Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Building The 21st Century Legal Resource Center & Law Library, Portland State University. Hatfield School Of Government. Center For Public Service, Mark G. Harmon, Shannon Grzybowski, Bryan Matthew Thompson, Stephanie Cross

Center for Public Service Publications and Reports

A Report on the Current Status of the Multnomah County’s Law Library and Recommendations for Addressing the Needs of Current Patrons.

Nebraska Department Of Correctional Services Reentry Initiative Vocational & Life Skills Program Grant Announcement - Application For Funding, Uno Nebraska Center For Justice Research

Reports

The NDCS Reentry Initiative involves a systemic approach for individuals to return to their communities. Reentry is not a “program”, it is an intentional mind-set; it is a method of facilitating the incarcerated and/or supervised individual’s return to his/her community as a productive and law abiding citizen.

Successful reentry:

 Provides increased public safety by reducing the number of victims

o This is achieved by reducing the likelihood of continued criminal behavior, essentially lowering the recidivism rate

 Provides a plan for assessing and addressing risks and needs

o This plan involves a reentry-focused case management system from first contact …

Capital Punishment Reforms In Illinois: Comparing The Views Of Police, Prosecutors, And Public Defenders, Robert M. Lombardo, David Olson

Criminal Justice & Criminology: Faculty Publications & Other Works

On 9 March 2011, Governor Patrick Quinn abolished capital punishment in Illinois stating that the state’s system of imposing the death penalty was inherently flawed. Quinn’s announcement followed an eleven-year effort to end the death penalty that began with a 2000 moratorium on executions imposed by then Governor George Ryan. This moratorium was the direct result of the appellate reversal of a series of death-row convictions. Prompted by these reversals, Ryan also created the Governor’s Commission on Capital Punishment to study the use of the death penalty in Illinois. As a result of this effort, comprehensive legislation was enacted to …

Examining The Effects Of Nebraska's Good Time Laws - Final Report, Benjamin M. Steiner, Calli M. Cain

Reports

Sentencing credit laws provide opportunities for inmates to gain a reduction in their prison sentence, and such laws have at least four intended goals: 1) reducing prison populations; 2) promoting prosocial behavior during imprisonment by offering inmates incentive for good behavior and/or deterring them from engaging in antisocial behavior; 3) reducing recidivism by providing offenders incentive for good behavior and participation in rehabilitative programming; and, 4) lowering correctional costs (Lawrence & Lyons, 2011; Weisburd & Chayet, 1989).

The state of Nebraska currently has a sentencing credit law that automatically awards good time credits to inmates. The study described in this …

Examining The Effects Of Nebraska's Good Time Laws - Research Brief, Benjamin M. Steiner, Calli M. Cain

Reports

The purpose of this research brief is to summarize the findings of a study of Nebraska’s good time laws conducted by Dr. Benjamin Steiner and Calli Cain for the Nebraska Center for Justice Research at the University of Nebraska-Omaha. An electronic copy of the full report can be accessed through the link at the end of this brief. This brief lists each of the three specific research questions, the primary findings for each question, and the major conclusion from each set of findings. Please refer to the full report for the executive summary, full findings, and methodological details of the …

Examining The Effects Of Nebraska's Good Time Laws: Final Report, Benjamin M. Steiner, Calli Cain

Reports

Sentencing credit laws provide opportunities for inmates to gain a reduction in their prison sentence, and such laws have at least four intended goals: 1) reducing prison populations; 2) promoting prosocial behavior during imprisonment by offering inmates incentive for good behavior and/or deterring them from engaging in antisocial behavior; 3) reducing recidivism by providing offenders incentive for good behavior and participation in rehabilitative programming; and, 4) lowering correctional costs (Lawrence & Lyons, 2011; Weisburd & Chayet, 1989). The state of Nebraska currently has a sentencing credit law that automatically awards good time credits to inmates. The study described in this …

Examining The Effects Of Nebraska's Good Time Laws: Research Brief, Benjamin Steiner, Calli Cain

Reports

The purpose of this research brief is to summarize the findings of a study of Nebraska’s good time laws conducted by Dr. Benjamin Steiner and Calli Cain for the Nebraska Center for Justice Research at the University of Nebraska-Omaha. An electronic copy of the full report can be accessed through the link at the end of this brief. This brief lists each of the three specific research questions, the primary findings for each question, and the major conclusion from each set of findings. Please refer to the full report for the executive summary, full findings, and methodological details of the …

Trends In Young Adult Male Incarceration Admissions In Nebraska, 2000-2013: Final Report, Jonathan R. Brauer, Nebraska Center For Justice Research, University Of Nebraska At Omaha

Reports

No abstract provided.

