Prior Convictions Research Articles

A Criminal Careers Typology of Child Sexual Abusers

We present a criminal careers typology of child sexual abusers constructed in terms of their offending persistence (persistent vs. limited) and versatility (specialized vs. versatile). Analyses were conducted on the official records of 362 convicted offenders, 213 of whom also provided confidential self-report data on their personal and offending histories. Forty-one percent of the sample were currently serving sentences for their first sexual offense conviction(s) but had at least one prior conviction for a nonsexual offense (limited/versatile); 36.4% had no previous convictions of any kind (limited/specialized); 17.8% had prior convictions for sexual and nonsexual offenses (persistent/versatile); and 4.8% had prior convictions for sexual offenses only (persistent/specialized). These four groups differed on a range of personal and offense-related variables, including abuse histories, sexual orientation, age at first sexual contact with a child, number of victims, duration of sexual involvement with victims, victim gender, and whether victims were familial or nonfamilial. These differences suggest the need to adopt different treatment and prevention strategies that target the specific characteristics of each group.

Elucidating the Factors that Influence Parole Decision-Making and Violent Offenders’ Performance on Parole

A discretionary parole decision-making process is maintained in multiple jurisdictions internationally. There is a lack of contemporary research examining the factors that influence discretionary parole decisions, particularly in an Australian context. Moreover, there is no known research examining the relationship between these factors and the likelihood an offender will successfully complete their parole order. The current study investigated which factors were significantly associated with: (1) the parole decisions made by the Adult Parole Board of Victoria, Australia; and (2) the cancellation of an offender's parole order, in a sample of 146 violent offenders. Four variables emerged as significant predictors of the parole decision: aggressive disciplinary incidents; the Violence Risk Scale (VRS) total score; the Community Corrections Officer's (CCO) recommendations for release; and confirmed accommodation. At the multivariate level, the VRS total score and the CCO's recommendations remained significant predictors. With regard to parole cancellation, a range of factors were significant at the bivariate level; these included: a history of drug abuse; total prior convictions; aggressive disciplinary incidents; the VRS total score; previous parole cancellations; the CCO's recommendations; confirmed accommodation; and family support. However, family support emerged as the most important predictor in multivariate analysis. These findings provide valuable feedback to members of parole boards regarding the factors that influence their release decision and the factors subsequently linked to parole cancellation.

The Federal Controlled Substances Act: Schedules and Pharmacy Registration

The Federal Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970, more commonly known as the Controlled Substances Act, became effective on May 1, 1971.1,2 This federal law contains 3 different titles. Title I deals with the establishment of rehabilitation programs for drug abusers, Title II addresses the registration and distribution of controlled substances, and Title III discusses issues related to the importation and exportation of controlled substances.2 The main segment of interest to pharmacists is Title II. This RxLegal column is the first of a 4-part series that provides an overview of key components of this important federal law. The goal of the Controlled Substances Act is to improve the manufacturing, importation and exportation, distribution, and dispensing of controlled substances.1 To achieve this goal, manufacturers, distributors, and dispensers of controlled substances must be registered with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the agency charged with enforcement of the Act on the federal level. Registration of these entities with the DEA results in the formation of a “closed system” for controlled substances distribution. This closed system allows for controlled substances to be traced from initial manufacture to final dispensing to the patient. Controlled substances are generally defined as medications that are considered easily abusable. Under the Controlled Substances Act, these medications are categorized into 5 schedules.1 Definitions of each schedule with corresponding examples of medications are presented in Table 1. Schedule I medications have the highest abuse potential, while medications in Schedule V have a low abuse potential. In addition to the schedules, the Controlled Substances Act contains information on scheduled listed chemical products or SLCPs. These listed chemicals are products that contain ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, or phenylpropanolamine that may be marketed or distributed legally in the United States as nonprescription drugs. Table 1. Schedules of controlled substances1 Of note, some states have passed laws allowing for the medical or recreational use of marijuana.2 These state laws do not alter the fact that marijuana remains a Schedule I medication under federal law. In addition, medications may be removed or added to a schedule or be switched from one schedule to another. The US Attorney General has the authority to add, remove, or switch. The Attorney General generally works with the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services to determine a medication’s schedule. Every pharmacy that dispenses controlled substances is required to register with the DEA.1 Prior to obtaining a DEA registration, a pharmacy must have a state license for operation. A DEA pharmacy registration is obtained by completing the Application for New Registration (ie, DEA Form-224). Instructions for completing the form are found on the US Department of Justice DEA Office of Diversion Control Web site (http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drugreg/reg_apps/224/224_instruct.htm).3 Pharmacies can also apply electronically for a new or renewed registration (http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drugreg/reg_apps/pdf_apps.htm).4 Once approved, a pharmacy must renew registration every 3 years. Some drug products such as pseudoephedrine, phenylpropanolamine, and ephedrine-containing medications are classified as SLCPs as described previously.1 These chemicals may be used inappropriately to compound illegal substances such as methamphetamine (ie, crystal). If a pharmacy were to engage in the wholesale distribution of these chemicals, a DEA chemical registration would be required in addition to the registration for handling controlled substances. This is rarely the case, because most pharmacies are retail distributors of these chemicals (ie, regulated sellers) and not wholesale distributors. A regulated seller legally sells the aforementioned chemicals only for personal use either directly to walk-in customers or via other face-to-face transactions. Once granted, a DEA registration may be suspended or revoked by the US Attorney General.1 Reasons for suspending or revoking a registration include the following: Falsifying the application for the registration Having a prior conviction of a felony related to a controlled substance or a List I chemical (ie, phenylpropanolamine or pseudoephedrine) Having a suspension, revocation, or denial of a state license Committing an act that “renders registration inconsistent with the public interest” Being excluded from Medicare or Medicaid programs The Attorney General may also deny registration or renewal.1 In so doing, he or she determines whether issuing the registration or renewal would be inconsistent with the public interest. This decision is made by weighing factors such as state licensing board or professional disciplinary authority recommendations, compliance with laws regarding controlled substances, and a prior conviction record related to any aspect of controlled substances (ie, manufacture, distribution, or dispensing). The second article in this series will focus on requirements for controlled substances prescriptions.

