Law Commons^™

Medicare Fraud In The United States: Can It Ever Be Stopped?, Chelsea Hill, Alex Hunter, Leslie Johnson, Alberto Coustasse

Management Faculty Research

The majority of the United States health care fraud has been focused on the major public program, Medicare. The yearly financial loss from Medicare fraud has been estimated at about $54 billion. The purpose of this research study was to explore the current state of Medicare fraud in the United States, identify current policies and laws that foster Medicare fraud, and determine the financial impact of Medicare fraud. The methodology for this study was a literature review. Research was conducted using a scholarly online database search and government Web sites. The number of individuals charged with criminal fraud increased from …

Legend Tripping: Haunted Fun Or Potential Juvenile Delinquency And Death, Gordon A. Crews Phd

Criminal Justice Faculty Research

On August 7, 2013, one juvenile was killed and 10 others were seriously injured when their truck crashed in Clay County, West Virginia. These juveniles, after drinking heavily, were investigating the Appalachian legend of the “Haunted Chimneys around Booger Hole”. The concept of legend tripping is at least as old as Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, which contains several accounts of adolescents visiting allegedly haunted houses and caves said to be the “lairs of criminals”. This paper examines the extent and dangers of juvenile legend tripping across the United States. Many examples of cases will be given.

The Only Thing That Stops A Guy With A Bad Policy Is A Guy With A Good Policy: An Examination Of The Nra’S “National School Shield” Proposal, Gordon A. Crews, Angela D. Crews, Catherine E. Burton

Criminal Justice Faculty Research

With the recent tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, CT, the public and the government are looking for solutions to school violence. The National Rifle Association (NRA), a Second Amendment, pro-gun advocacy group, has proposed an “education and training emergency response program” called The National School Shield, which advocates the placement of armed security in schools. Although the program sounds provocative, serious questions complicate its plausibility, necessity, motive, and effectiveness. Furthermore, the potential policy and practical ramifications of encouraging armed security forces in U.S. schools are complex. The authors examined the proposal’s key elements from a public policy perspective …

Writing A Check That The State Can't Cash: Water Pollution From Coal Mining And The Imminent And Inevitable Failure Of The West Virginia Special Reclamation Fund, Sarah J. Surber

Applied Safety & Technology Faculty Research

After decades of financial decadence and total dominance over political processes, coal companies have hit desperate times. Cheap, abundant natural gas recently emerged, driving demand for coal for energy production and coal prices down. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finally moved to more stringent emissions limitations for coal-fired power plants under the Clean Air Act. Concurrently, the public demanded improvements in safety technology after several tragic mining accidents resulted from lax safety measures and a corporate culture of recklessness. During this time, environmental citizen groups worked to ensure that mining companies no longer violated the Clean Water Act …

Ferpa: To Release Or Not To Release – That Is The Question, Sonja G. Cantrell

Admissions Faculty Research

FERPA is also referred to as the Buckley Amendment, which was originally created in 1974, and named after one of the proponents of the law, former New York Senator James. In my university’s Registrar’s Office, we receive requests to release non-directory student information almost daily, such as student class schedules or the grade received in a certain class. Requests come from a range of sources, including prospective employers, family members of elderly alumni, branches of the military, subpoena by courts or attorneys, and organizations seeking membership. Nevertheless, wherever these requests are generated, employees in my field must follow FERPA law …

0809: John Taylor Collection, 1969-2007, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

Mr. Taylor is an attorney from Charleston, WV that fought for the legal and labor rights of workers across the United States. The majority of the people that Taylor represented were members of unions, including both the United Auto Workers [UAW] and the United Mine Workers of America [UMWA]. Taylor's clients fought to secure access to health benefits and the improvement of working conditions. A large portion of the collection centers on Black Lung cases in West Virginia. In 1982, Taylor and his colleagues organized a group of clients to travel to Washington, D.C. in order to attend the Black …

0814: C. H. Freeman Collection, 1877-1977, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

Papers related to the C.H. Freeman estate. Zubah and C.H. Freeman had many investments such as the Yawkey and Freeman Coal Company and the Freeman Estates. This collection contains contract agreements for property purchases of the Estates, a contour map of what seems to be the Freeman’s country residence, and correspondences between Zubah and realtors. This collection also houses some of Zubah’s family documents including old letters, registers of visitors from Klingel-Carpenter Mortuary, and Paul and Ricky Ray’s basketball documents.

