Source: prisonpolicy.org 8/10/26
Shaming doesn’t prevent crime.
As anyone who cares about mass incarceration knows, bad policies often spread faster than the facts, especially when their rhetoric targets deep-seated fears. There may be no better example of such upside-down policymaking than conviction-based public registries, starting — but not ending — with sex offense registries.
Registry proponents argue that a searchable public database that provides personal information about people with certain convictions empowers individuals and families to make decisions that could reduce their risk of victimization. For instance, they might choose to avoid living next door to someone on a registry, or to hire someone else to walk their dog. In a nation where fear of crime has little to do with actual risk, this is politically popular. But there is virtually no evidence that conviction-based registries make communities safer; in fact, they cause harm, contribute to recidivism, and waste taxpayer dollars that could be spent on far more effective crime prevention strategies.
Despite these well-established facts, all 50 states and D.C. still have public registries for sex-based convictions, and over the past 20 or so years, many have doubled down on this model, creating registries for various other convictions, from white collar crime to DWIs. The expansion of registries beyond sex-based crimes is more common than you might think: we found other active registries in nearly half of all states and D.C., as well as legislation in many states proposing new ones. Most of these registries are publicly accessible, while others are maintained for law enforcement purposes only. And while they may not be as widespread nor as technically burdensome for people on them as registries for sex-based convictions, advocates should oppose this ill-conceived trend before public registries spread further — and policymakers should scrap those already in place.
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