7-21-2010 Wisconsin:
Wisconsin taxpayers pay a steep price — $51.2 million this year — to keep sexual predators off the streets.
But there is no public clamor to cut funds for the secure treatment facilities that hold those deemed sexually violent, even at a time when state finances are heavily strained.
"It's a price that people are willing to pay," state Rep. Dean Kaufert, R-Neenah, said. "These are the worst of the worst and they have a high probability to re-offend."
The annual cost per offender at Sand Ridge Secure Treatment Center in Mauston — which provides specialized treatment to convicted sex offenders who have been civilly committed under the predator law — is $142,334, said Beth Kaplan, communications specialist with the state Department of Health Services.
That figure dwarfs the $31,806 annual per inmate cost in the state's adult prison system. The disparity is due mainly to the wide variety of psychiatric-based treatment and programming methods in place at Sand Ridge.
Kaufert doesn't take issue with the ever-rising cost of treating sex offenders under Wisconsin's predator law. When Sand Ridge opened in June 2001, the annual cost per offender was $87,000.
"I think the Legislature and the general public don't really look at the cost of housing these individuals," he said. "The cost to keep those individuals away from society is something I've never heard anyone complain about."
Kaufert said legislators don't decry the cost of housing predators "because no one wants to appear that they are being lenient on sex offenders," especially when they are facing re-election.
The number of sex offenders who have been confined under the predator law is much higher than predicted, which has further added to the costs, Kaufert said.
In addition to the 280-plus offenders being held at Sand Ridge on a monthly basis, another 90 or so are regularly confined at the Wisconsin Resource Center near Oshkosh. The estimated cost to operate Sand Ridge this year is $40.6 million, and the cost to operate the Resource Center is estimated at $10.6, Kaplan said.
"It was estimated when it started that there would be a small percentage of sex offenders meeting the criteria (for civil commitment) and the overall cost wouldn't be that great," Kaufert said. "Now, we have seen the numbers climb. But you can't put the genie back in the bottle."
Measuring the effect
The high cost of keeping sex offenders confined beyond their prison-release dates poses a question in the mind of Gene Bartman, supervisor of the Appleton office of the State Public Defender.
"I would think (the state) would want to do a study on the cost-effectiveness, now that we have more than a decade of experience with this type of commitment," said Bartman, who has represented defendants in predator cases.
"There is inherent in the process the claim that people are able to predict the chances that someone will re-offend. So there ought to be the ability to determine whether or not the increased amount of money being spent per patient is an effective use of public funds."
Bartman understands the reasoning behind the creation of the sexual predator law.
"There is probably not a scarier issue than the notion that someone's child may be abused," he said. "And there's been a number of highly publicized, terrible incidents involving people with (criminal) records and what they've done to children. The reality is that those kinds of events have a lot to do with driving public policy. I'm not surprised that a very large investment is put forward for things that people are extremely afraid of."
Still, Bartman believes that the system of confining sex offenders indefinitely should be examined.
"I'm not prepared to condemn the program, but I don't know the statistics. Nobody wants their child to be at risk, but I don't know if there's proof that this particular program and the millions spent on it is giving the kind of security that people want. That's why a study should be done."
Fear factor
Winnebago County District Attorney Christian Gossett was taken aback at the high cost of keeping sex offenders in mental health facilities.
But he said it is money well spent.
"We're talking about the most vulnerable segment or our population — children," Gossett said. "Generally, the public is willing to do what it takes to protect children."
Gossett said those who are confined under the predator law pose a risk to communities if they are released.
"The big problem with the type of people who get the commitment is they are people who can't be treated. There's not really a cure for it. (Releasing them) is what people fear the most."
Kyle Christianson, policy-research analyst with the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance, a private government research organization, said the public appears to be highly supportive of spending tax dollars to keep sex offenders in custody.
"Most of the criticism is with (incarcerating) the non-violent offenders," Christianson said. "(Citizens) are more willing to let go of (them)." ..Source.. Gannett Wisconsin Media
July 21, 2010
Sexual predator costs soar
March 14, 2010
Jury to decide fate of pedophile held at mental health facility
3-14-2010 Wisconsin:
Shawn Schulpius, 36, has spent his entire adult life in state-financed treatment for his pedophilia. Taxpayers continue to pay more than $100,000 a year for his care, but state psychologists say their work isn't done.
Schulpius' lawyer, however, contends that the 13 years of therapy and supervision has taught Schulpius to recognize, divert and suppress his sexual attraction to children and that he deserves discharge from state custody.
A Milwaukee County jury will decide Wednesday whether he remains much more likely than not to commit sex crimes against children, whether he'll return to Sand Ridge Secure Treatment Center or return home.
By the time he was convicted of molesting a 4-year-old boy in 1991, Schulpius had sexually assaulted at least three other children, starting when he was 14, and perhaps as many as nine, prosecutors say. As his prison sentence was about to end in 1995, the state had Schulpius committed under Chapter 980. The 1994 law allows inmates deemed sexually violent to be held for mental health treatment after they complete prison terms.