The Determinants of Recidivism among Ex-Prisoners: A Survival Analysis on French Data

This article explores the main determinants of the hazard of recidivism among ex-prisoners. We use a nationally-representative sample of prisoners released in 1996-1997 in France, drawn from a 5-year follow-up survey run by the French correctional administration. We estimate semiparametric duration models which deal with violations of the proportional hazards hypothesis. Our results confirm the importance of gender, age, nationality, access to employment and prior convictions on recidivism within five years after release from prison. We also find significant differences in hazards of recidivism by type of initial offense, penal status at entry, and type of release (early release under parole, etc.), while controlling for prison fixed effects. Finally, our study casts doubt on the influence of certain variables (marital status at entry, education, homelessness) and on the effectiveness of semi-liberte as a way to prevent recidivism.

Catch Me If You Can

The presumed dangers presented by sex offenders who have absconded from authorities have played a prominent role in public discourse surrounding state and federal sex offender management policy. The current study is the first to empirically investigate the characteristics of absconded sex offenders and explore how this group compares to other groups of sex offenders. Utilizing data from the Florida sex offender registry (N = 23,557), this exploratory study compares the characteristics and risk factors of absconders with those of compliant and noncompliant (nonabsconding) registrants as well as with those with convictions for failure to register (FTR). Absconders, as a group, were less likely than compliant registrants to be listed as predators, and less likely than both compliants and noncompliants to have a minor victim or to be a repeat sex offender. Absconders were also least likely to have a prior FTR conviction, but those with a previous FTR conviction were more likely to abscond from registration than probation. The findings fail to support the hypothesis that fugitive sex offenders are more sexually dangerous (especially to children), and suggest a multitude of explanations for absconding.

Racial Disparities in Pretrial Diversion

Living with a felony conviction exposes people to a host of negative life experiences, including unemployment, low income, and family instability. Pretrial diversions offer defendants a rare chance to escape this fate. Using data from the State Court Processing Statistics, this study examines racial disparities in pretrial diversion among men charged with felony crimes in metropolitan counties in the even years from 1990 to 2006. The study finds that prosecutors are more likely to grant pretrial diversions to White defendants than they are to grant these diversions to Black or Latino defendants with similar legal characteristics. Moreover, while disparities disadvantaging Latinos are only present among defendants whose most serious arrest charge is for a drug crime and who have no prior convictions, those disparities disadvantaging Blacks occur both among defendants whose most serious arrest charge is for a drug crime regardless of prior convictions and among defendants charged with violent crimes who have no prior convictions.

