can have an adverse effect on the offender’s life, casting doubt on what the laws intended to protect the public. This paper will explore the background of sex offender registries, the relationship between the sex offender notifications and registration laws, and higher rates of recidivism in the United States. Introduction Sex offender legislation has become a controversial topic in the recent years.
In today’s society, juveniles that commit a sexual assault have become the subject of society. It’s become a problem in the United States due to the rise of sexual offenses committed by juveniles. The general public attitude towards sex offenders appears to be highly negative (Valliant, Furac, & Antonowicz, 1994). The public reactions in the past years have shaped policy on legal approaches to managing sexual offenses. The policies have included severe sentencing laws, sex offender registry, and civil commitment as a sexually violent predator (Quinn, Forsyth, & Mullen-Quinn, 2004). This is despite recidivism data suggesting that a relatively small group of juvenile offenders commit repeat sexual assaults after a response to their sexual offending (Righthand &Welch, 2004).
In the United States there are 747,000 registered sex offenders. (Snyder) While most sex offenders are male, sometimes sex offenses are committed by female offenders. Sex Offenders who are released from incarceration are required to register in the sex offender registry. The sex offender registry is a system in various states designed to let government authorities keep track of the residence and activities of sex offenders, including those who have completed their criminal sentences. (Wikipedia) Even if the offender has done their time they are still required by law to register, making it hard for the offenders to leave their past and return to everyday life. My paper will make you ask yourself should all sex offenders be required to register or are they deserving of a new path.
This law is named for a child named Megan, who was raped and murdered by her next-door neighbor. Megan’s parents did not know the person living right next door to them was a child sexual offender. They felt that knowing this information may have saved their daughter. In order to save other children, Megan’s family worked to have the addresses of child sexual offenders made public. The family decided to take political action and got a law passed stating that child sex offenders need to be on a sexual offender registry. This notification system is for the public and also lets the community know when an offender is being released and where the offender will be living. The family managed to make this a law in every state in the United States. The family worked in their home state to make a law and then worked to make it a federal law. Megan’s Law was passed in 1994. Two years later “the U.S Congress passed Megan’s Law as an amendment to the Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children’s Act.” (Charles Montaldo). The Jacob Wetterling Act of 1994 was similar to Megan’s Law, however, Jacob’s Act stated the registry was only for law enforcement. The Megan’s Law amendment that was added to the Jacob’s Act required that every state in the United States have a child sexual offender registry and a notification system that informed the community when a child sexual offender was being released into the
Two of the sex offenders from the Worley study reported that during Halloween they are told by law enforcement to not answer the door or have outside lights on. Also, local television networks broadcast their picture to warn others of their sex offender status. This then leads to much embarrassment and shame, having their picture televised every year (Worley, R. M., & Worley, V. B., 2013). Today, anyone with Internet access can view and search the sex offender registries and this leads to the direct violation of privacy of these sex offenders. Not only are they tormented but their family members are as well. Their children are bullied at school and their spouses may be forced to quit their jobs (“US: Sex Offender Laws May Do More Harm Than Good,” 2007) As discussed earlier, the sex offender faces harassment and abuse constantly when they are placed on the sex offender