Public perceptions of sex crimes and sex offenders

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark C. Stafford ◽  
Donna M. Vandiver
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
Rape Myths ◽  
Public Perceptions ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Sex Crimes ◽  
Sexual Assaults ◽  
Residence Restrictions ◽  
Laws And Policies

Sex crimes and sex offenders generate considerable public fear and worry, yet many public perceptions about sex offenders are inaccurate. Links between fear of sex crimes, especially rape, and fear of other types of crime are considered. The essay reviews research on public perceptions of sex offender laws and policies, including registration laws, notification laws, residence restrictions, punishment and treatment of sex offenders, and civil commitment. Discussion focuses on the perceptions of criminal justice officials, lawmakers, sexual abuse professionals, and survivors of sexual assaults. Inaccuracies in public perceptions of sex crimes and sex offenders are explored, with a special focus on rape myths. Despite the inaccuracy of many public perceptions of sex crimes and sex offenders, what cannot be overlooked is the harm that sex offenders actually cause.

scholarly journals Management of adult sex offenders

1998 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 70-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Josanne Holloway
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Sampling Methods ◽  
Sexual Assaults ◽  
Sexual Offences ◽  
Prevalence Studies ◽  
True Incidence ◽  
Male Offenders ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Adult Sex Offenders

The true incidence and prevalence of sexual abuse against children is difficult to ascertain. Differing sampling methods, definitions of sexual abuse and methods of information-gathering have a significant effect on the rates reported. General population studies (Morrison et al, 1994) in the USA and Europe reveal a rate between 0.7 and 1.83 per 1000 children. Data from prevalence studies (Morrison et al, 1994) highlight large differences, with rates varying from 7 to 62%; meanwhile, only between 2 and 17% of sexual assaults are reported to the police. Many of the reported offenders are not prosecuted because of difficulties with the child's statement. Some offenders are cautioned, others are charged with specimen charges or have their charges downgraded. Despite an increase in the reporting of sexual offences since the 1970s, they account for only approximately 3% of all offenders on probation and 8% of male offenders in prison even though the number and length of prison sentences for sex offenders has increased since the 1970s. Convicted female offenders remain a very small group with only 23 convicted female sex offenders in custody in 1989.

Victims’ Attitudes Toward Sex Offenders and Sex Offender Legislation

2017 ◽  
Vol 62 (11) ◽  
pp. 3385-3407 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susanne Spoo ◽  
Leah E. Kaylor ◽  
Sarah Schaaf ◽  
Michelle Rosselli ◽  
Anniken Laake ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
Sexual Victimization ◽  
Offender Treatment ◽  
Community Notification ◽  
Positive Attitudes ◽  
Treatment Support ◽  
Victims Of Sexual Abuse ◽  
Attitudes Toward Sex

It is commonly assumed that victims of sexual abuse feel more negatively toward sex offenders and advocate for harsher punishments than individuals who have not been victimized. This belief was examined by comparing attitudes toward sex offenders and their treatment, support of registration, notification, and residence restriction policies, as well as general knowledge about sex offenders between a sample of 129 individuals who reported sexual victimization and a sample of 841 individuals who did not report sexual victimization. Overall, we found that victims of sexual abuse reported more positive attitudes toward sex offenders and were more supportive of mandated treatment compared with nonvictims. However, while victims showed decreased support for the community notification laws, there were no differences in support of residence restrictions laws compared with those who reported no victimization. Finally, knowledge about sex offenders predicted attitudes regardless of victim status. These findings are discussed as they pertain to sex offender treatment and legislation.

Public Opinion of the Application of Sex Offender Notification Laws to Female Sex Offenders

2016 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 155-175 ◽  
Author(s):  
Calli M. Cain ◽  
Lisa L. Sample ◽  
Amy L. Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
Social Indicators ◽  
Female Sex Offenders ◽  
Sex Crimes ◽  
Preventive Action ◽  
The Public ◽  
Female Sex ◽  
Societal Level ◽  
Sex Offender Notification

Sex offender notification laws depend not only on the public’s access of registration information but also on the belief that those on the registry present a danger to society and thus deserve informal monitoring. As registries have expanded to include more people, perhaps citizens feel some people on registry are incapable of committing sex crimes or do not pose a danger to society. A group whose inclusion the public may question is women, as many scholars have argued there is a societal-level denial that females commit sex crimes. Data from the 2012 Nebraska Annual Social Indicators Survey were used to determine whether the public agreed that citizens should be notified of convicted female sex offenders living in their communities, whether they would take preventive action if a female sex offender lived in their neighborhood, and whether they think that female sex crimes are less serious than sex crimes committed by men.

An Examination of the Home-Intruder Sex Offender

2018 ◽  
Vol 62 (14) ◽  
pp. 4694-4713 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine Ensslen ◽  
Eric Beauregard ◽  
Amelie Pedneault
Keyword(s):  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
Situational Crime Prevention ◽  
Release Site ◽  
Sexual Assaults ◽  
Prevention Strategies ◽  
Modus Operandi ◽  
Temporal Factors ◽  
Assault Victims ◽  
High Consistency

One particular crime location in sexual assaults is the victim’s residence. Similar to sexual burglars, “home-intruder” sex offenders choose to assault the victim in her residence, most likely in their bedroom. The aim of the current study is to analyze modus operandi, temporal factors, and victim characteristics in a sample of 347 stranger sexual assaults committed by 69 serial sex offenders to determine which factors may be more relevant to sexual assaults committed in the victim’s residence compared with sexual assaults committed at another type of location. Our hypothesis is that offenders who choose to sexually assault victims in their home constitute a specific type of sex offender, one that resembles the sexual burglar. Results showed that modus operandi (e.g., burglary), temporal factors (e.g., time at crime scene with victim), and victim characteristics (e.g., age, victim-offender relationship) were significant in predicting whether the victim encounter, crime site, and victim release site were located at the victim’s residence or not. Moreover, these findings were generally significant across the three crime locations, which can be explained by the high consistency in location during home-intrusion sexual assaults. Situational crime prevention strategies aimed at making a residence less attractive for offenders should help reducing this particular type of sexual assault.

