Sex Crimes

By Stephen T. Holmes and Ronald M. Holmes

Book Overview

Rape, lust murder, child molestation, and kiddie porn. Sex crimes disgust and appall most Americans, yet there is a considerable shortage of information on the diversity of sexual behavior and attitudes which distinguish the sexual offender from the rest of society. Now, in Sex Crimes, Ronald Holmes examines sex crimes from a psychodynamic perspective and presents a wealth of information spanning over twenty years of in-depth research.

Combining interviews and written correspondence with convicted sex offenders to give the reader a chilling insight into the mind of the sexual offender, he answers and analyzes a number of key questions. What constitutes a sexual offense? What characteristics, if any, do sexual offenders have in common? And what steps has the criminal justice system taken in apprehending and treating sex offenders? In his analysis, Holmes addresses a diversity of sexual offenses from nuisance sex crimes, such as voyeurism, to violent crimes, such as rape and lust murder. He arranges sex behaviors into several categories, ranging from relatively harmless behaviors like formicophilia to behaviors which involve children as victims, like pedophilia and child pornography. In addition, discussion also centers on such sexual behaviors as erotic asphyxiation, infibulation, bestiality, transvestism, exhibitionism, and pyromania.

Comprehensive in its approach, Sex Crimes explores the cultural and historical perspectives of sexual behavior and provides guidelines for discussing abnormal, normal, nuisance, and violent sexual behavior. As such, Sex Crimes is appropriate for courses in criminal justice, sociology, psychology, victimology, and social work. In addition, it will serve as an excellent resource for seminars and workshops on police education and training.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0803939531
• ISBN13: 9780803939530
• Release Date: January 1991
• Publisher: SAGE Publications, Incorporated
• Length: 160 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.8" x 0.5" x 5.5"

Customer Reviews

Good for an old book

While I am not a student of criminal justice I found this book very interesting. Since this book is some what old the information is a little outdated but it was still accurate. I found that the book didn't make a lot of assumptions about what the predatory thoughts and feelings were like most books I have read on the subject have done. I found the writing made it an easy read and I can't wait to read the next edition. I would recommend that anyone with an interest in the criminal mind and the impact on the victims check out this book.

Great book

Sex Crimes: Patterns and Behavior is the text book for my class, and it is one of the best text books I have had. It is short and to the point, but still offers a ton of information. There are easy to find deff. in the side margins, and interesting, and true, storie to explain the material. This book was very well written. My teacher said that some of the statistics are a little misleading, but understandably since there is not a lot of research done on this topic. Over all, it's a great book and I would read it even if it wasn't required for my class

Fasinating, riviting...but in a weird way!

I took a sexual devience course in college and this was required reading. I still own the book and love it! I thought that it was very organized and written in a straight forward style- no holds barred. Not for the weak stomach or anyone who even kinda gets the hebbie-jebbies by, say....child pornography. Holmes WILL describe hideous events involving all sexual deviences. What I liked most about this book was that there wasn't a lot of confusing deep analysis of peoples' psychosis. This is a good learning tool for anyone interested in criminology/psychology or sexual devience.