Digital Commons Network^™

In The Box: Voir Dire On Lgbt Issues In Changing Times, Giovanna Shay

Faculty Scholarship

This is the first law review article to examine transcripts, court filings, and published opinions about jury voir dire on attitudes toward same-sex sexuality and LGBT issues. It demonstrates that jurors express a range of homonegative attitudes. Many jurors voicing such beliefs are not removed for cause, even in cases involving lesbian and gay people and issues. It suggests some best practices for voir dire to uncover attitudes toward same-sex sexuality, based on social science research. Voir dire on LGBT issues is likely to become more important in coming years. Despite enormous gains, including historic marriage equality decisions, the LGBT …

The Hanging Judge By Michael A. Ponsor -- A Book Review: Capital Punishment -- Is The Death Penalty Worth The Price?, Beth D. Cohen, Pat K. Newcombe

Faculty Scholarship

In 2000-2001, Judge Ponsor presided over the first death penalty case in Massachusetts in nearly 50 years, United States v. Gilbert. Gilbert’s trial marked only the third time that a federal capital case had gone to trial in a state without the death penalty. According to Ponsor, he felt a particularly heavy responsibility to ensure that both the government and the defense got a fair trial. In fact, in 2001, after the conclusion of the trial, Ponsor did something somewhat unusual for a judge; he wrote a lengthy editorial about the death penalty. He wrote: “[t]he simple question - not …

Post-Release Job Training And Enhanced Access To Employment Opportunities For Released Offenders: Incentives To Reducing Recidivism, Emmanuel Etim Umoh

All ETDs from UAB

Researchers studying the effect of employment on recidivism have shown that offenders who are employed after serving time in prison are less likely to recidivate (Kyvsgaard, 1990). These scholars also indicated that employment for released offenders is positively related to a delay in re-offending. Such findings support the belief that job security increases the interval between release from prison and re-offending. In this study I expand on existing recidivism studies to investigate how post-release job training and greater access to employment opportunities for ex-prisoners affects recidivism. The effect of educational status is also measured to determine whether a high school …

Understanding The Described Experiences Of Court Judges, Court Appointed Special Advocates (Casa) Volunteers, Department Of Human Resources Caseworkers, And Foster Parents, Mitsy Collier Wilbourne

All ETDs from UAB

UNDERSTANDING THE DESCRIBED EXPERIENCES OF COURT JUDGES, COURT APPOINTED SPECIAL ADVOCATES (CASA) VOLUNTEERS, DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES'CASEWORKERS, AND FOSTER PARENTS MITSY COLLIER WILBOURNE EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to identify the described experiences of court judges, Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) volunteers, Department of Human Resources' caseworkers, and foster parents in the southeastern United States to enhance the early childhood educational needs and development of children in out-of-home care. The study was designed with cases so various perspectives were examined. Children who were neglected and abused, specifically those who must be removed from their parent's …

The Icty Appellate Chamber's Acquittal Of Momcilo Perisic: The Specific Direction Element Of Aiding And Abetting Should Be Rejected Or Modified To Explicitly Include A "Reasonable Person" Due Diligence Standard, Jennifer Trahan, Erin K. Lovall

Brooklyn Journal of International Law

No abstract provided.

Reforming The Sentencing Regime For The Most Serious Crimes Of Concern: The International Criminal Court Through The Lens Of The Lubanga Trial, Ashley Joy Stein

Brooklyn Journal of International Law

No abstract provided.

Progression In The Age Of Recession: Restorative Justice And White-Collar Crime In Post-Recession America, Daniel Luedtke

Brooklyn Journal of Corporate, Financial & Commercial Law

No abstract provided.

Introduction To The Symposium, Marilyn R. Walter, Elizabeth Fajans

Journal of Law and Policy

No abstract provided.

Religious Freedom And Equal Treatment: A United Kingdom Perspective, Karon Monaghan

Journal of Law and Policy

No abstract provided.

Insane In The Membrane: Arguing Against The Forcible Medication Of Mentally Ill Pre-Trial Defendants, Tobias Schad

Journal of Law and Policy

No abstract provided.

Buyer Beware: Why Johns Should Be Charged With Statutory Rape For Buying Sex From A Child, Amanda Shapiro

Journal of Law and Policy

No abstract provided.

Neuroscientists In Court, Owen D. Jones, Anthony D. Wagner, David L. Faigman, Marcus E. Raichle

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

Neuroscientific evidence is increasingly being offered in court cases. Consequently, the legal system needs neuroscientists to act as expert witnesses who can explain the limitations and interpretations of neuroscientific findings so that judges and jurors can make informed and appropriate inferences. The growing role of neuroscientists in court means that neuroscientists should be aware of important differences between the scientific and legal fields, and, especially, how scientific facts can be easily misunderstood by non-scientists,including judges and jurors.

This article describes similarities, as well as key differences, of legal and scientific cultures. And it explains six key principles about neuroscience that …

Front Matter

SMU Law Review

No abstract provided.

