The following is the International Community Corrections Association’s Policy Position on Managing Sex Offenders in the Community.  It is from 2010, but it is still very relevant and shows that legislators have refused to follow expert opinion.

 

 

I.     INTRODUCTION

 

Few crimes generate the level of public concern as sexual offenses.  The public at large, state and federal policy-makers, and agencies of the criminal justice system share a common goal to reduce victimization and to keep communities safe from sexual offenses.  There is a universal and strong reaction to sex crimes and to the offenders who commit these crimes.  And while sex offenders typically serve relatively long prison sentences, most sex offenders are eventually released to the community under supervision.  The corrections system has a responsibility to control, treat, and manage sex offenders in the community in order to protect the public from new sexual offenses that might be committed by those under supervision.

 

Significant advances have been made in the field of sex offender management in recent years.  There are interventions and strategies demonstrated through research to be effective in reducing risk and recidivism in this group of offenders and providing much greater protection to the public.

 

II.    BACKGROUND

 

Driven by misinformation, fear of sexual victimization, and pressure from citizens, new laws, penalties, and regulations regarding sex offenders are growing at a high rate.  Laws continue to be enacted which increase the length of prison sentences, increase requirements for registration and community notification, and limit where sex offenders can live.  Over the past few decades, prison sentences for persons convicted of sexual offenses have become longer and community supervision may be ordered for life.  State prison populations show steady growth in the numbers of sex offenders incarcerated.  The Bureau of Justice Assistance reports that 12% of all state prison inmates are sex offenders; in some states sex offenders make up 30% of prison inmates.

 

The public believes a number of things about sex offenders that are not supported by facts such as sex offenders recidivate at high rates, sex offenders target strangers, and sexual crimes are on the rise.   In fact, the Bureau of Justice Statistics reports that 5.3% of sex offenders are convicted of another sex crime within three years, most sex crimes are committed by a person known to the victim, and the rates of sexual offending have fallen by 25% over the past 20 years (FBI crime statistics).

 

The actual effectiveness of increases in sentences, monitoring, and restrictions in preventing sexual offending has not been demonstrated.  While sex offenders do not harm the public while incarcerated, recidivism rates are stable regardless of the length of incarceration.  Unintended consequences can occur.  For example, limiting access to housing can and does lead to homelessness.  Homeless offenders are difficult to supervise and this in turn raises public safety concerns.

 

Sex offenders face more difficulty than other offenders when transitioning from incarceration to community living.  They face community opposition which can lead to increased barriers to employment and housing.

 

Current research does confirm that sex offender treatment is associated with reduced recidivism among sex offenders.  A report by Dr. Karl Hanson, Solicitor General Canada and one of the most respected researchers on sexual offender treatment, concludes that, “On average, sexual offenders who received treatment were less likely to re-offend than offenders who did not receive treatment.  Not all treatment was equally effective.  Current treatments were associated with a significant reduction in both sexual recidivism (from 17% to 10%) and general recidivism (51% to 32%).  Treatment that appeared effective was cognitive-behavioral treatments for adult sexual offenders.”  Further, he reports that treatment programs can be effective whether delivered in the community or in an institution.

 

III.  STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES

 

The primary goals for managing sex offenders in the community are public safety and protection of victims.  Sex offenders can be safely managed in the community by utilizing a comprehensive approach that combines supervision, treatment, polygraph testing and behavioral monitoring.  This comprehensive approach requires close communication and collaboration among many stakeholders including corrections staff, treatment providers and case managers, and law enforcement.

 

While the public tends to view all sex offenders as high risk, the research does not support this.  Some sex offenders do represent a greater threat to public safety than others and that risk can be measured. The correctional and correctional treatment system should identify these higher risk individuals and use differential supervision, containment, and treatment strategies to most effectively address this population. Distinctions between lower and higher risk sex offenders should be accurate and based on scientific findings rather than politics or public perception.  This differential approach to managing sex offenders according to the risk they pose to the public, applying closer supervision and more intensive treatment to those most likely to re-offend, will result in the greatest protection to the community.  This approach is also more cost-effective:  public resources are concentrated where they will produce the greatest effect on public safety.

