Sex offender registry: More harm than good?
In the 1990s, in response to a number of horrific and highly publicized crimes against children, states and the federal government created stringent penalties for sex offenders, notably registries where offenders’ names and addresses are available to the public.
But now critics across the country are demanding review and revision of these policies, saying they are based on false assumptions, are a waste of money and do more harm than good.
The registries and related policies “are absolutely and fundamentally flawed. They do nothing to support prevention, are not a deterrent and do nothing for people who have survived sexual violence,” said Prof. Alissa Ackerman of California State University Fullerton, a criminologist and national expert on the treatment of sex offenders.
Discover more from Florida Action Committee (FAC)
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Have read variations of this article a Hundred times in last Ten years. Last legislative session, votes against more retroactive compliance for RSOs, ZERO.
Hi Mark, not sure the intent of your comment? It seems to imply that we should not be reaching out to journalist publishing fact-based articles. My understanding, and please correct me if I am wrong, it that it is recently that the “main stream” media publishes less biased, more fact-based articles reporting on the horrific side effects. Note I am not referring to research/scholar articles. This “main stream” media article has more general public exposure than those and they can educate and change public opinion. So, if true that “main stream” media are starting to publish RC-helpful articles, and since we know that media are commercial entities that seek to be aware of their consumer preference, then surely you are not advocating we should not be reaching out to them to encourage them to continue spending their money and time on investigating and reporting RC helpful articles?
What an article!!!! We should all emailing the reporter Tom Condon at his email – [email protected], with a copy to his Editor ([email protected]) giving thanks for writing/publishing it. This article is one of the most complete well written summaries I have seen of how the registries began and their negative effects. Kudos to both for fact based journalism. Let’s let them know! Write!
And let them know that the State Victim Advocate Natasha M. Pierre is misinformed when she says “I have never heard a victim who didn’t support the registry. Apparently Ms. Pierre has not heard Patti Wetterling speak – http://reflect-rwscc-vod.cablecast.tv/vod/11323-Birchwood-City-Council-20161101-High-v1.mp4
This is a great article. They have so much more sense up north it seems like.
State sponsored extortion.