Contextualizing Sex Offender Management Legislation and Policy: Evaluating the Problem of Latent Consequences in Community Notification Laws

Abstract

Sexual victimization has become one of the most publicized and researched social problems in society. However, potential linkages between the intended and unintended effects of sex offender management legislation have gone largely unaddressed in social science literature. This article addresses these linkages by applying a social-systems model to help better understand the problems of managing sex offenders. Additionally, latent consequences of current and proposed sex offender legislation, including community notification laws, are examined. It is argued that sex offenders (and the community at large) may face a considerable variety of problems not intended by such legislation. In addition, we examine the “one-dimensional monster” stereotype of a sex offender and how this ostracism may discourage offenders from reporting their behavior and seeking counseling. Finally, we provide proposals for addressing these issues with the use of the therapeutic jurisprudence model.

Vetting Sexual Offenders: State Over-Extension, the Punishment Deficit and the Failure to Manage Risk

“…The scope of the new regulatory framework on vetting may have a negative and detrimental impact on how sex offenders are perceived by the wider public and ultimately their reintegration. The public shaming of a person as a sex offender may perpetuate a cycle of stigmatization, ostracism and ultimately re-offending behaviour (Edwards and Hensley, 2001;McAlinden, 2005). The pilot schemes to allow parents to check the criminal records of those with unsupervised contact with their children, referred to above, are tantamount to community notification and may compound these problems.…”

Legal and criminal law protection of children from sexual violence: Proposals de Lege Ferenda

“…Ipak, sa razvojem tehnologija i internet mreže, postojeće modele potisnuli su savremeniji. Konkretnije, posebno mesto u obaveštavanju javnosti danas zauzimaju sajtovi nacionalnih agencija, na kojima se uz odgovarajuće mape područja mogu pronaći prebavilišta seksualnih delinkvenata, kao i podaci o krivičnim delima koja su poči-nili (California Department of Justice, 2011 5 ). "The Sex Offender Tracking Program", pri Ministarstvu pravde u državi Kaliforniji, predviđa da se podaci dostupni na internet-sajtovima ažuriraju svakodnevno, a prema informacijama dobijenim od nadležnih policijskih službi (California Department of Justice, 2011).…”

Do Sex Offender Registration and Notification Laws Affect Criminal Behavior?

“…Moreover, some researchers have proposed that the negative consequences of notification may cause RSOs to commit more crime (Freeman-Longo (1996), Prentky (1996), Winick (1998), Presser andGunnison (1999), Edwards andHensley (2001)). In the context of our model, punishment (f i ) would stay constant for RSOs (or perhaps rise slightly), while the relative utility of criminal behavior (u i ) would rise.…”