NCJ Number
219275
Journal
Criminal Justice Policy Review Volume: 18 Issue: 2 Dated: June 2007 Pages: 168-199
Date Published
June 2007
Length
32 pages
Annotation
This literature review analyzes the history of current sexual offender policies, their development, and their implementation.
Abstract
The literature review reveals that the development and implementation of sexual offender policies did not appear to be based on sound scientific evidence of their effectiveness. Indeed, the scant research literature that had evaluated sexual offender policies suggests that the policies do not achieve their stated goals of preventing sex crimes, protecting children, and safeguarding the community. It appears, in fact, that many of the sexual offender policies developed and implemented in recent years have been based largely on myths and misconceptions regarding sexual offenders rather than on facts. The authors make recommendations for more effective legislative measures, such as enlisting the media to inform the public of evidence-based information regarding sexual offenders, requiring the use of evidence-based risk assessment measures to identify high-risk offenders, and effective resource planning that reserves the most restrictions and interventions for the most dangerous offenders. The literature review and analysis focus on the effectiveness of the most common sexual offender restrictions, including community notification, residence restrictions, civil commitment, and electronic monitoring. Future research should focus on the unintended consequences of community protection policies on sexual offenders, their victims, and society. Tables, references