Good Read: Disgust, Dehumanization, and the Courts’ Response to Sex Offender Legislation

The following appeared in the National Lawyer’s Guild Review. It highlights the impact the negative sentiment towards sex offenders and strong political influence has on the treatment of this class of citizens by the justice system.

National Lawyers Guild Review | Fall 2014 | Alexandra Stupple

Disgust, Dehumanization, and the Courts’ Response to Sex Offender Legislation

Sex offenders have been subject to unprecedented restrictions and punishment. The government’s treatment of sex offenders is a clear example of the dangers of laws derived from and upheld because of the emotion of disgust. Disgust has led to a dehumanization of this category of people, which has led to a stripping of their constitutional rights. The law’s treatment of sex offenders is a clear example of why the law should eschew employing the emotion of disgust during all proceedings. In addition, the courts’, particularly the Supreme Court’s, treatment of the other branches’ actions regarding sex offenders is illustrative of why the law needs to insist upon empirical data in support of legislation and why the courts should not always defer to the other branches’ findings.

CONTINUED ONLINE:

http://www.nlg.org/sites/default/files/NLGRev%2071-3%204th%20draft.pdf