Digital Commons Network^™

Annual Report 2022-2023, Tennessee. Bureau Of Investigation

Annual Report

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On The Well-Being Of People Incarcerated In United States Prisons, Kimberly Rivera

Department of Sociology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted the population as a whole. However, the incarcerated population (which also experiences a variety of health disparities) has been disproportionately affected by the pandemic. Due to overcrowding, poor ventilation, and lack of resources, the incarcerated population already is at a heightened risk for negative health outcomes, made worse by the recent pandemic. To adapt to the rapidly changing conditions during the pandemic in 2020 and into 2022, new safety measures were implemented, but the unintended consequences associated with the implementation of these procedures have yet to be examined empirically. I conducted a qualitative content …

Usage Statistics: Project Counter R5 Dr_D1 Report Fy2023 - Database Search And Item Usage, Andrée J. Rathemacher

Technical Services Reports and Statistics

Project COUNTER R5 Report DR_D1 for the University of Rhode Island for the period from July 1, 2022 - June 30, 2023. The DR_D1 report is defined as "Database Search and Item Usage." This report presents an annual total only and only includes those platforms successfully configured for automated harvesting via SUSHI.

File for download is Excel spreadsheet generated by Alma Analytics.

Results:

Searches Automated - 101,532

Searches Federated - 10,516

Searches Regular - 1,059,387

Total Item Investigations - 519,728

Total Item Requests - 219,645

The New Comity Abstention, John Harland Giammatteo

Journal Articles

In the past ten years, lower federal courts have quietly but regularly abstained from hearing federal claims challenging state court procedures, citing concerns of comity and federalism. Federal courts have dismissed a broad range of substantive challenges tasked to them by Congress, including under the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Indian Child Welfare Act, and various constitutional provisions, involving state court eviction proceedings, foster care determinations, bail and criminal justice policies, COVID-era safety practices, and other instances where state courts determine state policy.

This paper is the first to argue that these decisions constitute a new abstention doctrine, unmoored from …

Foreword, The Honorable L. A. Harris Jr.

University of Richmond Law Review

“Your writing is so bad you will not be considered for Law Review and there is some question about your admittance to Law School.”

Life is strange and ironic. In 1974 as a second year law student at the T. C. Williams School of Law at the University of Richmond, I was invited to submit an article to determine if I would be permitted to serve on the Law Review. A member of the Law Review evaluated my article and met with me. In summation he said my writing was so bad that I would not be considered for Law …

From The Governor's Desk To A Bullet In Your Chest: The Fatal Implications Of Anti-Trans Legislation, Iyan Wickel

Online Theses and Dissertations

Proposed discriminatory legislation in the hundreds has resulted in a renewed look at trans communities, both of support and vitriol. Just as new legislation has been proposed in recent years at a rate that is higher than ever before, so has the reported rate of murder of transgender and gender nonconforming individuals, seemingly at a similar rate with hate fueled rhetoric and legislation. This general observation was the driving force behind this study; to determine whether or not anti-trans legislation in particular coincided with the rate of murder of trans and gender non-conforming people. The study at hand examined the …

Police And Cross-Cultural Psychology: The Impact Of Human Values On Violence, Claudio V. Torres, Sharon Glazer

Online Readings in Psychology and Culture

Researchers of police psychology must be well-acquainted with police work and culture both nationally and organizationally. However, most studies developed in police psychology do not fully account for the national context within which a study was done. In this article review, we discuss two social phenomena commonly studied by police psychologists: aggression and violence. Taking primarily a cross-national approach, we focus on the predictive role of individual values on aggression and violence. Schwartz’s (1992) values theory, at the individual level of analysis, was chosen due to its importance to cross-cultural psychology, as well as its implications on well-being (e.g., Sagiv …

Investigating The Relationship Between Foster Care And Sex Trafficking: What Factors Are Maintaining The Cycle Of Abuse, Shannon M. Budgell

Student Theses

Sex trafficking is a global crime and human rights issue that benefits abusers at the detriment of vulnerable groups, including children involved in the United States welfare system. This meta-synthesis explored the risk factors present within the United States foster care system that expose children to potential victimization. Using qualitative research, the purpose of this study was to review sex trafficking exploitation and analyze the current policies creating this vulnerability in the nation’s child welfare services. Upon completing a systematic literature search, nine studies were included by meeting the following criteria: qualitative or quantitative research studies published in English any …

The Method Development And Validation Of Designer Benzodiazepines In Oral Fluid Using Solid Phase Extraction And Lc-Ms/Ms, Jenna L. Monsell

