Know your local sex criminals.

[Motorboat Cruiser]

According to the department of justice site, the recidivism rate for sex offenders is 5%, for those convicted of robbery...70%

[Jazzman]

Originally Posted by Motorboat Cruiser

According to the department of justice site, the recidivism rate for sex offenders is 5%, for those convicted of robbery...70%

That’s certainly a huge gap, and at first glance it’s eye catching, but I’m not sure that these two crimes are comparable in such a way as for that statistic to hold any real meaning.

Having your TV, stereo or car stolen is certainly stressful, but it doesn't haunt you and shape your life forever the way that rape and molestation do. If someone gets out of jail after snatching some electronics it's certainly a risk that they’ll hit up Best Buy for DVD players again, but if they re-offend it's only a material loss and life will go on. If a rapist goes free and re-offends, then somebody else's life has now irreparably been altered in a horrible way, and it’s only worse that it could have been avoided.

I believe in rehabilitation and forgiveness as much as anyone, but in certain instances I solely advocate responsibility and accountability. Once a person chooses to commit rape, I believe that they are voluntarily forfeiting their right to ever live a normal life again (as a “normal life” is what they are engaging in forever removing from their victim) and therefore rapists and molesters should be locked away forever, regardless of whether or not they are able to be rehabilitated. Their victims have no ability to turn back time and erase what happened, so neither should the attackers. This is only my own belief, but percentages of recidivism, likelihood of offending again, etc. are all irrelevant. Rape is a crime which has a lifelong term, so too should its punishment.

[Motorboat Cruiser]

Originally Posted by Jazzman

That’s certainly a huge gap, and at first glance it’s eye catching, but I’m not sure that these two crimes are comparable in such a way as for that statistic to hold any real meaning.

I'm not trying to suggest that rape and robbery are comparable. But remember that we aren't necessarily just talking about rape and molestation here. We are also talking about someone who might have been caught urinating outdoors being on a list for the rest of their lives. I think the all encompassing "sex offender" term brands a lot of people as rapists when their offenses might not be as black and white.

To be clear, I consider rape and molestation to be of a destructive enough nature that I lean towards life imprisonment or possibly chemical castration for those convicted. But that's not what we currently do. We release them with the idea that if they no longer commit any crimes, they can have a chance at being a part of society again. If we are going to do so, I'm not sure encouraging vigilanteism (sp?) is the way to go or in anyway helpful to the situation.

[wendybeth]

Prudence, don't worry- King County sends all their sex-offenders over here. (The newspaper did a story on that not too long ago; seems the PO's over there tell the parolees that Spokane County is just so much less expensive... ).

I don't see where there is a problem with publishing the information. The persons have been convicted of a crime- it's better than branding their foreheads with a V, or cutting off their ears and such. Even so, a determined offender will not let any registry get in his or her way- just look at that Duncan creep in Idaho.

[Motorboat Cruiser]

Originally Posted by wendybeth

I don't see where there is a problem with publishing the information.

Here are the problems as I see them...

In 2002, the department of justice did a study of the sex offender list in California (which has over 100,000 people on it). They found that almost 50% of the information on the list was inaccurate, a common error being publishing the wrong address of the offender. There have also been numerous instances of vigilantism since the release of these lists became popular. What happens when a wrong address is published and an innocent person is a victim of a vigilante? What about the innocent family members who may live with the offender? They are affected by this as well.

And these lists just don't act as a detterent as I see it. A molester will simply travel to an area where they aren't recognized if they are going to re-offend. If they aren't going to re-offend, there isn't a need for the list.

The other problem is that many of the people that are on the sex offender registry are there for crimes that aren't molestation or rape. Some are, in fact, victimless crimes such as solicitation of prostitution. That can put you on a sex offender list for life in California, where your neighbors can all see. I really don't think that someone who solicits a prostitute should be subjected to having their private information posted on a web site for all to see, for life. I don't see how it makes society safer and I see plenty of ways that this information can be abused.

I'm all for stricter sentencing. I'm even for life imprisonment in many cases. What I'm not for is feel good measures that create more problems than they fix. I'm not for information like this being made public when there is only a 50% chance that it is even correct in the first place. Not when it encourages people to take the law into their own hands.

I actually used to think that these lists were a good idea until I read through a couple of (pretty heated) debates on another board. Since then, I've come to realize that they don't really do anything but give a false sense of security, rather than actually solve any problem.

[katiesue]

Originally Posted by Motorboat Cruiser

I actually used to think that these lists were a good idea until I read through a couple of (pretty heated) debates on another board. Since then, I've come to realize that they don't really do anything but give a false sense of security, rather than actually solve any problem.

This is how I feel. I'm not sure they solve anything. I am a parent and I worry about my daughter. But I'm not sure this information is useful to me. If an offender moves into my apartment complex do I move?

I live about 2 miles from where Danielle Van Dam was taken. That guy wasn't on any list. And no one thought of him as the weird creepy neighbor till after he was caught.

Plus how many of these guys move around? How often are the lists updated? What about the people who wrongly get labeled because the list is inaccurate?

I'm just not sure as a parent how this helps me.