Criminology and Criminal Justice Commons^™

Decriminalizing Mental Illness: The Need For Treatment Over Incarceration Before Prisons Become The New Asylums For The Mentally Ill, Rebecca L. Brown

Psychology Summer Fellows

Currently, US prisons are home to 10 times more mentally ill individuals than state psychiatric hospitals. Instead of treating those with mental illness, an extremely vulnerable population is being thrown behind bars. Mental illness is often exacerbated during incarceration, leaving inmates much sicker than when they entered. Moreover, upon discharge mentally ill inmates have virtually no support, making recidivism almost inevitable. This lack of treatment has devastating consequences for the mentally ill as well as the community at large. Removing the mentally ill from jails and prisons would reduce recidivism, increase public safety and save money.

The current research explores …

Talk And Deterrence In Drug Markets, Timothy Dickinson

Dissertations

Despite a wealth of conceptual and empirical examinations, key processes occurring during each of the primary stages of deterrence remain poorly specified. Little is known about how potential offenders form their perceptions of rules or threats, and the relationship between these perceptions and fear has only received moderate attention. In addition, many questions remain regarding how offenders eliminate or reshape punishments after violating rules. In this dissertation I examine how various forms of talk shape these processes. More specifically, I investigate how gossip influences offenders’ perceptions of rules or threats, how humor and threats and promises moderate the fear stemming …

Determining Limitation Periods For Actions Arising Under Federal Statutes, Neil Sobol

Neil L Sobol

No abstract provided.

Lost In A Legal Thicket, Paul H. Robinson

All Faculty Scholarship

This op-ed piece argues that criminal law recodification is badly needed in the states and the federal system, but that prosecutors stand out as the group who appear to regularly oppose it.

The Use Of Restorative Justice To Resolve Conflict In Schools, Marie F. Penny

All Student Theses

The Use of Restorative Justice to Resolve Conflict in Schools Schools today are increasingly interested in utilizing conflict resolution techniques that can provide both a short-term solution and a long-term resolution that allows students and schools to focus on more prevalent issues such as education, safety, and child development. One technique that has proven useful is restorative justice practices.

Empirical Assessment Of Lifestyle-Routine Activity And Social Learning Theory On Cybercrime Offending, Elizabeth Phillips

Master’s Theses and Projects

The Internet and its overwhelming possibilities and applications have changed the way individuals carry out many routine activities such as going to work or school, or socializing. Social networking sites such as Facebook are ideal settings for interacting with others, and unfortunately, are also ideal settings for committing cybercrimes. The purpose of this study is to investigate the occurrence of online offending against individuals, specifically harassment, stalking, impersonation, and sexting. Self-report surveys collected from a sample of 274 college students were examined using a negative binomial statistical analysis to determine possible relationships between risky online and offline lifestyles as well …

An Evaluation Of The Impact Of Solitary Confinement On Offenders With Mental Illness, Paula Smith, Ryan M. Labrecque, Paul Gendreau

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

The primary goal of the current study is to examine the impact of solitary confinement (SC) on institutional misconducts in offenders with mental illness. The presentation focuses on the following questions:

• Does the experience of SC reduce institutional misconducts in offenders with mental illness?
• Does the length of time spent in SC influence subsequent institutional misconducts in offenders with mental illness?

Police Integrity Lost: Police Crime In The United States, Philip M. Stinson

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

A Longitudinal Study Of Truant Youths ’ Involvement In Sexual Risk Behavior, Richard Dembo, Rhissa B. Robinson, Rocío Ungaro, Ken C. Winters, Lora Karas

Criminology Faculty Publications

Truant youths are likely to engage in a number of problem behaviors, including sexual risky behaviors. As part of a National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)-funded, prospective intervention project, a sample of truant youths' sexual risk behavior was tracked over five time points. Analyses of the data was informed by four objectives: (a) determine if a growth model parameterization was consistent with the youths' sexual risk behavior, (b) assess the impact of a brief intervention (BI) targeting substance use on their sexual risk behavior over time, (c) identify any sexual risk behavior subgroups, and (d) identify any differential, longitudinal effects …

Pushing For New Perspectives: Policy Model Of Criminalized Prostitution And Its Effect On Victims Of Sex Trafficking, Melanie C. Basil

Global Honors Theses

Sex trafficking has become one of the world’s fastest growing crimes, affecting nearly every single country on our globe, and is inevitably linked to prostitution. Although prostitution has been criminalized in the United States for decades, recent literature has shown that this type of prostitution has little effect on aiding the overall sweeping and devastating effects of sex trafficking on its victim’s. The current research therefore uses interviews from experts and individuals with experience in prostitution and sex trafficking to understand—from the eyes of those with actual experience—the realistic role that criminalized prostitution plays in the lives of sex trafficking …

The Effects Of Post-Recall Feedback: Examining Witness Recall Quantity, Accuracy, And Confidence, Dana Elizabeth Hirn Mueller

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Most eyewitness identification protocols recommend withholding feedback after an identification has been made, at least until a measure of confidence can be gathered. Although much research has examined the impact of post-identification feedback on subsequent witness behavior and confidence, research addressing the importance of post-recall feedback remains largely incomplete. The current study examined the effects of post-recall feedback and question type on subsequent witness recall, confidence, and reports of view of the crime. In line with previous eyewitness identification research, it was predicted that participants receiving confirming post-recall feedback would be more confident in their prior recall compared to participants …

The Homosexual Federal Offender: A Study Of 100 Cases, Charles E. Smith

Charles Kay Smith

No abstract provided.

