Dangerousness, Risk and the Governance of Serious Sexual and Violent Offenders

'This book provides a very clear, comprehensive and helpful overview of the intractable problem of dangerous offenders in British society. It traces in the origns of this problem group through to the welter of current legislation on them and should be read and consulted by all those interetsed in this area.'– Professor John Pratt, Institute of Criminology, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand

'Karen Harrison has produced an excellent one-stop shop for those keen to understand and learn about the 'dangerousness problem' and its management. This book provides a good introductory overview of dangerousness whilst offering extensive up-to-date coverage of developments in practice. She fills an often neglected gap by offering chapters on women and children and young people and her thematic approach ensures that readers will find their knowledge suitably enhanced.

This book is a must read for practitioners and students with an interest in discovering how extensive the public protection agenda has become and how influential its practices are within criminal justice.'– Professor Mike Nash, Institute of Criminal Justice Studies, University of Portsmouth

'Dangerousness, Risk and the Governance of Serious Sexual and Violent Offenders examines the treatment of dangerous offenders in England and Wales and includes discussion of children and young people and mentally disordered offenders. It reviews relevant sentencing law and policies on serious sexual and violent offenders and because it is informed by insights from empirical work, the book provides a valuable contribution to the current debates on dangerousness. A key concern of the author is the efficacy of current policies, methods of treatment and risk assessment strategies and gaps within the current system are highlighted. Measures used within and outside prison are considered. Karen Harrison delivers a richly textured analysis of the governance of dangerous offenders and places the problem in its social, political and historical context and argues for a more therapeutic approach to dangerous offenders.

This book constitutes a useful addition to the literature. It is comprehensive and wide-ranging but also offers a detailed exploration of the issues. It will be of interest to the wider public and professionals working in the field as well as to students of law, penology and criminology.' – Susan Easton, Reader in Law, Brunel Law School, Author of 'Prisoners’ Rights: Principles and Practice' (2011)

'The strength of the book is that clear and well-written accounts of the plethora of risk-based prongs of control are matched to summaries of the efficacy of the techniques. As such, for policy makers and researchers in these difficult areas, this book provides an excellent introduction.'—Kris Gledhill, Faculty of Law, University of Auckland, New Zealand, Australian & New Zealand Journal of Criminology