Trends In Young Adult Male Incarceration Admissions In Nebraska, Jonathan R. Brauer

Reports

Contents: Notes/Acknowledgements; Executive Summary; General Admission Trends; Admissions by Race/Ethnicity; Admissions by Offense Type; Average Sentence Lengths; and Estimated Incarceration Costs.

Bite Marks On Skin And Clay: A Comparative Analysis, R K. Gorea, O. P. Jasuja, Abdulwahab Ali Abuderman, Abhinav Gorea

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Bite marks are always unique because teeth are distinctive. Bite marks are often observed at the crime scene in sexual and in physical assault cases on the skin of the victims and sometimes on edible leftovers in burglary cases. This piece of evidence is often ignored, but if properly harvested and investigated, bite marks may prove useful in apprehending and successfully prosecuting the criminals. Due to the importance of bite marks, we conducted a progressive randomised experimental study conducted on volunteers. A total of 188 bite marks on clay were studied. Based on these findings, 93.34% of the volunteers could …

“Decentralization Dilemma In Indonesia: Does Decentralization Breed Corruption?”, Glenys Kirana

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Given the pervasiveness of corruption, collusion and nepotism during Suharto’s rule (1967-1998), many people assume that the Reformasi era (1998-present) would introduce a new wave of liberal democratic values, which would consequently reduce corruption in Indonesia. This paper seeks to look at the changes in people’s socio-political incentives to corrupt given the changes in political and legal structure, analyzing it in the context of its contribution to Indonesia’s socio-economic development. Specifically, it centers on how decentralization has affected corruption in the regional districts, legislative, judiciary, and other civil society groups. It is the prominence of the corruption issue in the …

El Caso De Madygraf (Ex-Donnelley): Una Exploración De La Tensión Entre La Legalidad Y La Legitimidad De Las Empresas Recuperadas En Argentina / The Case Of Madygraf (Ex-Donnelley): An Exploration Of The Tension Between The Legality And The Legitimacy Of Recovered Businesses In Argentina, Maggie Joyce

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In December 2001, Argentina declared the largest economic debt default in history. Following the default, Argentina’s economy spiraled into depression and a severe economic crisis plagued the country. Unemployment skyrocketed, dollar shortages continued, and many businesses closed under financial pressures. As private business and large corporations alike shut their doors indefinitely, oftentimes under the auspices of fraudulent bankruptcies, freshly unemployed workers across the country reclaimed their right to work by occupying their workplaces and eventually putting them back into production. These businesses now under worker control are part of the empresas recuperadas, or recovered businesses, phenomenon. The fight for existence …

El Crecimiento De Narcotráfico En Rosario: Violencia Disciplinada Y La Resistencia Social Frente A Este Sistema / The Growth Of Narcotrafficking In Rosario: Disciplined Violence And The Social Resistance To Resist This System, Caitlyn Yates

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The theoretical framework behind drug trafficking has thus far failed to mention the relationship between the growth of narcotics trafficking and structural violence. Using Farmer’s structural violence and the Foucauldian concept of biopolitcs, this paper explains the recent growth of narcotics trafficking in Rosario, Argentina. A more holistic approach to the complexity of the drug trafficking phenomenon arises by analyzing the effects of governmental corruption, relaxed politics, the criminalization of the poor, and the recent economic boom. Though this phenomenon is rather recent, the governmental and civilian resistance has none the less mobilized. Taking the theories of Farmer and Galtung …

Nunca Se Olvide Del Frío Del Mármol De Las Escaleras: Una Mirada A La Recuperación Del Ex Centro Clandestino De Detención Y Tortura De Virrey Cevallos / One Never Forgets The Cold Of The Marble Stairs: A Look At The Recuperation Of Ex Clandestine Center For Detention And Torture Of Virrey Cevallos, Jamie Gagliano

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

After the fall of a repressive government, there is often a discussion or an attempt to repair the damage done to society by the repressive regime. Argentina for the last thirty years has been facing this discussion. The last dictatorship, a totalitarian military dictatorship, in Argentina took place between 1976 and 1983. With the return of democracy at the end of 1983, the process of healing society began, albeit in a rather limited form due to fear of sparking the military into revolt once again. In the 1990s, the discussion was almost entirely swept under the rug by the Menem …

Federal Civil Rights Litigation Pursuant To 42 U.S.C. §1983 As A Correlate Of Police Misconduct, Philip M. Stinson, Steven L. Brewer Jr, Theresa M. Lanese, Mallorie A. Wilson

