Pete Sessions: “the legislation I have offered, along with Senator Hatch, who chairs the Judiciary Committee, is called the Lifetime…”

“the legislation I have offered, along with Senator Hatch, who chairs the Judiciary Committee, is called the Lifetime Consequences for Sex Offenders Act of 2003. It is supported by the U.S. Department of Justice. We will be seeking to include it within the child crimes bill, otherwise known as the PROTECT Act. Studies show that sexual offenders are prone toward recidivism throughout their lives. A 1988 study of sexual recidivism factors on child molesters showed that 43 percent of offenders sexually reoffended within a 4-year followup period--43 percent, almost half of them who were caught. Within a 4-year period, maybe others reoffended and were not caught. So one way to help curb that recidivism is to place the defendant on supervised release for a period of years after he or she is released from prison. Currently, under 18 U.S.C. Section 3543, a Federal judge is allowed to impose a term of 1 to 5 years supervised release on a convicted sex offender. In a review of 42 studies regarding sexual-offender recidivism in which researchers followed up on the offenders, the researchers have found that the longer the followup period is, the greater is the percentage of those who will commit another crime. So it means they tend to reoffend way out into extended periods of time. So this will give the sentencing court discretion to place a sex offender on supervised release for a term of up to life if the court thinks that is appropriate.”