SEXUAL OFFENDERS
Tracy Alvord, LPC
Brasstown – August 2011
WHY
SEX OFFENDERS LIE – Shocking I know
Illinois Judge Clarence E. Partee
introduced polygraph testing of sex
offenders in 1966 because of high
rates of recidivism, reoffending
probationers, and insufficient
resources of supervision.

Results of polygraph testing in Newport, Virginia (1993)

Number of disclosure tests conducted – 136

Number of ADDITIONAL incidents of criminal sexual
misconduct admitted to by the sexual offenders prior to
their test – 653

Number of ADDITIONAL incidents reported during –
137,918
Containment Model

Every 5 minutes in America
–
–
Nearly 30 children are molested
Someone is forcibly raped

1 in 8 women is raped during their lifetime – 1/3 before age 11

84% of rapes go unreported

Only 22% of rapes are perpetrated by strangers – so 4 out of 5
rapists had extraordinary access to their victims and sufficient
privacy to commit rape

Purpose
–
To restrict offenders’ privacy and access to victims

–
Opportunities for sex offenders to assault again begin
with society’s lack of understanding of how the offender
lays the groundwork for the next crime.
To detect, detain, and when necessary, sometimes revoke
offenders before the commission of a new assault.

5 core components
–
Community safety philosophy

Criminal justice officials’ commitment to the healthy
recovery of the victim and the well-being of the
community begin to guide policy development, program
implementation, and the actions of professionals
working with sexual assault victims and perps

The questions should always start with, “What’s best for
the victim.”

It should never be forgotten that: offenders manipulate
situations and perceptions and offenders carefully plan
offenses so that they appear to occur without
forethought (most have not taken momentary leave of
the facilities)
–
Collaboration

–
Cross-agency coordination to include: law enforcement,
probation or parole officer, treatment provider, and
polygraph examiner
Containment-focused case management

Criminal Justice System tends to define the offender by
his/her index offense (ie: He is a heterosexual
pedophile)
–
Crossover research – many offenders have multiple
paraphilias

Many rapists of adult women also rape children

Many exhibitionists are voyeurs

51% of the 561 male offenders had assaulted multiple age
groups

20% assaulted both genders

23% of incest offenders also molested outside of their family
Thus, many perps are given access to many potential victims
WHO & WHAT (to look for)
Paraphilias
Definition – DSM-IV-TR: Recurrent, intense sexually
arousing fantasies, sexual urges, or behaviors
generally involving 1) nonhuman objects, 2) the
suffering or humiliation of oneself or one’s partner,
or 3) children or other non-consenting persons,
that occur over a period of at least 6 months.
Paraphilias are primarily male disorders. Most
paraphilic fantasies begin in late childhood
or adolescence and continue throughout
adult life. Intensity and occurrence of the
fantasies/behaviors vary, and usually
decrease with age.
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Fetishism
Frotteurism
Exhibitionism (public indecency)
Voyeurism (peeping tom)
Pedophilia (child molester)
Ephebophilia (statutory rape)
Rape (sadist)
Fetishism

Definition – the object of affection is a specific inanimate object
or part of a person’s body.
–
Not in and of itself illegal.
–
Theory suggests a fetish may be born out of conditioning –
associate the object with orgasm
–
Whole cultures can develop a fetish to such an extent that it
no longer appears to be one – lingerie, tight clothing
–
Fetishes are only considered problematic if it interferes with
normal sexual or social functioning

Common male fetishes
–
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Shoes
Hosiery
Lingerie
Materials (satin, leather, fur)
Partialism (hair, legs, neck, fingernails, lipstick, breasts,
feet)

Common female fetishes
– Foreskin
– Muscles
– Socks
– Suit and Tie

Popular culture had broadened the meaning of fetish to cover
any sexuality which is perceived as unusual
– Racial
– Redhead
– Fat

Other varieties of fetishism
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Amputee
Balloon
Cast
Doll
Fart/Fecal
Fruit
Semen
Urolagnia
Diaper
Bestiality
Frotteurism

Definition
–
DSM-IV-TR: the individual has experienced intense sexual
urges, arousal or behavior involving rubbing against or
touching unsuspecting persons, for at least 6 months.
–
Legal Definition (Sexual Battery) – When an individual
intentionally makes physical contact with the intimate parts
of the body of another person without the consent of that
person.

