NC- More harm than good

12-5-2008 North Carolina:

Attempts to strengthen laws against sexual offenders have unintended consequences. Prevention would be better

North Carolina's intentions to further protect communities by strengthening the state's laws against sexual offenders will do very little to keep people safer, ineffectively target people who are least likely to reoffend and ultimately may increase the chances that the most troubled offenders will recommit sexual crimes.
Although only one state lawmaker voted against these tighter restrictions, other legislative members should examine the research more closely and revisit such laws in the next session.

The state's legal clampdown -- aimed at bringing North Carolina into compliance with the federal Adam Walsh Act -- went into effect Dec. 1. Among the new requirements: that people who commit certain sex offenses remain on the state's offender registry for 30 years, triple the previous length of time. Offenders must also now report a change of address to their local sheriff's department within three business days and stay at least 300 feet away from any place where minors might gather, including malls, childcare centers and churches.

NO INDIVIDUAL SHOULD HAVE TO BE THE VICTIM OF A SEXUAL CRIME, and communities have a responsibility to prevent such terrible acts from occurring. Registration and notification laws were intended to encourage citizens to be proactive in protecting themselves as well as provide law enforcement with a ready pool of suspects when a sex crime is reported.

However, independent research from Marquette University and the University of Alabama has shown that these laws do little to prevent sexual crimes or mobilize citizens into action. Instead, there is evidence that they limit an offender's ability to put treatment skills to use and make it that much more difficult to successfully integrate back into society, as well as find housing and employment.

In an additional study out of Marquette University, researchers found that family members who were unconnected to the original crime are also harassed, including receiving death threats.

Even supporters of Jacob's Law, the first federal act requiring sex offender registration, have raised concerns about the legal restrictions. Among them is Patty Wetterling, the mother of Jacob Wetterling, an 11-year-old Minnesota boy who was kidnapped years ago and still missing and for whom the offender registration law was named. Wetterling and her husband co-founded the Jacob Wetterling Foundation -- now the Jacob Wetterling Resource Center -- which works to prevent sexual violence.

In a 2007 article for Human Rights Watch, Wetterling spoke out about the repercussions of the current attitudes toward sex offenders and the laws created as a result of those feelings. She cited research that showed that many of the laws may not prevent sexual attacks but instead invite the public to harass, ostracize and even commit violence against sex offenders, all of which affects their efforts to turn their lives around. Such experiences may also encourage offenders to further isolate themselves and may actually increase the chances that they will repeat their crimes. These findings are consistent with other previously cited research.

Additionally, current laws do not address the individuals who are at the greatest risk of committing a sexual offense, namely family members. According to a study from the U.S. Department of Justice, only 3 percent of children under the age of 6 who have been sexually assaulted were assaulted by strangers; most were assaulted by family members or someone known to the child.

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IT IS TIME THAT THE STATE AND FEDERAL GOVERNMENTS LOOKED MORE CLOSELY at what it takes to prevent sexual offenders from repeating crimes as well as how to prevent sexual crimes from being committed by family members.

Among other ideas, lawmakers should consider increasing:

* The number of community and prison treatment programs, such as the N.C. Department of Corrections' Sexual Offender Accountability and Responsibility (SOAR) program, which has shown strong success in reducing crimes.

* Funding for transitional services such as safe housing, job training, therapy and other community support programs for sex offenders released from prison.

* Funding for research to better understand the causes of sex offending behaviors.

Once more is understood about what programs and treatments work, policies can be designed to support those that have proven to be successful.

There is no doubt that sexual violence is a horrific crime that affects victims and their families physically, mentally and financially. The public also feels the economic toll as hundreds of billions of dollars are spent annually on medical and crisis services, incarceration and rehabilitation.

As a community, we must take the necessary and effective steps to prevent these heinous acts of violence. Although broadly tightening the laws on sexual offenders would seem to make the most sense, research has shown such restrictions may actually do more harm than good. ..News Source.. by Melissa D. Grady, The News & Observer