Books & Publications By Robin Sax

"The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Criminal Justice System"

(Publication: Alpha, Penguin USA Spring 2009)

Everyday folks find themselves in the throws of the criminal justice system. While riveting and intriguing on television, the laws, procedures, and nuances can be overwhelming and confusing.

"The Complete Idiot’s Guide to the Criminal Justice System" is the book that separates the smoke from the mirrors. Whether suspect, witness, victim, defendant, or simply interested in the inner-workings of criminal law this breaks down the system into digestible and understandable pieces. The book takes a chronological look at crime from investigation through sentencing with all the steps in between.

Some of the topics include:

Arrest
Bail
Filing Decisions
The Crimes
Defendant’s Rights
Victim rights
The Trial Process
Media
Plea bargaining
Sentencing

predatorbookcover

“Predators and Child Molesters:

A Sex Crimes D.A. Answers 100 Of The Most Asked Questions”

(Publication: Prometheus, 2009)

There is no other crime--not even murder--that worries and sickens parents more than child sexual abuse. And part of that fear is related to all the questions parents have that they either don’t know whom to ask, are too scared to ask, or are in denial of this very real societal epidemic.

It’s not surprising that parents don’t understand either the problem or the questions; after all, it wasn’t until the year 2000 that the Department of Justice began recording statistics of sexual assault against children. Even then, they had difficultly deciding which definitions of sexual assault would be reported. Would they report only forcible acts? Would these be limited to crimes of penetration?

Only recently are we finally getting a handle on the problem—one that is far greater than any of us might have imagined.

According to FBI statistics for 2007:

1 out 5 girls will be sexually molested before her 18th birthday
1 out of 6 boys will be sexually molested before his 18th birthday
2 out of 3 sexual abuses are perpetrated against teenagers or younger children
20% of all children receive unwanted sexual messages.
75% of children who received an unwanted sexual message did not tell their parents
4,000,000 kids are posting on the web every day.
There are 400,000 new victims of sexual assault each year.
There are over 550,000 registered sex offenders in the United States.
There are over 100,000 sex offenders who fail to register each year.
76% of serial rapists claim they were molested as children.
Over 40% of male juvenile delinquents were molested as children.

We now know that the only way to protect children is for parents to view it as a priority—not once the deed is done, but as a preventive measure. The intention to protect our children should be as natural as teaching them how to call 9-1-1.

Protecting children begins with every parent in every home. It is the parent who must partner with schools to teach their children. It is the parent (and the schools) who takes responsibility for children’s safety. And how do we do that? It begins with asking tough questions and demanding straight answers.

In this book, I’ll tackle the questions parents have asked me about how best to protect their kids from predators and abusers. The answers may surprise you. They will definitely inform you. And that’s my hope in writing this book—to help you create the safest environment for your kids, and prevent them from becoming a predator’s next victims.

Some of the questions I answer include:

What acts are considered sexually abusive?
If the child consents, is it still considered sexual abuse?
What does a molester look like?
How can I talk to my children about molesters without scaring them?
Should I hack into my kids’ computers and monitor their websites?
What are the signs and symptoms that a child has been touched?
Whom should I call first if my child discloses sexual abuse?
What will the police do if I report the abuse?
What makes a case qualify to be filed?
What happens if a criminal case is NOT filed?

EIK1

“Everything I Know About Parenting I Learned In Court”

(Publication: AMACOM, 2010)

"Everything I Know About Parenting I Learned In Court” utilizes lessons learned from the criminal justice system, practical legal skills to better prepare and educate parents on how to establish rules and a code of conduct as the law of their family, how to communicate more effectively with their children to get to the bottom of an issue, and how to use discipline to reform unacceptable conduct and encourage positive behavior. All parents and particularly lawyers will especially love a book from this unique world perspective, and all parents will find this a useful book that provides an easy-to-follow method to parenting using logic and reason. You will never have to say “Because I said so,” again after you read this book!

