Sex-Offender Registries for Juvenile Offenders

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/05/01/sex-offender-registries/2125699/

The above article posted from May of 2013 discusses the implications of requiring juvenile sexual offenders to register on a public sex-offender website, and if the practice is keeping the public safe or unfairly punishing these youth. Many victims rights advocacy groups as well as law enforcement officials agree that the registry system is flawed for youth as well as adults. In particular youth could be required to register on such a public registry for crimes ranging from rape and sexual assault to "sexting" pictures between youth and consensual sexual activity between youth.

The juvenile justice system is built to hold youth accountable for criminal behavior, but when is enough enough? Advocacy groups often cite a situation where a youth charged with a sex crime at age 12 committed suicide at age 17 due to the despair of having to register as a sex-offender. Even after being removed from the list the damage had been done seeing as the entire neighborhood knew this youth had committed such a crime at age 12. Registering as a sex-offender can cause youth to struggle to finish their education, continue on to higher education, obtain a job, keep a job, and obtain a home of their own.

Some advocacy groups are calling for the a complete elimination of the practice of youth registering, while others mainly in law enforcement are not opposed to amending the current practice. Law enforcement argues that charges on a youth at age 17 that may include multiple sexual assaults should be available to the public due to the safety issue, while they support a 14 year old engaging in consensual sexual activity with a 12 year old not having to register. Rehabilitation programs are more often available to juvenile sexual offenders today that are centered around counseling and family counseling and NOT labeling the youth as a "sexual offender." Such labels can be detrimental to rehabilitation and can lead to the youth internalizing and defining themselves by such labels.

Often juveniles offend sexually because of issues related to impulse control and other mental health concerns rather than sexual gratification. Rehabilitation programs for juvenile sexual offenders have shown that youth do not often reoffend sexually, rather they tend to reoffend in other criminal manners. Requiring youth to register as sexual offenders on a public registry can have lasting implications for these youth and leave no opportunity for second chances.