Student Theses

Oral fluid is a useful biological matrix. Collection is non-invasive, quick, observable, and its correlation between oral fluid and blood drug concentration make oral fluid an important matrix to use as a roadside test. Designer benzodiazepines have become increasingly popular over the years, adversely affecting motor skills and leading to driving under the influence. Many previous studies have focused on the method development and validation of designer benzodiazepines in blood and hair but fail to validate a method to detect designer benzodiazepines in oral fluid. This study focuses on the method validation of 13 designer benzodiazepines in oral fluid using …

Comparing Bone Histology, Topography, And Other Physical Attributes To The Presence Of Viable Dna After Interval Cremation, Eldad Cano Jr

Student Theses

This research aims to compare the resulting characteristics caused by thermal exposure to bone samples – such as physical composition, microscopic histology, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis – to the qualitative and quantitative DNA analysis within the samples. By using kilns to cremate sus scrofa domesticus bone samples at five different temperatures, cortical and cancellous bones of the tibia, humerus, femur, and fibula will be analyzed and compared to determine any correlation with these factors and the presence of viable DNA. This contribution to research within the realm of forensic anthropology can grant a better understanding of how bone …

Dismantling The School-To-Prison Pipeline: Studying The Effects Of Disciplinary Actions In Schools For Students, Rebekah Granlund

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

As educators, a large part of our job day in and day out will be to enrich the minds of young students, who are our future generations. Given this, schools are tasked with student discipline in addition to their learning development. The focus of this senior capstone is to examine the school-to-prison pipeline and identify what educators can adjust in order to decrease the funneling of students into incarceration. Utilizing literature reviews, interviews with in-service teachers and administrators, and studying various approaches to disciplinary actions, the result findings indicate that there are alternative, more positive approaches to disciplinary actions in …

Examining The Quality Of Gender Measurements In Criminological And Criminal Justice Research: Pervasive Apathy Or Bad Research Methods?, Jadon Clark

Masters Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Criminology has often been criticized for its lack of gender inclusivity and ‘androcentrism,’ particularly by feminist and queer criminologists who note that the field rarely uses separate measures of gender and sex assigned at birth or ones that extend beyond the binary, severely limiting the applicability of evidence-based, gender-responsive services in the criminal justice system. Other fields have adopted measures of gender that capture multiple identities and acknowledge the complexity of gender. However, it is unclear whether criminology has heeded these calls for inclusivity. Using a gender theory perspective, the current study analyzed 566 articles published between 2011 and 2020 …

Building Stronger Student-Teacher Relationships With Students Of Color, Diana Berlanga

Masters Projects

This project examines the racial disparity that exists among students of color and positive teacher-student relationships. Research shows that teacher bias influences teachers' perception of students of color. Teacher social identities play a role in how teachers build student-teacher relationships, which affects some students of color experience in school. For instance, students of color are less likely to experience academic recommendations and more likely to receive harsh discipline. However, research shows that teachers can improve their teacher bias by self-discovering their teacher’s social identity in the classroom. In addition, teachers could improve their interactions with students of color by exploring …

Human Trafficking In The Americas: Comparison Of Original Source Compilation Versus Unodc Data, Ivette Avila Jimenez

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

International human trafficking (IHT) is a type of criminal activity that involves groups and individuals who facilitate the global movement and exploitation of people, often by illegal means. Estimates show that, worldwide, there are over 25 million victims of human trafficking at any given time; however, estimates are prone to under and overcounting. Focusing on the Americas, this study compared the quality of two data sources that could be used to observe IHT. Country-to-country IHT networks generated from 9 years of researcher compiled governmental and non-governmental data (2008-2017) was compared with networks generated from data downloaded from the United Nations …

Administrators’ Perceptions Of Alternatives To Suspension In Virginia Urban Public Schools, Hayley Poland

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to examine the perceptions of the use of alternatives to suspension of high school administrators in Virginia urban public schools. The phenomenological research design allowed better understanding of the participant’s view and perception of their use of alternatives to suspension. While there is research focusing on the use of alternatives to suspension, there has been little research in Virginia urban public schools on the perceptions of administrators on the use of alternatives to suspension. The framework this research study utilized to focus the data analysis was Social Learning Theory.

