Should Every Pedophile be Considered a Criminal?

8/17/2019 Should Every Pedophile be Considered a Criminal?

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Galdino da Silva Filho 1

Antonio Galdino da Silva Filho

Allison Fernley

English 1010

April 27, 2016

Should Every Pedophile be Considered a Criminal?

Most people would agree that sexually abusing a child is an act that is extremely hard, or

even impossible to forgive. Child abuse is a relatively new concept in our history. The first real

attention to child abuse was in the 1870s, when the newspapers started covering the story of a

girl in New York that was abused by her mother. It would be another 100 years later when

stricter laws would emerge. In the US of today, these crimes are not taken lightly. Alternatively,

there very well might be certain things to consider before harshly prosecuting sex offenders.

There is a great deal of circumstances leading to and contributing to a person’s sexual deviancy,

and in many cases the offenders are actually past victims of the crimes they commit. Some cases,

including the case of Hector, a sex offender that I have interviewed, show another side of the

issue that often goes unnoticed.

In 1974, Congress passed the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) that

gives federal money to states that have mandatory reporting laws. After some changes and

modifications the current law says that if anybody observes neglect, incest, child abuse, physical

or sexual and does not report their observations to the nearest peace office or child and family

services, they can face jail time. (CAPSA) According to this law, the mandatory reporting helps

prevent future abuses and catch possible offenders that have committed any kind of abuse.


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According to the Utah Department of Corrections in 2016, there were 7,154 people

registered as sex-offenders in Utah. Since most crimes of sex abuse go unreported, the actual

number of sex offenders in Utah is most likely much higher. In Salt Lake City alone, there are

943 registered sex-offenders. (USC) Thanks to the online registry of sex offenders anybody can

find the name, address, photo and the description of the offenses of the people on the registry.

What can’t be found however, is if the accuser is characterized as a sex-offender or a pedophile.

This shows how hard it can be to distinguish between them. The Encyclopedia Britannica

explains pedophilia as a “psychosexual disorder in which an adult has sexual fantasies about or

engages in sexual acts with a prepubescent child of the same or opposite sex,” and sex offenders

as “sexual abuse of a prepubescent or post-pubescent individual up to age 18.” (Encyclopedia

Britannica) Not all sex offenders are pedophiles, but only when a pedophile acts on that

attraction do they become sex offenders.

Some critics argue that pedophilia, or the sexual desire for prepubescent children, may

have neurological origins, caused by “a failure in the brain,” and that “disturbances in

neurodevelopment in utero or early childhood” could lead to cases of pedophilia. These critics

site sources based on studies that show that M.R.I.s performed on pedophile sex offenders

showed less white matter in their brains. (Kaplan) The study further reinforces the idea that a

neurological issue can cause men to be pedophiles by finding that male pedophiles were “three

times more likely to be left-handed or ambidextrous,” and present “average, lower scores on tests

of visual-spatial ability and verbal memory.” (Kaplan) If these studies are right, that pedophilia

might have a direct relationship with neurological causes, then our laws should focus on

providing treatment and behavior therapy instead of focusing on punishment. This change of


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focus would mean, “Acknowledging that pedophiles have a mental disorder, and removing the

obstacles to their coming forward and seeking help, is not only the right thing to do, but it would

also advance efforts to protect children from harm.” (Kaplan)

So if Kaplan is right about pedophilia being a mental disorder, that means making

treatments more available could help pedophiles heal before they abuse a child. However, in the

United Stated mandatory reporting laws and sex offender registries mean that pedophiles who

have looked at online pornography of children may avoid getting help because their crimes must

be reported to the police.

Some critics call for expanding the mandatory reporting laws. In the beginning, the

mandatory report laws only included professions that work directly with children, like teachers

and child care workers. In 2011 in Pennsylvania the coach Geraldo "Jerry" Sandusky was

accused of abusing at least 10 children in a period of 15 years. Child abuse advocates argue that

the abuse could been stopped if people around Sandusky, who knew what he was doing, had

reported him to the authorities. Those who make this argument agree with a possible jail time for

those who don’t report suspected abuse to the authorities. Many states, including Utah, now have

a universal reporting law that means that any adult must be a report suspected abuse. (Persky)

Others say that we should report any kind of child abuse to the authorities, and doing this

will prevent possible damages to children and society. Because abuse can be so traumatizing to a

child, the authorities prosecute as many pedophiles as they can. On the other hand, critics

question the mandatory reporting to the authorities and argue that it could overwhelm the system

and distract the more immediate cases that requiring attention.