Community Justice: Viewing Mass Incarceration From The Ground Up, Jeremy Travis

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Administering A Victim Impact Curriculum To Inmates: A Multi-Site Replication, Christopher M. Sedelmaier, Mario Thomas Gaboury

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

While restorative justice has been the topic of much research, a specific type of program included in restorative justice, Impact of Crime on Victims programs, has not been widely studied or assessed for effectiveness. This study examines Impact of Crime (IOC) on Victims Curriculum Development Programs. Offenders from programs in California, Ohio, Tennessee, and Virginia were participants in this research. A four state evaluation methodology was developed in order to assess the effectiveness of these programs in educating offenders about victims’ right and victim facts, as well as increasing their sensitivity to victims’ difficulties. The findings in this evaluation lend …

Deconstructing The Lgbt-Victimization Association: The Case Of Sexual Assault And Alcohol-Related Problems, Shanna N. Felix, Justin Hoyle, Chad Posick, Bryan Lee Miller, John Stogner

Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology Faculty Publications

Research on lesbian, gay, bisexual and/or transgender (LGBT) students has been gaining traction in the fields of criminology, victimology, and education, but available data lag behind the demand for studies on this underserved population. While LGBT students are often perceived to face greater risk of victimization and subsequent health problems than their counterparts, little research has investigated the mechanisms behind problematic outcomes for LGBT students. This research uses data from a Southeastern University to examine sexual assault among LGBT students and their experiences with alcohol-related problems. The results show that LGBT youth are at an increased risk for sexual victimization …

Public Corruption In Helena, Arkansas: Analysis And Recommendations, Harvard Law School Mississippi Delta Project

Delta Directions: Publications

In Spring 2014, Mississippi Delta Project’s Economic Development team researched the causes of and possible solutions for the high crime rate in Helena-West Helena, Arkansas (“Helena”). In connection with this research, the team conducted a series of interviews with Helena citizens and community leaders. The team’s research and interviews revealed that recent events had frayed the community’s faith in its public institutions. In October 2011, the now well-known federal drug investigation called Operation Delta Blues culminated with the arrest of five local law enforcement officials on charges of attempted racketeering.1 During its investigation, the Economic Development team learned of additional …

An Occult Primer: Investigating Goth, Satanic, & Other Alternative Belief System Related Crimes, Gordon A. Crews

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

After reading this chapter you should be able to do the following:

• discuss the impact of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution upon the investigation of possible Occult related crime
• define the terms “Cult Cops” and “Ghostbusters” and their evolutionary impact upon the investigation of possible Occult related crime
• explain the impact that “Satanic Panic” and the “CSI Effect” upon these types of investigations
• describe the characteristics of individuals involved in negative or dangerous types of Occult behaviors
• discuss the factors involved in the identification and investigation of a possible Cult, Occult, Alternative Belief Crime Scene
• discuss the possible …

The Power And Importance Of Emotional Investment In Scholarly Research: An Ethnographic Account Of San Luis Obispo County Juvenile Hall, Claire E. Shannon

Communication Studies

No abstract provided.

Psychosocial Sequelae Of Homicide Among Murder Victims' Family Members: An Appraisal Of Depression, Grief, And Posttraumatic Stress, Sarah Kopelovich

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The current investigation explored what is known regarding the psychological sequelae of the post-homicide experience for murder victims' family members and friends (MVFM). Participants were also asked about whether they felt they had attained closure, a term which populates anecdotal and theoretical accounts of MVFM's experience. Previous literature guided a theoretical definition of closure as a dimensional construct that represents adaptive functioning following a murder, and includes (1) absence of disabling symptomatology, (2) absence of ruminations about the event or murder victim, and (3) subjective return to baseline functioning. This quasi-experiment consisted of a between-subjects cross-sectional design. The dependent variable …

Negotiating Limits: Boundary Management In The Bondage/Discipline/Sadomasochism (Bdsm) Community, Karen Marie Holt

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This study sought to gain insight into the attitudes, beliefs, and values that shape Bondage/Discipline/Sadomasochism (BDSM) activities and how participants negotiate and maintain boundaries in order to engage in mutually satisfying BDSM activities. Additionally, this study explored the degree and consequences of unintended or non-negotiated harms, including physical, emotional, and sexual coercion. A qualitative approach consisting of semi-structured interviews and ethnography was used in order to develop an in depth exploration of the lived experiences of participants. Grounded theory was employed to reveal common themes which all supported a symbolic interactionist / dramaturgical understanding of the protective and predatory processes …