Living Arrangements for Sex Offenders in Ohio: Effects of Economics, Law, and Government Assistance Programs

2018 ◽  
Vol 98 (5) ◽  
pp. 544-559
Author(s):  
Shawn M. Rolfe ◽  
Richard Tewksbury ◽  
Karen F. Lahm
Keyword(s):  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Living Arrangements ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
Family Members ◽  
The United States ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Megan's Law ◽  
Government Assistance ◽  
Assistance Programs ◽  
Housing Needs

Throughout the United States, Sex Offender Registration and Notification (SORN) laws have created housing issues for registered sex offenders (RSOs). As a result of SORN, many RSOs may need to rely on family members for their housing needs. This study, drawing on data from 188 adult male RSOs in Ohio, focused on two separate SORN laws (i.e., Megan’s Law and the Adam Walsh Act). The findings suggest that neither law influences RSOs’ living with family members. However, the results did conclude that an RSO’s income, receipt of government assistance, or being on probation/parole predicted the odds of living with family members. Policy implications of such findings are discussed.

Shame and blame: Secondary stigma among families of convicted sex offenders

2021 ◽  
pp. 174889582110173
Author(s):  
Douglas Evans ◽  
Adam Trahan ◽  
Kaleigh Laird
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
Family Members ◽  
The United States ◽  
Formerly Incarcerated ◽  
Research Attention ◽  
Sex Offender Registry

The detriment of incarceration experienced by the formerly incarcerated has been increasingly explored in the literature on reentry. A tangential but equally concerning issue that has recently received more research attention is the effect on family members of the incarcerated. The stigma of a criminal conviction is most apparent among families of convicted sex offenders, who experience consequences parallel to those of their convicted relative. Drawing from interviews with 30 individuals with a family member incarcerated for a sex offence in the United States, this study explores manifestations of stigma due to familial association. The findings suggest that families face negative treatment from social networks and criminal justice officials, engage in self-blame and that the media’s control over the narrative exacerbates family members’ experiences. Given the pervasiveness of criminal justice system contact, the rapid growth of the sex offender registry in the United States, and the millions of family members peripherally affected by one or both, justice system reforms are needed to ensure that family members are shielded from the harms of incarceration and registration.

scholarly journals The War on Sex Offenders: Community Notification in Perspective

2001 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 256-276 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lyn Hinds ◽  
Kathleen Daly
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
The United States ◽  
Community Notification ◽  
Megan's Law ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Campaign ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Naming And Shaming

This article explores the contemporary phenomenon of “naming and shaming” sex offenders. Community notification laws, popularly known as Megan's Law, which authorise the public disclosure of the identity of convicted sex offenders to the community in which they live, were enacted throughout the United States in the 1990s. A public campaign to introduce “Sarah's Law” has recently been launched in Britain, following the death of eight-year old Sarah Payne. Why are sex offenders, and certain categories of sex offenders, singled out as targets of community notification laws? What explains historical variability in the form that sex offender laws take? We address these questions by reviewing the sexual psychopath laws enacted in the United States in the 1930s and 40s and the sexual predator and community notification laws of the 1990s, comparing recent developments in the United States with those in Britain, Canada, and Australia. We consider arguments by Garland, O'Malley, Pratt, and others on how community notification, and the control of sex offenders more generally, can be explained; and we speculate on the likelihood that Australia will adopt community notification laws.

Police officer perspectives on the implementation of a sex offender community notification scheme

2016 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 261-272 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Whitting ◽  
Andrew Day ◽  
Martine Powell
Keyword(s):  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Police Officers ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
The United States ◽  
Community Notification ◽  
Megan's Law ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Australian State ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Depth Interviews

Community notification statutes, popularly known as ‘Megan’s Law’, were passed in rapid succession throughout the United States following the enactment of landmark legislation in the state of Washington in 1990. Calls for the adoption of similar legislation in Australia gained momentum following the introduction of ‘limited disclosure’ schemes in the United Kingdom and, in 2012, one Australian state introduced a limited form of community notification. This study presents an analysis of in-depth interviews with specialist police officers ( N=21) who are responsible for coordinating the ongoing management, registration and monitoring of sex offenders who live in the community in this jurisdiction to understand their perspectives on the scheme’s implementation. Systematic thematic analysis revealed that the officers were particularly interested in understanding the impact that notification has on offenders, victims and the broader community, and the police agency. The practice-based wisdom distilled from these interviews is used to inform a discussion about the more widespread implementation of this type of public policy both in Australia and in other countries that may be giving this consideration.