Manifestation
– Usually begins in adolescence with puberty
– Can occur on any part of body but is usually the breasts,
legs and buttocks
– Touch with hands or genitals
– Most perps are male, most victims are female
– Usually occur in crowded areas – such as elevators,
escalators, buses, trains, subways.

Prevalence
–
–
–

Difficult to determine because of nature of offense
Abel examined 62 males diagnosed with frotteurism and
found that they had committed an average of 849 frottage
acts
Other research suggested that of 561 frotteurs, 79% had
other paraphilias, with an average of 4.8.
Co-morbidity
–
Frotteurism is usually concurrent with other paraphilias
Exhibitionism

Definition
–
DSM-IV-TR: the exposure of one’s genitals to a stranger,
usually with no intention of further sexual activity with the
other person.
–
Legal Definition (Public Indecency): A person that performs
any of the following acts in a public place – sexual
intercourse, lewd exposure of the sexual organs, lewd
appearance in a state of partial or complete nudity, or a
lewd caress or indecent fondling of the body of another
person.

Symptoms
–
Mild – the person has recurrent fantasies of exposing
himself, but has rarely or never acted on them.
–
Moderate – the person has occasionally exposed himself
(three targets or fewer) and has difficulty controlling urges to
do so.
–
Severe – the person has exposed himself to more than
three people and has serious problems with control.
–
Catastrophic – denotes the presence of sadistic fantasies
which, if acted upon, would result in severe injury or death
to the victim.

Demographics
–
Exhibitionism is one of the three most common sexual
offenses in police records (the other two are voyeurism and
pedophilia)
–
Most arrested are in their late teens or early twenties.
–
Onset appears to be before 18 and is rarely found in men
over 50
–
Most are Caucasian male, half are married.
–
Those with a severity above moderate most times have
other paraphilias
–
Some exhibitionists are aware of their conscious desire to
shock or upset their target, whereas others fantasize that
the target will become sexually aroused by their display
–
Recorded Cases:

63% are known to expose their penises

51% are seen masturbating

15% utilize obscene language

11% verbally express desires for sex, 21% do so nonverbally

11% attempt to touch a victim
–
Victim Reactions:

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15% run away
19% laugh
7% feel angry
17% shock
23% fear
14% embarrassed
4% verbally attack the exposer

Prognosis
–
Exhibitionist have the highest recidivism rate of all the
paraphilias; between 20% and 50% are rearrested within 2years.

Some literature separates this deviation into four groups

Type A: impulsive – an obsessional, tense, sexually
confused individual whose activities are based on
impulsive responses to intrapsychic distress

Type B: inadequate – not only obsessional but also shy,
introverted, lacking in social relations, with an
ambivalent combination of anger response, ego
affirmation, and socialisation.

Type C: unaware – a secondary result of mental
incompetence

–
Type D: assaultive – influenced by a strong element of
anger and hostility, featuring little if any guilt, and
primarily experiencing sexual arousal from the victim’s
response.
Negative feedback, such as laughing at the exposer, might
actually have a detrimental effect to the situation, sparking
hostility or even violence.
–
A study in 1964, in Austria, found that 12% of a large
sample of exposers were later convicted of rape
–
In another study, 45% had sexually assaulted boys and
girls.
–
Many psychologists agree that any exhibitionist that comes
closer than arm’s length to their victim, regardless of their
initial intent, should be considered dangerous.
–
Dangerousness increases over time.
–
The more often a man was convicted of exposure, the
greater the likelihood that he also had convictions for other
crimes
Voyeurism

Definition
–
DSM-IV-TR: Recurrent, intense sexually arousing fantasies,
sexual urges, or behaviors involving the act of observing an
unsuspecting person who is naked, in the process of
disrobing or engaging in sexual activity

Demographics
–
Young
–
Heterosexual
–
Single males
–
Often described as “an introverted, timid, over controlled,
and socially isolated man who is over dependent on a
mother with whom he had an ambivalent relationship.
–
Tend to experience a fear of failure and lack of control.
Their fantasies work as an operant that gives them relief
from these feelings of failure.