Data collection strategies included …

A Critical Systematic Literature Review Of Global Inclusive Education Using An Affective, Intersectional, Discursive, Emotive And Material Lens, David Isaac Hernández-Saca, Catherine Kramarczuk Voulgarides, Susan Larson Etscheidt

Faculty Publications

We conducted a critical systematic literature review on global inclusive education and law. The critical review questions were: (1) how have scholars theorized, conceptualized, and studied global inclusive education? (2) How do scholars define global inclusive education? (3) And what do scholars cite as prominent international inclusive education law? We ask such questions given the ongoing global crises that situate historically marginalized groups in even more precarious positions—including students with dis/Abilities. Given this framing, we employed a critical systematic literature review that is cognizant of our positionalities, writing from the Global North, so that we can identify lines of inquiry …

Neuroimaging And Free Will: A Partial Test Of Devine's “Director’S Cut” Theory Of Jury Decision Making, Madison Baczuk

Undergraduate Honors Theses

New evidence has emerged over the last few decades that demonstrates that the brains of some criminal offenders are structurally and functionally different from non-offenders. This evidence suggests that some people may not have the physical brain structure and functioning – often due to factors beyond their control – to make thoughtful, empathetic, and rational decisions. Therefore, some have questioned whether such individuals should be held to the same degree of culpability (responsibility) as those without brain damage, deficiency, or dysfunction. Additionally, this neurological evidence has been shown to influence jury decision-making as a mitigating factor. The present study aims …

A Comparison Between A Terrorist Leader And A Lone-Wolf Operative In Bangladesh, Fatema Islam

Journal of Terrorism Studies

The article compares the biography and terrorist portrait of two terrorists of Bangladesh: Mufti Abdul Hannan, a pioneer leader of the prominent terrorist organization Huji-B, and a lone wolf operative named Faizul Hasan. The study reveals the existence of the multifaceted dynamics of the leader (Mufti) and lone wolf (Faizul) encompassing organizational affiliation, operational independence, radicalization processes, motivations, objectives, and the scale of their operations. The study also finds that the pattern of operation of a terrorist leader (Mufti) and the lone wolf terrorist (Faizul) differed significantly in terms of planning, execution, and level of organizational support. While the terrorist …

The Emergence Of “The School Shooter” As A Category Of Analysis: What The 1990s Can Teach Us About Youth Violence, Rebecca Maria Jimenez

Honors College Theses

This thesis is a case study of the emergence and framing of “the school shooter” as one part of the larger problem of American youth violence during the 1990s. This decade forever changed the way school safety is viewed. Although the annual number of school shootings largely remained the same from the 1970s to the early 1990s, a spike in fatalities in 1993 occurred during a fraught historical moment. A wave of youth violence, beginning in the late 1980s, helped to set the stage for new security measures, such as zero tolerance policies in schools, and the development of new …

The Gender Gap: A Comparative Analysis Of Male And Female Rape Victims, Emma Carlo

Honors Capstones

No abstract provided.

The Federal Government's Role In Local Policing, Farhang Heydari, Barry Friedman, Rachel Harmon

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

For far too long, the federal government has failed to exercise its constitutional authority to mitigate the harms imposed by local policing. Absent federal intervention, though, some harmful aspects of policing will not be addressed effectively, or at all. States and localities often lack the necessary capacity and expertise to change policing, and many states and localities lack the will. This Article argues for federal intervention and describes what that intervention should look like.

The Article begins by describing three paradigmatic areas of local policing that require federal intervention to create real change: excessive use offorce, racial discrimination, and the …

Sentencing In An Era Of Plea Bargains, Jeffrey Bellin, Jeenia I. Turner

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

The literature offers inconsistent answers to a question that is foundational to criminal law: Who imposes sentences? Traditional narratives place sentencing responsibility in the hands of the judge. Yet, in a country where 95% of criminal convictions come from guilty pleas (not trials), modern American scholars center prosecutors who control plea terms as the deciders of punishment. This Article highlights and seeks to resolve the tension between these conflicting narratives by charting the pathways by which sentences are determined in a system dominated by plea bargains. After reviewing the empirical literature on sentence variation, examining state and federal plea-bargaining rules …

The Curious Tension Between Fish And Game Conservation Officers And The Fourth Amendment, Thomas White

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Based on principles of federalism, states as well as the federal government address the powers and duties of fish and wildlife conservation officers (hereafter referred to generally as “conservation officers”) in a variety of ways, a significant number of which appear to have Fourth Amendment ramifications. Many states require their conservation officers to have probable cause, with or without a search warrant, to engage in search activity. Since this is the standard employed for reviewing the reasonableness of the actions of ordinary law enforcement officers, these states’ legal requirements for searching hunters and anglers do not implicate Fourth Amendment concerns. …

