Photo by BF / Utilized with Permission
Some interesting links for those concerned with violence in Midtown and/or youth violence in general:
1. "Culture of poverty" [Oscar Lewis; 1966] - "Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_poverty
2. "Rape [C]ulture" - "Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rape_culture
3. "Computer Games - Violence - Case Study Mortal Kombat and Manhunt - M-Cyclopedia of New Media";
http://wiki.media-culture.org.au/index.php/Computer_Games_-_Violence_-_Case_Study:_Mortal_Kombat_and_Manhunt
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
For those interested in some research on Prisons and Recidivism Rates:
A. Some information on facilities and services that are "generally provided [INSIDE] prisons":
a. A religous chapel, mosque or similar worship facility (or facilities)
b. Individual and group counciling facilites.
c, Educational facilities and services, including a library and adult education / continuing education opportunities.
d. An exercise area.
e. A hospital or other health care facility.
f. An area to meet with visitors.
g. A kitchen (or kitchens) and other housing and service-oriented facilities.
h. Agricultural and/or industrial plants / vocational training / labor opportunities
i. Recreational area (s) with pool table (s), television (s), etc.
-----------------------------------------------------------
B. Some safety and security factors generally associated with prisons:
a. Fencing, walls and/or other barriers geared towards preventing escape.
b. Armed guards, dogs, regular patrols, solid (guarded) doors and gates.
c. Monitoring systems, alarms, etc.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
C. Some information on recidivism rates:
In 1994: Out of 272,111 individuals that were released from prisons in 15 different states - an estimated 67.5% were rearrested for a serious misdemeanor or felony within three years - almost 47% were reconvicted - and over 25% were sent back to prison in relation to a new crime. Within three years of their release, "2.5% of released rapists" had been arrested for committing another rape - and "1.2% of those who had served time for homicide were arrested for a new homicide." Out of the 272,111 offenders that were released in 1994 (correction made) - over 740,000 new charges had been made (against a portion of same) within three years.
-----------------------------------------------------
"Figures from a 1994 DOJ study on recidivism indicated that compared to non-sex offender felons, a sex offender was 4 times more likely to be rearrested for a sex crime (5.3% vs. 1.3%)[2]."
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/crimoff.htm#recidivism
-----------------------------------------------------
D. Some General Information on Sexual Offenders and Their Victims:
a. 1991: In one study, almost 25% of convicted / imprisoned rapists - and nearly 20% of those that were serving time for a sexual assault (s) - were on "probation or parole at the time of the offense."
b. In 1994 [USA] there were over 225,000 sex offenders [sexual assault or rape] in the care or custody of the corrections system. Almost sixty percent of these offenders were "under conditional supervision in the community..."
c. In one study the median age of sexual assault and rape
victims ranged between age 13 (sexual assault median) and 22 (rape median) years.
d. Out of "9,691 male sex offenders" that had been "released from prisons in 15 States in 1994" --- over 5% had been arrested - again [for a new (alleged) sexual crime] within three years of their having been released [Nearly half of those that (allegedly) committed another sexual offense had reputedly done so within a year of their discharge.]
Source:
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/crimoff.htm#child
e. 1994: 15 states released over 4,000 [actually, 4,300] child sex offenders [sixty percent of these had been convicted of molesting a child at or under the age of 13 years...] - and over three percent of these child sex offenders were arrested again - for allegedly committing a new sex offense against a child - within three years of their release..
-----------------------------------------------------------------
E. On Sex Offender Registries and "Megan's Law":
1. "A sex offender registry is a system in place in a number of jurisdictions designed to allow government authorities to keep track of the residence and activities of sex offenders, including those who have completed their criminal sentences. In some jurisdictions (especially in the United States), information in the registry is made available to the general public via a website or other means. In many jurisdictions registered sex offenders are subject to additional restrictions, including housing. Those on parole or probation may be subject to restrictions that don't apply to other parolees or probationers.[5] Sometimes these include (or have been proposed to include) restrictions on being in the presence of minors, living in proximity to a school or day care center, or owning toys or other items of interest to minors."
2. "Megan's Law is designed to punish sex offenders and reduce their ability to re-offend. The law is enacted and enforced on a state-by-state basis. Most U.S. states also place restrictions on where convicted sex offenders can live after their release, prohibiting residency within a designated distance of schools and daycare centers (usually 1,000 - 2,000 feet)."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sex_offender
---------------------------------------------------------------
F. On General Recidivism Rates:
In 1994, the "'United States Department of Justice" tracked [in a study involving the release of prisoners in 15 states] the "rearrest, re-conviction, and re-incarceration of former inmates for three years after their release..."
Key findings:
a. Released robbers had a 70.2% recidivism [rearrest] rate.
b. Released burglars had a 74% recidivism [rearrest] rate.
c. Released larcenists had a 74.6% recidivism [rearrest] rate.
d. Released motor vehicle thieves had a 78.8% recidivism [rearrest] rate.
e. Those released from prison after having served time for selling or possessing stolen goods had a 77.4% recidivism [rearrest] rate.
f . Those released from prison after having served time for using, possessing or selling illegal weapos had a 70.2% recidivism [rearrest] rate.
g. Within 3 years, 2.5% of released rapists were arrested for another rape, and 1.2% of those who had served time for homicide were arrested for homicide...