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Another problem with the mandatory reporting law is that pedophiles can’t find a safe

place to get help because they are afraid of being discovered and labeled a pedophile. In other

words to have the possibility of going to jail for talking to a psychologist makes them afraid of

looking for help. Some experts argue that pedophiles cannot find a safe place for preventive

treatment. The mandatory reporting laws are focused on punishment instead prevention and

many of them are left to “struggle on their own” without success.

(Letorneau)

Though some agree with the view that sex-offenders should go to jail and face severe

penalties, (obviously anyone who has committed a sex crime should pay for their mistakes) I

agree with critics that feel that punishment cannot be the only solution. Kristin Carlson is a Juris

Doctor and believes in chemical castration to inhibit testosterone can be an effective treatment.

She explains that this procedure of injecting hormones is completely reversible, and the drug

reduces the “subject’s sex drive” but the individual still is able to have an erection “when

stimulated by a partner.” (Carlson) Even some experts appealing for a less punitive approach,

argue that the public policies are moving in the opposite way by increasing sentences and

requiring more prison time.

During my research, I had the opportunity to meet Hector, who asked me to protect his

privacy by using a fake name. He was abused as a child when he was 7 years old. The molester

was a friend of his father’s that also molested several of Hector’s brothers. Now, Hector is 30

years old and he spent the last 7 months in jail for having child pornography on his computer. He

was freed early for good behavior. For several years, Hector tried to get treatment for his

addiction to child pornography. In 2011, a therapist threatened to call the police on him after he


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admitted to viewing illegal images. After that experience, Hector was afraid to talk to a

professional for fear of being arrested. Hector’s problems were caused by his abuse, while he

struggled with child pornography, his other siblings had problems with depression and bad

relationships. Now Hector is waiting to be charged for inappropriately touching a six-years-old

girl. After the incident, Hector went to a therapist knowing that they would contact the police.

Hector is trying to rebuild his life, and is looking for a good therapist and a job, even knowing

that his files and history will be forever in the Utah Department of Correction’s sex offender

registry. It was years after Hector first sough treatment before he physically acted

inappropriately against a child. Perhaps the inappropriate touching would never had happened if

Hector could have received therapy and treatment when he first looked for it.

Knowing the experience of Hector has made me rethink how the American system works.

Hector knew he had committed a crime and was aware that he needed to pay for his mistakes,

but also he was a victim of abuse as a child. The accused was never arrested, perhaps other

children were also abused, but hiding shame helped protect him from being arrested.

Reading about scandals makes people feel fear themselves and those people around them.

This makes politicians act impulsively without thinking about future consequences. Many laws

in America are made based on the euphoria and encouragement of the media like the Adam

Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act (after the 6-year-old boy John Walsh’s son murdered in

1981 by a stranger) and the Speak Up to Protect Every Abused Kid Act of 2011 after the scandal

with Gerald "Jerry" Sandusky. It is important to consider the damage done to child when they’re

abused, especially when they are abused by someone they know. The abuse affects both the

child and their family because they need to mobilize to seek treatment with psychologists, talk to


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researchers, and go though the legal process. This trauma affects the child forever, and arresting

the abuser is just part of the process. We need to find ways to stop this cycle of abuse by helping

the abused not grow up to become abusers themselves.

Sex offenders must pay for their crimes but we must remember that each case is different

and needs to be examined individually rather than a law covering all equally. I believe that to

have more fair and efficient laws, they must analyze the severity of the abuse and the criminal

history of the offender. Before incarcerating the offender they should be referred to psychiatric

treatment and have monitoring and only then be taken appropriate action.


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Works Cited

CAPSA. “Mandatory Child Abuse Reporting Laws.” capsa.org . Web. Accessed on April 27,

2016.

Carlson, Kristin. "Strong Medicine: Toward Effective Sentencing Of Child Pornography

Offenders." Michigan Law Review 109.1 (2010): 27-33. Business Source

Premier. Web. Accessed on April 5, 2016.

Encyclopædia Britannica. "Pedophilia". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia

Britannica Inc., 2016. Web. Accessed on 27 Apr. 2016

Kaplan, Margo. “Pedophilia: A Disorder, Not a Crime”. nytimes.com. October 5, 2014. Web.

Accessed on April 5, 2016.

Letourneau, Elizabeth. “We Need to Make Easier for Pedophiles to Seek Help.” time.com.

October 10, 2014. Web. Accessed on March 28, 2016.

Persky, Anna Stolley. “Beyond the Penn State Scandal: Child Abuse Reporting Laws”.

dcbar.org. June 2012. Web. Accessed on April 27, 2016.

UDC. “Sex Offender Registry”. corrections.utah.gov. Web. Accessed on April 27, 2016.
http://corrections.utah.gov/http://dcbar.org/http://capsa.org/

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Should Every Pedophile be Considered a Criminal?