the SEX CRIME problem

Rarely is the subject of sex crimes presented on radio. Rarer still is this subject presented in an objective and factual manner for the purpose of public education. On Sunday, October 21, 1951, Hale Sparks, the University Explorer adeptly tackled the question: "Has society learned how to deal with sex offenders?". The program sponsored by the University of California, was a feature of the Columbia Broadcasting System. Following is what Mr. Sparks had to say to his radio audience:

very once in a while one.cf our larger cities finds itself in the a so-called mdst sex-crime wave Citizens are aroused ang demand protection from lurking fiends. Parents patrol the streets their children take to school. Newspapers splash the stories on the front-page and the police round up all known sexual deviates some of whom are arrested. Finally, the State legislature may pass laws with heavier penalties for sex crimes.

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Recently, one such "crime wave records analyzed. Police showed more arrests for sex offenses than in previous years. But that was due to the round-up made during the furor, so these statistics couldn't justify the label of a "sex crime wave." Investigation revealed that the excitement began with two sordid sex crimes against children. in the community. Some sex crimes are committed all the time, but don't attract public attenion. In this case, 20

the two offfenses were perpetrated in the same city only a few days apart. Revolting as these offense were, two such acts do not constitute a crime wave.

This case illustrates the emotional atmosphere in which society often attempts to meet the sex crime problem. There's no doubt that society does have the right and the duty to protect its members from such heinous crimes. And there's no doubt as to whether that action taken in the heat of the moment is of any value. Alber Q. Deutsch, writing in Colliers put it this way: "It is a tragic fact that action against sex crimes usually evolves in an atmosphere of hysteria. Such action is often useless, and frequently harmful."

I gained an objective view of the sex crime problem recently when I talked with a scientist who's studied it for many years. He is Dr.. Karl M. Bowman, professor of psychiatry at the University of California Medical Center in San Francisco and Director of the Langley Porter Clinic which is run by the State Department of Mental Hygiene in cooperation with the University. Dr. Bowman is past president of the American Psychiatric Association. He is currently heading a research project on the sex crime problem, a study made possible by a grant of funds from the State Legislature to the State Department of Mental Hygiene with the specifications that the Medical Superintendent of Langley Porter Clinic carry out the research. Many people think the sex crime

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problem can be solved quite easily. Certain individuals, they say, carry on sex practices forbidden by law. They are sex criminals and should be arrested and convicted. When there is a brutal sex crime, these people say, "Pass stiffer laws."

If this were all there was to the sex crime problem, it could be solved easily. But Dr. Bowman, who. has studied sex crimes for the past 15 years, doesn't yet feel he has enough information to offer a comprehensive solution. He hopes the study at Langley Porter Clinic will continue for at least 5 years so that some real progress can be made.

There are many complications connected with the problem of sex offenders. One is lack of scientific information. A hopeful sign today is that more funds are being provided for scientific studies of the problem. Only a few years ago, sex offenses, along with drug addiction and alcoholism, were subjects that just couldn't be discussed publicly. They were taboo. At that time, if a scientific study was attempted, the researchers were likely to be attacked from all sides. That happened only 15 years ago when Dr. Bowman began a study on alcoholism. Both the prohibitionists and the distillers protested. Similarly, an early study on 'drug addiction was denounced by a Federal agency because certain findings disagreed with common misconceptions.

Today, we know that such studies are beneficial. We've learned that drug addicts and alcoholics, are sick individuals. With proper treatcan be rehabilitated. ment, some But nothing is solved by putting them in jail. The jails simply over-flow and the victims are not helped. They are helped however, by proper treatment based on scientific knowledge. Dr. Bowman believes similar progress can be made in handling sex

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offenders, when enough is learned through scientific research.

A glance at our laws governing sex offenses shows that we've ne glected this problem. These laws have their origin in ancient Hebrew codes based on a negative rather han a positive approach. In ancient times, the neighboring tribes, the Hittites, ongaged in certain sexual practices. The ancient Jews forbade them on the grounds that the Hittites allowed them. The Christian Church adoped many of these laws. Later, they were incorporated into English law which we adopted. Thus many of our present-day laws are derived from sexual codes formulated 3,000 to 4,000 years ago.

Dr. Alfred Kinsey of the University of Indiana, one of the authors of the book, Sexual Behavior of the Human Male, recently emphasized the inadequacy of our laws. It may surprise you to learn that judged by our current laws. Dr. Kinsey says 95 percent of our population can be defined as sex offenders.

It's obvious that we need a more practical set of laws. The first problem is to define what constitutes a sex offense. But the problem is complex. Even if our laws were not outdated, we'd still have trouble since the laws vary from state to state and from country to country. For example, in some European counries, homosexuality is now legal under certain conditions.

Religions have offered their standards as bases for normal sexual behavior. But, cis you know, different churches have different codes, and there is frequently a wide divergence of opinion. Also, various biological standards have been proposed by scientific authorities.

Dr. Bowman believes we need more facts to determine proper standards. Extensive surveys such as those being conducted by Kinsey 21