Sex-Offense-Specific Evaluations

We are listed providers with the Colorado Sex Offender Management Board and provide sex-offense-specific evaluations of both adults and adolescents.  All evaluations include clinical interviews, mental status examination, sexual history questionnaires, and personality assessment through the use of standardized psychological tests and the Hare PCL.  Evaluations of adult and older adolescent clients also include use of the Abel Assessment for Sexual Interest.  Specialized assessment (IQ testing, projective tests) may be included as needed.  Independent polygraph examinations may be requested in some cases.

The evaluations include:

Post-Conviction Evaluations.  Clients convicted of sex offenses may pose different levels of risk to the community and it is one of the primary purposes of sex-offense-specific evaluations to determine what level of risk a specific client might pose and whether the client requires sex-offense-specific treatment.  Post-conviction evaluations are designed to ascertain a client’s risk and treatment needs.  They include an assessment of a client’s mental status, strengths and weaknesses.  When appropriate, actuarial risk assessment guidelines, including a tool specifically designed for Colorado offenders, are used to estimate a specific level of risk for each client.  Specific recommendations are made about the type, intensity and duration of treatment which may be needed for a client.  The recommendations include statements about whether sex-offense-specific treatment is required for a particular client or whether some other form of treatment may be most beneficial to the client and the community.  Opinions are also offered about the level of supervision or containment required to both insure community safety and be of maximum benefit to the client.

Evaluations pertaining to adolescent offenders also focus on the child’s developmental stage and age-appropriate needs and his or her interactions with family members.  Attention is given to family functioning and safety within the family.  Special attention is also give to identifying common age-typical sexual exploration behaviors in adolescents and differentiating them from more serious sex offense behaviors. 

Evaluations of internet and child pornography offenders focus on analyses of internet and cell phone use.

Pre-Plea Evaluations and Human Services Evaluations.  These evaluations are designed to identify patterns of feelings, thoughts, and behaviors that may signify risk in clients accused of inappropriate sexual behavior but not criminally convicted of a sex offense.  They are in some ways similar to post-conviction evaluations and employ many of the same assessment procedures except that estimates of risk may be less specifically defined since the use of actuarial risk assessments may not be appropriate.  It is never assumed in pre-plea evaluations that any client is guilty of an offense which he denies committing. 

Re-Assessment Evaluations. The purpose of a re-assessment or updated evaluation is to track changes in a client’s risk over time and evaluate his or her progress in treatment.  Both problems and strengths are identified and suggestions are offered about changes that might be made in treatment or supervision that could assist the client to gain more from treatment and enhance public safety.  Specific needs that a client may require according to a Good Lives Model are identified and suggestions are made about the specific regulatory pathways which should be a focus of treatment.  These evaluations include use of the SSOTR to map treatment progress.

Colorado Parental Risk Assessment. The PRA was designed by the Colorado Sex Offender Management Board to estimate a convicted adult sex offender’s risk to offend against his or her own children.  The evaluation consists of many of the same protocols employed in post-conviction evaluations as well as additional assessment instruments and interviews which are designed to assess interpersonal dynamics, empathy, and capacity for attachment.  A polygraph test is also required.  (Please note that not all convicted adult offenders are eligible to participate in a PRA.)

Other Forensic Assessments

Risk Assessments and Threat Assessments.  These evaluations are designed to estimate a client’s risk for generalized aggressive and antisocial behavior.  Attention is paid to whether a client poses a genuine threat for violence in any particular work, school, or home environment.

Competency Evaluations.  These evaluations are designed to determine if a client is competent to stand trial under Colorado Statutes.

Child and Family Investigator Assessments.  We are trained Colorado CFI evaluators and provide assessments designed to assess family function and risk in contested divorce and child placement cases.  Recommendations are made about parenting time and decision making authority guided by what is in the best interests of the children involved.

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