Sex Offender Registration System

* To keep tabs on sex offenders, a web-based application has been developed that includes a database of registered sex offenders accessible to local police agencies

Finally, publically listing convicted sex offender’s name and other information can cause unnecessary trauma. Many citizens employ the sex offender registry list to obtain the address of an offender or his or her property. There have been many cases of

Sexual assault occurs every two minutes in the United States. Sexual violence against women is still endemic in the United States. Statistics show nearly one in five women have been sexually assaulted. Managing sex offenders is still an issue in the criminal justice system. Repeat offenders are extremely difficult to monitor. The national legislature monitoring system contains an absence of effective research in monitoring sex offenders. Sexual offender registration and notification Act (SORNA) operates in all the US states and territories. The objective is to monitor and track sex offenders by law enforcement. Also they provide information to the public and the communities about the offenders. For example, the National registry allows the public to be informed of a registered offender and their demographics.

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,

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.

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

What sparked this demand for stronger Registry Standards, was the kidnapping and death of Sierah Joughin a University of Toledo student. During this past summer a young woman was abducted while riding her bike. The young woman’s friends decided to check the states sex offenders’

This research paper will argue that based on the evidence we have available for sexual offenders and sex registries, our recent changes in the legislation, which was to add Bill C-26 having tougher sex registries implemented, is not going to change the effect of sex offending due to significant errors that arise within the system and the general problems associated with sex registries causing it to be extremely ineffective and defeating. To begin, by having a sex registry in place would mean that police corrections as well as the public would have access to information on a sex offender who has been released from prison and is living in their own home. “According to Bill C-26, this database would include information such as; offender’s name, physical description, a photo, past offences as well as criminal records, release conditions, and the city where the offender lives and resides” (Press Release 2, Newly Announced Proposed Changes, Government of Canada). Although at first glance and impression, this may seem as a positive strategy to have within communities, but after much thought and knowledge on the issue, there are an abundance of flaws in the system which result in an ineffective way to prevent future sex offences. The reasons why sex registries are not forceful are due to the following; sex registries violate the right and freedom of offenders who have been released from prison as well as bringing collateral harm to sex offenders, the recidivism rate for sex

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

When an individual commits a sex offense, and they have completed their sentence they most likely will seat before a board to determine the level of risk of re-offense and the degree of danger they pose to the public. Therefore, most states require such individuals to register as sex offenders and thereby, they have restrictions on society. For instance, they are not allowed to reside near a school, or daycare

I believe there should be a law requiring registration for convicted sex offenders. This includes the convicted sex offenders to check in with police when they move and submit details about their living arrangements. Law enforcement agencies with parole officers, mental health and medical professionals, and other applicable agencies should be working together to supervise convicted sex offenders. The registry should be mandatory and for official criminal justice purposes only.

They believe that the residency restriction laws “force former offenders into exile, and often into homelessness.” (“Sex Offender Issues”). Sexual offenders are forced to live far away from family members and friends, often times for small offenses or something they committed years ago. It should not matter how long ago one offended, the key word is that they did offend. Some say, “the registry is nothing more than a Scarlet Letter to put people to shame” ("US: Sex Offender Laws May Do More Harm Than Good."). The people who get put onto the registry have committed a terrible crime; they deserve the humiliation they may receive. Many claim that “we treat those on the registry list with disrespect and fear and this open information can put the offenders family in danger for ridicule and isolation as well.” ("IX. Residency Restriction Laws.") The family of an offender should be embarrassed by their son or daughter's behavior towards other human beings. Jamie Fellner, director of the US program at Human Rights Watch, says, “The public believes everyone on a sex offender registry is dangerous. But what’s the point of requiring registration by a teenager who exposed himself as a high-school prank or even by someone who molested a child 30 years ago?” ("US: Sex Offender Laws May Do More Harm Than Good."). Kids need to learn the severity to exposing themselves; being forced to sign up for the registry serves as the punishment, hopefully enabling more kids to stop and think before they act. Many argue that the registration poses an issue with the job market. It is extremely difficult for an offender on the registry to find a suitable job, no one wants an offender in their workplace and they don't want that bad publicity. It becomes difficult to oneself when one can not find a job and may have been just released from prison, therefore many

Megan’s Law created a registration and notification procedure to alert law enforcement, schools, community organizations and neighbors to the presence of a sex offender who authorities believe may pose a risk to the community ( Verniero 1) .When sex crime offenders are released from prison according to this new law, they must register themselves with the police. If they are thought to be dangerous and will possibly strike again, they must also register with the

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.