Fantasy of the voyeur
–
Significant factor
–
Can be sadistic, which leads to behavioral practices related
to the fantasies, such as following women in the street or
hiding weapons along a route a potential victim might travel.
–
Material source for fantasies is pornography, especially
those that specialize in sadomasochistic behavior, which
accounts for 10% of all porn.
–
The rush comes from the paranoia of being caught in the
act.

Voyeuristic aids
– Binoculars
– Mirrors
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–
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Cameras (camera phones, video cameras)
Upskirting
Downblousing
Pedophilia

Definition
–
DSM-IV-TR: over a period of at least 6 months, recurrent,
intense sexually arousing fantasies, sexual urges, or
behaviors involving sexual activity with a prepubescent child
or children (generally age 13 years or younger). The
person has acted out these urges, or the sexual urges or
fantasies cause marked distress or interpersonal difficulty.
The person is at least 16-years and at least 5 years older
than the child or children.
Video – Child Molester
Produced and Narrated
by Anna Salter, Ph.D
–
Legal Definitions:

Sodomy – when he performs or submits to any sexual
act involving the sex organs of one person and the
mouth or anus of another

Aggravated Sodomy – when the above is committed by
force

Child Molestation – when he or she does any immoral or
indecent act to or in the presence of or with any child
under the age of 16 with the intent to arouse or satisfy
the sexual desires of either the child or the person

Aggravated Child Molestation – when a person commits
the offense of child molestation and the act causes
physical injury or involves the act of sodomy.

Enticing a child for indecent purposes – when he or she
solicits, entices, or takes any child under the age of 16
to any place whatsoever for the purpose of child
molestation or indecent acts.

Incest – when he engages in sexual intercourse with a
person to whom he knows he is related by blood or by
marriage as follows:
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Father and daughter or stepdaughter
Mother and son or stepson
Brother and sister (whole or half)
Grandparent and grandchild
Aunt and nephew
Uncle and niece

Difference between child molester and pedophile
–
Child Molester (situational/opportunistic/regressed/incest) –
primary sexual interest is adults
–
Pedophile (preferential/structured/fixated) – primary sexual
interest is prepubescent children
FBI Typology

Situational Child Molester – an individual who does not have
a defined sexual preference for children.
–
Regressed – immature, socially inept individuals who relate
to children as peers. My be experiencing a brief period of
low self-esteem and turn to their own children or other
juveniles.
–
Morally Indiscriminate – antisocial individuals who use and
abuse everything they touch. Their victims are chosen on
the basis of vulnerability and opportunity and only
coincidentally because they are children.
–
Sexually Indiscriminate – They have vaguely defined sexual
preferences and will experiment with almost any type of
sexual behavior.
–