Comparative Analysis of Recidivism Outcomes Following Drug Treatment Court in Vancouver, Canada

Drug Treatment Courts (DTCs) integrate therapeutic interventions for substance using offenders with the administration of justice. Available evidence indicates that DTCs are effective at reducing recidivism, but it is not yet established whether they are equally effective for all subgroups of offenders. The current study investigates the comparative effectiveness of a Canadian DTC among subgroups defined by ethnicity, gender, prior offending, and the presence of a co-occurring mental disorder. Results indicate greater reductions in recidivism among female and Aboriginal participants, and no differences in recidivism associated with the presence or absence of co-occurring mental disorders or the number of prior convictions. Longer duration of involvement with the DTC program was positively associated with reduced recidivism. The effectiveness of DTCs with distinct subpopulations may be related to their composition and inclusion of expertise relevant to the needs of diverse participants.

A Comparison of Domestic Violence Recidivism Rates of Defendant-Initiated Diversion and Court-Mandated Treatment

This study examines court records of 244 defendants assigned to court-connected treatment to determine whether “defendant-initiated diversion” offenders recidivated less than defendants who were mandated by the court to undergo treatment. The study population consisted of 140 defendants who voluntarily opted to participate in a domestic violence (DV) court diversion program and 104 convicted offenders who were ordered by the court to complete treatment as part of their sentence of probation. Defendants who had prior felony or DV convictions were not accepted into the diversion program. A logit model analysis revealed a statistically significant negative relationship between diversion completion and DV recidivism during the 24 months after treatment completion or case closure. These results illustrate the importance of including defendant-initiated diversion for low risk offenders as part of a court system strategy to address DV.

Siegel on the epistemic impact of “checkered” experience

Siegel’s paper cuts to the heart of a controversy that separates internalists and externalists. I’m not sure that she will move many internalists from their well-entrenched positions, but we are surely forced to take into account her arguments. The basic idea of the paper is that a belief can be epistemically irrational even when prompted by the kind of sense experience that we would, under most circumstances, take to be a perfectly appropriate basis for forming such a belief. This can happen, argues Siegel, when the experience itself has an epistemically ‘‘checkered’’ past—is caused in an epistemically problematic way. Siegel initially tries to illustrate the idea with examples. I’ll paraphrase just a couple of them: (1) a paranoid person Sam opens a refrigerator and is caused by his paranoia to hallucinate a gun on the top shelf. The visual hallucination in turn prompts Sam to believe that there is a gun in the refrigerator; (2) Jill is convinced (let us suppose for no good reason) that Jack is angry at her. When she sees him her prior conviction causes her to have a non-veridical visual experience of his seeming to look angry, an experience on which she basis her belief that he is angry. Siegel is inclined to think that the resulting beliefs in both cases are epistemically unjustified. They are unjustified even though they are each based on a sense experience that would in most contexts justify the respective conclusions. Her diagnosis of her intuition is that there is something (epistemically) wrong with the way the sense experience was formed, an epistemic defect that the eventual belief caused by the experience inherits. Now it is important to emphasize at the outset that almost everyone will concede that there is something wrong with both Sam and Jill. People who are caused to hallucinate in this way are surely in some sense defective. And it might be natural to let our judgment about their defective nature spread to the various effects that nature

Developmental markers of risk or vulnerability? Young females who sexually abuse – characteristics, backgrounds, behaviours and outcomes

AbstractThis paper presents findings from a subsample of 24 young females aged 8–16 years who were referred to specialist services in England during the 1990s because of their abusive sexual behaviours. The characteristics, backgrounds and behaviours of the sample are summarized and compared both with the males in the total population studied and with findings from the limited international literature on young female sexual abusers. Key findings include the higher rates of sexual victimization amongst females, their lack of prior criminal convictions, their somewhat younger ages at referral and their fewer victims. A smaller selection of case studies is used to illustrate the range of circumstances and behaviours leading to referral. Follow‐up interviews with two female ex service users, who are now in young adulthood, indicate that their childhood sexually abusive behaviour is more a marker of vulnerability than of risk of abusive behaviour in adulthood. Their struggles now as parents, in adult relationships and their ongoing health difficulties are outlined.

