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Sex Offender Registries: Fear without Function?

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  • Amanda Y. Agan

Abstract

I use three separate data sets and designs to determine whether sex offender registries are effective. First, I use state-level panel data to determine whether sex offender registries and public access to them decrease the rate of rape and other sexual abuse. Second, I use a data set that contains information on the subsequent arrests of sex offenders released from prison in 1994 in 15 states to determine whether registries reduce the recidivism rate of offenders required to register compared with the recidivism of those who are not. Finally, I combine data on locations of crimes in Washington, D.C., with data on locations of registered sex offenders to determine whether knowing the locations of sex offenders in a region helps predict the locations of sexual abuse. The results from all three data sets do not support the hypothesis that sex offender registries are effective tools for increasing public safety.

Suggested Citation

  • Amanda Y. Agan, 2011. "Sex Offender Registries: Fear without Function?," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 54(1), pages 207-239.
    • Handle: RePEc:ucp:jlawec:doi:10.1086/658483
    DOI: 10.1086/658483
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    Cited by:

    1. Jennifer L. Doleac, 2017. "The Effects of DNA Databases on Crime," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 9(1), pages 165-201, January.
    2. Tang, Cheng Keat & Le, Thao, 2023. "Crime risk and housing values: Evidence from the gun offender registry," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 134(C).
    3. Lussier, Patrick & McCuish, Evan, 2024. "Revisiting the sexual recidivism drop in Canada and the United States: A meta-analysis of 468 empirical studies involving 388,994 individuals," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    4. Alexander Tabarrok & Paul Heaton & Eric Helland, 2010. "The Measure of Vice and Sin: A Review of the Uses, Limitations and Implications of Crime Data," Chapters, in: Bruce L. Benson & Paul R. Zimmerman (ed.), Handbook on the Economics of Crime, chapter 3, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    5. Yeh, Susan, 2015. "Revealing the rapist next door: Property impacts of a sex offender registry," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 42-60.
    6. J.J. Prescott & Jonah E. Rockoff, 2008. "Do Sex Offender Registration and Notification Laws Affect Criminal Behavior?," NBER Working Papers 13803, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    7. Steven B Caudill & Ermanno Affuso & Ming Yang, 2015. "Registered sex offenders and house prices: An hedonic analysis," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 52(13), pages 2425-2440, October.
    8. J.J. Prescott & Jonah E. Rockoff, 2011. "Do Sex Offender Registration and Notification Laws Affect Criminal Behavior?," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 54(1), pages 161-206.
    9. Taggert J. Brooks & Brad R. Humphreys & Adam Nowak, 2016. "Strip Clubs, “Secondary Effects,†and Residential Property Prices," Working Papers 16-17, Department of Economics, West Virginia University.
    10. Taggert J. Brooks & Brad R. Humphreys & Adam Nowak, 2020. "Strip Clubs, “Secondary Effects” and Residential Property Prices," Real Estate Economics, American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association, vol. 48(3), pages 850-885, September.
    11. Simundza, Daniel, 2014. "Criminal registries, community notification, and optimal avoidance," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 73-82.
    12. Amanda Y. Agan & J.J. Prescott, 2014. "Sex Offender Law and the Geography of Victimization," Journal of Empirical Legal Studies, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 11(4), pages 786-828, December.
    13. Kang, Songman, 2017. "The consequences of sex offender residency restriction: Evidence from North Carolina," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 10-22.

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