Assessment of Sex Offenders

Learning Objectives

• Identify information and assessments that reliably estimate risk posed by sex offenders;

• Describe some of the areas of uncertainty in risk assessment of sex offenders; and

• Describe expected qualifications of professionals who conduct specialized, sex offender-specific assessments.

Overview

Types of Assessments That Can Inform Decision-Making

Static and Dynamic Risk Factors

Commonly Accepted Sex Offender-Specific Risk Assessment Tools

What to Expect in Assessments and From the Professionals Completing Them

Common Questions Courts Face in Cases Involving Sex Crimes

• Is this defendant truly a “sex offender”?

• What type of sentence is warranted?

• How can justice and public safety concerns be reconciled in this case?

• Will this individual re-offend?

Questions Addressed through Post-Conviction Assessments

• What level of relative risk does this individual pose?

• What factors indicate that this person is a greater (or lesser) risk to recidivate?

• Which strategies may be effective for this individual?

• Is this person likely to be amenable to strategies the court may utilize to positively affect risk reduction/management?

TYPES OF ASSESSMENTS THAT CAN INFORM DECISION-

MAKING

Key Assessments

• Risk assessments– General and sex offender-specific

• Pre-sentence investigations

• Psychosexual evaluations

Important Assessment Considerations

• Objectives

• Timing

• Method, approach

• Evaluator expertise

• Information access and sharing

Sources of Information for Assessments

• Offender interviews

• Collateral interviews

• Official records

• General psychological measures

• Sex offender-specific measures

• Empirically supported risk assessment tools

Identifying Higher vs. Lower Risk Offenders

• Professional judgment

• Research-supported risk assessment tools

– General offenders

– Sex offenders

Predictive Accuracy of Risk Assessment Strategies with Sex Offenders

1.0

0.8

0.6

0.4

0.2

0.0

.70.70.42.42

Professional Judgment

Empirical Actuarial

Greater Accuracy

LessAccuracy

(Andrews & Bonta, 2007; Grove, et al., 2000; Hanson & Morton-Bourgon, 2007)

STATIC AND DYNAMIC RISK FACTORS

Two Categories of Risk Factors

• Static: generally unchangeable

• Dynamic: variable over time

Examples of Static Risk Factors for Sex Offenders

Examples of Dynamic Risk Factors for Sex Offenders

Variables Not Linked to Sex Offenders’ Recidivism

• Maltreatment history

• Emotional/psychological difficulties

• Poor clinical presentation

(Hanson & Morton-Bourgon, 2005)

Key Risk Factors in Case Studies

Static vs. Dynamic Risk Factors

• Previous conviction for sex offense• Desert Storm veteran• Methamphetamine user• Incest-only offense• Clinically depressed offender• Victim needs therapy for PTSD

COMMONLY ACCEPTED SEX OFFENDER-SPECIFIC RISK

ASSESSMENT TOOLS

Risk Assessment Tools

• Minnesota Sex Offender Screening Tool -Revised (MnSOST-R)

• Rapid Risk Assessment for Sexual Offense Recidivism (RRASOR)

• Sex Offender Risk Appraisal Guide (SORAG)

Risk Assessment Tools (cont.)

• STABLE- and ACUTE-2007

• STATIC-99, STATIC-2002

• Vermont Assessment of Sex Offender Risk (VASOR)

• SVR-20

Sample Assessment: Static-99

1. Age (25 is cut-off)

2. Relationship > 2 years

3. Non-sexual violence with index event

4. Any prior non-sexual violence

5. Prior sex offense convictions (1, 2-3, 4+)

6. Prior sentencing dates

7. Non-contact convictions

8.-10. Unrelated, stranger, or male victims

Sexual Reconviction by Static-99 Score (%): Group Estimates

5 Years 10 Years 15 Years

Stan

1. Age: 22

2. No stable relationships

3. No sexual violence with offense

4. No prior non-sexual violence

5. No prior sex convictions

6. Prior sentencing dates: (less than four)

7. Two non-sexual assault convictions

8.-10. Known, but unrelated, male victim

Additional Tools

• Polygraph

• Viewing Time Measures (e.g., Abel Assessment for Sexual Interest (AASI-2))

• Plethysmography

Polygraph

Pre-Sentence Report

2 victims/5 offenses

Sexual History Disclosure Form

8 victims/20 offenses

First Polygraph 10 victims/22 offenses

Second Polygraph 11 victims/23 offenses

Polygraphs: Compare AdmissionsMedium Number of Victims/Offenses Reported

Similarly, the reported age of the first offense dropped from 28 to 12 from PSIs to polygraphs.

(Ahlmeyer, et al., 2000)

Polygraph: Compare Victim Reports

Type of Crossover Court Polygraph

Adult & Child Victims 7% 70%

Male & Female Victims 9% 36%

(Heil, Ahlmeyer, Simons, 2003)

223 Sex Offenders Participating in SOTMP TC at the Colorado Department of Corrections

Plethysmography

• Instrument to assess sexual arousal

• Arousal does not mean offender

• Ability to manage arousal may decrease recidivism risk

Abel Assessment for Sexual Interest TM

• Assesses sexual interests via relative time spent viewing different visual stimuli

• Some research: can discriminate between offenders and non-offenders

• Undermined by websites that disclose the basis of the test

Commonly Accepted General Risk Assessment Tools

• Level of Service Inventory-Revised (LSI-R)

• Violence Risk Appraisal Guide (VRAG)

• Statistical Information on Recidivism (SIR)

• Wisconsin Risk and Needs

• Correctional Offender Management Profiling for Alternative Sanctions (COMPAS)

• Psychopathy Checklist (PCL-R)

Pre-Sentence Investigations

• Index offense

• Prior criminal history

• Social supports

• Health, mental health

• Employment, financial, residential stability

Pre-Sentence Investigations (cont.)

• Victim impact

• Aggravating, mitigating circumstances

• Findings from psychosexual evaluations

• Recommended criminal justice interventions

Commonalities Between General Psychological and Sex

Offender-Specific Evaluations

• Intellectual, cognitive functioning

• Personality, psychopathology, diagnosis

• Interpersonal, social history

• Developmental, family history

• Risk of harm to self, others

WHAT TO EXPECT IN ASSESSMENTS AND FROM

THE PROFESSIONALS CONDUCTING THEM

Expanded Content Important for Psychosexual Evaluations

• Sexual development, attitudes, behaviors, adjustment

• Sexual interests, arousal, preferences

• Sexual, violent recidivism risk

..

PSYCHOSEXUAL EVALUATION

I. Identifying information

II. Referral source and question

III. Informed consent

IV. Records review

V. List of assessment tools and strategies used (including offender interview)

VI. Background information, psychosocial history, employment

VII. Criminal history, responses to interventions

VIII.Sexual history

IX. Interpretations of assessment data, case formulation (including diagnosis, summary of intervention needs)

X. Recommendations

Assessing Evaluators’ Expertise

● Relevant advanced degree

● Forensic training, experience

● Specialized training, clinical supervision

● Licensure, professional affiliations

● Continuing education

Summary

• Assessments are essential for understanding sex offenders on a case-by-case basis.

• Research reveals specific factors linked to recidivism risk for sex offenders.

• Specialized, research-supported assessment tools increase accuracy of estimating risk.

Summary (cont.)

• Psychosexual evaluations provide added value over general psychological evaluations.

• Thorough, complementary assessments by quality evaluators can inform sentencing decisions.