Attorney Resources

At Ridgeback Recovery, we understand the significant complexities and responsibilities involved when handling cases involving nonviolent sex offenses. We recognize that all parties involved – defense counsel, prosecuting attorneys, and the courts – often seek pathways that balance accountability with meaningful, evidence-based rehabilitation to promote long-term community safety.

This page serves as a dedicated resource for legal professionals seeking comprehensive information about specialized treatment options, psychosexual testing tools and a glossary of therapeutic terminology. Ridgeback Recovery offers an intensive, evidence-based residential program designed specifically for nonviolent sex offenders. Our goal is to provide a credible resource that supports informed decision-making by offering a structured environment focused on accountability, behavioral change, and reduced recidivism risk.

Here, you will find detailed information on our program's structure, therapeutic modalities, assessment protocols, and how participation provides objective data and demonstrates a commitment to change, potentially informing sentencing considerations and supporting restorative outcomes.

The Ridgeback Recovery Difference: Key Program Elements

Ridgeback Recovery offers an affordable program specifically designed for nonviolent sex offenders, focusing on these core principles:

Specialized Focus: Our program exclusively treats nonviolent sexual offenses, ensuring interventions are relevant and targeted. This specialization provides the court with assurance that treatment is appropriately matched to the offense type, focusing resources effectively.

Intensive Residential Treatment: We provide a highly structured, 24/7 residential environment suitable for state and federal cases. This intensive format ensures consistent supervision and accountability while providing a rigorous therapeutic alternative focused on measurable progress and behavioral change.

Evidence-Based Practices: Our core modalities (e.g., CBT, DBT skills, EMDR informed, Seeking Safety) are scientifically validated and widely accepted. Utilizing these empirically supported approaches ensures treatment effectiveness and provides a reliable foundation for assessing rehabilitation potential and reduced risk.

Comprehensive Assessment: We conduct thorough psychosexual evaluations to identify specific dynamic risk factors, protective factors, treatment needs, and responsivity issues. This detailed assessment provides objective, data-driven insights crucial for understanding the individual case and informing effective treatment planning and risk management strategies. You can download a detailed listing of our assessment protocols here: Link.

Victim Empathy and Awareness: A central component focuses on helping clients understand the impact and harm caused by their actions. Demonstrated progress in this area provides powerful evidence of developing accountability and genuine remorse, key factors in assessing amenability to change and future risk.

Shame Reduction and Family Recovery: We address the toxic shame and family dynamics often intertwined with offending behavior. Tackling these root causes supports sustainable behavioral change and provides a more holistic understanding of the factors contributing to the offense and the path to rehabilitation.

Relapse Prevention and Aftercare: Our program emphasizes concrete relapse prevention skills and detailed, realistic aftercare plans. This directly addresses public safety concerns by demonstrating a proactive, long-term strategy focused on preventing re-offense and supporting successful community reintegration.

Expert Testimony: Our experienced clinical team includes qualified professionals available to provide expert testimony. We offer objective clinical insights regarding assessments, treatment amenability, progress, and risk factors, providing valuable information to assist the court in its decision-making process.

Ridgeback Recovery is committed to providing a safe, effective, and ethical treatment environment for nonviolent sex offenders. Our program is a valuable resource in augmenting your practice and enhancing the services you provide to your clients.

Psychosexual Evaluation Testing

Download Testing Table

The field of psychosexual assessment encompasses a variety of tools designed for specific purposes, including evaluating dependency, trauma, and reoffending risk. This inventory outlines common assessments used by clinicians, therapists, and forensic professionals to inform treatment planning, risk management, and recovery support within therapeutic, clinical, or legal settings. Understanding these different tools is key to selecting appropriate measures for comprehensive evaluation.

