The Hare and the Tortoise: Dangerousness and Sex Offender Policy in the United States and Canada

In both the United States and Canada, a community protection approach to the perceived enduring dangerousness of sex offenders has emerged since the 1980s, in response to several high profile cases involving the sexual assault and murder or mutilation of young children. The key elements in this community protection approach are sex offender registration and tracking, community notification, and post-sentence controls in the form of civil commitment, peace bonds, and community surveillance. This paper compares the different trajectories community protection has taken in the United States and in Canada and offers an explanation for the relatively slower and more cautious approach taken by the Canadian federal government, compared to the rapid, aggressive approach taken in the United States at both a federal and state level.