This article reviews the current literature pertaining to those who engage in child pornography offending. The basic characteristics of online child pornography offenders (CPOs) and related typologies are briefly presented prior to reviewing the comparative literature pertaining to CPOs and child contact sexual offenders. In general, CPOs have been found to be relatively high functioning and generally pro-social individuals with less extensive and diverse offending histories than contact offenders. CPOs also display high levels of sexual pre-occupation, deviant sexual interests, and deficits in interpersonal and affective domains that surpass those of contact offenders. Although further research is required to replicate and clarify preliminary findings, the available evidence indicates that existing sexual offender risk assessment tools and treatment programs are not suitable for use with CPOs, and thus require revision and empirical evaluation prior to widespread use among this population. The article concludes with implications for clinical practice and directions for future research.
Technological advances have dramatically increased the ability to access, distribute and produce child exploitation material (CEM) online, resulting in increased numbers of individuals being charged with CEM offences. This study examined the demographic, mental health, and offending characteristics of CEM offenders (n = 456) in comparison to child contact sexual offenders (n = 493) and offenders with a history of both CEM and contact offences (dual offenders, n = 256). A robust data linkage methodology was employed to link records from statewide corrections services with policing and mental health records in Victoria, Australia. The results indicated that CEM offenders differed from both contact and dual offenders, and that the groups were primarily differentiated based on two factors: antisocial orientation and sexual deviance. CEM offenders demonstrated high rates of sexual deviance but low rates of antisociality, contact offenders exhibited the opposite pattern, and dual offenders had both high sexual deviance and antisociality. The findings suggest that existing sexual offender assessment and treatment frameworks are unlikely to be suitable for exclusive CEM offenders. The implications for future research are discussed.
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Although it is now well known that there is a disproportionate number of people with mental illnesses in the criminal justice system, surprising little attention has been paid to the challenges faced by policing people with mental illnesses in the community. This article provides an overview of some of the key findings from a programme of research undertaken in Victoria to further understand and develop a best practice model at this interface. The areas covered will include the prevalence of psychiatric symptoms and mental illnesses among police cell detainees; the existing knowledge base and attitudes of police towards mentally ill people; the relationship between mental illness and offending; the frequency and nature of police apprehensions of mentally ill people under the Mental Health Act; the association among mental disorder, police shootings, and other injuries to people as a result of these encounters; and police interactions with victims of crime. The work highlights the need for ongoing improvements in policing people with mental illnesses, and particularly the need for improved inter-agency practices for dealing with them.
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