Name	Purpose	Use	Components	Application
ABEL Assessment for Sexual Interest (AASI-3)	Evaluates sexual interest and arousal patterns, particularly in forensic populations.	Measures deviant and non-deviant sexual interests using visual reaction time (VRT) and self-report data.	Includes stimuli-based assessments and questionnaires.	Commonly used in forensic settings to assess risk and inform treatment for sex offenders.
Level of Service/Case Management Inventory (LS/CMI)	Assesses general criminal risk and needs, including sexual offending behavior.	Evaluates factors such as criminal history, education, employment, and substance abuse.	Includes risk/need domains and case management tools.	Used in correctional and forensic settings to guide rehabilitation and reintegration efforts.
Post Traumatic Stress Index (PTSI)	Measures symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) related to sexual trauma or abuse.	Identifies trauma-related symptoms such as flashbacks, avoidance, and hyperarousal.	Assesses the severity and impact of trauma on mental health.	Helps clinicians develop trauma-informed treatment plans.
STABLE-2007	Evaluates dynamic (changeable) risk factors for sexual recidivism.	Identifies areas for intervention, such as social influences, sexual self-regulation, and intimacy deficits.	Measures factors like substance abuse, impulsivity, and emotional stability.	Used alongside the Static-99 to provide a comprehensive risk assessment and treatment plan.
Sex Addiction Screening Test	Screens for potential sexual addiction or compulsive sexual behavior	Aids in identifying individuals who may be struggling with sexual addiction and require further evaluation	Likely includes questions about sexual behaviors, thoughts, and feelings	Used by therapists and other professionals to determine if a comprehensive assessment for sexual addiction is needed
Sexual Dependency Inventory (SDI)	Assesses sexual dependency and compulsive sexual behavior.	Helps identify patterns of sexual addiction, including preoccupation with sexual activity, loss of control, and negative consequences.	Measures behaviors, thoughts, and emotions related to sexual dependency.	Often used in therapy for individuals struggling with sexual addiction or compulsive behaviors.
Sexual Digital Media Inventory (SDMI)	Evaluates the use of digital media (e.g., pornography, sexting) in relation to sexual behavior.	Assesses the impact of digital media on sexual habits, relationships, and potential addictive patterns.	Focuses on frequency, content, and emotional responses to digital sexual media.	Useful in addressing technology-related sexual issues in therapy.
Static-99	Assesses the risk of sexual recidivism (reoffending) in adult male sex offenders.	Predicts the likelihood of future sexual offenses based on static (unchangeable) factors.	Includes items such as prior offenses, age, and relationship to victims.	Widely used in forensic and correctional settings for risk assessment and parole decisions.

Glossary of Terms Related to Sex Offense and Sex Addiction

This glossary provides definitions for common terms used in the field of sex offense and sex addiction therapy. Attorneys may find this resource helpful when working with clients who are struggling with these issues, as it can aid in understanding the complexities of treatment and recovery, and the language commonly used in therapeutic settings.

Download Glossary

12-Step Groups: Support groups based on a 12-step program, providing fellowship and guidance for recovery from addiction.
Accountability Partner: A person who provides support and encouragement in recovery, holding the individual accountable for their actions.
Certified Sex Addiction Therapist (CSAT): A mental health professional with specialized training and certification in treating sex addiction.
Chem-Sex Addiction: The combination of drug use and sexual activity to intensify the experience, often leading to risky behaviors.
Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM): Any visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct involving a minor (person under 18 years old).
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): A type of therapy that focuses on changing negative thought patterns and behaviors.
Cognitive Distortions (Offense-Related): Biased or irrational ways of thinking that individuals use to justify, minimize, or rationalize their sexually harmful behavior (e.g., blaming victims, entitlement).
Comorbidity: The simultaneous presence of two or more medical or psychiatric conditions (e.g., sex addiction co-occurring with depression, anxiety, or substance use disorder).
Compulsive Sexual Behavior Disorder (CSBD) / Hypersexuality: Terms often used (CSBD is in ICD-11) to describe patterns of intense, repetitive sexual urges or behaviors resulting in significant distress or impairment in functioning (related to, but distinct from, the non-diagnostic term "Sex Addiction").
Containment Model: An approach often used in community supervision involving collaboration between therapists, probation/parole officers, and polygraph examiners to manage risk and monitor behavior.
Coping Tools: Strategies and techniques to manage stress, triggers, and cravings, promoting healthy behaviors.
Denial / Minimization: Defense mechanisms where individuals refuse to acknowledge the reality or severity of their problematic sexual behavior or offenses.
Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT): A type of therapy that teaches behavioral skills to help people manage their emotions and improve their relationships.
Dynamic Risk Factors: Changeable factors associated with sexual reoffense risk that can be targeted in treatment (e.g., attitudes tolerant of sexual offending, intimacy deficits, substance abuse, access to victims).
Empathy Development: A common treatment goal aimed at increasing an individual's understanding and appreciation of the emotional and physical impact of their behavior on victims.
Exhibitionism: Exhibitionism is the compulsive behavior of exposing one's genitals to unsuspecting strangers, typically in public, to achieve sexual arousal or shock.
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR): A psychotherapy approach that uses bilateral stimulation, like guided eye movements, while focusing on distressing memories to help the brain reprocess them and reduce their emotional impact.
Good Lives Model (GLM): A strengths-based rehabilitation framework focusing on helping individuals build capabilities and achieve basic human goods (like relationships, mastery, autonomy) in pro-social ways, as an alternative to offending pathways.
Grooming: The predatory process perpetrators use to build trust, manipulate, and isolate a potential victim (often a child) to facilitate sexual abuse.
Group Therapy: A form of therapy where individuals with similar issues meet and share their experiences in a supportive environment.
Incel: An incel, short for "involuntary celibate," identifies as someone unable to find a romantic or sexual partner despite desiring one, often associated with specific online communities.
Individual Therapy: A form of therapy where an individual works one-on-one with a therapist to address their specific needs.
Internet Filtering and Accountability Programs: Software tools to restrict access to explicit content and monitor online activity, aiding in recovery from sex addiction.
Lewd Act: A lewd act involves indecent exposure or offensive sexual touching, particularly in public or involving a minor.

