Circles of Support and Accountability

Circles of Support and Accountability (CoSA) are groups of volunteers with professional supervision to support sex offenders as they reintegrate into society after their release from incarceration. Evaluations of CoSA indicate that participation in a CoSA can result in statistically significant reductions in repeat sexual offenses in 70% of cases, relative to what would be predicted by risk assessment or matched comparison subjects. CoSA projects exist throughout Canada,[1] the United Kingdom,[2] and some regions of the United States.

  1. ^ Bruce Cheadle, "Good news from Canada on Circles of Support and Accountability", The Canadian Press, 29 October 2008, excerpt at RestorativeJustice.org, accessed 19 November 2011
  2. ^ Nellis, M. (2009) "Circles of support and accountability for sex offenders in England and Wales: Their origins and implementation between 1999-2005", British Journal of Community Justice, 7(1). ISSN 1475-0279