This debate has raged since this law was implemented 15 years ago. This comment from a public defender gets to the heart of the matter:

Gene Bartman, the supervisor of the Appleton office of the State Public Defender, said the civil commitment process is tilted clearly in favor of prosecutors.

Expert opinions are at the heart of the law, which puts sex offenders at a decided disadvantage, he said.

"These cases are all about predicting future human behavior and determining if a person poses a risk," Bartman said. "The way it's structured, there's no incentive to be perfectly objective about the determination — the error is always going to be on the side of safety.

"Predicting what any of us will do in the future is problematic."

Yes it is. And if you want some perspective on how problematic predicting future behavior is, see the post immediately preceeding this one, "We don't have a crystal ball..."