Can sex crime criminals be rehabilitated?

Iamfit4life

I thought this might be an interesting debate.

My thoughts have always been, no. And now that I'm a mother, even more so.


I'm probably a little too rigid in this thinking, however I think there is truly something very wrong and sick about a person who would commit lewd acts with children.
Or violent acts towards adults.

macpatti

Some can, but I believe some just cannot be rehabilitated. Not all people with a mental illness can be helped, and the only way to protect them from themselves and others is to keep them locked away from society.

CasperO

My wife is a mental health professional. She did some of her internship working with sex offendors.

((She's a member here, chime in honey)).

I asked her this question years ago, and her response was something like this:

"Some get better, and some just get better at not getting caught. The real problem is that there's no way to tell which is which".

So my thought is that yes, some of them can probably be rehabilitated - but still, no convicted offendor should ever be left alone with a child again.

mikeyml

If we're talking about pedophiles then no, I don't think they can be rehabilitated. If we're talking about rapists, it might be possible depending on the history of the person.

There is no changing what a person is sexually attracted to. If you're a heterosexual woman and someone told you that you have to go to jail until you no longer find men attractive, would that work? It's the same thing with trying to convince gay people that it's a choice. If someone is attracted to young kids, no matter what, they are always going to be attracted to young kids. It's not a choice for them.

That's why I believe pedophiles should receive life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Get rid of the people in prison who were caught on drug possession charges and put them in a mandatory, inpatient drug rehab program that lasts as long as their original sentence. Reserve prison for violent offenders, thieves, and sex offenders.

TheRoadDog

I can rehabilitate a sex offender, and guarantee they will never re-offend.

dragonbait0126

"Some get better, and some just get better at not getting caught. The real problem is that there's no way to tell which is which".

Best quote on this topic ever! I completely agree with your wife. I would add though that for someone to get better they have to want to get better. You can't help a person who refuses to accept it.

I think in regards to finding a child sexually attractive I agree with mikey that you can't change what a person is sexually attracted to for the large majority. I think there are people in the world who can and do choose. I know a girl who dated men and was never attracted to a woman until she met a girl who was a lesbian and convinced her to at least try it. That was 13 years aho and they are still together. Just as an example, if you were going to have a threesome with 2 other people wouldn't you have to find them sexually attractive?

As far as rape, keep in mind that it is not about sex. It's about power and control. It's classified as a sex crime but the majority of the time that's not what it's about for the perpertrator and this has been shown. For example, John Wayne Gacy didn't rape anyone because he was horny. It was because he saw the person as his mother who abused him and it was about revenge and power over her. I think that if the person is willing to accept the help it is possible for someone to be rehabilitated.

The key in either situation is they have to want the help, be willing to do the work assosciated with being rehabilitated adn actually follow through with it. This doesn't apply for everyone as there are people where it's nature over nurture and they are who they are but for those that hve a make-up of nurture over nature I think it can work. Can and possible being the operative words in these sentences. I'm not saying it's probable just that it's possible.