NCJ Number
94021
Date Published
Unknown
Length
0 pages
Annotation
States are revising sex offender statutes and not guilty by reason of insanity (NGRI) laws because of public outcry at the tragedies that have resulted from following these inadequate laws.
Abstract
For over 40 years, sex offenders were treated in State mental hospitals for mental illness, but now psychiatrists view these persons as having a character disorder which is not really curable. California repealed sex offender statutes after a notorious sex offender was released from a State mental hospital and subsequently molested several young girls, killing one of them. NGRI statutes allow persons who were found, at the time of the crime, to be in a mental state that did not let them control their actions, to be placed in State mental hospitals instead of prison. Unfortunately, these patients are often released into the community when the hospital review board of psychiatrist decides they are 'cured.' However, these patients require ongoing medication and followup treatment, and they usually have neither. Without medication, they return to their former dangerous mental state and behave violently. Several case histories illustrate tragedies that probably could have been averted. Oregon has abolished NGRI and set up a Psychiatric Security Review Board, which is responsible for deciding who can return to the community and under what conditions. It may grant conditional releases, in which people remain under supervision while living in the community and receiving ongoing treatment. Sometimes, this conditional release is for life. Conditional release is one mechanism for allowing patients to be socially reintegrated without jeopardizing public safety. In conclusion, the program notes that forensic psychiatrists need to develop their own guidelines for courtroom testimony and NGRI.