 

According to the American Correctional Association, sex offenders should be managed based on body of knowledge that has been developed regarding the effective supervision of sex offenders and according to their specific risk issues.  The ICCA concurs with this principle.

 

Sex offender management in the community should include protection of and assistance for crime victims and their families, including access to appropriate treatment programs.

1. IV.RECOMMENDATIONS

 

Sex offender management in the community requires a multi-disciplinary approach that includes supervision and monitoring combined with comprehensive case management and specialized sex offender treatment.  Collaborators should include corrections, sex offender treatment providers, other service providers (cognitive skills, family counseling, substance abuse treatment), polygraph, victim advocates, and law enforcement.

 

Establish a comprehensive and ongoing assessment process using empirically based instruments developed specifically for sex offenders to determine the level of risk for recidivism.  Use multiple assessments to objectively identify the risk to re-offend sexually and the risk to commit non-sexually based crimes.  Acute dynamic risk factors should also be routinely assessed.  These factors can change rapidly and can signal the need for immediate intervention.

 

The management approach should include a relapse prevention component that promotes a self-management program for the offender, specialized conditions of supervision tailored to the offender’s risk areas, and use of a collateral community network to assist in monitoring behavior linked to relapse.

 

Treatment programs should be designed following the practice standards set by the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers (ATSA).

 

Treatment programs should use evidence-based approaches known to be effective with sex offenders such as cognitive-behavioral treatment and family and community-based programming.  Treatment targets are research-based, treatment is individualized, providers well trained and supervised, programs are monitored and evaluated.

 

Treatment and supervision practices should vary with the risk level of the offender.  Higher intensity supervision and treatment should be focused on higher risk offenders.  Low risk and high risk offenders should not be mixed in the same treatment groups

 

Adopt a victim-centered approach.  Services and resources should be offered to crime victims to reduce trauma.  Include the victim’s perspective in supervision and release decisions, include victim empathy components in treatment, and conduct victim notification and safety planning.

 

Probation/parole officers assigned to work with sex offenders should be trained as specialists in managing sex offenders; should employ a balanced approach of surveillance, monitoring, and treatment; should base the intensity of supervision on measured risk to re-offend; and should consistently hold offenders accountable by responding to all violations.

 

Restrictions placed on where sex offenders can live combined with community attitudes about sex offenders contribute to a lack of stable housing options.  Plan for appropriate housing for sex offenders.  Homeless sex offenders are difficult to supervise, monitor, and treat effectively and are a public safety risk.

 

Correctional policy regarding sex offender sentencing, regulation, supervision, monitoring, and treatment should be based in science and should be expected to demonstrate results.

 

 

Reviewed and adopted by the ICCA Board of Directors      

Date:October 30, 2010

 

 

International Community Corrections Association

Email: [email protected]

 

 

References:

Twenty Strategies for Advancing Sex Offender Management in Your Jurisdiction

Center for Sex Offender Management, 2008

 

Legislative Trends in Sex Offender Management

Center for Sex Offender Management, 2008

 

Applying the Risk Principle to Sex Offenders: Can Treatment Make Some Sex Offenders Worse?

B. Lovins, C. Lowencamp, E. Latessa

The Prison Journal, 2009; 89; 344

 

Sex Offender Management Practitioner Guidelines

New York State Division of Probation and Correctional Alternatives, 2009

 

First Report of the Collaborative Outcome Data Project on the Effectiveness of Psychological Treatment for Sexual Offenders

Hanson, R. K., Gordon, A., Harris, A. J. R., Marques, J. K., Murphy, W., Quinsey, V. L., & Seto, M. C.   Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment, 2002, 14(2), 169-194.