Opinion ID: 1443906
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 12

Heading: Retribution and Deterrence

Text: Registration has an obvious deterrent effect. A registered offender is more likely to think twice before committing another sex offense when the person knows that the local sheriff already has the offender's name on a list. We acknowledge the statement in Ursery, 116 S. Ct. 2149, that the purpose of deterrence ... may serve civil as well as criminal goals. The stigma that will accompany public exposure of the registered information could be viewed as a form of retribution. We find that the KSORA public disclosure provision may have both a deterrent and retributive effect. However, the nonpunitive purpose of the statute cannot be accomplished without informing the public that a sex offender is in its midst. If the statute limited public disclosure to that necessary to protect the public, then its deterrent effect could be viewed as incidental to its nonpunitive purpose. Unlimited public access to the registry provides a deterrent or retributive effect that goes beyond such purpose.