So I just went to prison...

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Sex offenders were a focus of the talk today

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First off, there's a lot of pretty harmless things that can get you labeled as a sex offender.

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First off, there's a lot of pretty harmless things that can get you labeled as a sex offender.

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this needs a better definition. Perhaps another name for those that get labeled it for something like sex in public and what not.

I have a friend who fell asleep at a party. A girl there slept with someone. The girl was under age. My friend was charged as an accomplice to statutory rape. He is now a registered sex offender. Every year on Halloween the police come to his house and tell him he cannot have any lights on and he cannot leave his house.

Your job is probably part of the problem because it's built into a system that is very wrong, to be honest.

The prison-profit system and how the criminal justice system feeds-the-hands-that-feed-that-feeds-that-hand-that-feeds and so on in a circular direction.

And like others have said, so many sex-offenders are wrongfully labeled in the same tier as legitimate sickos.

I am not sure how it works in the state you live in, but here there are tiers. Each tier has mandatory period of registration with periods of 15, 25 and lifetime registration requirements.

It is a tough issue. There are some who have extenuated circumstances, no doubt, but others that do not. But the fact remains most will be released. And how do we discourage recidivism? One interesting point brought up is that in the area I live, only one organization provides counseling for them once released. This leads to problems in that many are not learning to identify their own red flags. It is hard to reconcile the practical needs of perpetrators with the necessity of minimizing the risk of future victims.

I am struggling with it. From a practical point, it makes sense, but the nature of these crimes bother me immensely and I do not see a clear solution to the problems.

The counselor today said that for many, isolation is a trigger or red flag. But at the same time, isolation is often the result of housing restrictions. I guess the question is what protects the community most? And it is such a difficult subject, it is hard to even talk about, letting alone thinking of day to day aspects.

While this would fix the problem, I feel it would fall in the category of cruel and unusual punishment. People still have a constitutional right not to be maimed as punishment. Even if their actions are horrid.

Yeah there are tiers. I don't know the details, but he told me his isn't for life.

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Do you wonder about the world we live in? We dress up young girls, not just 14-15, but much younger on tv commercials and tv shows in very sexually provocative ways. We do this with young pop-stars ect.

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Yup. We're an insanely hypocritical society when it comes to sex and portrayals of sexuality in general, tbh.

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the ruling class is in fact sexually perverted and they have a special thing for innocent youth, and this resonates throughout our entire culture.

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Humanity is general is pretty sexually perverted tbh. To the point that "perverse" is a very relative term (just look--if you dare--at the myriad of fetishes online. The "perversions" were mostly all there to begin with, just suppressed/not easily disseminated. Pardon the pun.). Pedophilia in particular has always been a part of elite society for one "reason" or another. Not to the exclusion of the lowered classes, of course, but much easier to get away with if you have money/power as it's been phased (thankfully) out of society at large.

Throw in the fact that it's more socially acceptable to counsel/reform violent criminals than sex offenders (with a jacked up penal system to boot), and it's no wonder we have a real mess on our hands.

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So I just went to prison...

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Watch your cornhole.

Sex offenders are a tough issue because some of them aren't doing it because of normal criminal benefit. They are messed up in the head and get off on it. Some of them will never change and people are right to fear them.

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So I just went to prison...

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Don't do that again. I am interested in this topic and part of what I do IRL involves contracting for DOC's and DJJ's.

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I am trying to get involved in some of the re-entry programs.

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Good for you.

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I was curious about other people's thoughts on criminal reform, especially regarding subjects/topics that are revulsive.

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Recedivisim is an important topic. People mess up, they get punished, but people who continue to mess up are a problem, that's why I support longer sentences for people who can't get their shite together.

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Sex offenders were a focus of the talk today.

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Stay away from those creeps.

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The ultimate goal for any of the programs is to diminish the chances of future criminal acts and in many ways,

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It all depends on who's funding it. If the program is funded by a private justice corporation, no, it's not really designed to keep people out of their prisons. If it's funded by a non-profit, then maybe, but it's not going to do well b/c of limited funding. If it's funded by the gov't, it's not going to do well either b/c they'll spend 80% of the money on administration costs and measurement tools and only 20% on the actual service.

The only valuable re-entry programs are the programs that are educational focused. Those could be vocational/trade programs and also GED/Literacy/Math/maybe even an Assoc Degree track classes as well.


It's simple. Guys go to prison for getting caught doing something stupid/illegal. Now some of those guys DGAF about anything, and they're going to keep going back to prison. Many of these guys don't have better options to get $, so they did whatever they did to go to prison. Those guys don't have better options b/c they failed in their own education, and the educational system that they were in failed them too (underfunded, limited accountability, etc....)

Many CAN'T read/write well enough to fill out job applications, resume's, cover letters, and many DON'T speak or act in a manner/way during an interview or introduction that will help them get the kind of income they want from a job. They aren't going to earn a living working at Walmart or McD's. They want a $50K+ yr job but they can't even seriously apply for one. So this leads them to recidivism.

Here's an interesting note: there is an algorithm that the FL DOC uses to calculate how many jail cells (expected prison population) they'll need in 15 years. Part of that algorithm is how many public school 3rd graders in FL FAILED the 3rd grade achievement test.
We're basing our future criminal justice needs based on educational success already, this has been going on for decades, b/c it's a quantifiable and verifiable measurement.


TL;DR Version - Thugs gonna Thug. Junkies gonna Junkie. However a lot of guys (especially 1st time offenders) can be helped.

Recidivism programs are bullshite unless they address putting the guys into positions where they improve their education and ability to get a decent paying job. Many of these guys can't read/write well and it starts there. From there they need to learn to speak and act in accordance 'Business English/Communication' and also learn vocational trades. When they have the $ they want, most will make smarter choices.