2006: Suffolk County is a Suburban municipality located on the eastern portion of Long Island, to the east of New York City. The sex offender population poses several dilemmas for criminal justice practitioners. In Suffolk County each year there are over 450 sex offense arrests (260 are felony level), the majority of which are the result of ongoing investigations by the Suffolk County Police Department Special Victims Bureau. Since 1985, Suffolk County's Department of Probation has been working to develop innovative approaches to managing sex offenders. The New York Unified Court System, in collaboration with local skate holders including the Department of Probation, the District Attorney, victim agencies and others, plans to assess and implement a uniform and streamlined approach to sex offender management in Suffolk County.
2005: Of the over 200 sex offense arrests made in Nassau County each year, only 30% are incarcerated. The remaining 70% receive split sentences, probation, or other non-jail sentences. To ensure that all offenders are effectively supervised, team members propose to design and implement the Nassau County Sex Offender Court and Community Management System. Since 1998 Nassau County has been working to develop innovative approaches to managing sex offenders by through the Nassau County Sex Offender Task Force which includes criminal justice practitioners, victim advocates, and treatment providers. While this multi-agency effort has resulted in improved supervision of sex offenders in Nassau County, it has also revealed some important obstacles to the consistent application of best practices. The New York State Unified Court System seeks to create a specialized sex offender court and a community management system with sex offender specific treatment, clinical polygraph, training for court personnel and specialized probation officers. This specialized sex offender court will enhance Nassau County's already remarkable commitment to collaborative community management.
2005: For over a year, the key stakeholders from Catskill region (New York State) have worked collaboratively toward the development of a comprehensive approach to sex offender management. The Catskill Region Coalition for Sex Offender Management (CRCSOM) team consists of all four Commissioners of Social Services, all four Directors of the county probation departments, and all four Directors of Community Mental Health Centers, as well as representatives from other disciplines including law enforcement, prosecutors, judges, defense counsel, sex offender treatment providers, hospital personnel and victim advocates. The funding will allow for research to inform the team about how to enhance the investigation, prosecution, community supervision and treatment of juvenile and adult sex offenders, all within a victim-centered framework. The grant will also allow for the creation of two agency-operated therapeutic foster homes for juvenile sex offenders which, when developed, will provide effective treatment and ensure the sustainability of the CRCSOM project by saving the four counties an estimated one million dollars per year.
2004: Currently, 6,163 sex offenders are incarcerated in New York State prisons, representing 9.5% of the total under-custody population (64,878). During 2003, 1,140 sex offenders were released to the community from Department of Correctional Services (DOCS) facilities. A recent DOCS study found that approximately 35% of released sex offenders were returned to prison within three years of release. The NYS Division of Criminal Justice Services received a grant to support a collaborative effort that will engage a comprehensive assessment of the state's sex offender management system and work towards identifying gaps in that system. Grant funds will be used to target the identified system gaps. The collaborative team has identified several targets for improvement in New York's sex offender management system. These targets include developing a statewide, cross-system sex offender management model and piloting the model in selected counties; improving the rates of victim impact statement completion and victim notification registration; removing barriers to availability of support for survivors of sexual assault; strengthening the validity of the classification system employed by the Board of Examiners of Sex Offenders; improving the interagency flow of information relevant to sex offender classification, treatment, and containment; and assessing the public safety impact of community notification for registered sex offenders. These efforts will focus the most attention on the transition from prison to parole for adult sex offenders, who tend to be older than other adult offenders at the time of release and disproportionately committed from non-urban communities.
2003: Dutchess County, New York, with over 280,000 residents, is one of the most populated counties in the state. A mix of urban, suburban, and rural areas, Dutchess is midway between New York City and Albany. The average number of adult and juvenile sex offenders supervised in the community by Probation or Parole is 145. Dutchess County has a significant history of collaboration in the management of sex offenders. However, adult and juvenile sex offenders who have received community sentences or who have re-entered the community after institutional custody, are currently being managed by independent systems. The project is working to enhance management of juvenile and adult sex offenders by creating a standardized and unified system with a victim-centered approach. Grant funds will support a comprehensive system analysis and identification of system gaps, followed by implementation of projects to address the most significant gaps in the sex offender management system. A "Stakeholders' Manual," which will include sex offender management standards, descriptions of best practice models, and supporting research and available services will be created.
2003: St. Lawrence County is located in northern New York along the Canadian border. The largest county in New York State, it covers 2,685 square miles. Rural St. Lawrence County's size and location preclude the pursuit of regional strategies to share services with other jurisdictions. Lack of public transportation, as well as the relative poverty of the county, also hinders solutions that might rely on traveling to other jurisdictions for services. St. Lawrence County is a previous OJP sex offender management grantee (FY2000) that engaged in a planning process, which helped identify gaps in their sex offender management services. Prior to this endeavor, law enforcement, county judges, local magistrates, and prosecutors had never received specialized training in the effective investigation, prosecution, and adjudication of sex offenders. Furthermore, there were no sex offender-specific assessment methodologies and limited treatment options for sex offenders. Realizing the benefit of collaboration, the multidisciplinary team is fully engaged in the assessment process to identify what is most needed in the jurisdiction. The team meets monthly to discuss progress and the sub-committees also meet separately on a monthly basis to examine the information collected. The team has received training on best practices in sex offender management to enable them to make informed decisions regarding the best possible strategy to address identified gaps. Furthermore, the team is assisted by a researcher who is developing an analysis of the offender population and providing assistance in gathering data to inform the policymaking process. The multidisciplinary team will utilize grant funds to implement services to fill gaps identified through the assessment process.
