Citation

Craun SW. Crime Delinq. 2010; 56(3): 414-435.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2010, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/0011128708317457

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The goal of sex offender registration is to protect residents from recidivistic sexual offenders by providing public information about local offenders. This study determines what percentage of residents living near registered sex offenders are aware of the offenders and the predictors of awareness. The investigational group includes randomly selected residents, who completed surveys, living within one-tenth of a mile of registered sex offenders. A control group—those without sex offenders nearby—is included to see if residents believe offenders to be in every neighborhood. Significantly more investigational group respondents report that a sex offender lives in the neighborhood (31% vs. 2%). Hierarchical linear modeling confirms both individual and neighborhood predictors of awareness.