------------------------------------------------------------
G. Overall:
"The recidivism rate for prisoners released from prison within one year [Early 20th Century] [was] 44.1%; this number [rose] to 67.5% within three years of being released from prison. Sixty-seven percent of the people who were rearrested were charged with 750,000 new crimes, which include property offenses, drug offenses, public-order offenses, other offences, unknown, and over 100,000 of these crimes were violent crimes. Of the new violent crimes committed, 2,871 were murder and 2,444 were rape..."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recidivism#United_States_Nationwide
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
For Updated Statistics and Additional Information Go To:
Department of Justice" - "*Office of Justice Programs" - "Bureau of Justice Statistics":
http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=1504194539343627680
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Cumulative Sources [With Additional Sources Listed On the Sites]:
"Oscar Lewis" - "Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscar_Lewis
"Culture of poverty" - "Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_poverty
"Rape culture" - "Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rape_culture
"Aestheticization of violence" - "Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aestheticization_of_violence
"Computer Games - Violence - M-Cyclopedia of New Media":
http://wiki.media-culture.org.au/index.php/Computer_Games_-_Violence
"Computer Games - Violence - Case Study Mortal Kombat and Manhunt" - "M-Cyclopedia of New "Media:
http://wiki.media-culture.org.au/index.php/Computer_Games_-_Violence_-_Case_Study:_Mortal_Kombat_and_Manhunt
"Prison - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prison
"Recidivism - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recidivism#United_States_Nationwide
"Bureau of Justice Statistics Reentry Trends in the U.S. Recidivism":
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/reentry/recidivism.htm
---------------------------------------------------------------
Some important information and links that I received (via email) today [I have not done my own analysis of this yet...] regarding recidivism:
Interesting Excerpts [Credited to the DOJ, "eAdvocate, geocities.com and/or the person (Would you like to be identified in any way?) that sent the email (the emphasis in red is mine)]:
1.
"... [Following] release 1.3% of non-sex offenders committed a sex offense [not something they had done before]. Now, sometimes looking at percentages is misleading, so, translating these to real numbers: 5.3% is 517 sex offenders -and- 1.3% is 3,328 non-sex offenders.
Looking close shows us that non-sex offenders committed 3,328 sex crimes while sex offenders committed 517 sex crimes. That means, non-sex offenders are more dangerous to the community and will commit 6 sex crimes to every one committed by a sex offender. You might want to review that a few times to get over the shock, lawmakers ignore this fact.)..."
2. "Approximately 4,300 child molesters were released from prisons in 15 States in 1994. An estimated 3.3% of these 4,300 were rearrested for another sex crime against a child within 3 years of release from prison. ( Again, percentages can be misleading. [ 4,300 was actually 4,295 X 3.3% = 141 new sex crimes].
Now, missing is, some non-sex offenders released committed sex crimes against a child 0.4% [262,420 X .4% = 1,042 new sex crimes]. Again, non-sex offenders are more dangerous to the community and lawmakers ignore this fact.)..."
http://www.tinyurl.com/yhhm54x
[Please note that I have not located the statistics related to the two statements above --- but that I will attempt to do so. In the meantime, the statements above [although I couldn't begin to address numbers...] make sense to me - due to the fact that a lot of sexual abuse / trauma occurs (I believe most of us have heard this...) inside detention facilities and prisons --- and that suffering the grave psychic wound inflicted by sexual abuse / truama - even in adulthood - "can" (not the norm, but certainly a factor to consider...) lead to twisted psychological connections --- and a certain percentage of victims (This is apparently particularly true of male victims...) will transition "From Victim to Offender..." (the name of a book written by Freda Briggs /
http://www.amazon.com/Victim-Offender-Sexual-Victims-Offenders/dp/1863737596/ref=sr_1_15?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1260405702&sr=1-15 ]
-------------------------------------------------------------
Many thanks to the person that sent this information to me. I will hold it "lightly" --- and encourage my readers to do so also --- whilst doing further research.
------------------------------------------------------------
Please be aware that my own input - in this area - is not coming from a vacuum...
My BA degree is in psychology - my life has included repetitive traumas - I have known and advocated for victims of trauma - I have already done extensive research on this topic - and I am very angry [oh yes I am...] that perpetrators seem --- so very often --- to:
1. Get away with their crime entirely
2. Get a ridiculously low sentence (like "community service..." What a BAD joke!) even when convicted...
3. Get all kinds of "benefits" [Yes, benefits! (From free legal cousel to access to higher education...)] from the system; and...
4. That we, the taxpayers, are continuously victimized [monetarily; as a community; in other ways...] by this ongoing atrocity that pretends to represent "justice."
[I "am" for humane sentencing and justice; but NOT at the expense (as so often appears to be the case...) of the victim's humane treatment, the protection of children --- and an ongoing (Yes, this is hitting all of our pockets, in a multitude of ways...) financial rape!]
------------------------------------------------------------
Peace, Love, Truth and Humane Justice,
NS
[If any errors are noted in this report, please let me know and (after examination) the appropriate corrections will be made. Thank you.]