Staffing Practices Of Elementary School Principals For Teachers In Primary Grades And Implications For The Prek-3rd Continuum, Laura Albers-Biddle

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Principals are considered the educational leaders of their schools and face pressure to improve the quality of education across all levels and disciplines. Principals were interviewed to understand their beliefs, knowledge, and dispositions on staffing teachers in the primary grades. A purposive sample of elementary school principals was drawn from one mid-size suburban district in Florida. Data were analyzed using Bolman and Deal's four-frame organizational theory framework, Cohen's cognitive frame, and Boote's theory of professional discretion. The data strongly suggest that principals do not understand the foundations of early childhood practice. In addition, they do not understand the differences between …

Privatization Of Florida Juvenile Residential Facilities, Katherine Hancock

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Privatization of juvenile facilities and services has been the norm since the inception of the juvenile justice system. However, little research has been performed examining the impact of privatization on juvenile justice, despite the possible repercussions of this policy for the juveniles served. Prior research on privatization in other fields has tended to find a connection between privatization and outcomes; however, very little research has examined how privatization impacts operations, how operations impact recidivism, and how privatization and operations interact to produce juvenile justice outcomes. This exploratory study, informed by cybernetic systems theory and principal-agent theory, examined the mechanism by …

The Relationship Of State Political Instability And Economic Failure To Predatory Organized Crime In Multiple Nations: A Global Comparative Anaylsis, Terrance Ruth

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines the relationship of political instability and economic failure to predatory organized crime in multiple nations. This is an important issue since each year the increase in predatory crime networks contributes to international economic failure, security risks, and the spread of organized crime. In an effort to understand the relationship between state failure and economic failure on the one hand, and organized crime on the other, this study will seek to address three goals. First, the study tests the degree to which variables that imply economic failure and state failure correlate with predatory organized crime. Second, the study …

Alleyne On The Ground: Factfinding That Limits Eligibility For Probation Or Parole Release, Nancy J. King, Brynn E. Applebaum

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

This article addresses the impact of Alleyne v. United States on statutes that restrict an offender’s eligibility for release on parole or probation. Alleyne is the latest of several Supreme Court decisions applying the rule announced in the Court’s 2000 ruling, Apprendi v. New Jersey. To apply Alleyne, courts must for the first time determine what constitutes a minimum sentence and when that minimum is mandatory. These questions have proven particularly challenging in states that authorize indeterminate sentences, when statutes that delay the timing of eligibility for release are keyed to judicial findings at sentencing. The same questions also arise, …

Juries And Prior Convictions: Managing The Demise Of The Prior Conviction Exception To "Apprendi", Nancy J. King

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

This essay offers a menu of procedural alternatives for coping with the potential, some would say inevitable, abandonment of the prior conviction exception to the rule in Apprendi v. New Jersey. It compiles options states have used for years to manage jury prejudice when proof of prior conviction status is required, including partial guilty pleas, partial jury waivers, bifurcation of the trial proceeding, stipulations, and rules limiting what information about the prior conviction may be admitted. These options belie the claim that the exception must be preserved to prevent jury prejudice against defendants. For courts and legislatures interested in anticipating …

The Exclusionary Rule As A Symbol Of The Rule Of Law, Jenia I. Turner

SMU Law Review

Throughout South America, Southern and Eastern Europe, and East Asia, more than two dozen countries have transitioned to democracy since the 1980s. A remarkable number of these have adopted an exclusionary rule (mandating that evidence obtained unlawfully by the government is generally inadmissible in criminal trials) as part of broader legal reforms. Democratizing countries have adopted exclusionary rules even though they are not required to do so by any international treaty and there is no indication that there is widespread popular demand for such rules. This has occurred at a time when the rule has been weakened in the United …

Investigators' Perceptions Of Inter-Jurisdictional Law Enforcement Information Sharing On Criminal Investigative Success: An Exploratory Analysis, Jennifer Freeman-Walker

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Information sharing among law enforcement entities became a national priority after the 9/11 attack (Carter, 2005). Various information systems utilized by law enforcement agencies may be promising; however, there is little extant empirical research to validate the system's effectiveness related to increasing investigative success (Bureau of Justice Assistance, 2010). One information system that has tied together numerous Florida law enforcement agencies is the FINDER system. FINDER, the Florida Integrated Network for Data Exchange and Retrieval system, provides agency investigators a wide range of information not previously available (Reynolds, Griset, and Scott, 2006; Scott, 2006). This study's foundation was primarily based …

Victim Gender And The Death Penalty, Caisa Elizabeth Royer, Amelia Courtney Hritz, Valerie P. Hans, Theodore Eisenberg, Martin T. Wells, John H. Blume, Sheri Lynn Johnson

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

Previous research suggests that cases involving female victims are more likely to result in death sentences. The current study examines possible reasons for this relationship using capital punishment data from the state of Delaware. Death was sought much more for murders of either male or female white victims compared to murders of black male victims. Analyzing capital sentencing hearings in Delaware from 1977-2007 decided by judges or juries, we found that both characteristics of the victims and characteristics of the murders differentiated male and female victim cases. The presence of sexual victimization, the method of killing, the relationship between the …

