RESUMO
Research has consistently found risk for sexual recidivism drops as men convicted of a sexual offense age. One question that remains, however, is whether this age-related reduction in risk applies to men who commit their sexual offenses at an older age. The current study examined this question in a sample of 939 men who were screened for civil management and released to the community (mean follow-up = 6.33 years, SD = 3.98 years), by comparing the sexual recidivism rates of (a) 238 men convicted of sexual offenses committed over the age of 60 (Over-60 Index group), and (b) 701 men who committed sexual offenses under the age of 60 but who were released to the community over the age of 60 (Under-60 Index group). Even though the Under-60 Index group was significantly higher risk at release, the Over-60 Index group sexually recidivated at a significantly higher rate, a difference largely driven by the small group of men who had committed sexual offenses both under and over the age of 60. The Static-99R was a strong predictor of sexual recidivism regardless of age at sexual offending (i.e., just under 60, just over 60, or both under and over 60). The 2021 Routine Samples norms significantly overpredicted sexual recidivism for the Under-60 Index group and significantly underpredicted sexual recidivism for the Over-60 Index group, indicating that the use of the 2016 High Risk/High Needs norms could be more appropriate for the Over-60 Index group, particularly those men who sexually offended under the age of 60 before sexually offending over the age of 60.
RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: In 2007, New York enacted the Sex Offender Management and Treatment Act, empowering the state to civilly manage individuals who have committed sexual offenses (respondents) and are deemed to have a mental abnormality (MA) that predisposes them to sexually recidivate after serving their criminal sentences. We sought to replicate and extend a previous study (Lu et al., 2015) to identify factors predicting legal decisions. HYPOTHESES: We predicted, on the basis of previous research, that clinical information (e.g., diagnosis) as well as empirically supported risk factors (e.g., sexual deviance) would predict trial outcomes. METHOD: We analyzed multiple pieces of demographic, criminogenic, and clinical data on three nested subsamples of respondents on the basis of the legal process: MA consent (n = 713), MA trial (n = 316), and disposition hearing (n = 643). The binary outcomes of interest were as follows: For the MA consent subsample, it was whether the respondent waived their MA trial; for the MA trial subsample, it was whether the respondent was found at trial to have an MA; and for the disposition hearing, it was whether the respondent was ordered to inpatient or outpatient civil management. RESULTS: The strongest predictor of waiving the trial was geographic location; respondents outside New York City and Long Island were more likely to waive their trials (ORs = 2.38-3.37). The strongest predictors of MA trial and disposition hearing outcomes were Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders diagnoses; pedophilia (ORs = 4.05-7.22) and sexual sadism (ORs = 2.68-7.03) diagnoses increased the likelihood of an MA finding and confinement order. CONCLUSIONS: Judges and juries give significant weight to clinical information, particularly pedophilia diagnoses, when making civil management legal decisions. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).
Assuntos
Criminosos , Transtornos Parafílicos , Delitos Sexuais , Humanos , Comportamento Sexual , Transtornos Parafílicos/diagnóstico , Cidade de Nova IorqueRESUMO
Contemporary data from the United States show that rates of sexual offending and reoffending have been in steady decline for decades. Nonetheless, nonprofessionals continue to view sexual violence as a community safety issue fraught with risk and uncertainty. The past 30 years have been witness to considerable research and practice in the assessment, treatment, and risk management of persons who have sexually offended. Gains have also been made in regard to prevention and citizen education. Modern day technologies include actuarial risk assessment instruments, measures of criminogenic need and treatment progress, refinements to treatment processes, and the establishment of evidence-based models. Legislative authorities in the United States and elsewhere have also attempted to affect risk in the community with, perhaps, lesser degrees of success. This article reviews current policies and practices, with a specific focus on what happens when offenders are released to the community (e.g., how public policies intended to track offenders and/or restrict their movements can negatively affect community reintegration). Comprehensive approaches to community sexual offender management are examined in addition to suggestions of unique approaches intended to ensure citizen buy-in and engagement.
