Oklahoma Lawmaker Wants Sex Offenders To Face Chemical Castration

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK — Sex offenders in Oklahoma could be faced with chemical castration under a new bill proposed on Monday. The legislation, proposed by Republican state Rep. Rick West of Heavener, would have Oklahoma join seven other states in allowing chemical castration to be a requirement as a condition of release for offenders who committed "sexually violent offenses."

Under the bill, sexually violent offenses include:

• Rape
• Rape by instrumentation
• Lewd, indecent proposals or acts against a child under 16
• Solicitation of a minor
• Procuring a minor to participate in pornography
• Forcible sodomy

If passed, first-time convicts could be required to undergo medroxyprogesterone acetate treatment as a condition of their release. If that person commits a second sexually violent offense, they would be required to undergo the treatment to be freed, unless a court deems the treatment would be ineffective.

If passed, the legislation would go into effect starting in November.

According to The Associated Press, California became the first state to approve such a law in 1996. At least six other states have passed similar laws since then, including Georgia, Florida, Louisiana, Montana, Oregon and Wisconsin, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Texas allows repeat sex offenders to voluntarily elect to be surgically castrated.

West told the AP that his constituents support the bill.

"When I knocked on that guy's door when I was campaigning, he said: 'I'll vote for you if you'll run this bill.'"

Frank Zimring, a law professor at University of California at Berkeley who is an expert on sex crimes, told the news organization that drugs aimed at lowering an offender's sex drive can be effective, but mostly with offenders who want to change their behavior and take them as prescribed. He added that laws are generally about good politics since sex offenders are an easy target, and not necessarily about sound criminal justice policy.

"Chemical castration is half advertising slogan, half fantasy," Zimring said. "There are chemicals which are supposed to, if dosages are maintained, reduce sex drives. That isn't castration."

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