These 10 Questions Can Mean Life Behind Bars

A short checklist called the Static-99 weighs facts about a sex offender’s past in order to predict the likelihood of future crimes. Many legal and scientific experts worry that the way the test is often used — to make high-stakes decisions about an individual’s liberty — is critically flawed. Full Article

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Look at the tally sheet, it’s a joke! If you’ve never lived with a “lover,” for more than two years, it’s against you? That means if you’re someone who is in your early 20’s and haven’t lived with a lover for over two years, then you’ve already got two marks against you??? If nothing else, that should say what a joke the Static-99 really is! And if you’ve got a “non-contact” offense, it’s worse than having a contact offense??? Give me a break already!

td777, I agree – how can anyone find the Static-99 to be a valid tool? A male victim scores you a point? So, quite literally, women victims don’t count?? And a non-related victim scores you another point? So you get no points for having coerced sex with your baby sister?? But sex with the 17 year old boy next door will earn you 2 Static points? Homophobia at its finest, even in 2015!

The term “Static” alone says that this is a useless tool. Static means that it won’t change, but people do change. So technically, a person who has not committed another offense in 30 or more years will still score the same since none of the questions about convictions, age, etc will ever change….Does anyone know who gets administered the Static99-R? My fiancé’s offense had nothing to do with children, the judge didn’t order it, and it was not part of the sentencing.

Mine was a checklist that took about 3 minutes on my third to last day in prison.
It is static in that it doesn’t change unless it is readministered (sometimes having a new crime will lower your score!!).
The checklist is ridiculous and needs to be abolished.

Perhaps it’s just me but…if an older person age 50, abused a child (someone under the age of 12) or even someone under the age of 6, and it happened to be a niece, daughter, granddaughter, while being married, you get 0 points. But if you were 24, and had a consensual relationship with a girlfriend (someone under 18), you would get 2 or 3 points. THAT makes no sense to me!

The Static-99 is vodoo science, and scoring is left to the whim of the one who administers this rag. If it happens to be a pissed off parole or probation officer your score will be higher because they don’t give a flying —- what happens to you. If it puts you behind bars longer, then they’re happy; one less case for them. Another predictably unpredictable assessment tool. Until one can see into the heart and mind of a person, there is no real tool to predict their future behavior.
What we do know is this: get a place to live, a decent job with a livable wage, a positive support group, made up of family, friends and a church (if one chooses), stop the incessant law enforcement harassment and you will be successful. No if’s, and’s or but’s; you will succeed.
It’s like the blind man in a dark basement looking for the black cat that was never there.