Assuntos
Criminosos , Delitos Sexuais , Humanos , Medição de Risco , Gestão de Riscos , Comportamento Sexual , Estados UnidosRESUMO
This study examined the predictive and concurrent validity of the Screening Scale for Pedophilic Interests (SSPI) and its recent revision (SSPI-2), using a large sample of 2,416 sex offenders deemed not to be in need of civil management in New York State. Both SSPI and SSPI-2 scores were significantly and positively related to sexual rearrest, but the SSPI-2 provided greater discrimination in rearrest within 5 years across possible scores. Neither measure significantly added to the prediction of sexual rearrest provided by the Static-99R. We also found evidence of concurrent validity, as both measures were positively and significantly correlated with clinician ratings of sexual preoccupation, emotional identification with children, and sexual offense-related cognitions (convergent validity), but were not significantly related to clinician ratings of self-regulation problems, noncompliance with supervision, or antisocial personality (divergent validity). Overall, the results suggest that the SSPI-2 is a specific and useful screening measure of pedophilic sexual interests among sex offenders with child victims.
Assuntos
Abuso Sexual na Infância/psicologia , Criminosos/psicologia , Pedofilia/diagnóstico , Adulto , Criança , Literatura Erótica , Humanos , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Pedofilia/psicologia , Medição de Risco , Fatores de Risco , Adulto JovemRESUMO
The present study analyzed sex offender civil management (i.e., civil commitment) legal proceedings in New York State and identified factors that predict trial results. Specifically, the current study compared a sample of 38 sex offenders who were released to the community after winning their civil management trials to 183 sex offenders who lost their civil management trials. Additionally, for the 183 sex offenders who lost their civil management trials, the current study compared 146 offenders who were ordered to inpatient civil commitment to 37 offenders who were deemed fit for civil management in the community. Results of the analyses indicated that sexual criminality, sexual deviance, and criminality involving child victims increased the likelihood of offenders both losing their civil management trial and being found to be in need of inpatient care, while the presence of variables associated with nonsexual criminality increased the likelihood of offenders both winning their civil management trials and being deemed fit for management in the community. The findings of this study provide guidance for psychiatric examiners who testify in civil management legal proceedings, as well as for legal professionals specializing in civil management cases.
Assuntos
Direito Penal , Delitos Sexuais/legislação & jurisprudência , Adulto , Comportamento Perigoso , Humanos , Transtornos Mentais/epidemiologia , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , New York/epidemiologiaRESUMO
Some jurisdictions have legally decreed that certain nonsexual offenses (e.g., promoting prostitution of a minor, arson, burglary) can be considered sexual offenses. Offenders convicted of these crimes can be subjected to sexual offender-specific social control policies such as registration, as well as be included in sexual offender research such as recidivism studies. No studies, however, have systematically examined differences and similarities between this new class of sexual offenders and more traditional sexual offenders. The current study used a sample of 94 women convicted of sexual offenses to investigate whether women convicted of promoting prostitution of a minor differed on demographic and criminogenic features from those convicted of more traditional sexual offenses. Results show that women convicted of promoting prostitution offenses have criminal histories more consistent with general criminality and exhibit more general antisocial features than women convicted of traditional sexual offenses. These results support the notion that the inclusion of legally defined sexual offenders with traditional ones obscures important differences in criminogenic features among these women.