"Everything I Know About Parenting I Learned In Court" is the first parenting book that applies the skills of the prosecutor in seeking out the truth, convincing jurors of that truth, and convicting wrongdoers of their criminal acts to the day-to-day life of parenting and disciplining school age children. The author, through the lessons she has learned from the hard realities of working inside the criminal justice system, has much to offer parents and in this book she sets forth real world suggestions in:

Developing a guiding home code that will function as the law of the family
Making the rules of the courthouse work in the home
E-investigating children on and off line
Questioning children to get to the bottom of an issue
Designing a “sentence” for children with the goal of encouraging positive behavior

Who are you? What trials are taken all the way? What disciplining opportunities have gotten lost in the cracks? Are you at the end of your rope? Are your children at the end of theirs? What conflicts arise in your home? How do you know what your kids are doing? What do you want do better? What works for? What doesn't work? What's your story? What is your parenting verdict?

HED1

“It Happens Everyday: Inside the Life of A Sex Crimes DA”

(Publishing: Prometheus, 2009)

Combined statistics show that every two minutes, someone in the United States is sexually assaulted. Based on the Department of Justice numbers, two-thirds of those victims are children.

There is no greater concern in society than the concern people have for children. Whether it is providing a better earth, protecting kids from wars, terrorism, criminals, or abuse, our society prides itself on shielding our young. And with good reason--children are powerless to take on the perils of our world on their own.

While there are thousands of wonderful causes out there, the premise of this book is that child sexual assault needs our attention. Why? The answer is that child sexual assault is not only a social epidemic; it’s affecting children in their own homes.

The Book's Table of Contents:

FOREWORD: BY Mark Geragos

Introduction: Making a Difference, One Case at a Time

PART I: BEHIND THE ONE-WAY MIRROR--ASKING THE MOST DIFFICULT QUESTIONS

Chapter 1: It Takes a Team

Chapter 2: The Fax Never Stops Buzzing: New Cases Every Day

Chapter 3: First Meetings and Impressions

Chapter 4: Inherently Difficult Cases

- Divorce/Custody Cases

- Mental Challenges

- Male Victims

- Female Perps

Chapter 5: Helping Victims Remember What They Want to Forget

Chapter 6: Profile of a Predator

PART II: BEHIND COUNSEL TABLE: TIME FOR COURT

Chapter 7: What’s It Worth? Settling Cases and Plea Bargaining

Chapter 8: It Never Happened: Uncooperative Victims and Unsupportive Moms

Chapter 9: Whose Peers are They? Choosing and Dealing With Jurors

Chapter 10: The Real-Life Effect of CSI

Chapter 11: Corroborating a Child’s Word- Other Evidence

Chapter 12: Kids on the Stand

WLL

"Women's Legal Lives"

Book One: Reaching the Bar

(Kaplan Publishing, 2009)

Book Two: Raising The Bar

(Kaplan Publishing, Publication date TBD)

Kaplan Publishing is launching an exciting new series of nonfiction books that share the stories behind the issues, experiences and relationships women lawyers encounter on the job—whether they work in the public sector, private practice, civil service, corporate law, academia, on the bench, or elsewhere.

Entertaining and educational, inspirational and practical, each book will feature 20–25 true stories written by women at all stages of their law careers about the experiences and relationships that have affected them along the way: Women’s Legal Lives, the first title in which is:

Reaching the Bar

Whatever law careers women eventually reach, the steps they take to get there are challenging and diverse. From getting into law school to applying for that first clerking position, from climbing the corporate ladder to finding that perfect public service job, being a woman and a lawyer is a unique experience.

This book will feature 25 women's stories, introduced to the reader by Robin Sax. Some of the questions that will be answered include:

• What was it really like to enter a male-dominated profession?

• Did you have a supporter who always told you could accomplish anything, or did you feel like you were fighting an uphill battle just to get your degree?

• How do you balance a career and family?

* Disclaimer: This website and all links represent Robin Sax as an individual and are not the opinions nor the suggestion of The Los Angeles County District Attorney or The District Attorney's Office.