A Glimmer of Hope for Noncitizens and Their Advocates: Why Missouri v. Frye Necessitates a Reevaluation of Strickland's Prejudice Prong

Following the Supreme Court's groundbreaking decision in Padilla v. Kentucky, many noncitizens have successfully vacated prior convictions on the grounds that they had not been accurately advised of the immigration consequences of their criminal conviction. As accurate immigration advice is now considered within the ambit of the Sixth Amendment’s right to effective assistance of counsel, the main vehicle used to vacate these constitutionally infirm convictions has been through motions for post-conviction relief. Unfortunately for many noncitizens, relief under Padilla has been limited due to unreasonably strict readings of the second prong of the Strickland test. Under Strickland, the petitioner must show “a reasonable probability that, but for counsel’s unprofessional errors, the result of the proceeding would have been different.” Many courts, emphasizing state interests in the finality of criminal convictions, have interpreted this language to mean that the petitioner must be able to show that, absent the defective plea bargain, she would have been able to achieve a better result at trial. Many of these courts relied upon the Supreme Court’s language in Hill v. Lockhart, where the Court held that a prisoner failed to meet the prejudice prong of Strickland because he could not show a reasonable probability that, but for counsel’s errors, he would have insisted on going to trial. This note seeks to show how the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Missouri v. Frye necessitates a reevaluation of how courts currently interpret the prejudice prong of Strickland. Section II provides an introduction to both Strickland, which established the test used when evaluating claims of ineffective assistance of counsel, and Padilla, which extended Strickland into situations where a noncitizen was not accurately advised of the potential immigration consequences of her criminal conviction. Section III then turns the focus to how courts currently evaluate the second prong of the Strickland test, with a particular focus on how narrow readings of Strickland have limited relief for noncitizens. Section IV introduces Missouri v. Frye, a recent Supreme Court decision that discussed the right to effective assistance of counsel during plea bargaining. Section V, then, describes the potentially game-changing effects that Frye could usher in if advocates are able to extend its use to situations where a defense attorney did not engage in plea bargaining with the client’s interest in avoiding any potential immigration consequences in mind.

Peer review versus editorial review and their role in innovative science

Peer review is a widely accepted instrument for raising the quality of science. Peer review limits the enormous unstructured influx of information and the sheer amount of dubious data, which in its absence would plunge science into chaos. In particular, peer review offers the benefit of eliminating papers that suffer from poor craftsmanship or methodological shortcomings, especially in the experimental sciences. However, we believe that peer review is not always appropriate for the evaluation of controversial hypothetical science. We argue that the process of peer review can be prone to bias towards ideas that affirm the prior convictions of reviewers and against innovation and radical new ideas. Innovative hypotheses are thus highly vulnerable to being "filtered out" or made to accord with conventional wisdom by the peer review process. Consequently, having introduced peer review, the Elsevier journal Medical Hypotheses may be unable to continue its tradition as a radical journal allowing discussion of improbable or unconventional ideas. Hence we conclude by asking the publisher to consider re-introducing the system of editorial review to Medical Hypotheses.

Commentary

Commentary

The effects of marital breakdown on offending: results from a prospective longitudinal survey of males

We examined the factors that predicted marital separation in the Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development, which is a prospective longitudinal survey of 411 London males. We found that dishonesty, having a wife with a conviction(s), convictions, a poor relationship with parents, no exams passed, unprotected sex and having a shotgun marriage predicted marital breakdown. Males from broken homes due to marital conflict had a moderate risk of suffering marital breakdown themselves but the effect was mediated by having conviction(s). An analysis in which separated men were matched with controls on age at marriage, prior convictions and a propensity score predicting the likelihood of separation showed that a man's convictions increased after becoming separated. However, if a man formed a new intimate relationship, the increase in convictions after separation was reduced.

Psychological Correlates of Violent and Non‐violent Hong Kong Juvenile Probationers