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.

Community Experience With Public Sex Offender Registries in the United States: A National Survey

2016 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 258-279 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew J. Harris ◽  
Rebecca Cudmore
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Political Ideology ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
The United States ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Community Notification ◽  
National Assessment ◽  
Public Sex ◽  
Protective Actions

Since the first sex offender community notification laws in the early 1990s, the expansion of online sex offender registries (SORs) in the United States has offered Americans unprecedented access to information about previously convicted sex offenders living in their communities. Despite this, survey data suggest that relatively few citizens use SORs and that even fewer use that information for specific protective purposes. The current study examines the patterns and correlates of SOR usage among a stratified nationwide sample of 1,000 U.S. adults, offering the most extensive national assessment to date of SOR use among the U.S. public. Although 45% of the sample reported that they had accessed an SOR (higher than rates reported in previous studies), the majority had done so only once or twice, most typically out of general curiosity rather than for a specific purpose. Separating these “casual users” from those who had consulted the SOR more frequently, the study revealed significant effects related to gender, age, race, political ideology, and importance of religion. Analyses also found the most frequent users to be significantly more likely to report diminished feelings of safety as a result of viewing SOR information and to engage in protective actions, including the sharing of information with family and neighbors. Policy implications for the design and implementation of public SORs are discussed.

Megan’s Law 20 Years Later: An Empirical Analysis and Policy Review

2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (7) ◽  
pp. 1028-1046 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristen M. Zgoba ◽  
Wesley G. Jennings ◽  
Laura M. Salerno
Keyword(s):  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
Risk Group ◽  
High Risk Group ◽  
Regression Equations ◽  
Megan's Law ◽  
Multivariate Logistic Regression ◽  
Recidivism Rates ◽  
Before And After ◽  
General Recidivism

This present study examines the sexual and general recidivism rates of 547 convicted sex offenders released before and after the enactment of Megan’s Law in New Jersey. Presenting the longest Megan’s Law evaluation, participants were followed for an average of 15 years after release (range = 10-29 years). Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression equations were estimated to identify covariates significantly associated with both sexual and general recidivism. Group-based trajectories of general recidivism within the 10 years post–prison release were also estimated and compared according to pre–Megan’s Law and post–Megan’s Law release status. No differences in recidivism rates were noted between the cohorts, but differences emerged in the offending trajectories of the high-risk group of offenders within 10 years of release. These results highlight the lack of impact that sex offender registration and notification (SORN) laws have on sexual and general reoffending rates postrelease.

‘Y’all need to hide your kids, hide your wife’: Mobile applications, risk and sex offender databases

2016 ◽  
Vol 18 (11) ◽  
pp. 2469-2484 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharif Mowlabocus
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Mobile Applications ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mobile Mapping ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

This article reflects upon recent developments in sex offender tracking and monitoring. Taking as its focus a suite of mobile applications available for use in the United States, the author explores the impact and consequences of remediating the data held by State offender databases. The article charts the recent history of techno-corrections as it applies to this category of criminal, before then undertaking an analysis of current remediation of this legally obtained data. In doing so, the author identifies how the recontextualizing of data serves to (re)negotiate the relationship between the user, the database and registered sex offenders. The author concludes by arguing that the (mobile) mapping of offender databases serves to obscure the original intentions of these recording mechanisms and might hinder their effectiveness in reducing sex offending.

scholarly journals Finding Dr. Kim: Information Sources of Korean Immigrants’ Search for a Doctor in the U.S.