2002: The Capital District Center for Sex Offender Management is a collaborative project involving five counties in upstate New York (Albany, Columbia, Rensselaer, Saratoga, and Schenectady). As a prior OJP planning grantee, the team met regularly over the years leading up to this grant and conducted analyses of existing programs and identified gaps in services. The Capital District team used 2002 grant funds to target identified problem areas. Specifically, funds were used to create a sex offender database, conduct specialized sex offender assessments as part of pre-sentence investigations, conduct judicial training, develop a jail-based treatment program, improve capacity to conduct polygraph examinations, make treatment services and specialized vocational services available to sex offenders, provide training for clinical and other professionals, establish a new, coordinated approach to case review, and emphasize victim services and victim advocacy involvement in case reviews.
2001: Oswego County, New York is located in the north central area of New York State and had a population of approximately 122,377 in 2001. At the time of this grant, the county supervised approximately 80 sex offenders in the community. As a former recipient of an OJP sponsored planning grant, Oswego County engaged in a strategic planning process to develop a plan for a comprehensive approach to managing sex offenders. This implementation/enhancement grant enabled the county to provide training to judges; implement pre-sentence assessments; improve the supervision of offenders in the community; provide treatment services to non-offending family members; and enhance their approach to community notification.
2000: Rensselaer County is largely rural, with a 2000 population of 155,000. Its largest subdivision is the City of Troy; the surrounding area is known as the Capital District. Approximately 700 sex offenders resided in the Capital District at the time of this grant. Rennselaer County, in conjunction with the New York State Alliance of Sex Offender Service Providers, initiated this project to improve the management, treatment, and supervision of sex offenders. This planning grant created a Capital District Center for Sex Offender Management that assists in the investigation and prosecution of sex offenses and ensures adequate community supervision and treatment for convicted/adjudicated offenders.
2000: In 2000, St. Lawrence County had a population of approximately 114,000. The County Probation Department used a planning grant to create a sex offender management team. An existing criminal justice policy group that has multidisciplinary representation served as the foundation of this new team. Through the grant, staff were hired to support the development of a plan for improved criminal justice system coordination, from the first contact with a sexual assault victim and/or sex offender through post-adjudication.
2000: The St. Regis Mohawk Nation is located in northern New York (Franklin County). In 2000, the Nation had a population of approximately 9,200. The tribe utilized a planning grant to help track sex offenders for supervision purposes; develop a plan for responding to these offenders and their victims; and establish rapport among grantee team members and their agencies, and with neighboring jurisdictions.
1999: The City of New York is the largest city in the United States, with a 1999 population of over 7,000,000. The city used its planning grant to develop a more comprehensive plan to manage juvenile and adult sex offenders under community supervision and improve the coordination of services among involved agencies. The grantee team collected information to increase their knowledge about the city's sex offender population and mapped offenders' paths through the criminal justice system. Through the mapping process, the team assessed the effectiveness of their interactions at each point and explored the need for expanded services. The team also examined probation officers' capacity to manage successfully sex offenders as part of their regular caseloads. In addition, the team examined the needs of juvenile sex offenders and worked toward increasing available resources for this population.
1999: With their planning grant, Oswego County designed a locally tailored, comprehensive plan for sex offender management. The grantee team worked to map how sex offenders move through the criminal justice system and are released, and developed a sex offender database for county law enforcement officers. The team also focused on addressing several problems, such as the lack of specialized treatment options, transportation problems, financial constraints of offenders that prevent them from obtaining treatment, and inadequate resources for probation officers to effectively supervise sex offenders. The team also explored ways in which they can improve victim services.
1999: Ulster County is a largely rural jurisdiction covering 1,134 square miles, with a 1999 population of approximately 170,000. It is located 100 miles north of New York City and 50 miles south of Albany. At the time of this grant, the county Probation Department operated a specialized caseload of 50 to 60 sex offenders. A mental health provider and a probation officer co-led three adult sex offender treatment groups and one juvenile group. Through a planning grant, the county examined the effectiveness of its supervision and treatment practices and worked on developing comprehensive countywide policies on sex offender management. The team also addressed the needs of all involved community stakeholders while complying with state law.
1999: Westchester County is located directly north of New York City and had a 1999 population of approximately 900,000. It is home to Yonkers, the fourth largest city in the state, as well as a number of suburban cities and towns. While the county Department of Probation provides for specialized supervision of sex offenders and has been successful in these efforts, it identified the need for more consistent and specialized pre-sentence investigations. Through an OJP sponsored implementation/enhancement grant, the county hired and trained a probation officer to prepare pre-sentence investigations and sex offender assessments prior to sentencing. This officer also worked with an advisory group to formulate a protocol to facilitate enhanced, crime specific pre-sentence investigation. In addition, grant funds were used to develop an assessment protocol, conduct research and staff training, and develop a bench book for judges to reflect current case law, existing legislation, available resources, and best practices in sex offender management.