Schulpius has been seeking release for years, and his case threatened the constitutional underpinning of Chapter 980 when it got all the way to the state Supreme Court in 2005.
Chapter 980 patients can petition for supervised release back into the community, and Milwaukee County Circuit Judge John Franke twice granted that request for Schulpius, in 1997 and 1999. But he remained at the Sand Ridge Secure Treatment Center in Mauston because the state could not find appropriate placement in Milwaukee County.
The Supreme Court found that violated Schulpius' right to due process, but also ruled that Franke effectively overruled his earlier findings when in 2000 he decided Schulpius was no longer eligible for supervised release.
This time, Schulpius seeks complete discharge from his Chapter 980 commitment. At his trial, state psychologists testified that he has pedophilia, and that while he has made progress, he still shows arousal to images of children and has been inconsistent about chronicling all the offenses he committed as a teenager.
Luis Rosell, an Iowa psychologist who works with sex offenders in several states, testified that he reviewed Schulpius' records and interviewed him twice. In his opinion, he said, Schulpius is less likely than not to reoffend.
Rosell questioned why, if the program at Sand Ridge is the model the state claims, the staff has never recommended anyone be released. Judges or juries have made those determinations for 60 patients discharged since Sand Ridge opened in 2001.
Where to place Chapter 980 patients such as Schulpius and Billy Lee Morford became a hot-button issue in 2003, when Morford was first quietly moved into a home on the northwest side of Milwaukee. Protests led to a search for alternative sites, each of which encountered its own resistance from neighbors. There was talk of making the state build a group facility somewhere in the county for sex offenders released under Chapter 980. In Schulpius' cases, the Supreme Court noted that lack of placement options could undermine the constitutionality of the law.
Morford ultimately satisfied his conditions of supervised release and was granted full termination in 2006. He is still listed on the state's sex offender registry, which includes offenders who were not deemed sexually violent and held under Chapter 980.
Today, there are 317 patients at Sand Ridge being held under Chapter 980, and prosecutors have sought to have 59 more people sent there, according to Stephanie Marquis, media relations manager for the state Department of Health Services.
Since 1994, 60 patients have won discharge from Chapter 980 commitment, and 18 are under community supervision statewide, Marquis said. None of those under community supervision resides in Milwaukee County.
Among the 18 states that allow post-prison civil commitment, Wisconsin places the most in community supervision, according to the state. ..Source.. Bruce Vielmetti of the Journal Sentinel
February 19, 2010
Fewer sex offenders in mental health treatment concerning
Assuming the truth of this article, that, longer sentences are placing more SVPs in prison rather than in civil commitment, does that also mean, that, prisons are more sexually dangerous for the general population? Will prison rapes be increasing because of these longer sentences?2-19-2010 Wisconsin:
MADISON (WKOW) -- The number of Wisconsin's most serious sex offenders in secure, mental health treatment is declining and raising questions among Wisconsin lawmakers and concerned citizens.
Wisconsin is a state that allows serious sex offenders to be committed through a civil court process to an indefinite, mental health detainment after their prison terms are complete.
State Department of Health Services records show since 1994, 427 offenders have been committed.
But in recent years, annual commitments have declined from 39 in 2006 to 15 last year.
A CNN report estimates the annual cost of a sex offender's mental health commitment at $150,000, nearly three times the average, annual cost of imprisoning an offender.
The state corrections department plays a lead role in recommending serious sex offenders for proposed mental health commitments, under Wisconsin's Chapter 980 statute. An end of confinement review board assesses transitioning sex offenders.
In a statement, corrections spokesman John Dipko made no reference to the state's costs when considering a proposed sex offender commitment.
"We carry out this mission...through a rigorous, administrative and clinical system to identify sex offenders who meet the criteria for civil commitment as a sexually violent person."
"And they are, by statutory definition, sexually violent persons," said Sen. Mary Lazich (R-New Berlin).
Lazich said the passage of tougher laws on sex offender crimes in recent years has likely led to longer prison terms for offenders and fewer commitment requests.
Rep. Scott Suder (R-Abbotsford) said recent lengthening of the minimum sentence in child rape cases is a factor.
"This law has forced judges to sentence sexually violent predators to prison. While they might have eventually ended up in a mental health facility, I think 25 year prison terms is a more fitting punishment for these monsters."
Madison attorney Eric Schulenburg, who has represented offenders as they faced commitment, agreed tougher sentences probably contributed to the commitment decline.
"I don't share the alarm that fewer people are facing Chapter 980 commitments."
The mental health of sex offenders in commitment is examined annually. Offenders have opportunity to petition courts for discharge from commitment.
The Wisconsin State Journal reported, in 2007, only twelve offenders had been discharged from indefinite commitment.
