The characteristics of registered sexual offenders in an Australian jurisdiction

Abstract

Current policies to manage convicted sexual offenders living in the community do not differentiate between those at different levels of risk. This is important if risk management strategies are to be better targeted. However, current methods of categorizing risk bands rely on the application of data from other populations, and thus may lack validity when used in jurisdictions other than those in which the validation data were collected. This study provides a descriptive analysis of cases managed by police in one Australian jurisdiction, presenting the offence histories and risk profiles of this population. The analysis shows that the heterogeneity exists in relation to offence type, level of risk, and victim characteristics, suggesting that more sophisticated systems of offender classification are likely to be required if judgements about risk are to inform offender management and the investigation of new sexual crime.

Understanding what works in the police management of child sex offenders in the community

“…Data from six international studies demonstrated the RM2000 had better predictive ability than comparable measures (Hanson and Morton-Bourgon, 2009). Day et al (2016) found very few ‘low’ risk offenders assessed using the RM2000 had reoffended (2%) compared with those assessed as medium, high or very high (recidivism range: 53 to 58%), highlighting its predictive ability. However, in one Australian study that attained perceptions of police who operate the sex offender registry, the police described the RM2000 as crude because it did not take dynamic factors into account such as living conditions, social support and case management, and circumstances particular to the offence (Powell et al, 2014).…”

“…The Risk Matrix 2000 (RM2000) is a statistically derived risk assessment tool that helps classify potential recidivism of registered sex offender groups and is widely used (Day et al, 2016; Kewley and Blandford, 2017; Powell et al, 2014; Whitting et al, 2017). In fact, the RM2000 is the industry standard throughout the criminal justice system in the UK and, in particular, provides the police with direction on coordinating resources (Kewley and Blandford, 2017).…”

“…With the increase of convicted offenders living in the community, the way child sex offenders are managed by law enforcement has changed (Day et al, 2016). Policing roles and subsequent public policies have been implemented across most Western jurisdictions in an effort to manage the behaviour of known sex offenders in the community (Day et al, 2014a).…”

“…The scale of issues relating to the police management of child sex offenders in the community is substantial and growing (Day et al, 2016). For example, between 2017–2018 and 2018–2019 in Australia, sexual assault and related offences had the largest percentage increase (11%) in defendants finalised in the courts, behind weapons/explosives and robbery/extortion offences (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2019).…”