Citation

Tewksbury R, Jennings WG. Crim. Justice Behav. 2010; 37(5): 570-582.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2010, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/0093854810363570

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

General public sentiment and anecdotal evidence suggests that sex offenders are highly recidivistic. Furthermore, these similar beliefs have influenced a series of recent policy and legislative changes targeting sex offenders. This study examined the impact of sex offender registration and notification (SORN) on sex offender recidivism among a cohort of Iowa prisoners released prior to SORN and a cohort of Iowa prisoners released post-SORN. Results from semiparametric group-based trajectory models demonstrated that both sex offender samples had similar trajectory groups, that is, one group of nonrecidivist sex offenders, another group of very low-rate sex recidivists, and a small high-rate group of sex recidivists. Study limitations and implications for sex offender registration and community notification systems are also discussed.