Good enough for a cattle, good enough for a pervert
Posted on 02/02/2006 3:56:35 PM PST by Libloather
Hanger proposes castration for some criminals
By BOB STUART
The News Virginian
Thursday, February 2, 2006
Sen. Emmett Hanger believes voluntary castration can help Virginia manage sexually violent offenders.
Hanger, R-Mount Solon, has filed legislation allowing for such a treatment.
Virginia, he said, faces a financial crisis in housing sex offenders who have finished serving their criminal sentences, but are subject to inpatient treatment because of their dangerous status.
The state senator said a planned 100-bed unit in Nottoway County won’t be enough.
“We are expecting the numbers to increase dramatically,’’ he said. “We could end up with 300 individuals over the next three to five years.”
Hanger said treatment for them eventually could cost the commonwealth up to $100 million a year.
But Hanger said if an offender voluntarily agreed to castration, it could help reduce recidivism, and could result in his conditional release.
“There is some experience in Florida, Texas and Georgia,’’ Hanger said reduced offenses.
Castration, he stressed, would come only as a result of an evaluation and a court order, and only with the predator’s voluntary consent.
While there is support for Hanger’s bill from medical experts, including state Department of Mental Health psychiatrists, he knows he has opposition.
Hanger said the Virginia office of the American Civil Liberties Union opposes his bill, and he expects strong resistance from the Senate Education and Health Committee.
But the senator has strong feelings about the current system.
“We are talking about vile crimes and ruining the lives of young people,’’ he said. “They will continue to do this if put out on the street.”
Castration is being presented as an option for managing sexually violent predators ordered to get inpatient mental health treatment.
"I hope to begin a conversation. It's something I am very serious about," Sen. Emmett W. Hanger Jr., R-Augusta, said at a Senate subcommittee meeting Yesterday.
Hanger said the state has limited space and funding for housing sexually violent predators who have finished serving their criminal sentences. Right now, if it is deemed these offenders pose a danger, they are subject to a civil process that could order them into inpatient treatment.
So far, 22 people have been committed under the civil process. They are treated at a state mental-health facility near Dinwiddie. A larger treatment facility is being built in Nottoway.
"Five years down the road, we may have a population of 300 of these individuals," said Hanger.
"I would suspect in five years, we are going to be choking on costs of about $100 million a year."
When the only option is secure inpatient treatment, Hanger's bill would allow the offender to ask the court for physical castration as a term of conditional release.
"For an adult who rapes a child, I would support mandatory orchidectomy," Hanger said, using the clinical term for the procedure.
Mario J.P. Dennis, director of clinical programs for the Virginia Center for Behavioral Rehabilitation, the state treatment facility for sexually violent predators, said research is not conclusive on castration as a treatment for sexual offenders.
In his experience, he said, it is difficult to find physicians willing to provide chemical castration using the drug Depo-Provera to reduce sexual urges.
"Not every sexual offense is necessarily driven by testosterone," Dennis added.
Hanger said several states allow castration.
http://www.timesdispatch.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=RTD/MGArticle/RTD_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1137833785220&path=!health!healthology
Sounds good to me, bring it on, there's a slew of sex offenders that could use this remedy.
I prefer the Dirty Harry Callahan method - "...shoot the bastard."
Sounds good on the surface to me too, but the problem, I believe lies in thier sick twisted mind. Therefore we must castrate the head instead.
I think that goes without saying - eh?
Personally I'd rather see them Dead
I thought we were castrating the "head"! Doesn't matter to me which one goes!
Good enough for a cattle, good enough for a pervert
Q: "How they hangin'?" A: "They're not."
I should have specified the head that has 2 eyes that can see.
The castration needs to be performed with a baseball bat and a blowtorch.
As opposed to the head with one eye that can't see!!!! LOL!
I've read about studies (a while back so can't quote specific source) that stated basically that castration is not a solution that would prevent a serial sexual predator from repeat offense. Keep 'em locked up AND castrate them, or go with lethal injection. Anything less creates an undue hazard to society.
Hot diggity, I like you're thinking! Works for me, line 'em up!
We must consider that, with this, there might be no future Kennedy's to run for office.
Castration does not prevent you from having sex. It's no substitution for life in prison.
WOW!! I cannot believe the News-Virginian has hit the BIGTIME by being linked on FreeRepublic. As a kid, I delivered that paper in my neighborhood.
I have a dull knife I've used for years with my male calves, changing their minds from a-- to grass. I offer my services to the courts, free of charge.
Cut their arms and legs off for good measure.
Hanger said treatment for them eventually could cost the commonwealth up to $100 million a year.
$330,000.00 per pervert per year. That's insane.
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