Jeffery T. Walker

The Influence of Sex Offender Registration and Notification Laws in the United States: A Time-Series Analysis

Although federal legislation for the implementation of sex offender registration and notification systems is now a decade old, empirical studies on the efficacy of this policy are relatively nonextant. This article explores the impact of registration legislation on the incidence of forcible rapes. Using monthly count data of rapes aggregated at the state level, this analysis uses Box–Jenkins autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) models to conduct 10 intervention analyses on the enforcement of Megans Law. The results of the analyses are mixed on whether the enforcement of sex offender registration had a statistically significant effect on the number of rapes reported at the state level. Although several states showed a nonsignificant increase in the number of rapes, only three states had a significant reduction in rapes. Policy implications are discussed in terms of the efficacy of sex offender registration and whether changes in these laws should be considered.

Female Sex Offenders: An Overview and Analysis of 40 Cases

Although a great deal of literature pertains to male sex offenders, it is not known whether these research findings are applicable to female sex offenders because little empirical research regarding female sex offenders exists. Currently, females make up approximately one percent to two percent of all sex offenders. This article includes a case review of the 40 registered female sex offenders in the state of Arkansas. The female sex offenders are compared to the registered male sex offenders in Arkansas. The majority of the female sex offenders were found to be Caucasian with an average age of 31 at the time of the first sex offense. Most of the offenders had a history of only one sex offense with no other criminal history. Most of the offenders were arrested for rape or first-degree sexual abuse. Females were slightly younger the male sex offenders at the time of arrest for their initial sex offense. Females were significantly more likely to be first-time offeders at the time of rest for their first sex offenders. The article concludes that female sex offenders differ slightly from males, indicating the need for the development of a new sex offender typology.

The Geographic Link between Sex Offenders and Potential Victims: A Routine Activities Approach:

Despite the publicity surrounding several high-profile sex offender incidents in the 1990s, relatively little research has been done on sex offenders themselves. This article reports on a study of sex offenders in one Arkansas county who had children as victims. Specifically, we examined the relationship between where the offenders live and where children congregate to see whether offenders choose to reside in areas with high concentrations of children. We use routine activities theory as a foundation for explaining our results, and conclude with a discussion of the policy implications of the findings.

Stop and frisk

“Stop and frisk” is a term in policing that is best understood if construed as two separate acts rather than one continuous act. A stop is justified if the police have “reasonable suspicion” (less than probable cause) that “criminal activity is afoot”: that is, an individual has committed, is committing, or is about to commit a crime. The police then ask questions to determine whether the stop is justified based on reasonable suspicion. If the stop is not substantiated, the suspect should be released.

Does size really matter?: A reexamination of Sheldon's somatotypes and criminal behavior

Abstract In the mid-20th century, William Sheldon developed the idea of somatotypes in explaining different types of criminal behavior. Sheldon defined three body types believed to be associated with criminality: mesomorphs, who are athletically fit; endomorphs, who are overweight, and ectomorphs, who are characterized by fragility and thinness. Sheldons research implied that mesomorphic individuals were more prone to committing violent and aggressive acts. This research explores a new method of somatotyping using the Body Mass Index (BMI). What follows is an examination of prisoners from the State of Arkansas, using information provided by the Arkansas Department of Corrections database on inmates. In particular, this paper examined prisoners’ physical characteristics such as age, height, and weight in comparison to the types of crimes that these prisoners committed. The findings of this paper show that the BMI is a useful alternative to traditional somatotyping techniques; the findings also suggest that a prisoners somatotype is associated with criminal patterns while being a meager predictor of criminality. Methodological and theoretical implications of this study are discussed.

Advancing Science and Research in Criminal Justice/Criminology: Complex Systems Theory and Non‐Linear Analyses

For over a century, criminological research has been able to explain a consistently small amount of the variation in crime. It is plausible that the problem with criminological theory is not in the theory but in the analysis. Complex systems science (CSS) attempts to examine data in a different way – often making the most of error data discarded by linear analyses. This paper addresses the viability of using CSS in criminological research. An example is drawn from social disorganization theory to demonstrate the ability of CSS to explain crime at the neighborhood level. The result is a new theory called Ecodynamics Theory, developed by combining the elements of neighborhood research with complex systems analyses. The implications of this theory to increase the efficacy of criminological research are discussed.

Effects of self-control, social control, and social learning on sexting behavior among South Korean youths

Despite the emerging phenomenon of sexting, scientific investigation with criminological perspectives has been limited. Utilizing data collected from 1,612 randomly selected youth in South Korea, this study begins the investigation into which criminological theory best explains sexting behaviors. Theories considered include self-control, social control, and social learning theories. Some variables of each of those theories were tested. Findings showed that peer pressure was the most important factor for two types of sexting behaviors (sexting own picture/video and sexting others’ picture/video), and that prior delinquency and positive attitude toward sexting were also significantly and positively related to both types of sexting behaviors. But social control was negatively related to only the second type of sexting behavior, and self-control was not related to both types of behaviors. As sexting has only recently begun to be studied, we recommend that future research studies examine the phenomena within the framework of social learning theory.

The contingent effect of race in juvenile court detention decisions: The role of racial and symbolic threat

Race and racial stereotypes have long been recognized as influencing the formal social control of youth. Recent analyses have moved beyond identifying disproportionate minority contact (DMC) and toward assessing the contingencies under which race has a lesser or greater impact on juvenile court outcomes. While often confounded, the racial threat and symbolic threat perspectives offer conceptually distinct explanations for DMC. The racial threat perspective proposes that racial disparities in sanctioning are at least partly the result of perceptions among Whites that the minority group threatens their economic and political hegemony. Alternatively, the symbolic threat perspective proposes that intergroup inequality fosters perceptions that minorities are a threat to middle class norms, values, and standards motivating Whites to discriminate. The current study employs hierarchical generalized linear modeling to discern the salience of these two perspectives to understanding racial bias in preadjudication detention. To do this, we merge county-level Census data with data on nearly a decade’s worth of delinquency cases in one Southeastern state. Our results offer limited support for the racial threat perspective but strongly support the symbolic threat perspective in indicating that the impact of race on detention is contingent upon interracial socioeconomic inequality in the community at large.

Utilizing Criminal History Information to Explore the Effect of Community Notification on Sex Offender Recidivism

While sex offender registration laws with notification provisions are now over a decade old, little is known about how these policies influence the prevention of sex offending. Very few studies have considered the impact of notification on sex offender recidivism or the effect of these laws on sex crimes, generally. This study considers the effectiveness of offender tracking and declaration at the state level through evaluation of current sex offender laws in Arkansas. Using a quasi‐experimental regression‐discontinuity design, this research evaluated the recidivism of the first three waves of sex offenders registered in the state (1997–1999) vs. a comparison group of sex offenders from a decade earlier (1987–1989). Findings indicate there is no statistically significant difference between the two groups in terms of recidivism. Policy implications are discussed.

Journal Editors and Journal Writers: Service vs Publication as a Measure of Faculty and Department Productivity

Traditionally, productivity among criminal justice and criminology programs has been assessed through publication rates. While this is a valid measure of productivity and quality, it is only one dimension of the tripartite mission of faculty members—the other two being teaching and service. This research examines faculty and department productivity through service to the discipline. Editorial boards for eight of the leading journals in criminal justice and criminology were reviewed for member names and affiliations. Data from national and regional criminal justice and criminology organizations were gathered and analyzed. Results from these analyses, along with implications for better measures of faculty and department quality, are discussed.