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Spatial Optimization and Geographic Uncertainty: Implications for Sex Offender Management Strategies

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Community-Based Operations Research

Part of the book series: International Series in Operations Research & Management Science ((ISOR,volume 167))

Abstract

Residence restrictions are increasingly popular policy-based tools for managing the spatial distribution of sex offenders in the USA.

Frequently implemented with limited study or practical guidance, it is likely that spatial uncertainty in many evaluative efforts creates interpretive and policy questions. For example, sex offender locations, prohibited areas, proximity evaluation, and travel uncertainties all have the potential to jeopardize analysis, policy development, and enforcement, but, more importantly, have the potential to raise legitimacy issues and obscure the interpretation of impacts. The purpose of this chapter is to examine the effects of spatial uncertainty in the context of sex offender analysis and management as well as review spatial optimization approaches to support this. This work enables a framework and direction for improving the quality of sex offender analysis and also provides the basis for quantifying certainty relative to data quality.

Any opinions, findings and conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    The Walsh Act requires that states monitor the whereabouts of convicted offenders for at least 15 years, and up to a lifetime, after release from prison. Convicted offenders are also required to report to local law enforcement agencies, in person, for address verification every 3–12 months, depending on their offense classification.

  2. 2.

    In order to cover polar areas with similar accuracy, the universal polar stereographic (UPS) grid system is used (Robinson, Morrison, Muehrcke, Kimerling, & Guptill, 1995).

  3. 3.

    The geographic coordinate system is problematic for measuring distances because the only location where one line of longitude is equal in distance to one line of latitude is at the equator. As one proceeds either north or south to the poles, the distance between the lines of longitude becomes increasingly small.

  4. 4.

    For a thorough review of dispersion models, see Curtin and Church (2006).

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Acknowledgment

This material is based on the work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grants 0924001 and 0922737.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. GeoDa Center for Geospatial Analysis and Computation, School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA

    Alan T. Murray

  2. Geographic Information Systems and Spatial Analysis Laboratory, College of Information Science and Technology, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Tony H. Grubesic

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  1. Alan T. Murray
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Correspondence to Tony H. Grubesic .

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  1. Dept. Public Policy & Public Affairs, University of Massachusetts, Boston, McCormack Hall, Boston, 02125-3393, Massachusetts, USA

    Michael P. Johnson

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Murray, A.T., Grubesic, T.H. (2012). Spatial Optimization and Geographic Uncertainty: Implications for Sex Offender Management Strategies. In: Johnson, M. (eds) Community-Based Operations Research. International Series in Operations Research & Management Science, vol 167. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-0806-2_5

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