Limits of Confidentiality: The legal and ethical exceptions to patient confidentiality in therapy, such as the duty to warn or protect potential victims or mandatory reporting of child abuse.
Mindfulness Practices: Techniques to increase awareness and focus on the present moment, often used in addiction recovery.
Offense Cycle / Offense Mapping: A therapeutic technique where individuals identify the sequence of thoughts, feelings, behaviors, and situational factors leading up to their offending behavior, used to develop interruption strategies.
Paraphilia / Paraphilic Disorder: Recurrent, intense, sexually arousing fantasies, urges, or behaviors involving unusual objects, activities, or situations (Paraphilia); becomes a Disorder when it causes distress, impairment, or involves harm/risk of harm to non-consenting others.
Polygraph Testing (PCSOT): Post-Conviction Sex Offender Testing; use of polygraph examinations, often mandated during probation or parole, to monitor compliance with supervision terms, verify sexual history, and assess ongoing risk (note: admissibility and use vary significantly).
Porn Addiction: A compulsive and excessive use of pornography, leading to negative impacts on life and relationships.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): A mental health condition triggered by experiencing or witnessing a terrifying event, 1 causing symptoms such as intrusive memories, avoidance of related stimuli, negative changes in mood and thinking, and altered physical and emotional reactions.
Protective Factors: Strengths or resources that may reduce an individual's likelihood of reoffending (e.g., strong social support, stable employment, engagement in treatment).
Psychosexual Evaluation/Assessment: A comprehensive evaluation conducted by a qualified professional to assess an individual's sexual development, interests, attitudes, behaviors, risk factors, and treatment needs, often used in legal contexts.
Relapse Prevention: Strategies and techniques to prevent individuals from returning to addictive behaviors. (Often involves creating a specific Relapse Prevention Plan).
Risk Assessment: The process of evaluating an individual's likelihood of reoffending sexually, often using specific tools and considering various factors.
Risk-Need-Responsivity (RNR) Model: A widely used framework in correctional rehabilitation stating that treatment intensity should match risk level (Risk), interventions should target dynamic risk factors (Need), and treatment should be tailored to the individual's learning style, motivation, and abilities (Responsivity).
Seeking Safety: An evidence-based, present-focused psychotherapy model specifically designed to help people attain safety from trauma (particularly PTSD) and substance abuse simultaneously.
Sex Addiction: A compulsive and unhealthy dependence on sexual activity, despite negative consequences. (See also: Compulsive Sexual Behavior Disorder).
Sex Offending Behavior: Illegal sexual acts, including but not limited to sexual assault, child molestation, and rape.
Sexting: Sexting is the act of sending or receiving sexually explicit messages, photographs, or videos electronically, primarily between mobile phones or other digital devices.
Shame Reduction: The process of addressing and overcoming feelings of shame, often associated with addiction and trauma.
Sober Living Environment: A structured and supportive living space for individuals recovering from addiction, promoting abstinence and healthy habits.
Somatic Experiencing Practitioner: A therapist who uses a body-oriented approach to help people heal from trauma and other stress-related disorders.
Static Risk Factors: Historical, unchangeable factors associated with sexual reoffense risk (e.g., prior offenses, age at first offense).
Trauma-Informed Therapy: A therapeutic approach that recognizes the impact of trauma and incorporates it into treatment.
Treatment Amenability: An assessment of an individual's capacity and willingness to engage in and benefit from therapy.
Voyeurism: Voyeurism is secretly observing unsuspecting individuals, typically in private situations like undressing or sexual activity, for the purpose of sexual gratification.