Rational Enough to Punish, But Too Irrational to Release: The Integrity of Sex Offender Civil Commitment
35 Pages Posted: 31 Dec 2016
Date Written: May 13, 2009
Abstract
This Article examines the civil commitment system and seeks to determine whether the process undermines the ethical integrity of the justice system’s response to sexual offenders. Part II provides an overview of the history of civil commitment and clarifies the distinction between civil and criminal punishments and the level of impairment necessary to justify a commitment. Part III explores the rationale behind civil commitment statutes and examines whether effective treatments exist to reduce recidivism rates. Part IV focuses on how future research should be conducted and offers four proposed solutions to remedy the current flaws of the sexual offender civil commitment system. Part V concludes this Article.
Keywords: sexual offender, civil commitment, recidivism, deterrence
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