Sex Offender Registration and Recidivism - Essay Example

?Sex offender registration and recidivism   Introduction  Convicted sex offenders’ registers have been public for almost a decade in the judiciary ofthe United States. The quandary of sexual violence and related offending is a national legislative precedence as confirmed by frequent sex offender-specific policies endorsed at the federal settings in recent years. Its authenticity, need and transparency have paved the way for serious debates about the dangers of sex offender pretence to society and the rights and wrongs of making their profiles known to the public. Sex offender registration is a system that is being practiced in various nations like Canada, England and the United States. The document allows the government authorities and local bodies to gather information about the residence, affairs and social backgrounds of the offenders. Registration and notification of convicted sex offenders always require public involvement and this paper seeks to explore the extent to which sex offender registration contributes to or reduces recidivism.  The concept of sex offender registration and notification has been practiced in the American community since the end of 1900s. Research professionals have noted that scarcity of valuable information about the history of sex offender registration in the United States affect their studies. As Richard Gordon Wrights observes, “despite of this lack of information, States began re- embracing the notion of sex offender registration in the 1890s” (Wright, 2009, p. 212).  In 1994 certain states including Florida demanded convicted sex offenders to document their addresses with regional law enforcement agencies. After this the Congress passed the Jacob Wetterling Crimes against Children and Sexually Violent Offender Act. The law is considered as the most significant step in the history of sex offender registration in the United States. The Congress passed the Jacob Wetterling Crimes Against Children and Sexually Violent Offender Act as there was an increased ‘recognition of the severity of this problem’ among various American communities (Sex-Offenders: History, 2011). One can easily comprehend from a detailed analysis about the legal procedures in the United States that the Federal government had played a vital role in making sex offender registration policies. As per the instructions of The Jacob Wetterling Act all states introduced various policies to develop and maintain sex offenders register. In this respect, Elizabeth J. Letourneau et al point out that “the Pam Lychner Sexual Offender Tracking and Identification Act of 1996 required the development of a nationwide registry to prevent offenders from escaping registration requirements by moving from state to state” (Letourneau, Levenson, Bandyopadhyay, Sinha & Armstrong, 2010). From its initial stages all these registration laws are referred to as “Megan’s Laws” in the United States in mark of respect to a child victim, Megan Kankla: “these laws have typically been refereed to as “Megan’s Laws” in the United States  in tribute  to a child victim,, Megan Kankla who,  was kid napped, raped and murdered” (Hanser, 2009, p. 169). During the initial stages the making and maintaining of sex offender registrations were mainly concentrated to prevent sexual offences in the society and then it deviated to other areas of judiciary. It is highly remarkable that there is a gradual growth in the process of registering and notifying the information of convicted sex offenders in the United States in recent years. Government can ensure transparency and public involvement in legal procedure. Current status of sex offender register reveals its importance in society. The report submitted to the California Legislature in 2002 underlines the growing status of sex offender registration. The report states that “currently, about half of our state’s law enforcement agencies notify residents, schools, or businesses of nearby high risk or serious sex offenders or make the information available to the public” (Lockyer, 2002). Consequences Currently there are more than a half a million registered convicted sex offenders in the United States. Making and maintaining of convicted sex offenders register with the community paves the way for both positive and negative consequences. The journal article Sex Offender Registration and Notification observes that in “the few studies examining the effectiveness of sex offender registration and notification, mixed results were found” (Harris & Pettway, 2007, p. 4). Millions of people have taken the benefit of sex offender’s registration in the United States during the last few years. People have got the chance to protect their friends and relatives becoming the victims of violence and sex offences. As Lockyer points out, “during the last seven years, nearly half a million people have taken advantage of this information to better protect themselves, their family members, and their loved ones, and reduce their chances of becoming victims of devastating assaults” (Lockyer, 2002). At present, innovative developments have occurred in the field of convicted sex offender registration including online registration and notification. Online registries include offender’s criminal history, current photograph, current address, and other information about place of residence, employment and social relations. It helps the public to keep awareness about sex violence. Another advantage is that it facilitated a collaborative effort between authorities and public in preventing sex violence. The consequences of making and maintaining convicted sex offender register and broad notification are many and varied. Social activists and the professionals of criminology identify that the making and