Inadequate – social misfits who may be developmentally
disabled, psychotic, senile, or organically dysfunctional.
Preferential Child Molester– show a strong sexual preference
for children which has characterized their sexual attraction
pattern throughout their lives.
–
Seduction – These individuals have exclusive sexual
interest in children, and court and groom them. They
usually are able to identify those children who will not
divulge the sexual behavior.
–
Introverted – These individuals have a fixated interest in
children, but do not have the social skills to seduce them.
Typically they molest strangers or very young children or
they may marry women with children in the age range of
their preference.
–
Sadistic – These individuals’ sexual preference for children
is coupled with a need to inflict pain in order to obtain
sexual gratification – rare. (Sadism is often mistaken for
child physical abuse – Anna Saulter)
CHARACTERISTICS OF A CHILD MOLESTER
Child Molesters
Married/Div
Some College
HS Grad
Working
Religious
77%
46%
30%
65%
93%
Americans
73%
49%
32%
64%
93%
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Caucasian
Hispanic
African-Am
Asian
AM Indian
Child Molesters
Americans
79%
9%
6%
1%
3%
72%
11%
12%
4%
1%
Which Children Do Child Molesters Target
Children of Friends or Neighbors
Step, Adopted/Foster
Biological Child
Nieces/Nephews
Siblings
Child Strangers
Grandchild
40%
30%
19%
18%
12%
10%
5%
RECIDIVISM

The John Howard Society of Alberta – 61 previous studies
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Overall, 13.4% of sexual offenders reoffend (after 4-5 years)
–
12.2% will have a non-sexual, violent reoffense (after 4-5
years)
–
36.6% will engage in other criminal behavior (after 4-5
years)
–
The offender with the highest potential to sexually reoffend
has a male victim outside of the family and has never been
married
–
This is followed by offenders who molest unrelated female
victims
–
Rapists reoffend more often than child molesters
–
Incest offenders tend to have the least risk to reoffend
–
Sexual recidivism is greatly reduced if the offender has
been in the community at least 5yrs offense free (cannot
have engaged in any type of criminal behavior).
Ephebophilia

Definition
–
DSM-IV-TR: not identified as a mental disorder, as the other
sexual deviancies are. The generic definition is the
preferential attraction to adolescents
–
Legal Definition (Statutory Rape): when he or she engages
in sexual intercourse with any person under the age of 16
and is not his or her spouse.
Female Offenders

Matthews, matthews, & Spelt (1989 & 1993) – Types of Female
Sex Offenders
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Teacher/Lover – Views herself as being involved in a
romantic relationship with an adolescent male and tends to
deny the abusive nature of her behavior.
–
Predisposed – tend to have a long history of being sexually
abused, usually incestuously. Tend to fear male peers in
the same way many male pedophiles fear adult females.
–
Experimenter/Exploiter – generally is an adolescent or
younger girl babysitting for a young boy. Tend to turn to
those much younger than themselves because they are
socially awkward and uncomfortable with their sexuality.
–
Psychologically Disturbed – often psychotic – all abuse
younger female children or relatives.
–
Male-Coerced – usually is dependent and passive,
nonassertive, and locked into an abusive relationship with a
male perp. They may later go on to molest their own
children, but they also occasionally offend against adult
females.
Video - Rapist
Produced and Narrated
by Anna Salter, Ph.D
RAPISTS

Rape is primarily committed by young men, usually younger
than 25.

Often are repeat, serial rapists

Often have antisocial behavior throughout the early part of their
lifespan

Criminal history tends to be generalized. They are often
involved in shoplifting, auto theft, arson, assault, cruelty to
animals

Tend to have an over inflated sense of entitlement

Groth identified four types
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Power-Reassurance
 Blitz attack
 Peep Tom behavior
 Victim own age, possible follow-up contact
 Trophies
 Detailed records of conquests (5 star rating)
 Stalking patterns like with movies stars
 Geographically stable
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If have an unsuccessful attempt, will attempt again same
night
Cycle – 7-15 days
Feel socially and sexually inadequate
Possibly closet transvestite
Power-Assertive
 No conscious doubts of masculinity
 Confident with “con” approach
 Victim own age
 Transport to a different location for assault
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Rips victim’s clothes off
Rapes when feels needs a woman (every 20-25 days)
Likes to leave victim emotionally traumatized (ie: leaving
naked on side of road)
Prefers to pick up hitchhikers or stranded motorists
Alcohol or drugs usually taken before the assault
Often involves bondage
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No trophies but hidden video devices
Like victim to be completely submissive from the start of
assault, so may begin with anal assault but preference is
oral
Use a lot of profanity, demeaning behavior, humiliate
victim, threats
No fondling, foreplay or kissing.
No desire to harm, only to possess
Very inflated ego
–
Anger-Retaliation
 To get even with female for real or imaginary wrongs
 Sex is a weapon
 Usually not premeditated
 Uses the Blitz
 Actual assault takes little time, whole encounter brief
 Once anger over, so is assault
 Tends to attack individual that is older, someone who
symbolizes someone else
 Tears clothes off, often uses fists – particularly in
stomach
 Cycle usually 6 months to a year
–
Anger-Excitation (Sadistic)
 Sexually stimulated to victim’s pain and suffering
 Intent is to inflict pain and bring on fear
 Attack is vicious
 Attack is methodically planned and executed
 Victim usually a stranger and may or may not fit their
idea of what a nice victim would be
 May be older or different race