Restorative Practices: Implementing An Alternative To Disproportionate Out-Of-School Suspension And Expulsion Rates Of Black Students, Ezra Cowan

All Dissertations

This research describes the application of improvement science focusing on implementing restorative practices (RP) to decrease suspension and expulsion rates of Black students. Black students are suspended and expelled disproportionately compared to their White peers in South Carolina. Due to the high suspension and expulsion rates, school districts are implementing restorative practices to decrease the suspension and expulsion rates of minorities. This study utilizes a qualitative method of data collection and analysis to determine if the use of RP is effective in decreasing suspension and expulsion rates of Black students. RP employs two informal and two formal tools for conflict …

Sentencing In An Era Of Plea Bargains, Jeffrey Bellin, Jenia I. Turner

Faculty Publications

The literature offers inconsistent answers to a question that is foundational to criminal law: Who imposes sentences? Traditional narratives place sentencing responsibility in the hands of the judge. Yet, in a country where 95% of criminal convictions come from guilty pleas (not trials), modern American scholars center prosecutors—who control plea terms—as the deciders of punishment. This Article highlights and seeks to resolve the tension between these conflicting narratives by charting the pathways by which sentences are determined in a system dominated by plea bargains.

After reviewing the empirical literature on sentence variation, examining state and federal plea-bargaining rules and doctrines, …

The Common Law And First Amendment Qualified Right Of Public Access To Foreign Intelligence Law, Laura K. Donohue

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

For millennia, public access to the law has been the hallmark of rule of law. To be legally and morally binding, rules must be promulgated. Citizens’ knowledge of the law, in turn, serves as the lynchpin for democratic governance. In common law countries, it is more than just the statutory provisions and their execution that matters: how courts rule, and the reasoning behind their determination, proves central. Accordingly, in the United States, both common law and the right to petition incorporated in the First Amendment have long enshrined a presumed right of public right of access to Article III opinions …

Laundering Police Lies, Adam Gershowitz, Caroline E. Lewis

Faculty Publications

Police officers—like ordinary people—are regularly dishonest. Officers lie under oath (testilying), on police reports (reportilying), and in a myriad of other situations. Despite decades of evidence about police lies, the U.S. Supreme Court regularly believes police stories that are utterly implausible. Either because the Court is gullible, willfully blind, or complicit, the justices have simply rubber-stamped police lies in numerous high-profile cases. For instance, the Court has accepted police claims that a suspect had bags of cocaine displayed in his lap at the end of a police chase (Whren v. United States), that officers saw marijuana through a …

Experiences Of Appalachian People With Conflicting Christian And Lgbtq+ Identities, Zacharias Smith

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study explores the experiences of six LGBTQ+ individuals living in Appalachia who have felt conflict between their LGBTQ+ and Christian identities. Using data from six one-on-one intensive interviews, the study examines the various kinds of conflict participants experienced, the strategies they used to manage those conflicts, and the role that Christianity played in their lives. The author found that participant conflicts were grounded in struggles to find acceptance from others while living authentically, to reconcile ideological disputes with the church, and to accept themselves as LGBTQ+ and/or Christian. Included among their various management strategies were finding accepting people and …

The Impact Of Aces On College Students And Their Major Choice, Britten Harrison

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Research examining Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) has mostly focused on the long-term effects of these experiences on adult mental and physical health. Less attention has been focused on the impact of ACEs on college student satisfaction, dropout rates, and major choice. The overarching questions for the current study sought to further research by (1) assessing if there is a relationship between the ACE scores of college students and their mental and physical health, (2) if ACEs play a role in student satisfaction or desire to drop out, and (3) determining if there is a connection between students with high ACE …

Examining Factors Among People With Opioid Use Disorder And Comorbid Mental Health Disorders, Tori Denae Livingston

Theses and Dissertations

Opioid use disorder (OUD) affects over two million Americans, and over 42,000 Americans perished of opioid overdoses in 2016 (Volkow et al., 2019). During the initial years of the opioid crisis, overdose deaths were primarily attributed to prescription analgesics, heroin, and synthetic opioids. However, it was illicit prescription opioid painkiller use that ranked highest in terms of fatalities (Volkow et al., 2019). The increasing prevalence of opioid use among individuals with mental health disorders is in stark contrast to the ongoing opioid crisis (Prince, 2019). Additionally, there is evidence that individuals undergoing substance use treatment and concurrently suffering from a …