PART III.—SEXUAL OFFENDERS.

Section 1.—Scope and Origin of the Inquiry.

The second section of the order of reference requires the Committee "To inquire and report as to the necessity for the care and treatment of mental degenerates and persons charged with sexual offences, and to recommend forms of treatment for the various types of cases."

The Committee's finding and recommendation in regard to the "care and treatment of mental degenerates" who have not been charged with criminal offences are embodied in the first part of this report.

The origin of the inquiry, in so far as it concerns the care and treatment of mental degenerates and sexual offenders who appear before the Courts, is to be found in the resolution of the Prisons Board first appearing in their annual report for the year 1920 and repeated in their reports for 1921 and 1922.

The resolution is as follows:—

"Whereas an increasing number of sexual offences has been the subject of frequent and serious judicial comment, especially in cases where young children were the victims, or the very serious nature of the charge connoted a perversion dangerous to the moral well-being of society; and, as the experience of the Board in dealing with prisoners of this class accords, as far as it goes, with the now generally accepted opinion that, with certain exceptions, persons committing unnatural offences labour under physical disease or disability, or mental deficiency or disorder, or both, which accounts for the sexual perversion and the morbid character of the offence charged: It is resolved by the Prisons Board strongly to recommend to the Government an amendment of the Crimes Act under which such offenders could be dealt with scientifically—

"(1.) Before sentence is pronounced, by furnishing expert medical or surgical reports or evidence:

"(2.) By sanctioning an indeterminate sentence:

"(3.) By segregating persons so sentenced and subjecting them, under proper safeguards, to any medical or surgical treatment which may be deemed necessary or expedient either for their own good or in the public interest."

The repeated occurrence of gross offences of the character described by the Prisons Board, both before and since the Committee commenced its sittings, has focussed public attention more strongly upon the necessity for immediate action in regard to the more adequate treatment of this class of degenerate than upon the much larger and relatively more important class of mental defective covered by the first section of the order of reference.

The bulk of the evidence heard by the Committee and practically the whole of the information obtained from various sources bore more particularly upon the question of the care and prevention of the propagation of the mentally defective part of the population coming under the general designation of "feeble-minded." While, however, the evidence obtained regarding the prevalence of sex offences and the care and treatment of the offenders was not great in volume, it was eminently practical in character. Apart from this, the flagrant cases reported in the daily Press during the past few months in connection with the Supreme Court Sessions in the various centres offer sufficient proof of the necessity for some drastic amendment of the law on the lines suggested by the Prisons Board.

Section 2.—Seriousness of the Evil.

That the order for an inquiry into this question was by no means premature was made apparent to the Committee by the presentation at its first sitting of a return furnished by the Prisons Department, which appears in the Appendix to this report, page 30, showing the number of sexual offenders of the various classes who were actually serving sentences on the 10th May, 1924. The total number of the sexual offenders in the prisons of the Dominion on that date was 185. This number represented 17.273 per cent. of all the prisoners then in custody. Unfortunately, this percentage has since been increased by recent commitments of cases of the most serious types.

A return compiled by the Government Statistician (Mr. Malcolm Fraser) shows that during the five years, 1919-1923, there were 331 persons sentenced in the Supreme Court for sexual offences as follows: Rape, 5; attempted rape, 19; indecent assault on a female, 150; indecent assault on a male, 50; unlawful carnal knowledge, 49; attempted unlawful carnal knowledge, 18; incest, 17; unnatural offence, 23: total, 331.

Section 3.—Types of Offences.

It is obvious that included under the heading of sexual offences are cases which vary so greatly in their gravity and in their very nature as to have little in common. There is a great gulf between the lad convicted of unlawful carnal knowledge with a girl who is under the legal age of consent, but who in some instances may even be the actual instigator of the offence, and the miscreant who tampers with little girls of tender years, or sets himself deliberately to corrupt boys. It was this class which the Prisons Board had in mind when it passed the resolution quoted, and no doubt it is the class which the Committee's order of reference is intended to cover.

This class of offence is held in so much detestation by normal persons possessing ordinary healthy natural instincts that they find it impossible to consider the question from a judicial and coldly scientific point of view. It is evident, however, that this must be done if we are to entertain any hope of finding and applying an effective remedy to this cancer in the social organism. The evidence given before the Committee leads them to the belief that the evil is much more prevalent than is generally supposed—that the cases which come before the Court constitute only a percentage of those which actually occur.