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Victims who survive report the attacker had extreme
mood swings
No foreplay except maybe some strange licking – more
commonly bite
Usually bounds the victim
Clothes cut off with knife
Takes to a preselected location and might keep there for
hours or days
Torture with instruments or devices
May use recording devices
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

–
Probably has a secret life – married, educated,
upstanding citizen.
Typically has a prison background – seeks revenge on
society as a whole
Drugs or alcohol use is usually present
Whenever angry will rape – usually 30 day cycle
Other rapists that tend to be opportunistic and in it for the
sex
 Date rape
 Gang rape

80% rapists have fantasies of one type of another

Sadism is usually evident if target area of injury is erogenous
zone

Sadistic types more likely to offend against victim who is a
close friend or family

Most frequent cognitive distortions
–
–
Rape myths (violent sex, macho beliefs, women to be kept
in their place)
Schemas (misread cues, think no means yes)
Female Sex Offenders
Research report – A Review of the Recidivism Rates
of Adult Female Sexual Offenders. Hanson. May
2005. The first source information was the official
police or Court reports that detail the gender of the
offender. The second source of information was
victimization surveys.

Letourneau first met Vili when
he was a student in her secondgrade class; she later taught a
sixth-grade class in which Vili
was a student. Letourneau
began an intimate relationship
with 12-year-old Vili, and at 35
Letourneau became pregnant
with Vili's child. Letourneau was
subsequently arrested,
convicted and imprisoned for
statutory "second degree rape
of a child".

Official reports and results from victimization surveys were
consistent with each other. In both cases, results show that
women are responsible for between 4% and 5% of all sexual
offenses.

The recidivism rate review included a combined sample of 380
female sexual offenders

Sexual recidivism rate for female sexual offenders was 1%, with
the average follow-up period of 5yrs.
•
Based on the meta-analyses of large samples of male
sexual offenders, the 5yrs recidivism rates would be
expected to be 13-14%.
•
34% of the sexual offenses committed by men resulted in
police arrest, compared to 57% of the sexual offenses
committed by female offenders.
Details on the female sexual recidivists were examined to
determine if any patterns could be discerned among these
women.
Only the Canadian researching this review
provided details on the 2 female sexual recidivists in their
study. The one marker that differentiated these two women
was that they had previously exclusively sexually assaulted
their victims on their own against unrelated victims, without
a male accomplice.

Other risk factors considered (Blanchette & Brown, 2006;
Chesney-Lind & Shelden, 2004)

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Low self-esteem
Self injury, suicide attempts
Victimization during childhood and/or adulthood
Employment difficulties
Low educational attainment
Difficulties in intimate relationships
Antisocial peers and attitudes
Mental health difficulties
Substance abuse
Internet Child Pornography Offenders
Information gathered from 2009
ATSA Conference:
Michael Seto
Ted Shaw
Eric Imhof
As well as various articles/research
documents
Defining Child Pornography

“Any visual depiction of an identifiable minor engaged in
sexually explicit conduct”
–
–
–
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Minor is someone under the age of 18
Can include suggestive content (United States v. Knox,
1993)
U.S. Supreme Court overruled “morphed” images in 2002
Possession includes accessing; does not require
downloading or saving (Wortley & Smallbone, 2006)
The term “child abuse images” has been increasingly
adopted by both scholars and law personnel
because the term “pornography” can carry the
inaccurate implication of consent and create
distance from the abusive nature of the material.

