September 12, 2007

No Easy Answers

Sex Offender Laws in the US

Acknowledgements
I.Summary
Public Safety and Mistaken Premises
Over-breadth of the Registration Requirement
Unrestricted Access to Registry Information..
Residency Restrictions
Juvenile Offenders
Are the Laws Counterproductive?
US Sex Offender Policies: Alone in the World..
Rethinking Sex Offender Laws
II. Methodology
III. Recommendations
Adam Walsh Act
State Sex Offender Registries
Community Notification..
Residency Restrictions
Treatment, Research, and Education..
IV. Sexual Violence in the United States
Sexual Violence..
Danger from Strangers?
High Rates of Recidivism?
Case Study: North Carolina..
Treatment
V. Sex Offender Registration Laws
The Role of Federal Law...
State Registration Laws
How Bad Can Registration Be? Chris F.'s Story
Do Registries Help Law Enforcement?
Rethinking Registration..
VI. Public Access to Information on Sex Offenders
Legislative History
Community Notification by Law Enforcement
Internet Registries: Expanding Community Notification to the World..
State Internet Registries
Does Community Notification Work?
Is Community Notification Counterproductive?
Rethinking Community Notification: Vermont as a Model
A Model Registration and Community Notification Program: Minnesota..
VII. Sex Offender Laws and Child Offenders
Children as Sex Offenders
Jim T.'s story
Consensual Teenage Sex
Case Study: Dan M.'s story
Adjudicated Youth on Public Registries: Sealed Records "Unsealed" by Sex Offender Laws
Rethinking Sex Offender Laws for Juvenile Offenders
VIII. Consequences of Registration and Community Notification Laws for Registrants and Their Loved Ones
Case study: Walter D.
Privacy
Employment
Vigilante Violence..
Living Peacefully at Home..
Suicide and Despair
IX. Residency Restriction Laws100
Iowa.. 104
Oklahoma.. 109
Georgia.. 110
California.. 112
Local Ordinances114
Do Residency Restrictions Protect Public Safety?115
Impact on Family Unity117
Rethinking Residency Restrictions118
Other Countries and Sex Offender Laws118
X. Human Rights and Sex Offender Laws119
Special Rights of Child Offenders121
A Human Rights Analysis of US Sex Offender Laws122
Sex Offenders Laws in US Courts125
XI. Conclusion130
Appendix132