The ignorance of the general public in regard to these matters occasionally leads to an unjust attitude of mind towards some of the offenders brought before the Courts. Take the case of an old man charged with "exhibitionism." To the normal mind this seems a particularly disgusting proceeding, and the offender's age is regarded as an aggravation. The explanation is that the higher nerve-cells of the old man are degenerating, that he may be thus unable effectively to control his morbid sexual impulses, particularly if stimulated by an enlarged prostate. Such a person is a subject for pity rather than punishment; he must be restrained from annoying others by his offensive behaviour, but it is really a case for medical treatment.

Another class to be considered is the confirmed homosexualist. There are well-known examples of men eminent in the arts and literature given to this unnatural practice, and of the offenders who come before the Courts only a small proportion can be described as feeble-minded. The practice is not confined to the male sex, although for reasons which will be apparent it is only males who come before the Courts charged with this specific offence. Many parents are unaware that girls as well as boys may contract bad habits and fall into sexual abnormalities, but it is a fact which they ought to know in order that the danger may be guarded against.

Mr. Hawkins, Inspector of Prisons, whose experience extending over forty years in charge of prisoners in New Zealand makes his opinion of great weight, says there are two types of sexual offenders to be found in our prisons: First, there are those who yielded to sudden temptation, assaulted women or young female children, sometimes under circumstances exhibiting extreme brutality. In the majority of these cases, he says, the offenders are curable under a proper system of treatment, and it is seldom that they again offend. He goes on to say: "The real sexual pervert, however, who is continually tampering with young children is different, as is also the case when young boys are the victims. The worst pervert of all is the one who flagrantly offers himself for the purposes of sodomy. Strange as it may seem, there are quite a number of such degenerates in our prisons to-day; middle-aged and elderly men being the chief offenders of this class. In my opinion segregation for life is the only course, and my years of experience among such a class have convinced me of this, their case being absolutely hopeless when this stage has been reached, and no cure is possible in such cases."

This pessimistic view, unfortunately, is fully confirmed by the records of cases examined by the Committee. Long terms of imprisonment, though combined with the lash, have proved quite ineffective as a deterrent, even to the individual concerned. In some cases the offender within a short time after his release has been detected in the same practices and rearrested. Still less does such a punishment act as a deterrent to other addicts, if for no other reason than that each individual cherishes the conviction that he will not be found out.

Records of a number of illustrative cases are set out in the Appendix, pages 31-33.

Section 4.—Suggested Remedies.

As regards the infliction of corporal punishment which is often advocated, Dr. Murray, Medical Officer to the Mount Eden Prison at Auckland, who has had a good deal of experience with sexual offenders, said he had seen a good many flogged, and he did not think it had any effect as a deterrent. He added, "Nothing will deter men once they have taken on that line. I think you will find in some cases where a person has been addicted to those practices before marriage he will drift again into the same course after a certain number of years. It seems a perversion they have no control over, and after a certain number of years it masters them."

The general opinion of those who have been in touch with this problem for many years is well expressed in the following extract from a very valuable report furnished to the Committee by Dr. F.S. Hay, Inspector-General of Mental Hospitals, on the different questions coming within the scope of the inquiry:—

"As a member of the Prisons Board I have had the matter of the sexual offender brought under my notice and have come to some very definite conclusions.

"I think that he should be brought to trial in the ordinary way, with perhaps suppression of publication of names of the offender and victim. If found guilty, he should be given an indeterminate sentence, and be removed to a farm reformatory prison, where he would be brought under skilled medical and lay observation, and his case studied in respect to—Mentality, when if afterwards it is decided that he is mentally defective or deficient in terms of the Act he can be transferred to the proper institution; physical condition, when if there is any disorder it can be remedied. If the disorder is causative (e.g., prostatic in the elderly) and surgical or medical interference is necessary, it will be carried out and its results carefully watched and reported on.

"At present the sentences vary from, say, a year to ten years or more, the seriousness of the case being one determining factor; but often similar cases have years of difference in their sentences, and at the end of the sentence they once more enter the world, and a fair proportion repeat the offence. The people in the reformatory prisons can, with experience of a case lasting over some years, foretell the failure fairly accurately.

"The degree of sexual perversion being measured by the amount of interference with children, which accounts for the measure of the sentence, means no essential difference in the intent or in the likelihood of repetition, and therefore scientifically the sentences should be equal. I suggest that they should be made equal by being made indeterminate.