The US Dept. of Justice estimates that pornographers have
recorded the abuse of more than one million children in the US
alone.

There is an increasing trend towards younger victims and
greater brutality.
Analysis of men arrested for child pornography in US2000-2001

83% had images of prepubescent children

80% had images depicting sexual penetration

21% had images depicting violence such as bondage, rape, or
torture and most involved children who were gagged, bound,
blindfolded, or otherwise enduring sadistic sex


79% had softcore images of nude/semi-nude children but only
1% possessed such images alone
48% had more than 100 graphic still images

14% had 1000 or more graphic images

40% were “dual offenders,” who sexually victimized children
and possessed child pornography

British-based Internet Watch Foundation
– 80% of the children in the abusive images are female
– 91% apear to be children under the age of 12

US Dept. of Justice
– A single offender arrested in the UK posessed 450,000 child
pornography images
– A single pornography site received a million hits in a month
– Estimated 50,000 to 100,000 pedophiles involved in
organized pornography rings – 1/3 of that in the US.

Viewers of child pornography who are pedophiles are
particularly obsessive about collecting, organizing, categorizing
and labeling their child porn collection according to age,
gender, sex act and fantasy

An extensive collection indicates a strong sexual preference for
children, and if a collector of child porn is also a pedophile, the
owned collection is the single best indicator of what he/she
wants to do.
Internet has Increased CP Activity

Long history of CP before Internet

Internet = anonymity, affordability, and accessibility

Many portals: home PC, 3G phones, open wireless, etc.

Increase in CP cases parallels increase in Internet usage and
availability of digital cameras in past 10 years.

During a 6 month period in 2001 there was a 345% increase in
Internet sites containing child abusive images (Wyre, 2003)
Characteristics of CP Offenders

Very likely to be male (99%)

Disproportionately Caucasian (Quayle & Taylor, 2003)

Likely to have pedophilia (Seto et al., 2006)

Average intelligence (Blanchard et al., 2007)

Relatively well educated (Blanchard et al., 2007)

Many have no prior criminal history (Seto & Eke, 2005)
Character. of Federal Sex Exploit Defendants – 2006
(adapted from Motivans & Kyckelhahn – 2007)
Offense Characteristics
% of Sentenced
Defendants
Sex Abuse Involving:
Victims Age:
11 or Younger
51%
12-15
15%
16 or older
34%
Victims in offenders custody, care of
supervision
37%
Number of Defendants
150
Offense Characteristics
% of Sentenced
Defendants
Child Pornography Involving:
Books, Magazines, Films
Less than 10
35%
10 or more
65%
Depiction of minor under age 12
95%
Use of computers
97%
Number of Defendants
1012
Demographics of Federal Sex Exploitation Defendants
Defendant
Total
Sex
Abuse
Child
Porn
Sex
Transport
Gender
male
97%
96.4%
98.7%
91.2%
female
3%
3.6%
1.3%
8.8%
1863
249
1275
339
# Defendants
Defendant
Total
Sex Abuse
Child Porn
Transport
Ethnicity
Caucasian 75.8%
15.9%
88.9%
70.2%
African-Am 4.9%
2.9%
3.2%
12.5%
Hispanic
8.1%
8.9%
6.6%
13.1%
Native Am
9.9%
70.7%
0.3%
1.5%
Asian S
Pacif
1.3%
1.6%
1%
2.7%
#
Defendants
1863
249
1275
339
Defendant
Total
Sex Abuse
Child Porn
Transport
Age:
Under 21
5%
21.7%
2.8%
1.5%
21-30
23.2%
29.3%
20.2%
30.1%
31-40
24.1%
23.3%
23.1%
28.6%
41-50
23.6%
14.9%
25.5%
23%
51-60
16.8%
6.4%
19.9%
12.4%
Over 60
7.3%
4.4%
8.5%
4.4%
Median Age
39yrs
29yrs
42yrs
36yrs
Defendants
1863
249
1275
339
Defendant
Total
Sex Abuse
Child Porn
Transport
Education
Level:
< HS Grad
14%
48.1%
7.9%
13.7%
HS Grad
34.1%
31.6%
34%
36.5%
Some
College
29.6%
15.6%
33%
26%
College Grad 22.3%
4.7%
25.1%
23.9%
# Defendants 1863
249
1275
339
Defendant
Total
Sex Abuse
Child Porn
Transport
Criminal
Record:
No prior
felony
conviction
78.6%
78.6%
79.9%
74%
Prior felony
Conviction
21.4%
21.4%
20.1%
26%
249
1275
339
#
1863
Defendants
Comparisons of Child Pornography &
Contact Sexual Offenders
Babchishin et al. (in
progress)
Motivations & Types of CP Offending

