Published on May 26, 2010 in The Tennessean
The U.S. Supreme Court recently upheld a portion of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act that allows federal courts to order civil commitments of mentally ill “sexually dangerous” federal prisoners if they have reached the end of their criminal sentences or if they are incompetent to stand trial.
Civil commitments for mentally ill sex offenders are a common sense and humane approach to crime prevention and community safety. When considering the impact of sexual violence upon victims, it is clear that this class of inmates requires a heightened legislative and judicial response to prevent future crimes and protect communities.
Twenty-two states also have similar civil commitment laws for this class of inmates, and the Supreme Court has previously upheld the constitutionality of those laws as well, noting that previous instances of violent behavior are an important indicator of future violent tendencies. The laws that provide for civil commitments also protect the rights of these prisoners by providing for the appointment of attorneys and periodic judicial review to determine whether the prisoner remains dangerous.
Civil commitment statutes place the focus where it belongs, on the predatory, violent conduct of sex offenders and on the deviant motivations and/or mental illnesses that contribute to their criminal behavior. If the criminal justice system routinely took this same offender-focused approach when sexual assault cases first come into the system, more cases would be investigated and prosecuted, leading to more justice for victims. This, too, would prevent crime and protect communities from sex offenders.
For more please visit: http://blogs.tennessean.com/opinion/2010/05/26/law-often-hostile-to-vict...