Convicts Reintegrated (Revised essay2)
When a convicted sexual offender is released from prison it creates fear and public out rage in the community. Nobody wants a convicted sex criminal in their neighborhood. Many states are increasing the number of feet an offender is restricted from where children congregate. Because of these revised residency laws, it severely limits the available housing for offenders and many become homeless, living on the streets and under bridges. Although managing sexual offenders accordingly poses a challenge for law makers, I believe leaving them out to be homeless doesn’t solve or positively improve the problem. Instead a sequence of strategies should be imposed such as: An assessment of individual risk of re-offence, matched with transitional housing, surveillance, supervision, and mandatory treatment.
It is inevitable that convicts will eventually be released and just as drug addicts, alcoholics, and other criminals have half way houses, there should be transitional housing for convicted sex offenders released from prison. These houses are not entirely government and tax funded. These men would have to find a job, and pay for their own shelter, food and living. Having a solid address for offenders makes it easier to monitor and manage each of their cases.
Prevention of recidivism is crucial and attention to psychiatric therapy counseling in combination with a drug treatment should be considered by the law makers. While still in the early stages of being used for mainstream treatment, the drug depo-provera is, in some cases, administered to repeat sex offenders to lower the sex drive and deter the physical urges, known as chemical castration. Keith Robinson, a castrated sex offender, who was convicted for molesting his five year old niece, states,”Things I found stimulating, don’t cross my mind anymore”.
The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act was implemented in to legislation on July 26, 2006. This act establishes a national sex offender registration database system. Under this act an offender must register all personal information, and be classified under a 3 tier system depending on the offense. A level 3 offender has to register as a sex offender for life, and has to check in with authorities every 90 days. A level 2 offender has a 25 year registration with check-in every 180 days.
Along with housing and surveillance, it should be mandatory for convicted sex offenders to complete the sex offenders’ treatment program. As many as 95 percent of sex offenders in Washington are released back into the community; and fewer than 7 percent complete the sex offenders program. These programs cover everything from psychological assessments, addressing sexual deviancy, and counselling to learning life skills.
With these combined strategies, I believe it would lower the chances of reoffence. These possible solutions may seem cruel and intrusive of the rights of a sex offender, but these men are still alive. They have permenantly affected their victims, and for that, they get to live in discomfort for it. But at least they would have each other and home…
Crystal Black
Citations:
"Sex offender treatment in prison." Department of Corrections. 2007. 13 Aug. 2008 http://www.doc.wa.gov/community/sexoffenders/prisontreatment.asp
Adam Walsh Act." America's Most Wanted. http://www.amw.com/features/feature_story_detail.cfm?id=1206 Date and author are unclear August 2, 2008 MacAdam, Harry.
"Chemical Castration." The Sun. 26 June 2006. 2 Aug. 2008 http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/article53511.ece.
Daly, Ian. "Perverted Justice." Details.com. 7 July 2008. 2 Aug. 2008
http://men.style.com/details/blogs/details/sleep_away_camp/index.html
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