0793: Thomas J. Buffington Copy Of Savage Land Grant Survey, 1816, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

This collection consists of a handwritten manuscript copy by Thomas J. Buffington of the plots distributed by the Savage Land Grant as resurveyed by Tupper, including plot descriptions. The manuscript is sewn as a pamphlet binding and the end pages include sums and other miscellaneous notes.

0790: Gil Kleinknecht Collection, 1899-1973, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

This collection includes materials from Gil Kleinknecht’s personal collection of historic West Virginia and Ohio materials related to police work. The collection also includes Huntington Police Department annual reports, relevant laws and codes, manuals,, and artifacts related to the work of policing in Huntington, West Virginia and the surrounding areas.

To view materials from this collection that are digitized and available online, search the Gil Kleinknecht Papers, 1899-1973 here.

International Police Education For The Rule Of Law: Obstacles, Facilitators, Curricula, Pedagogy, And Delivery, Gordon A. Crews, Angela West Crews

Criminal Justice Faculty Research

The points discussed in the session are related to United Nations peacekeeping in the twenty-first century and the international police education for the rule of law. It is noted that 100 countries contribute police officers to the United Nations, and that 49 of those countries contribute 25 or fewer officers. There is a gender imbalance, with only 7.75 % of forces being made up of women. In the past, UN policing priorities were: monitoring to verify police performance and impartiality, observing to ascertain police strengths and weaknesses and reporting to document police infractions. The UN Peacekeeping Mission Statement aims to …

Juvenile Delinquency And Violence: Examining International Police And Societal Response, Gordon A. Crews, Angela West Crews

Criminal Justice Faculty Research

This presentation comparatively examines relationships in the United States, Eastern and Central Europe, Scandinavia, and parts of the Middle East among juvenile violence, "heavy metal" music, substance abuse, and participation in occult and "alternative" youth groups (e.g., Wicca, Satanism, vampirism, Goth). We trace the movement of certain groups, behaviors, and preferences and make a correlation between some of these movements and an increase in youth violence and substance abuse. The authors use results from surveys and participant observations in the U.S., Copenhagen, Germany, the Netherlands, & the Middle East (Egypt & Turkey) that indicate, however, that mere participation in these …

Youth Involvement In Alternative Subcultures, Groups, Belief Systems, And Lifestyles: Examining International Police And Societal Response, Gordon A. Crews

Criminal Justice Faculty Research

This presentation comparatively examines relationships in the United States, Eastern and Central Europe, Scandinavia, and parts of the Middle East among juvenile violence, "heavy metal" music, substance abuse, and participation in occult and "alternative" youth groups (e.g., Wicca, Satanism, vampirism, Goth). We trace the movement of certain groups, behaviors, and preferences and make a correlation between some of these movements and an increase in youth violence and substance abuse. The authors use results from surveys and participant observations in the U.S., Copenhagen, Germany, the Netherlands, & the Middle East (Egypt & Turkey) that indicate, however, that mere participation in these …

0769: Roger And Eve (Alwyn) Hinchman Papers, 1871-1994, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

Eve Alwyn-Hinchman was born August 15, 1914 and died on November 16, 2005. She was a successful television and radio personality with her mother Laurie Alwyn, both in Boston M.A. and Fort Lauderdale FL. Eve and Lauri hosted radio shows in the Baltimore MD area for over 7 years before moving to Florida where they hosted a radio and later a Television show in the Palm Beach FL area for many years. Eve was married to Roger Hinchman (b. November 28, 1912; d. January 1, 1991) on June 1, 1964 after the moved to Florida. Lauri, a health educator and …

Teaching Tips: Personal Criminal History Analysis Paper, Gordon Crews, Angela Crews

Criminal Justice Faculty Research

Students often have difficulty visualizing the practical application of criminological theory. The following activity assists instructors to develop students‘ abilities in evaluating behaviors and determining the theoretical perspectives that potentially could be used to explain those behaviors. It also is designed to assist students in comprehending how their own experiences impact their views on law-violating behavior and its etiology. This exercise facilitates students‘ awareness of how their beliefs about the causes of law-violating behavior inevitably impact their beliefs about potential solutions or responses to this type of behavior. Eventually, students unfailingly begin to realize the artificial dichotomy between us, as …

