NCJ Number
235496
Journal
Journal of Offender Rehabilitation Volume: 50 Issue: 1-4 Dated: April 2011 Pages: 101-118
Date Published
2011
Length
18 pages
Annotation
This article discusses electronic criminal records as today's 'scarlet letter'.
Abstract
Crimes are multifaceted events that are not adequately explained with basic descriptors, yet a considerable amount of significance is afforded to relatively few simplistic labels that make up the contemporary "scarlet letter." Today's criminal records create a lifetime of stigmatization for a person. These public records employ a limited range of information. By acknowledging the deleterious effects of even one documented criminal event on an individual's self-concept and status in society, we cannot avoid being faced with a serious moral dilemma in light of society's prevalent reliance upon electronic criminal records. The electronic brand carried for life poses great challenges to offender rehabilitation and reintegration. (Published Abstract)