IV. Violent Offenders

Assessment Issues:

Addressing the risk and needs of violent offenders is difficult because of the wide span of crimes that fall under this category. Offenders convicted of robbery and kidnapping, for example, are likely to have different criminogenic needs and need different types of service intervention.

One of many ways to assess violent offenders' risk is through assessment tools. Assessment results can help to determine how intensive the offender's supervision and services should be. Each type of violent offender should receive resources that address their specific needs. The resources should also coincide with the offender's stage of change. For example, if an offender is in the pre-contemplation stage, meaning he denies that a problem exists, he should be receiving an education-based interventions.

It is also important to assess whether an offender has a mental or psychological disorder because this can compound the problem and require mental health intervention.