Sex-related convictions

Research about the unique punishment of sex-related crimes through registries, civil commitment, and other means

On this page, the Prison Policy Initiative has curated all of the research about sexual offenses that we know of. For research on other criminal justice topics, see our Research Library homepage.


  • Sex Offense Civil Commitment Minnesota's Failed Investment and the $100 Million Opportunity to Stop Sexual Violence Mitchell Hamline School of Law, April, 2024“As of September 1, 2023, only 21 of the 946 people committed to the Minnesota Sex Offender Program have been fully discharged from the program (~2%), while at least 94 have died during their commitment (~10%).”
  • Responding to Crimes of a Sexual Nature: What We Really Want Is No More Victims Sentencing Project, January, 2024“Compared to a decade ago, individuals convicted of rape or sexual assault are serving more time in prison prior to release...If this pattern persists over time, it will have a compounding effect on the size of the prison population.”
  • report thumbnail What is civil commitment? Recent report raises visibility of this shadowy form of incarceration Prison Policy Initiative, May, 2023“With little transparency about or consistent standards regarding how to progress through treatment, many people inside say that civil commitment feels like a de facto life sentence.”
  • Sexual Assaults Recorded by Law Enforcement, 2019 Bureau of Justice Statistics, July, 2021“This report presents statistics on sexual assault victimizations that were reported to the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) in 2019 by law enforcement agencies in 20 states.”
  • Pushed Out and Locked In: The Catch-22 for New York's Disabled, Homeless, Sex-Offender Registrants Allison Frankel, November, 2019“New York should immediately stop detaining people solely because they are homeless, and divert its attention from sex-offender regulations that have no demonstrable impact on public safety.”
  • The Agony & the Ecstasy of #MeToo: The Hidden Costs of Reliance on Carceral Politics Guy Padraic Hamilton-Smith, July, 2019“Approaches that rely on carceral politics are deaf to the needs of survivors, especially when those needs diverge from maximizing state power.”
  • report thumbnail BJS fuels myths about sex offense recidivism, contradicting its own new data Prison Policy Initiative, June, 2019“The BJS data show that people who served time for sex offenses had markedly lower recidivism rates than almost any other group. Yet the data continue to be framed in misleading ways.”
  • Hidden challenges: Sex offenders legislated into homelessness Jill S. Levenson, June, 2016(The unique stigma of the registered sex offender status coupled with residence restrictions can obstruct community re-entry even more profoundly)
  • Prison Rape Elimination Act Data Collection Activities, 2011 Bureau of Justice Statistics, June, 2011
  • PREA Data Collection Activities, 2010 Bureau of Justice Statistics, June, 2010“Among youth victimized by staff, 5% reported physical injury; fewer than 1% had sought medical attention.”
  • The Culture of Prison Sexual Violence National Institute of Justice; Mark S. Fleisher, Jessie L. Krienert, November, 2006“A majority of inmates reported that inmates' safety -- protection from physical and sexual assault, was the personal responsibility of inmates, independent of institution efforts to protect them.”
  • Addressing Sexual Violence in Prisons Urban Institute, October, 2006
  • PREA Update Stop Prisoner Rape's Report on the Prison Rape Elimination Act Stop Prisoner Rape, May, 2005
  • Deterring Staff Sexual Abuse of Federal Inmates Office of the Inspector General, April, 2005“This report examines sexual abuse of federal inmates by correctional staff and the current law's impact on deterrence of staff sexual abuse”
  • No Refuge Here: A First Look at Sexual Abuse in Immigration Detention Stop Prisoner Rape, October, 2004
  • Rape and Sexual Assault: Reporting to Police and Medical Attention, 1992-2000 Bureau of Justice Statistics, August, 2002
  • Summary of State Sex Offender Registries, 2001 Bureau of Justice Statistics, March, 2002

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