Offenders in Treatment

Abstract

Child pornography (CP) offenders represent one of the fastest growing groups in the criminal justice system. These offenders often present with diverse backgrounds that differ from most criminal groups. Many have no prior criminal history. Some are deeply immersed in highly sophisticated criminal networks involving the sexual abuse and exploitation of children. Understanding the diversity of these offenders is crucial to the development of effective public policy. This paper provides an overview of the results of a study that examined the incidence of hands-on sexual criminality, crossover behavior, and the onset of (online and offline) sexual criminality among a sample of CP offenders who participated in a prison-based treatment program. The paper concludes with recommendations for a research agenda based on existing empirical and theoretical work in other, but related, areas of study. Introduction Child pornography offenders, the vast majority of whom are first time offenders, have been entering the criminal justice system at an alarming rate for the past two