scholarly journals Criminal justice responses to child sexual abuse material offending: a systematic review and evidence and gap map

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Eggins ◽  
Lorraine Mazerolle
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Research Needs ◽  
Inclusion Criteria ◽  
Current State

This report provides the world’s first systematic review of criminal justice responses to child sexual abuse material (CSAM) offending. The systematic search identified 20,820 records, yielding eight eligible impact evaluations. Six studies focused on policing and two on the judicial arm of the criminal justice system. No correctional impact evaluations met our inclusion criteria. We qualitatively synthesise the evidence and use an evidence and gap map to visualise the current state of the evaluation evidence. Future research needs to prospectively design and rigorously evaluate evidence-informed interventions that are specifically tailored to CSAM offending.

The Criminal Justice System and Child Placement in Child Sexual Abuse Cases

1999 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 32-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Theodore P. Cross ◽  
Diane Martell ◽  
Elizabeth McDonald ◽  
Marilyn Ahl
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Child Placement

Views of justice among survivors of historical child sexual abuse

2006 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 125-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shirley Jülich
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Restorative Justice ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Adult Survivors ◽  
Gendered Violence ◽  
Sense Of Justice

Restorative justice for adults in New Zealand has made a cautious start, although crimes of gendered violence are typically excluded. The findings reported in this article draw on interviews of adult survivors of child sexual abuse (eighteen women and three men), asking them to describe their experiences with the abuse and its impact, and to suggest changes to the criminal justice system, which would provide them with a sense of justice. Although the survivors spoke of justice in ways that reflected the goals of restorative justice, they were reluctant to endorse restorative justice as a paradigm within which they would pursue justice.

The sexual abuse of children: A discussion of the inadequacy of the current South Australian legislative regime and suggestions for reform

1997 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 26-34 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer M. Corkhill
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Child Molestation ◽  
Sex Tourism

One of the main reasons why the current South Australian criminal justice system fails to provide an appropriate response to the issue of child sexual abuse is that the legislation proscribing this conduct does not reflect the dynamics of child molestation. As a result the penalties imposed by the Courts fail to recognise the seriousness of these crimes against children. The adoption of the legislative scheme of the Crimes (Child Sex Tourism) Amendment Act 1994 (Cth) would provide a framework for the reassessment of these crimes and hopefully lead to a more realistic response by the justice system.

Group interventions for trauma and substance misuse available for women in criminal justice services: a systematic review of the literature

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 235-249
Author(s):  
Ashley Henderson ◽  
Biza Stenfert Kroese
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Substance Misuse ◽  
Population Group ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Group Interventions ◽  
Research Papers ◽  
Content Type

Purpose In recent years, group interventions have been designed to simultaneously treat the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and substance misuse. This study aims to explore the research literature available regarding these interventions, for women who are involved in the criminal justice system. Design/methodology/approach Five electronic databases were searched. The review included primary research papers which reported quantitative outcomes for group interventions for female offenders. The quality of each paper was assessed using the framework developed by Kmet et al. (2004). Findings A total of 13 research papers met the inclusion criteria and were selected for this review. The papers indicated promising results for the treatment of PTSD and substance misuse in this population group. Practical implications This area of research is in early development. Studies adopted different research designs and used different outcome measures to assess effectiveness. The quality assessment indicated that future research should adopt standardised assessment measures, blind researchers to reduce bias and implement randomised controlled trials to produce more robust findings. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this systematic review is the first to explore the effectiveness of these interventions, specifically for women in the criminal justice system. The authors consider the existing evidence base for this population group and propose measures for future research.

Reforms to the Legal Framework of Child Sexual Abuse in India: Legislative Band-Aids on Systemic Wounds

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shraddha Chaudhary
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Death Penalty ◽  
Criminal Law ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Sexual Offences ◽  
The Government

Abstract The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2018 and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act, 2019 were purportedly aimed at strengthening the criminal justice system and deterring child sexual abuse. The article demonstrates how both legislations were reactionary, enacted without considering the evidence available on the lacunae in the system they sought to reform. It problematizes and critiques the new offences and enhanced sentences anchored in age-categorizations, the increased mandatory minimum sentences, the unenforceable timelines for investigation and trial, and the reinforcement of the link between fines imposed on the offender and compensation for the victim. It argues that the new legal framework will only exacerbate the implementation hurdles of the old framework, leading to poorer prosecution outcomes. The article also critiques the introduction of the death penalty for child rape. It is argued that the move could expose victims to mortal danger and will create a baffling situation for Special Courts adjudicating de facto consensual cases. While the government touts these legislations as proof of its hard stance on child sexual abuse, this article demonstrates that they were nothing more than political gimmicks, meant to distract from the conspicuous absence of any effort towards systemic change.

Children as Witnesses in Child Sexual Abuse Trials

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1987 ◽  
Vol 80 (4) ◽  
pp. 585-589
Author(s):  
Julius Landwirth
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Adverse Effects ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Child Witnesses ◽  
Constitutional Rights ◽  
Presumption Of Innocence ◽  
Child Sexual Abusers ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse Trials

When alleged child sexual abusers are prosecuted and brought to trial, child witnesses are often exposed to procedural requirements of the criminal justice system that may cause further psychologic trauma. These procedures are driven by the dual interests of pursuing the truth and protecting the constitutional rights of the accused to a fair trial with a presumption of innocence. Proposals for judicial reforms designed to balance both interests while shielding children from potential adverse effects of the process are discussed.

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