Interview with Brenda Jones of Families Advocating Intelligent Registries (FAIR)

Bruce Norris’s play Downstate is set in an Illinois group home for men who have served their time for sexual offenses. Production dramaturg Chad Dexter Kinsman sat down with Brenda Jones, the Executive Director of Families Advocating Intelligent Registries (FAIR). Based in Maryland, the organization works to “support all persons negatively impacted by sexual offense legislation.” They challenge existing and proposed sexual offense laws that their staff consider ineffective or overly punitive. FAIR also advocates for new legislation that focuses on rehabilitation and reintegration for persons convicted of sexual offences, and runs a support group for individuals affected by the sexual offender registry. This is the edited and condensed version of their conversation.

Chad Dexter Kinsman: What restrictions do individuals on the registry in Maryland face? 

Brenda Jones: In Maryland, we have proximity restrictions, meaning restrictions on where people can and cannot go during the day. We do not have residency restrictions, which Illinois has [and affects the characters of Downstate]. So in Maryland, you're not allowed to go onto school property, but you can live right next door. The registry has a number of reporting requirements, too.   

The registry also restricts certain certifications, some of which go beyond what you would think is rational. No matter the crime a person has been convicted of, they’re not going to be teaching. You might have been accused of an offense against an adult, but if you’re on the registry, you’re seen as a danger to children. That’s part of the “stranger danger” stereotype, that if you say “sex offender” it can only refer to somebody who is lurking in the bushes in a trench coat.  

People on the registry face other issues simply from being on it. Think about a person who has a conviction getting jobs or housing after a background check. Even places that say they believe in second chances may not want to hire someone on the registry. Their organization will wind up on the registry map because registrants have to report where they work.  

Chad: The same for housing, yes?  

Brenda: If you move into an apartment, the entire building suddenly has a dot on it. The registrant can talk to the landlord or the management, share their story, so they can be personally vetted, but all they need is one neighbor or someone in the building to find that dot on the map and threaten to leave. And if you’re on the registry you cannot qualify for public housing. 

Chad: So in addition to the restrictions, people on the registry face a particular kind of social and legal scrutiny. Where does that come from?   

Brenda: There was a Psychology Today article in the early 2000s that said if you’re a pedophile, there’s no known cure. The grain of truth is if somebody is diagnosed with pedophilia, or any paraphilia, that is part of their makeup. It does not mean they are going to act on it. We have criminalized the behavior, but we also make a broader assumption that if you’re on the registry, you must be a danger. You need watching. You cannot be fixed. Otherwise, you would not be on the registry.  

Chad: And that assumption is made regardless of the specifics of the person’s offense.  

Brenda: People are generally shocked to find there are a lot of non-contact offenses which require registration. Child pornography, voyeurs. Masturbating in public, or exposing oneself with prurient intent–that’s the letter of law–are non-violent offenses, and could be done to an adult, much less a child. Then there are the Romeos and Juliets where, say, he’s 19, she’s 16. Her parents don’t like it, and now he’s on the registry. So there are all these variations but all of them are on the registry. The actual fact of the matter is that, apart from murder, sex offenses have the lowest rate of reoffense of any offense, but the myth that people on the registry are dangerous and likely to reoffend is ingrained. That’s what FAIR fights by telling stories and trying to get across the reality of these issues.  

Chad: If sex offenses have nearly the lowest rate of recidivism, does that demonstrate in part the effectiveness of registration?  

Brenda: People have tried to make that argument, but there are enough studies that show negligible differences in rates of sexual offenses before and after registration laws.  

Chad: Part of FAIR’s mission is working with everyone affected by the registry. I had not previously considered the families of people who are on the registry.  

Brenda: If you are living with family members, whether it’s your parents, your spouse and children, your boyfriend or girlfriend, they are in effect on the registry too. It can impact their ability to get a job. If you have children in school, they can get teased, harassed. A mom in my support group actually had a rock through her window, years after her son got an offense. And again, the general public will be shocked when I mention ‘families,’ because they are picturing the random solo guy behind the bushes in a trench coat.  

Chad: How does this level of heightened attention affect individuals on the registry?  

Brenda: By the time folks get out, whether they’ve done time or just had to go through supervision, many of them are terrified. They did something wrong, and many of them are mortified that they did it. Embarrassed. And when you’re constantly being told you’re a monster, it’s hard to stay upbeat. Even the folks I know that try to stay positive will have down moments. And if you’re prone to depression, it’s a real struggle.  

Chad: Is accessing support for mental health issues harder for folks on the registry?  

Brenda: In Maryland, if you’re still under supervision, almost everybody will go to mandatory therapy. You can opt out and maybe do something in private practice, but otherwise you’re in group therapy. Group therapy can be really helpful, partly to deal with whatever emotional issues contributed to the problem in the first pIace, and all the trauma that came with getting arrested, and all the trauma that comes with being a pariah. So they’ve got a lot to work through.  

FAIR also runs a support group. It has a mix of persons who are on the registry, on supervision, and family members, parents and spouses. The focus is community, because whether you're guilty or innocent, or you’ve committed a large crime or small crime, there's a huge amount of shame associated with these offences, and everyone is terrified of talking at random about this topic. So when you come to this support group, everybody's in the same boat. You have a chance to build community with other people who get what you've gone through on some level or other. That's this huge weight off.  

Chad: I’ll admit my own discomfort in asking about the effects on the registrants when so much of our collective sympathy and attention is for people who have suffered abuse.  

Brenda: When harm has been committed, there has to be consequences. Supporting people who have caused harm is not negating the person who has been harmed. Honestly, it can be one and the same. Sometimes, the person who has been harmed doesn’t want the degree of punishment that is going on. They just want the harm to stop. There’s something called restorative justice, with the opportunity to talk directly or through a proxy. ‘I was harmed. You’ve done harm. Let me share my experience.’ It can be extremely powerful and very healing for both sides, and by all accounts it’s way more effective than extra years in prison. You have to keep the human element in mind.