Evaluating the legal assumptions of Victoria’s Sex Offender Registration Act 2004 from a psychological perspective

Abstract

The Sex Offender Registration Act 2004 was introduced in Victoria to decrease recidivism and aid in future investigations and prosecutions. This article reviews literature to evaluate four assumptions inherent to the Act: (a) sexual offenders are more dangerous than non-sexual offenders; (b) sexual offenders who target children are more dangerous than those who target adults; (c) recidivism risk can be accurately assessed for sexual offenders who target adults; and (d) the Act is a useful tool for investigations and prosecutions. The findings suggest that there is little evidence that supports the assumptions. Further, given the relatively narrow scope of the Act, it is unlikely to have a positive impact on the safety of the community.

Key words:

• sexual offender registry
• sexual offending
• recidivism
• Sex Offender Registration Act
• Victoria
• psychology and the law
• crime prevention

Ethical standards

This article was written in accordance with 2018 Australian Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research.

Declaration of conflicts of interest

Melanie L. Simmons has declared no conflicts of interest.

Ethical approval

This article does not contain any studies with human participants or animals performed by any of the authors.