PUBLICATION:        The Edmonton Sun

DATE:                         2004.11.05

EDITION:                    Final

SECTION:                  News

PAGE:                         17

ILLUSTRATION:     photo of DET. WIL TONOWSKI 88.3% not high

BYLINE:                     MAX MAUDIE, SPECIAL TO THE EDMONTON SUN 

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NO SURPRISE SEX CRIMINALS REOFFEND, SAY LOCAL EXPERTS

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A recent study showing sex criminals will nearly always reoffend is no surprise to those who work in Edmonton's sex-crimes field. "Not at all," said Karen Smith, executive director of the Sexual Assault Centre of Edmonton. "Our experience with victims is that when we put all of the data together, it's quite often 80 to 90 crimes that this person will commit before they're caught."

The study, published in the October issue of the Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice, studied 351 offenders over 30 years. It concluded 88.3% had reoffended. More than 100 committed incest or abused other people's children. The original offences were committed between 1966 and 1974.

While the actual number of repeat offences that filtered through the courts hovered around 60%, the study pored through offenders' hospital records and often found admissions of guilt for crimes that the courts had not picked up on. "A substantial increase in recidivism rates was noted when undetected crimes were included," noted the study. It adds that "a total of 88.3% of offenders would have been considered sex-offender recidivists if they had been caught."

Just why sex offenders reoffend at such high rates is difficult to determine, said Kevin Haggerty, director of the University of Alberta criminology program. "It really seems to go deep to a core drive that these people have," Haggerty said.

Edmonton police Det. Wil Tonowski, of the high-risk offender unit, said the 88.3% figure doesn't seem high at all, "especially in relation to high-risk offenders."