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Police officers acting in their official capacity are subject to being sued in federal court pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §1983 for violating constitutional rights under the color of law. Using data obtained in a larger study on police crime in the United States, names of more than 5,500 nonfederal sworn law enforcement officers who were arrested during the years 2005-2011 were checked against the civil case party master name index of the federal courts’ Public Access to Courts Electronic Records (PACER) system. Findings indicate that more than 20% of the police officers who were arrested for committing one or more …

Police Crime Arrests In The United States, 2011, Philip M. Stinson, Evin J. Carmack, Jacob M. Frankhouser, Mallorie A. Wilson

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Purpose – The purpose of the study is to provide empirical data on cases of police crime arrests during the year 2011. The study identifies and describes incidents in which nonfederal sworn law enforcement officers were arrested for one or more criminal offenses. Research Design & Method – The study is a quantitative content analysis of news articles identified through the Google News search engine using 48 automated Google Alerts queries. The unit of analysis in this study is criminal arrest case (not individual arrested officer). Intercoder Reliability – The Krippendorf’s alpha coefficient is strong (Krippendorf’s α = .9153) across …

Psychological Mechanisms Underlying Support For Juvenile Sex Offender Registry Laws: Prototypes, Moral Outrage, And Perceived Threat, Margaret C. Stevenson, Cynthia J. Najdowski, Jessica M. Salerno, Tisha R.A. Wiley, Bette L. Bottoms, Katlyn S. Farum

Psychology Faculty Scholarship

We investigated whether and how a juvenile’s history of experiencing sexual abuse affects public perceptions of juvenile sex offenders in a series of 5 studies. When asked about juvenile sex offenders in an abstract manner (Studies 1 and 2), the more participants (community members and undergraduates) believed that a history of being sexually abused as a child causes later sexually abusive behavior, the less likely they were to support sex offender registration for juveniles. Yet when participants considered specific sexual offenses, a juvenile’s history of sexual abuse was not considered to be a mitigating factor. This was true when participants …

7 Tips For An Efficient Faculty Bibliography: How To Tackle Faculty Bibliography Challenges With (Relative) Ease, Marcia L. Dority Baker, Stefanie S. Pearlman

Marvin and Virginia Schmid Law Library

There are many reasons to compile a faculty bibliography: recording faculty accomplishments, preserving information for future generations, and supporting your institution’s external affairs office, to name a few. Also, it is a potential publication for librarians at a tenure-granting institution. So, why did we decide to create a faculty bibliography? It was a combination of past inquiries from our patrons and the need to publish. Prior to this bibliography, no such compilation of our faculty’s work existed. Although our library hosts a display of current faculty scholarship at the start of each fall semester to promote recent faculty publications, we …

Program Evaluation Of The Federal Reentry Court In The Eastern District Of Pennsylvania: Report On Program Effectiveness For The First 164 Reentry Court Participants, Caitlin J. Taylor

Sociology and Criminal Justice Faculty work

This report describes the latest evaluation of the Supervision to Aid Reentry (STAR) program (hereafter referred to as Reentry Court). The success of the Reentry Court is assessed by comparing the first 164 Reentry Court participants to a group of similarly situated individuals under supervised release. Comparisons between the two groups are analyzed in services offered or received, sanctions imposed, employment status, supervision revocation and new arrests in the 18 months following prison release.

Harry Potter And Zones Of Shade: Using Contemporary Literature To Examine The Impacts Of Social Control, Garrison A. Crews, Gordon A. Crews

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

•Using the story of childhood wizard Harry Potter by J. K. Rowling to examine how “Zones of Shade” impact anti-social and criminal behavior in American society. •This examination is conducted through the eyes of political theorist Michel Foucault (Discipline & Punish: The Birth of the Prison, 1975). •Examples from the Harry Potter series will be presented and examined to explain many current social ills in America. •Special interest will be given to connections with political and social rhetoric about crime and justice.

A First Look At The Plea Deal Experiences Of Juveniles Tried In Adult Court, Tarika Daftary-Kapur, Tina Zottoli

Department of Justice Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

While there is a large body of research on the legal capacities of adolescents, this research largely has neglected the plea-deal context. To learn about adolescents’ understanding of the plea process and their appreciation of the short- and long-term consequences of accepting a plea deal, we conducted interviews with 40 juveniles who were offered plea deals in adult criminal court. Participants displayed a limited understanding of the plea process were not fully aware of their legal options and appeared to be overly influenced by the short-term benefits associated with accepting their plea deals. Limited contact with attorneys may have contributed …

Police Sexual Misconduct: Arrested Officers And Their Victims, Philip M. Stinson, Steven L. Brewer, Brooke E. Mathna, John Liederbach, Christine M. Englebrecht

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Police sexual misconduct encompasses a range of acts from less serious noncriminal behaviors to more egregious criminal behaviors including police sexual violence. Victims of sex crimes are often reluctant to report sexual abuse when the offender is a police officer. The study provides empirical data on 771 sex-related arrest cases in years 2005-2008 of 555 sworn officers at 449 nonfederal law enforcement agencies across the United States. The study identifies and describes incidents where officers were arrested for sex crimes through a quantitative content analysis of published newspaper articles and court records. Findings focus on arrested officers and their victims.