The Impact Of Situational Factors On Forum Choice And Criminal Justice System Development In Bangladesh, Kristina Lugo, Elizabeth A.M. Searing

Emory International Law Review

Using a survey by the World Bank's Justice and Development Initiative, Kristina Lugo and Elizabeth Searing examine whether crime victims' choice of dispute resolution forum is more constrained by social factors, such as socioeconomic status, or by event-specific factors, such as direct economic loss from the crime itself. In Bangladesh's pluralist legal environment of competing traditional and state venues, neoinstitutionalist-inspired development strategies overlook important factors and strategies that improve access to justice for those most hurt by crime. This study finds that crime victims who suffer greater economic harm resulting directly from the crime, as well as victims of violent …

Although The “Get-Tough” Approach Is Popular Among The American Public And Policymakers Alike, Incarceration Does Not Reduce Crime, Marika Dawkins-Cavazos

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

The prevalence of crime has been of great concern to policymakers for decades, with many factors being blamed and many solutions suggested. Since the 1970s’ punitive incarceration policies have found favor, and are now being replicated for juvenile offenders as well. Using state-level data on crime and juvenile residential placement (which have now become very similar in their operations to those of adult facilities), Marika Dawkins finds that such placements do not lead to a reduction in juvenile offending or crime. She argues that, in this light, community-based sanctions as well as greater support for families should take precedence over …

The Influence Of Mesa Activities On Underrepresented Students Nsf Dr K-12 Proposal 1020019, C. Hailey, Chandra Austin Stallworth, Cameron Denson, Daniel L. Householder

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement (MESA) outreach programs are partnerships between K-12 schools and higher education in nine states. MESA efforts introduce integrated experiences in science, mathematics and engineering to K-12 students from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in the STEM disciplines. This exploratory study examined the influence of selected MESA activities on students' self-efficacy, their perceptions of engineering, and their interest in engineering and other STEM fields. Field trips, guest lecturers, design competitions, hands-on activities and student career and academic advisement were of specific interest in this survey. The project also investigated the relationship between student engagement in MESA and …

Undergraduate Catalog, Georgia Southern University

Undergraduate & Graduate Catalogs

No abstract provided.

Development And Initial Findings Of An Implementation Process Measure For Child Welfare System Change, Mary I. Armstrong, Julie S. Mccrae, Michelle Graef, Tammy Richards, David Lambert, Charlotte Lyn Bright, Cathy Sowell

Center on Children, Families, and the Law: Faculty Publications

This article describes a new measure designed to examine the process of implementation of child welfare systems change. The measure was developed to document the status of the interventions and strategies that are being implemented and the drivers that are being installed to achieve sustainable changes in systems. The measure was used in a Children’s Bureau-supported national effort to assess the ongoing implementation of 24 systems-change projects in child welfare jurisdictions across the country. The article describes the process for measure development, method of administration and data collection, and quantitative and qualitative findings.

Redefining Relevancy And Exclusionary Discretion In Sir James Fitzjames Stephen’S Indian Evidence Act Of 1872: The Singapore Experiment And Lessons For Other Indian Evidence Act Jurisdictions, Siyuan Chen

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

In many jurisdictions, the rules of evidence can often be instrumental in determining the outcome of a dispute. But to what extent can evidence law be controlled by codification, or is it better to leave its regulation and development to the judges via common law? In an attempt to bridge the gap between the rules of an antiquated evidence statute and the modern realities of practice, Singapore’s Evidence Act was amended in 2012. Certain relevancy provisions were amended to allow greater admissibility of evidence, while new provisions were introduced to act as a check against abuse. However, it will be …

All Convictions Are Not The Same: Rethinking Cupe's Abuse Of Process Doctrine In Cases Involving Plea Bargains, Lara Kinkartz

Dalhousie Journal of Legal Studies

Historically, when a criminal conviction was introduced as evidence of guilt in a subsequent civil action, the convicted party was permitted to introduce rebuttal evidence to negate or mitigate the effect of the prior conviction. However, the Supreme Court of Canada’s 2003 decision in Toronto (City) v Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 79 has resulted in an unprecedented restriction on the ability to rebut a prior conviction. As a result of the CUPE decision, the doctrine of abuse of process now precludes rebuttal evidence in most cases. CUPE’s expanded abuse of process doctrine is troubling because, to date, …

Tempestian Politics, Andrew Fellows

Criterion: A Journal of Literary Criticism

No abstract provided.

Childhood Maltreatment And Later Adult Functioning: An Examination Of The Roles Of Personal Resiliency And Psychological Distress, Maggie L. Gorraiz

Open Access Dissertations

Childhood maltreatment has been and continues to be a disconcerting public health concern worldwide. Over three decades of research indicates a gamut of negative long-term physical and mental health correlates of childhood maltreatment. However, there is limited knowledge on potential mediating factors in the relationship between childhood maltreatment and later adult functioning. This study examined the potential impact of childhood maltreatment on later adult functioning, specifically interpersonal functioning and protective sexual behaviors. The study also investigated the potential mediating roles of psychological distress and personal resiliency within this relationship. A college-based sample of 415 heterosexually active men and women, aged …