Sexual interest in children


Hypersexual behavior
– Indiscriminate – look at anything
– Porn addiction – require more taboo images
Incidental (e.g., blackmail, commercial)

Curiosity

Misinformed (e.g., “sexting”)

Accidental (e.g., viruses)
Types of Child Pornography Offenders

As a rule, what the individual looks at does suggest preference.

Some pornography parameters may reveal motivation:
– Age and gender of children
– Ratios of content themes
– Paraphilic themes
– Distribution to others
– Frequency and recency of viewing
Risk and Recidivism

Contact offense history (3684 subjects:
– 1 in 8 had official charge for contact sexual offense.
– 50% self-reported contact sexual offense

Risk to commit in the future (1688 subjects):
– 2.2 had a new contact sexual offense
– 3.6 had a new CP offense
– 4.2 had a new violent offense (including sexual)

44% of offenders arrested for CP and entering treatment
admitted to committing a hands on offense on polygraph
assessment (Buschman, 2007)

43% of CP offenders had prior charges of sexual offenses
against children (Seto, Cantor & Blanchard, 2006)
Bourke & Hernandez (2009)

Of 155 Internet CP offenders in a federal prison treatment
program:
–
Pre-treatment: 26% had prior sex contact offense
 Half had prior convictions
 Average of 1.88 known victims/offender
–
Post-treatment: 85% admitted prior sex contact
 Average of 13.56 victims/offender
 Of 24 deniers, 9 polygraphed & only 2 “passed”
suggesting less than 2% had no contact victims
Potential Predictors of Contact Sexual Recidivism

Offender age at first charge (negative)

Any juvenile criminal record

Prior contact sexual offenses

Prior violent offenses

Drug use problem

Admits hebephilic interests
Potential Predictors of Child Pornography Recidivism

Offender age at first charge (negative)

Any prior offense

# index nonviolent offenses

Conditional release failure including index

Ratio of boy/girl content – more boy content increases risk
Potential Predictors of Violent or Contact Sexual Recidivism

# of children in the household

Offender lives alone

Had specific information about children that has no obvious
relationship to

CP unorganized

Drug use problem
Risk Assessment

Criminal history variables significantly predict contact sexual
and violent recidivism

Criminal history and boy:girl content ratio significantly predict
CP recidivism

Findings consistent with models of sexual offending
emphasizing antisociality and sexual deviance

Pedophilia is not a sufficient factor for contact sexual offending.