scholarly journals Sex Offender Characteristics: Analysis Based on a Sample of Hungarian Prisoners

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 41-54
Author(s):  
Mihaly Somogyvari
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Sexual Assault ◽  
Risk Analysis ◽  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Suicide Risk ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
Violent Offenders ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Offender Characteristics ◽  
Characteristics Analysis

The present study introduces the differences in sex offender groups primarily from the perspective of prison, focusing on the attributes that determine placement, safety, and the conditionality of therapeutic programs. The study is primarily based on the risk analysis and registration database of the Hungarian Prison Service. The result of the study is that perpetrators of sexual abuse against children, and perpetrators of sexual assault against adults showed significant differences in each reintegration needs and in-prison risks, including their background and childhood, in-prison and out-of-prison vulnerability, integration issues, suicide risk, and other areas. Those who abuse children show a unique picture different from all other groups of offenders, while violent sex offenders targeting adults show similarities in most areas to violent offenders in the control group.

Sexual homicide and violent offenders

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric Beauregard
Keyword(s):  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
Situational Factors ◽  
Criminal Career ◽  
Sexual Assaults ◽  
Modus Operandi ◽  
Lethal Outcome ◽  
Sexual Homicide ◽  
Unique Type ◽  
Offender Characteristics

This essay explores whether the sexual murderer is a unique type of sex offender. Two competing hypotheses of sexual homicide are outlined: the unique type hypothesis and the situational hypothesis. The essay discusses the heterogeneity of sexual murderers and reviews the different typologies of sexual homicide and the most common types. Differences and similarities between sexual murderers and non-homicidal sex offenders are reviewed, focusing on offender characteristics, criminal career, situational factors, and modus operandi/crime characteristics. The essay examines the factors leading to a lethal outcome in sexual assaults by looking at the most important factors, and the combinations of factors, leading to the death of the victim. Misconceptions about the modus operandi of sexual murderers are discussed along with the main behaviors they use to commit their crime. Finally the essay explores the differences between serial and non-serial sexual murderers.

Sex Offender Residence Restrictions and Homelessness: A Critical Look at South Carolina

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (8) ◽  
pp. 1119-1135 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deanna Cann ◽  
Deena A. Isom Scott
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
South Carolina ◽  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
Strong Association ◽  
The United States ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Interrupted Time Series Analysis ◽  
Residence Restrictions ◽  
Registered Sex Offenders

Sex offender residence restrictions (SORRs) have been widely implemented across the United States since the 1990s. A common concern regarding the implementation of SORRs is the decrease in viable housing options for registered sex offenders, which could potentially lead to homelessness. The vast application of SORRs across the United States, in addition to the known association between homelessness and crime, necessitates a deeper understanding of how SORRs impact rates of homelessness among this population. Utilizing data from South Carolina’s Sex Offender Registry, this study describes patterns of homelessness among this population. Specifically, using an interrupted time series analysis, we examine whether the state’s implementation of its SORR has an effect on the proportion of registered sex offenders reported as homeless. Our findings reveal a strong association between the implementation of residence restriction policies and rates of homelessness for registered sex offenders in South Carolina. Policy implications are discussed.

Percentage of Named Offenders on the Registry at the Time of the Assault

2011 ◽  
Vol 17 (11) ◽  
pp. 1374-1382 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah W. Craun ◽  
Catherine A. Simmons ◽  
Kristen Reeves
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Sexual Assault ◽  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Sexual Violence ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
The Public ◽  
Significant Limitation ◽  
Case Files

Sex offender registries were designed to protect the public from convicted sex offenders and future sexual violence. This study determines the percentage of clients seen at a sexual assault agency whose attacker was on the registry at the time the attack occurred. According to case files, only 3.7% of the identified offenders could possibly have been identified as a registered sex offender at the time of the attack. While considering the limitations of this methodology, the findings highlight a significant limitation of registries and support the idea that registries cannot be relied on exclusively to prevent sexual abuse.

scholarly journals Online child sexual exploitation material: A comparison from police data on men charged with child sexual exploitation material exclusively and men charged with contact child sexual abuse exclusively

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel J. Nicol ◽  
Danielle A. Harris ◽  
Mark R. Kebbell ◽  
James Ogilvie
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
Sexual Exploitation ◽  
Community Supervision ◽  
Sexual Offences ◽  
Treatment Protocols ◽  
Child Sexual Exploitation ◽  
Police Data

We do not know whether men who access Child Sexual Exploitation Material (CSEM) are contact child-sex offenders using technology - or a new and different type of child sex offender. This study compares men who were charged with Contact Child Sexual Abuse (CCSA) (n = 95) exclusively, and men who were charged with offences involving online CSEM (n = 99) exclusively. This is the first study of its kind in Australia, the first to divide participants into mutually exclusive offending type groups and to do this using police data. Logistic regression results indicated that CSEM offenders were significantly more likely to be older, more likely to be employed, have fewer criminal charges and supervision violations compared to CCSA offenders. The findings further highlighted the heterogeneity of those charged with child sexual offences based on offence typology. The identification of demographic, lifestyle and interpersonal characteristic differences between online CSEM and CCSA offenders’ questions the use of uniform approaches to community supervision and treatment protocols. The implications of these findings are discussed in light of an increased volume of people charged with CSEM offences.

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