Instructions: Please add an abstract page to the written exercise. Written Exercise 4 Jackson is a 37-year-old divorced male who has served the past six years in federal prison on a charge of Lewd and Lascivious Behavior and Sexual Battery. Specifically, he was convicted of statutory rape of a fourteen-year-old girl. Jackson was a social science teacher and lacrosse coach at a public high school. He was accused of inappropriate sexual activity with two students. This accusation occurred after a friend of one of the female students posted provocative comments about the student and her “favorite” teacher on a social media website. The student’s parents monitor the site and confronted their daughter about the accusations. The daughter initially denied any contact with the teacher though eventually admitted having sexual contact with the teacher but added that it was consensual and stated that they were “in love.” The parents contacted the authorities who initiated an investigation. Another student was implicated and eventually reported that she felt “forced” into having sexual relations with the teacher. Jackson was arrested and charged with multiple counts, including sexual battery, lewd and lascivious behavior, and inappropriate sexual contact with a minor, kidnapping, tampering with a witness, and providing false information to a law enforcement officer. Jackson was facing the possibility of a life sentence. Upon his lawyer’s recommendation, he accepted a plea deal of six years in prison to be followed by sex offender probation for a minimum of 20 years. It should be noted that Jackson has no prior arrests and argued that the sexual contact, though wrong, was consensual. At the end of his six-year term, the attorney general has requested an evaluation of Jackson, suggesting that he be identified as a sexual predator and held after the completion of his sentence because he poses a risk to society. State law allows for a mental health professional to evaluate an individual and determine if that person poses a threat to society. This law has been used primarily for civil commitment of sex offenders after they serve their prison sentence. The psychological evaluation for risk assessment makes a prediction on how likely the individual is to re-offend. Based on the mental health professional’s evaluation, the offender can be civilly committed for one year, at which time a second evaluation will be conducted to determine the risk to society. Written Exercise Questions: 1. Based on limited information of the case, should Jackson be civilly committed? 2. Also, should individuals be held for crimes that they are predicted to commit in the future? 3. If so, should this precedence be expanded beyond sex crimes…why or why not? 4. Discuss both circumstances of the case as well as case law (Hendricks v. Kansas) to support your response. 5. Be sure to address all the issues involved in this case study.
