NCJ Number
207000
Journal
Journal of Child Sexual Abuse Volume: 12 Issue: 3/4 Dated: 2003 Pages: 17-52
Date Published
2003
Length
36 pages
Annotation
This article reviews the literature on the backgrounds and effectiveness of two public policies toward sex offenders: involuntary and indeterminate civil commitment for treatment following the completion of sentences, as well as mandatory registration of convicted sex offenders so law enforcement agencies and the public can be informed about where these offenders are living.
Abstract
In response to the 1989 abduction of 11-year-old Jacob Wetterling, the Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent Offender Registration Act was passed in 1994, creating sex offender registries in all 50 States. This law requires all sex offenders to register with local law enforcement agencies so that these agencies know where they live. Following the 1994 sexual assault and murder of 7-year-old Megan Kanka by a convicted sex offender who lured her into his New Jersey home, the New Jersey legislature passed the Nation's first community notification law, known as "Megan's Law." In 1996, President Clinton signed the Federal version of Megan's law, which requires all States to implement community notification as part of the sex offender registration requirements specified in the 1994 Wetterling Act. Although the literature on community notification laws is voluminous, most of it addresses related legal issues; few of the publications provide empirical evidence regarding the effectiveness of these laws in reducing or preventing sexual assault. Similarly, evidence is lacking on which types of notification strategies may be most effective in preventing sex offenses. In 1990, Washington State enacted the Nation's first "second generation" sexual predator commitment statute in response to the circumstance of a sex offender with a 24-year history of murder and sexual assaults. Washington's 1990 Community Protection Act provides for increased penalties and stricter postrelease supervision of sex offenders. This legislation contained the Sexually Violent Predator Statute, which allows for the involuntary and indefinite civil commitment of a convicted sexually violent offender following incarceration. This article discusses court decisions, costs, and the impact of this type of statute. 84 references