Sex Crime Essay

The sex offender’s orders were brought in to tackle the people that were deemed sex predators,

There have been many federal acts passed in correspondence with sex offenses that illicit feat with the public. There are many different types of ways in which Levenson & colleagues’ (2007) describes the perceptions that the public has based on certain factors. For instance, in relation to the perception about the sex offender notification system, a survey produced results of around 80 percent in favor of these registries, because these individuals felt safer in their communities knowing who was in their neighborhood. Further, due to this fear that resonated in the early 1990’s communities do have tools such as residential restrictions, civil commitment, notification procedures, etc. that aid in the protection. However, there are myths associated with sex offenders, for example legislation often states that the reasoning for new laws and regulations is due to the high recidivism rates. However, sex offenders have significantly lower recidivism rates than believed. Also, there are countless people who do not believe that sex offenders can be assisted with techniques from a psychological standpoint. Most people think that these offenders cannot be treated, however, there is research being conducted that is promising. Finally, there is a common misconception that sex offenders kill their victims, especially children more often than other killers, however this is not true.

Each state also has its own sex offender registration, which requires any individual convicted of sex offense to be officially registered as a sex offender in the state in which they live, this registration includes the documentation of the perpetrator 's name, address, and information regarding the crime. The opinion of the judge greatly affects how the sex offender is punished, which is the main issue concerning the punishment of these offenders because the judge could have a strong opinion about sexual assault in favor of either the victim or the criminal.

California enacted the first sex offender register law in 1944. However, sex offender registers in the United States did not become widespread until the 1990s. The Jacob Wetterling Act 1994 was named after 11-year-old Jacob Wetterling who was abducted and to this day has never been found. The Jacob Wetterling Act implemented the first nation-wide sex offender register. Originally, the concept of a sex offender register was intended to for use solely by law enforcement; it was not an intention for the sex offender register to be public. However in 1996, Megan’s Law was added to the Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent Offender Registration Act 1994 and made it a requirement for the information on sex offender registers to be accessible by the public. Megan’s Law was enacted as a result of a heinous crime where 7-year-old Megan Kanka was raped and murdered by her neighbour, who had two previous convictions for sexually assaulting young girls. In 2006, Congress passed the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act. This Act required states to enact stricter registration requirements, including an increase in the penalty for not registering and more frequent verification of sex offenders’ locations. Since 2006 public access to sex offender registers has been accessible on the Internet in most states. On these websites you can search for an offender by name or location, and find information such as their photo, convictions, address,

When we hear the phrase, sex offender, we normally feel repulsed. We think of dirty old creepy men. I for one used to do this, I won’t lie. This is because people like to rush to judgment. But my opinions changed when I came to the realization that it’s not just creepy old men who are sex offenders. I want to talk about them, but not those who are serial rapists or child molesters; they don’t deserve to be talked about. I’m talking about people who are convicted, whether it’s falsely, or unjustly, and have to wear a stamp on their forehead for the rest of their lives saying they are a sex offender.

In comparison with other statutes, states such as Illinois, Kansas, New Jersey, Arizona and many others have statutes that authorize the confinement and treatment of sex offenders upon their release from prison (Lieb, 1996). For instance, Illinois Sexually Violent Predator Law defines a sexually dangerous person as “someome suffering from a mental disorder continually for at least one year, coupled with criminal propensities to the commisition of sex offenses, and who has demostrated propensities toward acts of sexual assault or acts of sexual molestation of children.” (Lieb, 1996, p. 16). Unlike Washington State, Illinois requires the individual to have at least one year of displaying a mental disorder. Illinois also has the option of either sentencing the individual for the crime committed, or offer treatment under the Civil Commitment Statute (Lieb, 1996). Unlike Illinois, Washington punishes the individual first and upon release he/she is evaluated to see if the individual fits under the category of a sexually violent predator. The state of Illinois appoints two qualified psychiatrists to determine whether the individual meets the criteria to be placed under civil commitment (Libel, 1996).

To qualify as a persistent sex offender, an offender must have two separate convictions of specified sex offenses. The offenses qualifying as sexual strikes are listed in Rev. Code Wash. Sec. 9.94A.030 and include first and second degree rape as well as several additional crimes, such as assault or burglary, when there has been a finding that the crime was sexually motivated. In the 2008 session, the legislature passed SB 6184, which expanded the crimes that invoked the life imprisonment penalty to include any felony crime conviction in another state where there had been a finding of sexual motivation, if the minimum sentence imposed was 10 years or more. (McCarthy, 2009) One thing that separates Washington’s law apart from other states is the fact that neither judges nor prosecutors can choose to suppress other serious convictions, as a means to avoid the life without parole sentence. The only exception to this law would be if the Governor signs a pardon or grants the criminal

"Sexual offenders will remain on the registry for a period of ten (10) years and shall receive a verification form each year on the anniversary of their initial registration. Sexual predators are required to verify their information every 90 days and remain on the registry for life. As of July 1, 1999, sexual offenders who have more than one prior conviction for an offense listed in O.C.G.A. § 42-1-12, or who have been convicted of an aggravated offense such as aggravated child molestation, will remain on the registry for life and shall receive a verification form each year on the anniversary of their initial registration." http://services.georgia.gov/gbi/gbisor/disclaim.html

Juvenile sex offenders as defined by Meredith Nelson of Lousiana State University“ youth ranging from puberty to the age of legal majority who commits any sexual interaction with a person of any age against the victim’s will, without consent or in an aggressive, exploitative, or threatening manner”. The juvenile sex offenders are also said to be one of a kind and very different from other delinquent and non-delinquent juveniles. Average juvenile sex

1. Subsection (1) provides registration requires persons convicted of a sex crime under either federal or state law to register.

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

The number of registered sex offenders have increasingly grew over the years. Every day you see a man or women added to the registry for crimes against women and mostly children. The sex offender registries biggest and main focus is to keep the people in the community in each city and state informed and protected. ”Sex offenders and sex crimes provoke a great deal of anxiety in our society.” Baker, J, Brannon, Y, N., Fortney. , Levenson, J.S. (“Public Perceptions about Sex Offenders and Community Protection”). The sex offender registry is based solely on protecting the public from being a victim

community. The sex crime offenders have only three days when they move into a community to register with the police, or they are considered to be breaking the law and will be arrested (Reno 2).

Stories of sex offenders have been increasingly a focus of attention by the criminal justice system over the past years. By legal definition, a sex offender “is a person who is convicted of a sexual offense (Sex Offender Law & Legal Definition),” an act which is prohibited by the jurisdiction. What constitutes as a sex offense or normal/abnormal sexual behavior varies over time and place, meaning that it also varies by legal jurisdiction and culture. In the United States of America, for example, a person can be convicted of wide range of sexual behavior that includes prostitution, incest, sex with a minor, rape, and other sex offenses (Sex Offender Law & Legal Definition). As the nature of sex crimes have long held the

When working with this specific population mental health professionals are often called on to evaluate and manage sex offender’s behavior. There are also times when individuals may be asked to give an opinion as to if the offender will repeat the behavior. Often times people that work with this population are referred to as (SOSs) Sex Offender Specialists. They have a specific group of diverse training and background. Some of these trainings incIude but are not limited to cognitive-behavioral, psychopharmacological, and therapeutic orientations.