There is little known about Hong Kong juvenile offenders on probation. The purpose of this study was to compare Hong Kong juvenile violent with non-violent probationers on static demographic and psychological variables. The study comprised 109 male juvenile probationers aged 14-20 years (M = 16.97, SD = 1.44) in community transitional housing; 34 were adjudicated for violent offenses, while 75 were non-violent. The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES), Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), Social Bonding Scale-Theft (SBS-T), Social Bonding Scale-Violent Crime (SBS-VC), Positive and Negative Affect Scales (PANAS), Impulsiveness Scale-Short Form (IS-SF) and CRIME-PICS II were administered to measure self-esteem, life satisfaction, social bond, positive and negative affect, impulsivity, pro-offending attitudes, and self-perceived life problems. Data on onset age of delinquent behavior, age of first adjudication, number of prior adjudications, and frequency of self-reported delinquency in the past year were also collected. t-tests were consistent with significant differences for violent offenders including higher self-esteem (p < 0.05). Non-violent offenders self-reported significantly more theft (p < 0.05) with a tendency to deny victim hurt more often (p < 0.01); 76.5% of violent offenders self-reported both violent and non-violent crime, while 58.7% of non-violent offenders reported only non-violent crime. For violent and non-violent offenders, the onset of delinquency was inversely related to the frequency of self-reported delinquency. Using ordinary least-squares (OLS) regression analyses, self-anticipated violent reoffending risk was predicted by age of onset, frequency of self-reported delinquency, social bond (inversely), and impulsivity, while non-violent reoffending risk was predicted by the number of prior convictions and self-reported delinquency. Only two psychological correlates, social bond and impulsivity, were related to violent delinquency; interventions are suggested.

Rural court sentencing as a predictor of re-arrest rates for domestic-violence offenders.

Domestic violence represents the single largest category of calls received by police, accounting for between 18 to 50% of all police calls and accounting for 1 in 10 violent crime victimizations (Friday, Lord, Exum, and Hartman, 2006; Durose, Harlow, Langan, Motivans, Rantala, and Smith, 2005). Approximately 5.3 million incidents of intimate partner violence occur each year. Complicating this problem is a disturbing finding that domestic violence offenders are more likely than non-domestic violent offenders to commit a new violent act, and commit it against their original victim (Olson and Stalans, 2001). Nationally, domestic violence data indicated that about 40% of domestic-violence convicted inmates were under restraining or protection order at the time of their conviction for domestic violence. An estimated 75% of local inmates convicted of domestic violence had prior convictions, with most having a history of convictions for violence (Greenfield, Rand, Craven, Klaus, Perkins, et al., 1998). However, most of the existing research focused on urban areas only, and few studies have examined rural domestic violence (Johnson, 2000). Thus little is known about rural domestic violence. Studies of urban courts which have dominated the literature may not be appropriate with cases of domestic violence in rural communities. One of the strongest arguments against the applicability of urban techniques to rural settings is the lack of anonymity between judges and defendants found in rural communities, where judges and court personnel find it almost impossible to put aside their knowledge of the parties involved in domestic violence (National Center for State Courts, 2008). In addition, in many urban areas domestic violence courts have been established which shifted the court focus to a problem solving models that operate under the premise that the defendant's criminal behavior stems from underlying problems that treatment or services can resolve. Notwithstanding all the attention given to the study of domestic violence, one area stands out as lacking sufficient study: the treatment of domestic violence in rural courts. Thus, using a sample of DV offenders in a rural setting, the following hypotheses were tested: 1) domestic violence offenders who receive counseling treatment are at lower risk for re-arrest; 2) domestic violence offenders who are assessed a fine are at lower risk for re-arrest; 3) domestic violence offenders who pay their fine in full are at lower risk for re arrest; 4) domestic violence offenders who receive a jail sentence are at lower risk for re-arrest. Language: en

Criminal Convictions and Risk Taking: Empirical Evidence from Sweden

An analysis of a unique proprietary dataset reveals that non-trivial proportions of directors, CEOs and CFOs in Swedish listed companies have been convicted of crimes. Based on prior literature, we argue that directors and senior executives with prior criminal convictions are more prone to take risk. Consistent with this argument, we find that firms appointing criminally convicted directors and CEOs report more volatile earnings, engage more in goodwill writeoffs due to unsuccessful acquisitions, and recognize bad news in earnings in a less timely manner. Moreover, we find that these firms are, on average, less profitable, and smaller. These findings highlight the role personal characteristics of directors and senior management play in managerial decisions. Our results suggest that firms should put more emphasis on personal characteristics in appointing directors and senior executives.