30% of new victims had resided with offenders
Internet Initiated Sexual Abuse and the
Chat Room Sex Offender
Information gathered from
2009 ATSA Conference:
Peter Briggs
Walter Simon
Stacy Simonson
As well as various
articles/research documents
So Much Cooler on Line
YouTube Video
Brad Paisley
Internet Solicitation Studies
(Wolak et al., Malesky, 2007; Marcum, 2007)

Distinct from Internet sex offender
– Adolescent female (or male) victims
– Adults seduce online to meet offline
– Not deceptive about age/sexual motivation
– Adolescent face to face meetings, most result in sexual
contact

Reality
– Highly troubled teens (risk factor for victimization)
– Typical offender has no prior felonies
– Specialized police units
Study Design

Exploratory Study
–
–
–
–
–
–
N=51
Offense-specific mental health evaluation
Police reports
Preserved record of chat room dialog
PPG
Abel Assessment

Moderate stability – many are low risk
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Married:
Average Age:
Education:
Employment:
<High School:
Prior Felony:
Prior Sex Offense:
25.5%
31.45 (19-54 year range)
13.75yrs
86.3%
7.8%
5.9%
3.9%
Chat Room SO Modus Operandi

Behavior Assessment – IM Chat Logs
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Online meeting place: live chat
Confirmed age, sex location
Sexually explicit chat
Sent victim nude photos
Sent victim “live” porn
Lied about true age
Asked victim if they are police
96.1%
100%
100%
68.6%
3.9%
17.6%
37.3%

Online (and offline) Sexual Behaviors
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Masturbate during chat
Encourage victim to masturbate
Engaged in cyber or phone sex
Schedule face to face meeting
Attend (or attempt) face to face
Used web camera to expose
Attempt to pay for sex
41.2%
29.4%
37.3%
60.8%
52.9%
29.4%
7.8%
Qualitative Data: Chat Room Sex Offenses

In ALL cases, the subject initiated contact with the victim first:
age, sex, location confirmed

In ALL cases offender initiated sexual conversation
Discovery

Contact-Driven Offender (n=30)
– Sexual chat (grooming) until victim agrees to meet in
person, intent for offline sexual contact

Fantasy-Driven Group (n=21)
– Engage victim in ongoing Internet relationship with sexual
activity occurring in the form of cybersex, exhibiting, &
masturbation. Meeting arrangements in person is not
discussed.
Contact-Driven Profile

Younger: 29.93 years (average)

Shorter relationship: 10.47 days
– 48% attempt to meet victim less than 24 hours after first
contact

Less education: 13.33 years
– 3 (10%) <High School

Unemployment: 5 (16.7%)
Fantasy Driven Profile

Older (33.62 years)

Longer relationship: 32.9 days
– 19% lasted longer than 3 months

More education: 14.33 years

Higher rate of employment: 95.2%

Self-employed: 4 (19%)

Relationship length based on police interdiction.
Contact Driven Online Behaviors

Scheduled face to face:
93.3%

Attend face to face:
80%

Cybersex:
6.7%

Web Camera:
3.3%

Masturbated:
16.7%
Fantasy Driven Behaviors

Scheduled face to face:
14.3%

Attend face to face:
14.3%

Cybersex:
81%

Web Camera:
66.7%

Masturbated:
76.2%
Introduction to SORRB
A Brief Overview
References






Static-99 Coding Rules Revised – 2003. Andrew Harris, Amy Phenix,
R. Karl Hanson, & David Thornton
Sex Offender Risk Factors. ATSA 2008 Conference. Dennis M.
Doren, Ph.D.
Assessing the risk of sexual offenders on community supervision: The
Dynamic Supervision Project 2007-05. R. Karl Hanson, Andrew J. R.
Harris, Terri-Lynne Scott & Leslie Helmus
Supreme Court of Missouri, En Banc. In the Matter of the Care and
Treatment of Mark A. Murrell, Appellant, V. State of Missouri,
Respondent. Feb. 13, 2007.
A Review of the Recidivism Rates of Adult Female Sexual Offenders.
Correctional Service Canada & R. Karl Hanson. May 2005.
A Review of Evidence-Based Practice in the Assessment & Treatment
of Sex Offenders. Prepared by Heather M. Yates. Pennsylvania
Department of Corrections. Office of Planning, Research, Statistics
and Grants. December 2005.