Overview

There is a prevalence of Child Sexual Abuse Materials (CSAM) cases, and, at present, there is no fully validated risk assessment measure for these cases. In this study summary we’ll look at the Static-99R and CPORT for these purposes.

Summary

Courts are looking for a risk assessment and all an evaluator can truly provide is the goodness of fit of the client to the type of CSAM offenders known in the research literature and those estimates of recidivism.

CPORT is the only static risk measure specifically developed for use with these cases.

While it is a helpful tool, it continues to require validation studies and often, in the United States, evaluators are not provided all of the forensic materials necessary to use the full measure.

Therefore, studies assessing the usefulness of other risk assessment measures for CSAM cases can be helpful.

Details of the Static-99R CPORT Study

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Continue exploring Mitigation Aide for the information on mental health necessary to ensure your clients are treated fairly in the criminal justice system.

The post Comparing the Static-99R and CPORT first appeared on Mitigation Aide.

Overview

It has been known for quite some time that there are two categories of CSAM offenders, internet-only and mixed offenders.

Summary

CSAM offenders have no history of a contact sexual offense. Mixed offenders are, generally, defined as a CSAM offense with a historical or concurrent contact sexual offense. For years, mixed offenders were all lumped into one group and were not studied on their own to determine if they were a homogeneous group.

The Study: Mixed Offenders

In a study published in 2022, Babchishin, et. al., looked further into the issue. Specifically looking at whether or not the order in which a contact offense occurred in relation to the CSAM offense has any impact on the risk of recidivism.

The original data sample for this study was comprised of 387 Canadian men.

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Are you looking for more assistance with your sentence mitigation reports? Contact Dr. Jennifer Weeks, a recognized expert witness and forensic psychologist.

The post Mixed Offenders are not all the Same first appeared on Mitigation Aide.

Overview

What are the findings of the multi-year, state government-funded report of the PA Task Force on Child Pornography? And what are its recommendations?

Summary

In 2021 the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania passed ACT 53 which established the Task Force on Child Pornography.

It directed the task force to “conduct a review to ascertain any inadequacies relating to the offense of child pornography in 18 PA CS 6312.

The report was finished and published in September of 2022.

What was the Focus of the Report of the PA Task Force on Child Pornography?

The report narrowed in on a number of issues related to CSAM offenses.

It reviewed the demographics of the individuals committing these crimes, assessed the newest research on recidivism, looked at SOAB assessments and surveyed law enforcement and prosecutors.

Who was included in the Report of the PA Task Force on Child Pornography?

Between 2014 and October of 2021, there were 2989 cases involving CSAM offenses with an average of 385 cases per year.

The majority of cases

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Are you looking for more assistance with your sentence mitigation reports? Contact Dr. Jennifer Weeks, a recognized expert witness and forensic psychologist.

The post Summary of the Report of the PA Task Force on Child Pornography first appeared on Mitigation Aide.

Overview

This study, with over 2000 participants, explores the risk factors that can lead to this less researched form of childhood sexual abuse, known as Father Daughter Incest or FDI.

Summary

There is an extensive body of research on child sexual abuse perpetrators. However, there is substantially less on the sub population of individuals who commit incest sexual offenses.

Past research has shown that girls who live with stepfathers and not biological fathers are at greater risk of incest sexual abuse.

Other noted risk factors that have come from the research include poor marital or partner relationship, low income, domestic violence, and low levels of mother daughter closeness.

How was this Study on Father Daughter Incest Conducted?

This study attempted to determine risk factors for incest sexual offending using a more robust method than previous research studies.

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Are you looking for more assistance with your sentence mitigation reports? Contact Dr. Jennifer Weeks, a recognized expert witness and forensic psychologist.

The post What are the Risk Factors for Father Daughter Incest? first appeared on Mitigation Aide.

Overview

What steps should be taken to ensure an offender that is under investigation should be placed in the lowest recidivism risk category?

Summary

When working with individuals charged with possession and/or distribution of child pornography, there is always a question of whether the individual is also a contact sexual offender.  Over the years, with an increase in good research, we now know that there are distinct categories of Child Pornography offenders and there are many individuals who possess child pornography who do not also engage in contact offending. 

The post Comparing Child Pornography Offenders to Child Contact Offenders: What’s the Difference? first appeared on Mitigation Aide.

Overview

What factors should attorneys be vigilant for during sentencing for child contact offenses versus an internet only child pornography offender?

Summary

Internet based possession and distribution of child pornography has been a common enough crime that the research community has updated its first critical review which was published in 2015. 

This needs to be done every few years.  As more research is published, the findings may change.

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Are you looking for more assistance with your sentence mitigation reports? Contact Dr. Jennifer Weeks, a recognized expert witness and forensic psychologist.

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Continue exploring Mitigation Aide for the information on mental health necessary to ensure your clients are treated fairly in the criminal justice system.

The post Updated Review of Online Child Pornography Offender Research first appeared on Mitigation Aide.

Overview

How does the evaluator of the diagnosis sway the potential outcome of the SVP evaluation?

Summary

One of the key factors in many sexually violent predator hearings is whether the individual has a mental abnormality that is the impetus for his or her sexual offending.  Frequently, evaluators will use a DSM-V diagnosis of Other Specified Paraphilic Disorder with a modifier of Non-Consent or Hebephilia.  

The post Hebephilia and Paraphilia NOS in Sexually Violent Predatory Hearings first appeared on Mitigation Aide.

Overview

What should you be vigilant for while handling individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) from pretrial to post-sentencing?

Summary

There is little research related to ASD and sexual offending and the criminal process despite the increasing number of ASD individuals who are being charged with sex crimes. 

The post How is Autism Misconstrued in the Criminal Process? first appeared on Mitigation Aide.

Overview

What are the factors that are leading to a rise in arrest and prosecution of individuals on the autism spectrum for sexual offenses? How should a prior diagnosis of ASD impact sentencing?

Summary

Instances of individuals with ASD being charged with sexual offenses appears to be increasing. There is also an increasing body of scientific literature that specifically addresses sexual offending by individuals with ASD.

The post Autism, Sexual Offending, and the Criminal Justice System first appeared on Mitigation Aide.

Overview

Analyzing a Federal Probation report on recidivism rates of child pornography sexual offenders with and without prior offenses as it relates to risk assessment.

Summary

A 2016 Federal Probation Report analyzed data from all Federally convicted sexual offenders who were released from Federal prison from 2007 to 2013.  These individuals were on supervised release. The study specifically assessed the demographics of the offenders as well as their risk of recidivism.  In this study, recidivism was defined as any new arrest for a new crime that occurred after their release from federal custody. It did NOT include technical violations. 

The post Federal Sex Offenders first appeared on Mitigation Aide.