One Size Fits All? Ghanaian Perceptions Of Law Enforcement And The Importation Of American Community Policing, Angela West Crews, Gordon A. Crews, Kofi Boye-Doe

Criminal Justice Faculty Research

The purpose of this presentation was to introduce a research project that the authors have ongoing with the Ghana National Police Service (Accra, Ghana, Africa). This focus of this project is to assist the Ghanaian police in the development and implementation of a “community policing” program. In 2008, a new Director of Community Policing had been hired, although she expressed that she and the officers had absolutely no training or education in theories and practices related to community policing. This presentation showcased the authors’ initial efforts to help solve that problem. Three major aspects are covered in this presentation, 1) …

Take The Bus? Or Get Busted?: The Relationship Of “Driving While Suspended” (Dws) To The Availability Of Public Bus Transportation, Phil Amerine, Angela Crews

Criminal Justice Faculty Research

This presentation discusses the results of a project that examined the relationship between arrest for "driving while suspended" (DWS) and driver access to bus transportation. Seventy cases were randomly selected from all 2004 cases of license suspensions among adult drivers in Lawrence, Kansas. Drivers subsequently arrested for DWS during 2005/2006 were compared to drivers who were not in terms of access to bus transportation (distance from residence to bus stop; whether bus was operating). Other measured variables included driver sex, race, and age. Policy implications related to the prevention of DWS are discussed.

Citizen And Officer Perceptions Of Community Policing In Ghana: Policing Of, By, And For The People, Or Just To The People?, Angela West Crews, Gordon A. Crews

Criminal Justice Faculty Research

This presentation presents initial results of an evaluation of citizen and officer perceptions of policing in Ghana. The Ghana Police Service (GPS) is attempting to transition from a para-militaristic philosophy to a more community-centered approach, developing a domestic violence unit in the past decade and, more recently, a community policing unit. Community policing philosophies, however, face unique challenges in Ghanaian society, such as a deep-rooted (and historically well-founded) mistrust of the police, and a culture with a well-established and trusted “traditional” system wherein matters are settled within communities and impacted by religion, spirituality, and mysticism. This project used official reported …

Researching Crime, Justice, And Social Control In Ghana: Evolving Issues In A Developing African Country, Gordon A. Crews, Angela West Crews, Kofi Boye-Doe, Ken Aikins

Criminal Justice Faculty Research

The purpose of this presentation is to discuss a recent research project which seeks to offer an examination of the unique relationship between the traditional Ghanaian indigenous justice system and the established state-administered justice system. This is an overview of the interesting blend of indigenous practices (rooted in religious practices and strongly associated with spirituality and mysticism) and state (formal justice and governmental systems) in the Ghanaian justice system. In addition the topics of the treatment of women and children within these systems and the use of alternative dispute resolution, restorative justice, and conflict resolution strategies inherent within the two …

Supervision Styles In Probation And Parole: An Analysis Of Activities, Richard P. Seiter, Angela D. Crews

Criminal Justice Faculty Research

Supervision of offenders in the community remains a critical component of the correctional processes in the United States. With almost six million offenders under correctional supervision in the community, there has been relatively little attention and few resources devoted to the style and quality of supervision received by these offenders. As a result of the lack of research regarding the style of probation and parole supervision, there is a need to identify and quantify styles of casework and surveillance supervision. This article describes a research project that identifies the key functions of parole and probation officers, reports self- and peer-rating …

Traffic Stop Practices Of The Louisville Police Department: January 15 - December 31, 2001, Terry D. Edwards, Elizabeth L. Grossi, Gennaro F. Vito, Angela D. Crews

Criminal Justice Faculty Research

This report summarizes the findings of a study conducted using data collected by the Louisville Division of Police between January 15, 2001 and December 31, 2001. These data resulted from 48,586 interactions between law enforcement officers and citizens during traffic-related contacts.

