The dangers of federalizing crime law: consequences of the Adam Walsh Act and sex offender registry expansion
I evaluate the 2006 Adam Walsh Act (AWA) and the sex offender registration and notification requirements that it established. I find that the law expands registry size in compliant states but does not reduce sex crimes, including those made registerable or more severe by the AWA. My results suggest...
Autor principal: | |
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Tipo de documento: | Electrónico Artículo |
Lenguaje: | Inglés |
Publicado: |
2025
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En: |
Journal of crime and justice
Año: 2025, Volumen: 48, Número: 3, Páginas: 406-424 |
Acceso en línea: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
Journals Online & Print: | |
Verificar disponibilidad: | HBZ Gateway |
Palabras clave: |
Sumario: | I evaluate the 2006 Adam Walsh Act (AWA) and the sex offender registration and notification requirements that it established. I find that the law expands registry size in compliant states but does not reduce sex crimes, including those made registerable or more severe by the AWA. My results suggest that the conviction-based approach to determining inclusion on registries mandated by the AWA instead has the counterproductive effect of making registries less likely to reduce sex crimes and notification requirements are not effective at alerting prospective victims about unfamiliar offenders. |
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ISSN: | 2158-9119 |
DOI: | 10.1080/0735648X.2024.2365726 |