Dark Side: Sexual assaulters

 

The investigation of juvenile sexual crime therefore requires considerable police resources. Some juvenile sex offenders are what can be called serial offenders in that they commit more than one sexual crime against different victims. The rationale behind the policy of intelligence-led policing is to focus limited police resources on the small number of offenders who commit most of the crimes. Serial juvenile sex offenders would therefore be a policing priority. Although serial juvenile sex offenders might be a policing priority, surprisingly little has been written about these young people. Instead, the literature has focused on juvenile sex offenders in general and recidivist juvenile sex offenders. A juvenile is a recidivist if he or she sexually re-offended after some form of official action.

At first glance, it might be assumed that juveniles who sexually re-offend could be considered the same group as serial juvenile sex offenders. However, there are some subtle differences between these two groups. A juvenile could be classed as a recidivist if he or she had committed a new sexual crime against the same victim, whereas to be labeled a serial juvenile sex offender the juvenile must commit a new sexual crime against a different victim.

Although these subtle differences exist between recidivists and serial sex offenders, in the absence of literature on serial juvenile sex offenders, some findings from the literature on recidivists may be relevant. What we are trying to attempt is to address the dearth of literature on serial juvenile sex offenders by drawing together what is known about juvenile sex offenders in general, and what has been written about repeat juvenile sex offenders that would be of interest to police investigators of juvenile serial sexual crime. In addition, preliminary findings are reported of a study analyzing the characteristics and offending behavior of a small sample of serial juvenile sex offenders.

The victims of juvenile sex offenders are varied. Although they assault known and unknown victims ranging from small children to the elderly, it is believed that typically juveniles sexually assault a known victim who is younger than themselves. Whether this is the case generally or whether this conclusion results from much of the research literature focusing on apprehended juveniles is unclear.

With regard to the type of sexual assaults perpetrated, juvenile sex offenders do not seem to differ from their adult counterparts. The types of sexual offense these young people commit include noncontact offenses, such as exhibitionism; and they range to more serious penetrative offenses, such as rape. Typically, juvenile sex offenders are more likely to engage in digital penetration, whereas adult sex offenders engage in anal, oral, and vaginal penetration. Adults’ greater sexual knowledge and experience may explain such findings. What is concerning however, is the greater use of force by juvenile sex offenders in comparison to that used by adults.

Whether there are subtypes of juvenile sex offenders who behave in different ways has been the focus of some research attention. This attention has tended to focus on juveniles who assault children (termed child molesters) versus those who assault their peers or adults (termed sexual assaulters), and group offenders versus lone offenders. In addition, some research has been conducted on a particular subgroup of juvenile sex offenders that is of particular interest to investigators—those who assault strangers.

As well as their victims differing, there appears to be variation in the way juvenile child abusers and juvenile sexual assaulters commit their crimes. Sexual assaulters are likely to commit their offenses outdoors or in a public place, which is probably a product of the victim-offender relationship. Sexual assaulters more often physically assault their victims during the commission of the offense and use a weapon. This pattern is likely, at least in part, to be a result of the level of victim resistance and of the setting in which the crime occurs. Victims of attacks by sexual assaulters therefore potentially suffer greater injury.

Group sexual offending is predominantly a juvenile or adolescent crime. Some research studies have suggested that two-thirds of juvenile sexual offenses are committed by groups. Research has begun consistently to demonstrate differences in the way group sex offenders behave compared to lone sex offenders. This research relates to both adults and juveniles. In general, group sexual offenders are more violent and commit more serious sexual assaults (e.g., penetrative) and so their offenses may therefore warrant investigative priority because of their greater severity.

The investigation of sexual assaults where the offender is unknown to the victim is a policing priority. Research conducted in the United Kingdom found that juveniles were believed to be responsible for 14% of sexual offenses committed against unknown victims in a large metropolitan city during 1 year. This is a notable proportion. In light of this finding, it is surprising that little has been written about this subgroup of juvenile sex offenders. One study conducted in the United Kingdom has investigated the offending behavior of this group. This study sampled allegations of juvenile stranger sexual assault and therefore was not limited to apprehended offenders.

The offenses committed by juvenile stranger sex offenders acting in groups were more serious than  offenses of those offenders acting alone. Group sexual offenses were more likely to be penetrative and were more likely to involve the use of physical violence against the victim. Victim characteristics also were related to the seriousness of the offense, with younger victims being more likely to suffer penetrative attacks, although victim age did not relate to the level of violence used. Such findings again suggest that group stranger sex offenses could warrant becoming an investigative priority. With regard to crime prevention, interventions that better educate youngsters about the potential risk of sexual assault from strangers could be considered.

It is important to recognize that these implications are based on a small number of studies. It is also important to consider that the findings have been developed from samples of apprehended offenders. It is quite possible that apprehended repeat sex offenders differ from serial sex offenders who remain at large; hence, these data should be examined with an appropriate level of  caution. This issue is clearly an area for future research.

Personality psychologists explain that when a situation is encountered features of the situation trigger a personality system, which consists of mental representations, goals, and expectations, which then determine the behavior that is produced. For offender profilers to predict the characteristics of a criminal from their crime scene behavior and for crimes to be linked based on behavioral similarity, such internal systems would need to be relatively stable and fixed.

A range of sexual behaviors was recorded, ranging from relatively minor acts, such as kissing or fondling the victim, to digital or penile penetration of the victim. However, in relation to the seriousness of the offenses committed, all but one of the offenses involved penetration of some kind. This included both penetration of the victim by the offender and the victim being forced to penetrate the offender.

As well as using threats of or actual physical violence to control their victims, offenders used a range of other tactics. In one case the offender blocked the victim’s exit from the room so that she could not escape him. Most victims were physically restrained by the offender, and some offenders used their hands to gag their victims. Some offenders also used bribery with their victims, offering them sweets to keep the “secret.” One offender presented his behavior to his victim as normal in order to gain compliance. Several offenders ensured, before commencing the assault, that no adults were available to prevent the abuse. In another attempt to prevent abuse being reported, one offender reassured his victim that his behavior was normal. Alternative strategies to prevent reporting included threatening the victim’s safety or using emotionally threats, for example, to “damage” the victim’s reputation. Only one offender showed evidence of forensic awareness in using contraception when vaginally penetrating his victim; otherwise, no other forensic precautions were recorded.

Because juveniles show a propensity to commit serious sexual assaults— as seen by their penetrative nature and the use of physical violence and weapons—they certainly warrant investigative attention. Currently, there is little guidance that can be given to investigators of such crimes because of the relative dearth of literature on the subgroups of juvenile sex offenders who appear to warrant the greatest investigative effort.

Acknowledgements:

www.politie.nl  and a Chief Inspector – Mr. Henk van Essen©

www.aivd.nl       AIVD – Mr. Erik Akerboom ©

 

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