Description
Book SynopsisInvestigates whether tough punishments for sex offenders in America are undermining public safety
Trade Review"Sex Fiends, Perverts, and Pedophilesis an ambitious analysis of the get-tough approach to sexual offending...it is an interesting and important addition to a body of works published just this year on the legal response to sex offending." -- Mary de Young * American Journal of Sociology *
"I recommend this work to several audiences...the reader who has a general interest in the erratic development and enforcement of policies on sex crimes will gain much from Leon's comprehensive historical outline of the subject...policy analysts and scholars will appreciate not only the candor and clarity that she brings to the subject, but especially the objectivity that she demonstrates in carefully presenting her research findings." -- Michael J. Bolton * Par Public Review *
"This book is an interesting and informative narrative of sex offender as it emerged throughout the 20th century." -- Jill S. Levenson * Criminal Justice Review *
"The central chapters of Leon's study provide an illuminating analysis of public discourse and policy change...Leon providesa very readable and erudite history of sex crime policy in the U.S. since 1930...[she] makes an original contribution on a number of fronts." -- R.P. Weiss * Choice *
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction 1 Punishment Stories 2 The Sexual Psychopath Era: 1930-1955 3 The Era of Rehabilitative Debate: 1950-1980 4 Sex Offender Rehabilitation in California and How It Worked: 1950-1980 5 Sex Offender Policy in the Containment Era: 1980-Present 6 Experts and Governance: Shifting Politics and Disappearing Strategies 7 Chilling Effects 8 National Sex Offender Punishment Trends since 1920 9 Conclusion Appendix A: Research Methodology Appendix B: Timeline: Contexts of Sex Crime Policy Notes Bibliography Index About the Author
