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Lies, damned lies, and recidivism statistics

By Douglas A. Berman

Thanks to this post at Sex Crimes, I see that the Numbers Guy at the Wall Street Journal has this effective post asking the important question "How Likely Are Sex Offenders to Repeat Their Crimes?" and this related print story about the challenges of getting accurate data on sex offender recidivism.  Here are snippets of the blog post from the Numbers Guy:In debates over laws monitoring released sex offenders, it?s common to hear claims that they?re sure to commit more sex crimes.... But as my print column this week points out, the numbers don?t bear this out.  Recidivism rates vary widely depending on which crimes are counted, the timeframe of the studies, and whether repeat offenses are defined by convictions, arrests, or self-reporting...continue to full post

Full post as published by Sentencing Law and Policy on January 30, 2008 (boomark / email).