Iowa officials have decided to release a convicted child molester from incarceration due to the belief that a recent sex change lowered the offender’s testosterone level making the felon less likely to re-offend.
Josie Smith, a biological male, was convicted of second-degree sexual abuse against a female victim in 2012 and lascivious acts with a child against a male in 2014. Smith was sentenced to prison in 2015.
It is believed that Smith, whose birth name is Joseph Matthew Smith, molested as many as 15 people ranging from ages 1 to 13, according to a report prepared by state expert Dr. Jeffrey Davis.
The state is now arguing that Smith’s lower testosterone level as a result of hormone treatment that Smith began in 2017 lowers the likelihood that Smith will offend again.
“We don’t believe we have evidence sufficient to prove Josie Smith has a significant chance of reoffending,” a representative for the Iowa attorney general’s office said last week.
The attorney general’s office tried to reassure the public that the release does not mean Smith will not still be closely monitored.
“Josie Smith will be subject to strict sex-offender reporting requirements of those who commit the crimes she did. She’ll be subject to supervision for the rest of her life,” Iowa attorney general’s office spokesman Lynn Hicks said.