"Those of whom the Medical Officer cannot report favourably would continue on. They could be given a right of revision. Those of whom he can report very favourably could be released on probation, and so on. The essential feature is that no hurried diagnosis is made before trial, but diagnosis and prognosis are arrived at after months and maybe years of close observation and by a staff gaining experience daily."

Sterilization and Desexualization.

The increase of sexual offences during recent years and the disgust felt by all normally disposed people when contemplating cases of sexual perversion and assault upon young children have created a strong public opinion in favour of dealing with these offences as radically as circumstances will permit.

Demands are constantly made that the offenders should undergo "a surgical operation," which is intended to imply either castration or simple sterilization.

The British Medical Association, at their annual Conference held in Auckland in April, 1924, resolved that the following motion be adopted by the Council: "That this Conference can make no recommendation for surgical desexualization in the treatment of the adult sex pervert. The only safeguard for young children in this matter is the permanent segregation of the offender, either in prisons or in farm colonies. The Conference emphasizes the importance of the sterilization of the chronic mentally or morally unfit that a future generation may benefit thereby."

The Committee therefore considers it necessary to set out as clearly as may be possible the result of such operations and its deductions from the evidence taken and authorities consulted as to the probability of the achievement of the result desired.

To consider in the first place the operation of simple sterilization (vasectomy or salpingectomy). It is quite clear that this operation, when properly carried out, prevents procreation by the individual operated upon. Although the knowledge of the loss of this power may modify the views of life held by the individual the operation per se does not affect his physical or mental health. This would be anticipated, as the production of the internal secretion of the sexual glands in either sex (ovaries or testes) continues.

Sexual desire and capacity for coitus are not usually appreciably impaired by this operation, and it clearly could not be expected to restrain the sexual offender from the pursuit of his perverted modes of gratification. As, however, it appears that in a proportion of cases of sexual perversion the tendency is an hereditary one, these operations would, as in the case of the feeble-minded, tend to restrict the number of individuals in the community afflicted in this manner. The Committee would therefore recommend that simple sterilization be considered by the Eugenic Board in relation to sexual perverts.

Castration (Desexualization).

The operation of desexualization implies the removal of the sexual glands (ovaries or testes), and involves other considerations than the operation of simple sterilization.

The loss of the internal secretion of these glands may produce physical and mental changes in the individual. These effects vary greatly in degree according to the age at which the operation is performed.

The earlier it is done the more decided the result. If performed before puberty the secondary sexual characteristics fail to develop. The voice does not change in the male; the development of hair is more sparse; the general physical development is less masculine; and mentally the individual is less aggressive. Most pertinent of all as bearing upon the question under review, sexual desire and capacity do not develop, either at all, or at any rate, not to the same degree as in a normal individual. This result, however, is not constant, and depends principally upon the age at which the operation is performed.

After puberty the operation is very much less effective. The secondary sexual characteristics have been already established and persist. It occasionally occurs that certain mental effects are produced. In women these resemble, generally speaking, those occurring at the climacteric. In both sexes, however, mental disturbances may occasionally arise.

The immediate effect upon sexual desire and capacity is slight. It would appear, however, from the small amount of evidence available on this point that the tendency is to a gradual diminution of sexual desire, possibly even to disappearance after some years.

As it is generally after puberty that sexual perversion becomes manifest, it is clear that much cannot be expected from this operation.

The problematic result and the extent of the mutilation restrain the Committee from any suggestion that such an operation should be made compulsory.

The Committee feel that the information at present available in regard to sterilization or desexualization of sexual offenders is quite inadequate to permit of a sound and final judgment as to the value of the procedure. They recommend, therefore, that the whole question be remitted for careful investigation to the Eugenic Board which it is proposed should be set up.

Section 5.—Scientific Treatment and Segregation with Indeterminate Sentence.

After very careful consideration the Committee have come to the conclusion that it is most desirable, in continuation of the system of prison reform which has been inaugurated with so much success in this country, that every person charged with a serious sexual offence should be carefully examined by a medical man and skilled psychiatrist before his trial, and evidence given to the Court of any physical or mental defect having a bearing on the case.

In the judgment of the Committee, the best way of dealing with persons guilty of sexual crimes is by means of the indeterminate sentence. Each case should be examined by a psychiatrist as well as by the Prison Medical Officer, and the length of the period of detention should be determined by the Prisons Board after looking into the nature of the offence and considering the report of the psychologist and evidence as to the conduct of the prisoner while under detention. In cases of the worst type the indeterminate sentence would doubtless resolve itself into detention for life.