Youth Gangs: An Overview Of Key Findings And Directions For The Future, Terrance J. Taylor, J. Michael Vecchio

Criminal Justice & Criminology: Faculty Publications & Other Works

Youth gangs have received considerable attention for many decades. Undoubtedly, their disproportionate involvement in violence is one main reason for this attention. While gang members spend most of their lives engaging in the same types of behaviors as other youth (sleeping, eating, playing video games, going to school), they are also much more likely than non-gang members to be involved in violence and other criminal activity. Indeed, scholars have often highlighted the functional nature of violence as it pertains to gangs.

Gangs come in a variety of forms: prison gangs, outlaw motorcycle gangs, extremist groups, and drug trafficking organizations, among …

Prisons First: Putting Prisons At The Center Of The Criminal Justice Policy Debates, Jeremy Travis

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

How Secular Should Democracy Be? A Cross-Disciplinary Study Of Catholicism And Islam In Promoting Public Reason, David Ingram, David Ingram

Philosophy: Faculty Publications and Other Works

I argue that the same factors (strategic and principled) that motivated Catholicism to champion liberal democracy are the same that motivate 21^st Century Islam to do the same. I defend this claim by linking political liberalism to democratic secularism. Distinguishing institutional, political, and epistemic dimensions of democratic secularism, I show that moderate forms of political and epistemic secularism are most conducive to fostering the kind of public reasoning essential to democratic legitimacy. This demonstration draws upon the ambivalent impact of Indonesia’s Islamic parties in advancing universal social justice aims as against more sectarian policies.

Haydn Doren's Defense In The Court Of The Jarl Of Whiterun, Balgruuf The Greater, Ryan W. Selfridge

Student Publications

This paper is a look at an American Mock Trial Association scenario placed in the world of Skyrim. The piece applies legal concepts regarding forming narratives in the courtroom, something that is absolutely necessary to a jury trial. The unique scenario the trial was held in facilitated the explanation of the rules of evidence in the footnotes, and illustrates how the evidence was admitted to the court.

Book Review Essay: Sarah Wilson, The Origins Of Modern Financial Crime: Historical Foundations And Current Problems In Britain, Claire Nolasco, Aneta Spaic

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Book review essay on Sarah Wilson's The Origins of Modern Financial Crime: Historical Foundations and Current Problems in Britain.Routledge, 2014.

Federal Roadblocks: The Constitution And The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, Ian Drake

Department of Political Science and Law Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The National Popular Vote (NPV) interstate compact proposes to change the presidential election system from a state-based federal system to a national popular vote system. NPV proponents contend states can implement the compact without federal governmental authorization. This article addresses the constitutional questions of whether the NPV must obtain Congress's approval and whether Congress has the constitutional authority to grant such approval. In addressing these questions, I review U.S. Supreme Court precedents and constitutional history and find the NPV is the type of compact the Supreme Court would conclude requires congressional approval. Most importantly, I contend Congress is constitutionally unable …

Gender-Responsive Policy Development In Corrections: What We Know And Roadmaps For Change, Erica King Msw, Jillian Foley Mppm

Justice Policy

Lack of gender-informed policy creates challenges for correctional practitioners. When there is a gap between training that is evidence-based and gender-informed and what is written in policy, staff may find themselves hindered in their attempts to work toward establishing a gender-responsive environment. This policy bulletin, released in February 2015 and based on survey data and focus groups with women, is an initial step to determine the existence of gender-informed policy within correctional agencies. The findings of this bulletin provide an overview of the current state of gender-responsive policies for women and define a focus for future research, training and technical …

Federal Roadblocks: The Constitution And The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, Ian Drake

Department of Political Science and Law Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The National Popular Vote (NPV) interstate compact proposes to change the presidential election system from a state-based federal system to a national popular vote system. NPV proponents contend states can implement the compact without federal governmental authorization. This article addresses the constitutional questions of whether the NPV must obtain Congress’s approval and whether Congress has the constitutional authority to grant such approval. In addressing these questions, I review U.S. Supreme Court precedents and constitutional history and find the NPV is the type of compact the Supreme Court would conclude requires congressional approval. Most importantly, I contend Congress is constitutionally unable …