maintaining of convicted sex offender registration has both positive and negative impacts among the public. There is an uncertainty regarding how successful is the implementation of sex offender registration and notification laws. This is very well observed by the researchers when they state that “despite the widespread use of sex offender registration and notification laws, it is unclear whether they have been successful in reducing crime by sex offenders, or whether they have achieved other goals” (Prescott & Rockoff, 2009). Registered offenders have been subjected to severe isolation in different levels of social life such as personal, economical, racial, and emotional. Another problem is that crime records have always revealed the fact that most o f the sexual juvenile crimes against children occur at the hands of the family members of the acquaintance. Here public involvements from the part of relatives and friends for avoiding their desired person from the list have weakened the legal procedure. Therefore sex offender register here plays the role of a negative factor in preventing sexual crimes. As the man is considered as a social animal he cannot maintain a life without his fellow beings in society. A registered sex offender is often subjected to severe humiliation, refusal and isolation from his community.  Reactions of the community often force the convict to return to his or her earlier status instead of engaging in a structured life in society. Hollida Wakefield inspires the reader to think about the complications of registering sex offence by commenting that “the registries, notification requirements, and housing restrictions make it far harder for sex offenders to turn around their lives and succeed in society” (.Wakefield, 2006, p. 147). In modern times making and maintaining of sex offender registration has various objectives. It concentrates not only on the prevention of crimes but reconciliation of the convicted offenders in the community. David Finkelhor clearly remarks that “the major criminal justice policy initiatives of recent years have set up registration systems for offenders, notified communities about their presence, required background checks for employment and volunteer opportunities, controlled where sex offenders can live, and lengthened their sentences” (.Finkelhor, 2009, p. 172). Legal consequences have always created various problems among the convicted sex offenders. Registering or notifying one’s name gives a new identity for a convicted offender in his community. Registration forces convicted offenders to lead a life with so many restrictions like disenfranchisement, employment restrictions, and loss of certain rights. It also affects the status of a person who leads the life of a social animal. Tewksbury and Lees in this respect argue that “legal consequences accompanying a felony conviction often include legally imposed restrictions such as disenfranchisement, employment restrictions, and loss of certain rights such as the right to possess a firearm and the right to vote” (Tewksbury & Lees, 2006, p. 52). The community has always shown its unwillingness to admit a person whose name has been entered in offender register. Conclusion The formations of convicted sex offender registers have played a vital role in the process of preventing sex offences and other kinds of violence. On the other hand, it has also given rise to various social, racial, and psychological issues among the registered convicted sex offenders. However, it promotes awareness on sex related crimes and offences among the people. Making of convicted sex offender register have achieved its primary aim of preventing sex related offences to a great extent and legal consequences have been proved to be the most crucial challenge faced by convicted sex offenders. References Finkelhor, D. (2009). The Prevention of Childhood Sexual Abuse. The Future of Children, 19(2), 169-194. Hanser, R.D. (2009). Community Corrections. Illustrated ed: SAGE Publications Inc. Harris, M & Pettway, C. (Oct 2007). Sex Offender Registration and Notification. Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. Retrieved 21 February 2011 from: http://www.drc.state.oh.us/web/iej_files/SO_RegistrationNotification.pdf Letourneau, E.J., Levenson, J.S., Bandyopadhyay, D., Sinha, D & Armstrong, K.S. (2010). Evaluating the Effectiveness of Sex Offender Registration and Notification Policies for Reducing Sexual Violence against Women. Retrieved 21 February 2011 from: http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/231989.pdf Lockyer, B. (July 2002). California Sex Offender Information: Megan’s Law. Report to the California Legislature. California Department of Justice. Retrieved 21 February 2011 from: http://ag.ca.gov/megan/pdf/ca_sexoff_0702.pdf Prescott, JJ & Rockoff, J.E. (Jan 2009). "Do Sex Offender Registration and Notification Laws Affect Criminal Behavior?". Law Economics Seminar Paper. Retrieved 21 February 2011 from: http://www.law.stanford.edu/display/images/dynamic/events_media/JJ%20Prescott%20Paper.pdf Sex-Offenders: History. (2011). National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Retrieved 21 February 2011 from: http://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/PageServlet?LanguageCountry=en_US&PageId=3032 Tewksbury, R & Lees, M.B. (Dec 2006). Sex Offenders on Campus: University-based Sex Offender Registries and the Collateral Consequences of Registration. Federal Probation, 70(3), 50-56. Wakefield, H. (2006). The Vilification of Sex Offenders: Do Laws Targeting Sex Offenders Increase Recidivism and Sexual Violence? Journal of Sexual Offender Civil Commitment: Science and the Law, 1, 141-149. Wright, R.G. (2009). Sex offender laws: failed policies, new directions. Springer Publishing Company. Read More