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Full-Text Articles in Law
The Problem Of Problem-Solving Courts, Erin Collins
The Problem Of Problem-Solving Courts, Erin Collins
Law Faculty Publications
The creation of a specialized, “problem-solving” court is a ubiquitous response to the issues that plague our criminal legal system. The courts promise to address the factors believed to lead to repeated interactions with the system, such as addiction or mental illness, thereby reducing recidivism and saving money. And they do so effectively — at least according to their many proponents, who celebrate them as an example of a successful “evidence-based,” data-driven reform. But the actual data on their efficacy is underwhelming, inconclusive, or altogether lacking. So why do they persist?
This Article seeks to answer that question by scrutinizing …
Imagining The Progressive Prosecutor, Benjamin Levin
Imagining The Progressive Prosecutor, Benjamin Levin
Publications
As criminal justice reform has attracted greater public support, a new brand of district attorney candidate has arrived: the “progressive prosecutors.” Commentators increasingly have keyed on “progressive prosecutors” as offering a promising avenue for structural change, deserving of significant political capital and academic attention. This Essay asks an unanswered threshold question: what exactly is a “progressive prosecutor”? Is that a meaningful category at all, and if so, who is entitled to claim the mantle? In this Essay, I argue that “progressive prosecutor” means many different things to many different people. These differences in turn reveal important fault lines in academic …
When We Breathe: Re-Envisioning Safety And Justice In A Post-Floyd Era, Aya Gruber
When We Breathe: Re-Envisioning Safety And Justice In A Post-Floyd Era, Aya Gruber
Publications
10th Annual David H. Bodiker Lecture on Criminal Justice delivered on Wed., Oct. 21, 2020 at Ohio State University Moritz College of Law.
Exposing Police Misconduct In Pre-Trial Criminal Proceedings, Anjelica Hendricks
Exposing Police Misconduct In Pre-Trial Criminal Proceedings, Anjelica Hendricks
All Faculty Scholarship
This Article presents a unique argument: police misconduct records should be accessible and applicable for pre-trial criminal proceedings. Unfortunately, the existing narrative on the value of police misconduct records is narrow because it exclusively considers how these records can be used to impeach officer credibility at trial. This focus is limiting for several reasons. First, it addresses too few defendants, since fewer than 3% of criminal cases make it to trial. Second, it overlooks misconduct records not directly addressing credibility—such as records demonstrating paperwork deficiencies, failures to appear in court, and “mistakes” that upon examination are patterns of abuse. Finally, …
Populist Prosecutorial Nullification, Kerrel Murray
Populist Prosecutorial Nullification, Kerrel Murray
Faculty Scholarship
No one doubts that prosecutors may sometimes decline prosecution notwithstanding factual guilt. Everyone expects prosecutors to prioritize enforcement based on resource limitation and, occasionally, to decline prosecution on a case-by-case basis when they deem justice requires it. Recently, however, some state prosecutors have gone further, asserting the right to refuse categorically to enforce certain state laws. Examples include refusals to seek the death penalty and refusals to prosecute prostitution or recreational drug use. When may a single actor render inert her state’s democratically enacted law in this way? If the answer is anything other than “never,” the vast reach of …