Sex offenders' register and human rights

Thousands of convicted sex attackers may now be able to challenge their positions on the sex offenders register, after a landmark High Court case ruled that forcing them to remain on the list for life was a breach of their human rights. Independent, Saturday, 20 December 2008

Three presiding judges at the High Court in London agreed that keeping the two offenders on the register for life, without giving them the chance to prove that they were no longer a danger to the public, would be “incompatible” with human rights legislation.


This could be a big issue. I zip off to see what the Daily Mail has to say, but they have no rant on offer, just a load of celebrity froth. They've missed one there. Normally the Mail is big on attacking the "Human Rights (HR) for Offenders" PC stuff. This worries me, as stupid court decisions on HR devalues the currency, and encourages the Mail to attack HR in general.

There is a case to be made. How does a sex offender "prove" that he is no longer a threat to the public?

Well, there is an answer. The male offender puts on a penile plethysmograph, and is shown sexual imagery. The PP records tiny reactions to the images.

Yes, it is not infallible (nothing is, not even your judgments, M'Lud) but in the context of other, more conventional assessments of the person, it can help to come to an accurate judgment of whether a pedophile* is still a danger to society.

While we are at it, some paedophiles can be cured pharmacologically. Just thought I'd mention it.

This is not official Green Party Policy.
*using american spelling to pick up the search engines. Americans don't do diphthongs (but they do do thongs).