At all costs the women and children of the community must be protected against this class of offender. The evidence of Mr. Hawkins as to this class is emphatic and very much to the point:—

"Personally I have never yet seen a complete cure in the case of a real sexual pervert. Years of imprisonment, to my own personal knowledge, have failed to do any good whatever. Treat them kindly, give them useful work, and make their lives as pleasant as possible, but never let them loose on society again. Even if this were done, the trouble with such individuals is by no means ended, as if it is intended to prevent them following their beastly tendencies constant unremitting supervision will be necessary. The average citizen has not the slightest conception of the utter depths of depravity to which a confirmed male sexual pervert will descend. Instances of such depravity have occurred to my knowledge. Many of the men referred to are not fit to live, but it must be remembered that in many instances the evil tendencies have been inherited, while in others environment has played a prominent part."

The information placed before the Committee, which is summarized in the foregoing paragraphs, leads to the conclusion that the requirements of the position are fairly well covered by the terms of the Prisons Board's resolution.

Section 6.—Summary of Recommendations.

The Committee recommend,—

(1.) That the Crimes Act be amended to provide for the passing of an indeterminate sentence upon persons convicted of sexual offences. The Courts to be given full discretion as to whether the sentence shall be definite or indeterminate.

(2.) That the Prisons Board be vested with the same power of recommendation for the release on probation or final discharge of prisoners under an indeterminate sentence as they have now in regard to all other prisoners.

(3.) That a psychiatrist be appointed to advise the Prisons Department as to the classification and treatment, and that he be available to the Courts for the examination, before sentence, of sexual offenders, or of offenders who are thought to be irresponsible on account of mental defect.

(4.) That the Prisons Board be advised by the Eugenic Board in regard to the release on probation or final discharge of all sexual offenders or feeble-minded offenders coming under its jurisdiction.

(5.) The Committee feel that the information at present available in regard to sterilization or desexualization of sexual offenders is quite inadequate to permit of a sound and final judgment as to the value of the procedure. They recommend, therefore, that the whole question be remitted for careful investigation to the Eugenic Board which it is proposed should be set up.

Concluding Remarks.

It goes without saying that the work of the Committee in pursuing their investigations has been of a very painful and depressing character. We need not refer to the depth of human degradation and the revolting pathological details which had to be explored in dealing with the second order of reference, beyond saying that the witnesses who faced the unpleasant task of giving evidence deserve the thanks of the public for discharging what they evidently felt to be a public duty. In the inquiry into the problem of the feeble-minded the most saddening experience of the Committee was the sight of so many children deprived of their full share of the light of reason, often maimed and stunted in body as well as in intellect. The sight was made sadder still by the reflection that unless prompt and effective action is taken the multiplication of these degenerates will increase and the race will steadily deteriorate.

Professor William MacDougall, the noted psychologist of Harvard University, speaking at Toronto recently in reference to the disregard of eugenic methods in America in maintaining and improving the national stock, said: "As I watch the American people speeding daily with invincible optimism down the path that leads to destruction I seem to be watching one of the greatest tragedies of history."

New Zealand is a young country already exhibiting some of the weaknesses of much older nations, but it is now at the stage where, if its people are wise, they may escape the worst evils of the Old World. It has rightly been decided that this should be not only a "white man's country," but as completely British as possible. We ought to make every effort to keep the stock sturdy and strong, as well as racially pure. The pioneers were for the most part an ideal stock for a new offshoot of the Mother-country. The Great War revealed that from their loins have sprung some of the finest men the world has ever seen, not only in physical strength, but in character and spirit. It also revealed that an inferior strain had crept in and that New Zealand was already getting its share of weaklings. Surely our aim should be to prevent, as far as possible, the multiplication of the latter type, and to increase the elements of the mental, moral, and physical strength of the nation. In these beautiful and richly dowered islands we have a noble heritage—to be in keeping and to ensure the full development of their resources and enjoyment of their blessings the inhabitants should be of the highest type obtainable by human effort.

This is the lesson which has been impressed upon the minds of the Committee during their investigations, and they have been sustained in their saddening experience by the hope that this lesson will be taken to heart by both the Parliament and the people of the Dominion.

W. H. Triggs, Chairman. D. McGavin. F. Truby King. J. S. Elliott. Ada G. Paterson. Chas. E. Matthews. J. Beck. J. W. Buchanan, Secretary.