CA- Should some sexual predators be imprisoned forever or treated individually? Opinions differ

8-30-2009 California:

When news hit that Jaycee Lee Dugard's alleged abductor and rapist for the past 18 years was a convicted, violent sex offender, many were not surprised.

Citizens and law enforcement suggested that certain sex offenders, such as accused Dugard kidnapper, Phillip Garrido, can never be rehabilitated, and should be imprisoned until they die, or receive psychiatric treatment until they are no longer deemed a threat to society.

According to court records, during Garrido's first documented sex offense, he told his 1976 victim the assault was her fault because she was attractive and that "I want a piece of ass." He also had an elaborate hideout in Reno rigged with devices he used to assault the woman for hours after handcuffing and binding her with a leather strap. Authorities say that since 1991 he and his wife, Nancy, allegedly treated Dugard as their sex slave, and kept her and the two children she bore him, isolated in sheds hidden in a backyard compound.

Garrido, police said, is an example of the frustration they feel when violent convicted sex offenders repeat their crimes after being freed.

Some law enforcement officials point to states that have a Sexually Violent Predator Act -- which require civil commitments for sex offenders who have been assessed by experts as high risks to victimize more people -- as a possible solution to keep women and children safe. Nevada has no such law.

Others, like Nevada U.S. Attorney Greg Brower, say state sentencing guidelines should follow federal advisory guidelines that set out a specific sentence for offenses without the possibility of parole. That would take a legislative change, he said.

"(Garrido's) case is an example of what can happen when a dangerous sex offender is sentenced to too little time, or an indeterminate amount of time in the state system, which leaves everyone wondering, well how much time is he really going to do?," Brower said, adding that since Garrido was sentenced in 1977 to a 50-year federal term for the Reno case, the federal sentencing laws are stricter. Garrido served only 11 years of his 50-year federal term, and then served only eight months of his life sentence for the state rape charges from the Reno assault.

Brower said if Garrido was sentenced federally for the 1976 kidnapping today, "he would have served 50 years in the federal system. ... In this case, he got 50 years and does 10 ... it's outrageous."

Civil rights advocates and a local forensic evaluator, however, say offenders should be dealt with individually, and not be treated universally as terminally dangerous.
Rehabilitating sex offenders
Reno forensic psychiatrist, Dr. Melissa Piasecki, said the science is mixed on whether sex offenders can be rehabilitated. She said factors that put someone at a high risk to reoffend include a non-relative or stranger victim, having multiple sex offense convictions, and having male victims. She added that the data on the success of treatment is controversial, where some studies say it helps, and others say it has no affect.
"There is no tool that can allow us for sure to say a person is guaranteed to offend or not," she said. "But we can say if they have a high or low risk."
Sgt. Greg Curry, who supervises the Reno police child abuse and sex crimes unit, said by the time police catch sex offenders, it's not their first act. Many prior crimes go unreported, he said. "It's an on-going pattern of progression that continues to get worse," he said.
"What your and mine normal sexual behavior is not normal for them. If we try to bring them to what society says is normal, it's just not the way their mind functions. It's a powerful impulse they receive from their brain that they can't just turn off."
Curry, who was a young police officer when Dugard was abducted, doubted the 1976 Reno case was Garrido's first. "When you are kidnapping, binding and tying someone up, you are going from step A to Z," he said. "
Retired sex crimes prosecutor, Dave Clifton, who supervised the Washoe County District Attorney's Domestic Violence and Sex Crimes unit for about 14 years, said parole boards need to have the guidance of mental health and medical experts before they decide to release dangerous sexual predators.
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"I believe they should be locked up forever," said Clifton, who added there is no guarantee that an offender will stop once released from prison.


Lawmakers, in recent decades, have increased the time when those sentenced with life terms are eligible for parole, he said. For example, he said those convicted of sexual assault on a child once were required to serve a minimum of five years to be eligible for parole, now they must serve 35.

Kansas enacts Predator Act

In the 1990s, Kansas officials successfully argued to the U.S. Supreme Court that its Sexually Violent Predator Act is constitutional. At least 15 states have the SVP law, which requires a civil commitment of a sex offender assessed by experts as a danger to reoffend. A jury decides if the person will be committed to a treatment facility until doctors determine they are no longer a threat.

John P. Wheeler, Finney County, Kan., County Attorney, said the SVP law "absolutely" has made Kansas streets safer. He said the advantage of the civil commitment is that, if necessary, the offenders can be watched literally for the rest of their lives. If they are instead sentenced to a life term, they are still eligible for parole at some point.

"They are committed to treatment for as long as it takes until they can be safely released into society," Wheeler said. "If it turns out to be never, then they never are released. We can try to catch these guys and lock them up for as long as we can, but the U.S. Supreme Court says we can't execute someone for rape, and can't put someone to death for prowling on young women and children. There are some sex offenders out there who can never be rehabilitated."

But Lee Rowland, coordinator for the Northern Nevada chapter of the ACLU, said the key is individual assessments that "incorporates reality, focuses on the facts and any available science to make an informed decision in the interest of justice."

"The danger we fall into as a society is making justice from headlines, rather than creating policy to make communities safer," she said. "We cannot predict with certainty who is going to do something so off-the-charts, and then treat everyone as if they have no possibility to be redeemable in society."

"I believe they should be locked up forever," said Clifton, who added there is no guarantee that an offender will stop once released from prison.

Lawmakers, in recent decades, have increased the time when those sentenced with life terms are eligible for parole, he said. For example, he said those convicted of sexual assault on a child once were required to serve a minimum of five years to be eligible for parole, now they must serve 35.

Kansas enacts Predator Act

In the 1990s, Kansas officials successfully argued to the U.S. Supreme Court that its Sexually Violent Predator Act is constitutional. At least 15 states have the SVP law, which requires a civil commitment of a sex offender assessed by experts as a danger to reoffend. A jury decides if the person will be committed to a treatment facility until doctors determine they are no longer a threat.

John P. Wheeler, Finney County, Kan., County Attorney, said the SVP law "absolutely" has made Kansas streets safer. He said the advantage of the civil commitment is that, if necessary, the offenders can be watched literally for the rest of their lives. If they are instead sentenced to a life term, they are still eligible for parole at some point.

"They are committed to treatment for as long as it takes until they can be safely released into society," Wheeler said. "If it turns out to be never, then they never are released. We can try to catch these guys and lock them up for as long as we can, but the U.S. Supreme Court says we can't execute someone for rape, and can't put someone to death for prowling on young women and children. There are some sex offenders out there who can never be rehabilitated."

But Lee Rowland, coordinator for the Northern Nevada chapter of the ACLU, said the key is individual assessments that "incorporates reality, focuses on the facts and any available science to make an informed decision in the interest of justice."
"The danger we fall into as a society is making justice from headlines, rather than creating policy to make communities safer," she said. "We cannot predict with certainty who is going to do something so off-the-charts, and then treat everyone as if they have no possibility to be redeemable in society." ..Source.. by Jaclyn O'Malley