Offenders in commitment fall under the jurisdiction of the Department of Health Services. DHS officials said as of last year, 53 discharges from commitment have taken place.
Lazich said she wants answers to the trend of discharges.
"Why are these people being released?"
"As a result of the evolution of risk assessment instruments, I believe that discharge is easier to pursue," Schulenburg said.
Schulenburg said evolving psychological standards more often show offenders no longer pose the level of risk that allows for life time, secure treatment.
One of the people discharged from commitment in March 2009 was Lindon Knutson, 61.
Knutson's criminal history spans four decades and includes several episodes of sexual violence and the kidnap of a Madison woman.
Before Knutson's discharge, he was approved for supervised release to a north side Madison neighborhood.
Knutson's relocation was protested by nearly one hundred community members, including neighbor Sue Ellen Maguire.
Maguire said her opposition cannot be chalked up to a not-in-my-backyard attitude.
"He was a violent sex offender."
Court records show Dane County judge David Flanagan relied on examiner William Merrick's assessment of Knutson's risk level in granting Knutson's discharge from indefinite commitment.
Merrick cited Knutson's good behavior, control over sexual deviancy, completion of treatment, and Knutson's advancing age as factors in determining Knutson was an acceptable risk.
"He is able to be discharged from his therapy," Merrick wrote.
In November 2009, Wilmar, Minnesota authorities arrested Knutson for allegedly requesting a church tour from a 73-year-old woman, and then beating, raping, and robbing her.
"I was disgusted and sad, and angry at the judge who let him go," Maguire said.
Merrick has not returned a call seeking comment. Knutson's attorney declined to discuss the case.
Knutson's court proceeding involved only Merrick's examination results. The state was represented by the attorney general, and an assistant attorney general did not hire another examining expert and did not oppose Knutson's discharge, relying on the sole examiner's conclusion.
Lazich said the Knutson case was disturbing. "I need to know more." ..Source.. Tony Galli
February 7, 2010
Legal experts have differing opinions on sexual predator law
2-7-2010 Wisconsin:
Opponents question fairness; proponents say society is safer
The impetus of Wisconsin's sexual predators law is a 36-year-old case.
Gerald Turner was convicted of sexually assaulting and killing 9-year-old Lisa French of Fond du Lac in 1973. Just as he was to be released, state lawmakers created a statute that allowed prosecutors to keep sex offenders off the streets indefinitely by proving that they were risks to re-offend if released.
Ironically, an attempt to apply the predator law to Turner failed.
But it has been successfully applied more than 400 times since 1994. The Wisconsin Supreme Court has upheld the constitutionality of the law.
Steve Watters, director of Sand Ridge Treatment Center in Mauston, which opened in 2001, said society is safer because of the predator law.
"If we opened the gates tomorrow, there clearly would be a significant increase" in sexual crimes, he said.
That is not a feeling shared by everyone in the legal system.
Gene Bartman, the supervisor of the Appleton office of the State Public Defender, said the civil commitment process is tilted clearly in favor of prosecutors.
Expert opinions are at the heart of the law, which puts sex offenders at a decided disadvantage, he said.
"These cases are all about predicting future human behavior and determining if a person poses a risk," Bartman said. "The way it's structured, there's no incentive to be perfectly objective about the determination — the error is always going to be on the side of safety.
"Predicting what any of us will do in the future is problematic."
The Sand Ridge facility is operating near its capacity of 300, with the possibility of a 200-bed expansion in 2011. Some of the current Chapter 980 patients are being held at the Wisconsin Resource Center near Oshkosh.
Treatment is focused on getting sex offenders to the point where they no longer are a threat to society.
Some convicts refuse to get treatment. Some maintain their innocence. And others are so entrenched in sexually inappropriate behavior that changing their behavior through treatment is a long-term process.
Still, Watters thinks the team at Sand Ridge is providing excellent treatment options.
"We feel that what we're doing is as good as we can do in this field," he said. "If you compare us to our peer institutions, we have among the highest rate of participation — about 75 percent of individuals who are detained or committed.
That's a pretty high figure.
"It is not a short-term treatment program. We're addressing a lifelong pattern of behavior. We're trying to address fundamental things."
Watters said treatment evolved and improved over the years. He said there has been a recent emphasis on addressing underlying issues relating to sexual misconduct, along with working with offenders on changing thought patterns.
Offenders are closely monitored and held responsible for their actions.
"One of the advantages of this facility is we have 24-hour observation. A guy may go to a patients' group and say he has no hang-ups, and then cut out of a Sunday flier a picture of kids in underwear. That's what a comprehensive institution can address."
Watters said the polygraph, or lie detector, is being used more often in treatment.
The aim is to verify disclosures by defendants and statements about what they are fantasizing about.
"Disclosure is very important," he said. "We need to know what issues we are dealing with." ..Source.. Andy Thompson