Information was collected about the driver, the officer, and the stop event. Driver demographics included race, sex, age, residency, license number, and vehicle registration. The only information collected about the officer was officer badge number. Finally, data collected about the stop event include the date, time of day, reason for stop, activities during the stop, number of passengers, and …

Death As Deterrent Or Prosecutorial Tool? Examining The Impact Of Louisiana’S Child Rape Law, Angela Crews

Criminal Justice Faculty Research

This project measures the impact of a 1995 amendment to Louisiana’s aggravated rape statute that allows juries to consider imposing the death penalty for convicted child rapists. Preamendment populations of cases from two large parishes (counties) were compared to postamendment populations of cases. In addition, 40 individual case files were randomly selected and reviewed. Variables measuring certainty, severity, and swiftness of punishment were compared. The only significant change was the reduction of trials, which may be linked to an increased propensity for plea agreements, dismissals, and charge reductions. In general, offenders initially charged with aggravated rape of a child seemed …

0701: William Lemaster Trial Transcript, 1993, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

This collection consists of copies of the twelve volume court transcript for the case of the State of Ohio vs. William Lemaster, case no. 92-CR-61 in the court of common pleas. Lemaster was accused and convicted of the kidnapping and murder of Jeff Halley and his son Jeff Halley, Jr. The court transcript includes jury selection, exhibits, and testimony.

Perceived Risk Of Aids Among Prisoners Following Educational Intervention, Angela D. Crews, Randy Martin

Criminal Justice Faculty Research

A pre/post quasi-experimental design was used to assess the impact of one state's AIDS education program on male (N = 75) and female (N= 65) inmates' perceived risk of HIV infection on the street and in prison. Post-test only comparison groups of male and female inmates were evaluated to control for the threat of testing. T-tests for paired samples were used to determine whether any significant changes occurred within groups (male & female), and t-tests for independent samples were used between groups to determine whether males or females experienced the greatest magnitude of change. Multiple regression analyses explored the …

A Study Of School Disturbance In The United States: A Twentieth Century Perspective, Part Two, Gordon A. Crews

Criminal Justice Faculty Research

In 1989, President George Bush. and the Nation's fifty governors, held a historic education summit that culminated in the adoption of six National Education Goals. These six broad goals were intended to serve as a framework for future reform efforts. The sixth goal of the United States' National Educational Goals states:

By the year 2000, every school in America will be free of drugs and violence and will offer a disciplined environment conducive to learning. The stated objectives are: Every school will implement a firm and fair policy on use, possession, and distribution of drugs and alcohol. Parents, businesses, and …

0627: Robert O. Ellis Papers, 1968-1977, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

Huntington, West Virginia, attorney; magician. Papers relate to the construction of his home on Castle Hill, rental properties, Republican Party politics and his magic act.

0529: John L. Allen Collection, 1784-1991, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

Wheeling, West Virginia, lawyer. Papers consist of reproductions of deeds of property owned by George Washington and the will of Archibald McClean, all relating to property in what is now Ohio and Marshall Counties, West Virginia.

0518: Mason County, W.Va. Superior Court, 1831-1851, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

This collection is composed of one volume of county court records for Mason County, Virginia (now West Virginia) titled, “Mascon County Superior Court, Memorandum Book, Law and Chancery Commencing June 16th, 1831”. The records document the plaintiffs and defendants appearing before the county court, any rulings or penalties, and annotations accompanying the case lists as required.

0495: Savage Grant Land Surveys And Huntington-Kenova Land Company Deeds, 1754-1889, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

This collection consists of two volumes: one containing deeds and wills related to the Savage land grant and its legacy, and the other contains a detailed description of plots found within the grant, both compiled by George S. Wallace. These items are of uncertain provenance, but appear to be from the early 19th century.

0451: Savage Grant Cabell Co. Clerk Recrods, 1754-1929, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

Descriptions of the sixty-one lots that made up the original Savage land grant.

0439: Dunn-Henderson Family Papers, 1892-1947, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

Deeds for property in Huntington, West Virginia., Wayne County, West Virginia. and Lawrence County, Ohio. Also correspondence and newspaper clippings of John P. Henderson during World War II. There are Collis P. Huntington signatures on some of the deeds. Deeds for property in Huntington, W.Va., Wayne County, W.Va. and Lawrence County, Ohio. Also correspondence and newspaper clippings of John P. Henderson during World War II. There are Collis P. Huntington signatures on some of the deeds.