Healthcare ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 92
Author(s):  
Sou Hyun Jang ◽  
Linda K. Ko ◽  
Hendrika Meischke
Keyword(s):  
Information Sources ◽  
Family Doctor ◽  
Family Members ◽  
The United States ◽  
Korean Immigrants ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Recent Immigrants ◽  
Duration Of Stay ◽  
Common Information ◽  
The U.S

Korean immigrants in the United States (U.S.) are known for their preference for, and dependence on, co-ethnic doctors due to various barriers to the U.S. healthcare system. Recent immigrants tend to face more barriers than their non-recent counterparts. However, there is little information on how they find their doctors in the U.S. This study includes a self-administrated survey of Korean immigrants aged 18 and above who lived in the New York–New Jersey Metropolitan area in 2013–2014 (n = 440). Descriptive analysis was conducted to understand the most common information sources and the number of sources based on the duration of stay in the U.S. More recent Korean immigrants were female, had no family doctor, uninsured, younger, and more educated than their non-recent counterparts. Regardless of the duration of stay in the U.S., family members and friends were the most frequently sought-after sources for Korean immigrants in their search for doctors. In addition to family members and friends, non-recent Korean immigrants also used other methods (e.g., Korean business directories), whereas recent immigrants used both U.S. and Korean websites. More recent Korean immigrants used multiple sources compared to non-recent Korean immigrants, often combined with a Korean website. Our study suggests policy implications to improve recent immigrants’ accessibility to health information in a timely manner.

Failure to Register as a Predictor of Sex Offense Recidivism

Sexual Abuse ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 328-349 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristen M. Zgoba ◽  
Jill Levenson
Keyword(s):  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Sexual Offenders ◽  
Time Frame ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Megan's Law ◽  
Similar Time ◽  
Female Victims ◽  
Registered Sex Offenders ◽  
Quasi Experimental ◽  
Sex Offense

This quasi-experimental study analyzed the recidivism outcomes of 1,125 sexual offenders in two groups. The first group comprised 644 registered sex offenders who were convicted of a sex crime and at some point failed to register after release from prison. The comparison group contained 481 registered sex offenders released from prison during a similar time frame who did not fail to register after their release. The groups were then tracked for both sexual and nonsexual offenses to determine whether failure to register under Megan’s Law is predictive of reoffending. Failure to register was not a significant predictor of sexual recidivism, casting doubt on the belief that sex offenders who are noncompliant with registration are especially sexually dangerous. Few differences between groups were detected, but FTR offenders were more likely to have sexually assaulted a stranger and to have adult female victims, further challenging the stereotype of the child predator who absconds to evade detection. Potential policy implications are discussed.

Sex offender registration and notification laws: thoughts from registered sex offenders in three states

2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 94-109 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kendra Bowen ◽  
Erika Frenzel ◽  
Jason D. Spraitz
Keyword(s):  
Sex Offenders ◽  
Multivariate Regression ◽  
Regression Models ◽  
Sex Offender ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Sex Offender Registration ◽  
Collateral Consequences ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Registered Sex Offenders ◽  
Self Worth

Purpose – In the USA, sex offender policy research has focussed on demographic characteristics of registrants, recidivism rates of registrants, accuracy and completeness of listed information, and the collateral consequences experienced by registrants. This growing body of research demonstrates the need to explore offender perceptions of sex offender registration and notification (SORN) laws. The purpose of this paper is to assess whether registration related variables influenced sex offenders’ opinions about the registry, compliance with the registry, self-worth, and deterrence perceptions. Design/methodology/approach – This paper utilized a sample of 286 male registered sex offenders (RSO) in Pennsylvania, Texas, and Wisconsin. Four multivariate regression models were run to examine registration related variables impact on sex offender opinions of the registry, registry compliance, feelings of self-worth, and perceptions of deterrence. Findings – The multivariate regression results suggest registration related variables have a significant impact on RSO opinion of the registry, compliance with the registry, and opinions of self. Specifically, the number of collateral consequences that one experienced, police contacts that RSOs had, and being recognized as a sex offender were significantly related to the dependent variables in the regression models. Originality/value – This study adds to the body of research that indicates sex offenders experience a myriad of consequences that are outside the scope of the registered sex offender laws. Policy implications and societal consequences of these findings are discussed, as well as a future research agenda.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document