Psychopathy, intelligence and conviction history

The current study examined the relationship between psychopathy, intelligence and two variables describing the conviction history (length of conviction and number of prior convictions). It was hypothesized that psychopathy factors (interpersonal and antisocial factors assuming a 2-factor model or interpersonal, affective, lifestyle and antisocial factors assuming a 4-factor model) would be related in different ways to IQ scores, length of conviction and number of prior convictions. Psychopathy and IQ were assessed using the PCL:SV and the CFT 20-R respectively. Results indicated no association between interpersonal psychopathy features (Factor 1, two-factor model), IQ and the number of prior convictions but a positive association between Factor 1 and the length of conviction. Antisocial features (Factor 2, two-factor model) were negatively related to IQ and the length of conviction and positively related to the number of prior convictions. Results were further differentiated for the four-factor model of psychopathy. The relationship between IQ and psychopathy features was further assessed by statistically isolating the effects of the two factors of psychopathy. It was found that individuals scoring high on interpersonal features of psychopathy are more intelligent than those scoring high on antisocial features, but less intelligent than those scoring low on both psychopathy features. The results underpin the importance of allocating psychopathic individuals to subgroups on the basis of personality characteristics and criminological features. These subgroups may identify different types of offenders and may be highly valuable for defining treatment needs and risk of future violence.

Bosnia v. Serbia: Lessons from the Encounter of the International Court of Justice with the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia

This article uses the recent judgment of the ICJ in Bosnia v. Serbia to highlight the potential problems that arise when international courts have to adjudicate on overlapping situations. It describes the dispute between the ICJ and the ICTY on the appropriate legal standard for the attribution of state responsibility, and finds that the ICJ’s approach in this case suggests that those keen to minimize the fragmentation of international law between adjudicative bodies should not overlook the need for consistency within those bodies.With regard to fact finding, this article raises serious concerns about the manner in which the ICJ relied on the ICTY’s work. The decision of the ICJ not to demand crucial documents from Serbia is discussed and criticized. Based on its approach to fact finding in this case, doubts are raised as to whether the ICJ will ever hold a state responsible for genocide outside the parameters of the prior criminal convictions of individual perpetrators.

Loi du 17 juin 1998 : bilan de l’expérience des médecins coordonnateurs de Haute Normandie

Most people recognize that incarceration alone will not solve sexual violence. Treating the offenders is critical in an approach to preventing sexual violence and reducing victimization. The Law of June 17, 1998, on the prevention and repression of sexual offences, as well as the protection of minors, makes a provision for the possibility of medical and psychological monitoring adapted to these particular individuals. Sex offenders may well be constrained, after their incarceration, to social and judicial follow-up, which may include coerced treatment in order to reduce the risk of recidivism. In order to control this follow-up, the legislature has created the position of medical coordinator, who acts as an interface between justice and care in conjunction with the treating physician. This study is the first attempt to evaluate the activity of physician coordinators conducted in France since the implementation in 2004 of the 1998 law on monitoring sex offenders. An interview of all the physician coordinators in Upper Normandy was conducted. The files of all sex offenders subjected to coerced treatment were studied. In our sample of 100 sex offenders who were subjected to coerced treatment (any kind of treatment) (99% men, 60% of sexual assaults on minors, 14% of cases of indecent exposure), minor victims of sexual assault were: 78% females; in 90% of cases the victim was aged under 14 years (under 10 in 52% of cases), 60% of cases were intrafamilial incest; the victim was an unknown aggressor in only one case out of 60. The constraint follow-up contributed to reducing the risk of recidivism (three cases of recidivism in 100 individuals over an average duration of follow-up of five years), although it remains difficult to assess the recidivism over a duration of time as short as five years. A diagnosis of paraphilia was only applied in 19% of cases (in 10 cases pedophilia, exhibitionism in nine cases). Only six subjects were receiving antiandrogen treatment. A diagnosis based on Axis I DSM was established in 57% of cases. Personality disorders were mentioned in the medical records in 65% of cases. An antisocial personality disorder was not prominent (20%). In 56 cases, the individuals had been victims of physical, psychological or sexual abuse. Nearly half of the individuals had a past history of sexual or non sexual offences, among those, 16 subjects had previously been convicted at least three times. The seniority of the prior conviction was more than 10 years in 43% of cases. Physician coordinators interviewed were satisfied with their work and felt they had contributed to improving the care of patients who had committed sexual offences. However, this study shows the need to create a national reference centre, which could enable a multidisciplinary evaluation of difficult cases and could also boost the development of research in this area where many questions remain unanswered, particularly regarding the determinants of deviant sexual behaviour and risk factors for recidivism.