US Department of Justice Releases Recidivism of Sex Offender Study
The US Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics released a report this month entitled, “Recidivism of Sex Ofenders Released from State Prison: A 9-Year Follow-Up (2005-14)”. As reported by NARSOL, the new study shows sexual offense recidivism rates lower that previous estimates.
- The median sentence length among prisoners released in 30 states in 2005 after serving time for rape or sexual assault (60 months) was longer than the median sentence length among all prisoners (36 months)
- Sex offenders were less likely than other released prisoners to be arrested during the 9 years following release
- The longer sex offenders went without being arrested after release, the less likely they were to be arrested during the 9-year follow-up period.
- The majority of arrests for a specific type of crime did not involve those who had been in prison for the same type of offense.
- At the end of the 9-year follow-up period, male sex offenders had a lower cumulative arrest percentage than all male prisoners.
Discover more from Florida Action Committee
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Study’s such as these have been around for years. Like those study’s of years past this study will not help us either, nor will the ones that come in the years of the future. What’s it gonna take for all this heart ache to leave us?
This is a reassuring study. One that helps remind us that a poor decision in youth is not always an accurate indicator of character.
One of the best studies I have ever run across is one published in the Journal of Police and Criminal Psychology (June 2002) titled “Once a sex offender…always a sex offender: Fact or Myth” I was able to acquire a paper copy, but apparently you have to pay to get it online. However, the researchers followed roughly 30,000 sex offenders for more than ten years in three different countries (United States, Canada, United Kingdom). Repeat sex offense rate was less than 2%. This has a LOT of statistics in it, but is one of the best documented studies I have ever seen. I even submitted a copy in my clemency papers here in Florida. Might as well have saved the ink for copying. It was at that point I figured out that some people don’t want to hear the truth. It seems as if “ignorance were bliss” then politicians would be the happiest people on the planet!
Could use some analysis in order to better understand what this means.
This ABSOLUTELY and UNEQUIVOCALLY refutes the “frightening and high” recidivism rate that all of these intrusive (and unconstitutional) laws are based on by reinforcing the previous statistics!
STAND UP AND BE HEARD PEOPLE!!!!
We must absolutely TRUMPET this (and refuse to be silenced)!!!
Speak NOW to every person that you know. Strike up casual conversations with strangers, even. But speak in you own behalf!
I SHALL!!!
This is in response to JJJJ
I’m sorry but it all looks like gobbledygook to me and it seems to uphold the very opposite of what you’re talking about. The average Joe reading this and trying to make sense of it comes away with a completely false picture. Most of them reading that 67% after nine years out seems awfully “frightening and high” for any kind of crime. When they discuss sex offenders they are specifically describing those convicted of rape or sexual assault. But what about everybody else designated a “sex offender” who has never molested anyone but just happened to possess or look at a few contraband pictures?
“Recidivism of Sex Offenders” is a very misleading title for this study. It appears to me after my first quick reading of the document that their stats all involve arrests, rather than convictions. Obviously, when you are on a published registry of convicted sex offenders, you are much more likely to be investigated by police for new alleged crimes. I will add that you are also a bigger target for false accusations. I even noticed that one of their disclaimers said that it was not possible to differentiate between those incarcerated for a new crime versus those who were returned to prison for parole or probation violations. All of that indicates to me that true “recidivism” rates are much lower that this study concludes. Have to go to work now, but I will read the document more closely later. I just don’t see how you equate recidivism rates with arrest rates.
Buried in the report is a notice only half of arrests lead to convictions.