Assuntos
Abuso Sexual na Infância/estatística & dados numéricos , Criminosos/estatística & dados numéricos , Trabalho Sexual/estatística & dados numéricos , Adulto , Criança , Abuso Sexual na Infância/legislação & jurisprudência , Crime/legislação & jurisprudência , Crime/estatística & dados numéricos , Feminino , Humanos , Medição de Risco , Delitos Sexuais/legislação & jurisprudência , Delitos Sexuais/estatística & dados numéricos , Trabalho Sexual/legislação & jurisprudência , Políticas de Controle Social , Adulto JovemRESUMO
The goals of this study were to describe the characteristics of a sample of sex offenders charged with failure to register (FTR) in New York State, compare the FTR and non-FTR groups on relevant risk factors, identify risk factors associated with failing to register, and investigate the relationship between registration noncompliance and both general and sexual rearrest. FTR offenders were found to be younger, more likely to be a minority race, and have more extensive and varied prior criminal histories as well as a record of supervision violations. Results also indicated that FTR was more strongly correlated with nonsexual recidivism (r = .44) than sexual recidivism (r = .09). FTR contributed to the likelihood of sexual recidivism for rapists of adult victims, but not for sex offenders with child victims, and occurred in combination with a history of prior sexual crimes and versatility in criminal offending.
Assuntos
Defesa do Consumidor/legislação & jurisprudência , Direito Penal/legislação & jurisprudência , Sistema de Registros , Segurança/legislação & jurisprudência , Delitos Sexuais/legislação & jurisprudência , Adulto , Fatores Etários , Criança , Vítimas de Crime/legislação & jurisprudência , Humanos , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , New York , Pedofilia/diagnóstico , Pedofilia/prevenção & controle , Fatores de Risco , Prevenção Secundária , Delitos Sexuais/prevenção & controleRESUMO
Using a sample of 1,466 females convicted of a sexual offense in New York State, the current study explored the following: (a) offending prior to the commission of the offenders' first sexual offense, (b) rates of recidivism following their first sexual offense conviction, and (c) factors associated with the likelihood of sexual recidivism. Results showed the recidivism rates of female sex offenders to be lower than those of male sex offenders for all types of recidivism studied (any rearrest, felony rearrest, violent [including violent sexual] felony rearrest, and sexual rearrest). Several significant differences were found between the group of female sex offenders who sexually recidivated and the group who did not, including crime of first sexual conviction and measures of prior offending.
Assuntos
Delitos Sexuais/estatística & dados numéricos , Mulheres , Adulto , Distribuição por Idade , Distribuição de Qui-Quadrado , Psicologia Criminal , Coleta de Dados , Feminino , Humanos , Modelos Logísticos , Masculino , New York/epidemiologia , Vigilância da População , Prevalência , Recidiva , Sistema de Registros , Fatores de Risco , Distribuição por Sexo , Violência/estatística & dados numéricosRESUMO
Few studies have empirically validated the assertion that female and male sex offenders are vastly different. Therefore, utilizing a matched sample of 780 female and male sex offenders in New York State, the current study explored differences and similarities of recidivism patterns and risk factors for the two offender groups. Results suggested that male sex offenders were significantly more likely than female sex offenders to be rearrested for both sexual and nonsexual offenses. However, limited differences in terms of risk factors between female and male sex offenders were found.
Assuntos
Agressão , Transtorno da Personalidade Antissocial/epidemiologia , Prisioneiros/estatística & dados numéricos , Delitos Sexuais/estatística & dados numéricos , Adulto , Feminino , Psiquiatria Legal , Humanos , Relações Interpessoais , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , New York/epidemiologia , Recidiva , Medição de Risco/estatística & dados numéricos , Fatores de Risco , Distribuição por SexoRESUMO
Using all 390 female sex offenders registered in New York State, this study attempted to test the analyses and findings of Vandiver and Kercher (2004). Although the current sample varied geographically from Vandiver and Kercher's sample, they were remarkably similar on key demographic variables (e.g., offender age and race, victim age), allowing for close comparison of the findings. Results of the hierarchical loglinear modeling analysis reinforced the importance of variables such as victim and offender ages to categorizing offenders. The present cluster analysis indicated the existence of six distinct types of female sex offender (with the clusters themselves differing substantially from those found by Vandiver and Kercher), supporting the view that female sex offenders are a heterogeneous group.