Digital Commons Network^™

Match Up: Increasing Disclosure Of Facial Recognition Technology With Criminal Discovery Rules, Paget Barranco

Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy

No abstract provided.

Student Evaluations Of Teaching Are Mostly Awfully Wrong, Noel Otu, Ntiense E. Otu

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Student evaluations of teaching (SETs) have been used, researched, and debated for many decades. It is a common practice in higher education institutions, with the supposed purpose of improving course quality and effectiveness, but with unintended consequences of encouraging and motivating poor teaching and causing grade inflation. There is strong evidence that SET “effectiveness” does not measure teaching effectiveness. This paper reviews empirical research examining common concerns about the usefulness (positive and negative) and accuracy of SETs. The findings reveal that student satisfaction relates to their anticipated/expected grades in their courses; hence, they want to get good grades and their …

The Association Between Criminal Defendants And Health In Kalamazoo County (2012-2016), Ernest Baffour Tweneboa

Masters Theses

Addressing exposure to criminal defendants as a public health issue is crucial to achieving health equity. The presence of criminal defendants has been linked to adverse health behaviors or outcomes that might be associated with anxiety, depression, and negative coping mechanisms. However, crime as a social variable has been understudied. This study therefore seeks to find the association between crime-related stressors and adverse health effects within Kalamazoo County (a mid-sized county with a population of about 250,000) between 2012 and 2016. The methods employed include geocoding of defendant addresses and mapping of defendant rates aggregated at the tract level using …

Ciranda, A Circle Of Encounter: Reflections On A Decolonial Pedagogical Activity On Human Rights Discourses With Latinx Students, Jesica S. Fernandez, James Moura Ferreira Jr.

Ethnic Studies

In the United States, approximately one in five college students are of Latinx¹ descent or identify as Latinx. The representation of Latinx in higher education has been steadily increasing in recent years. However, the trend slightly decreased during the 2021 academic year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Recent reports indicate that some Latinx students are postponing higher education to support and care for their families (Marshall et al. 2021). In the context of providing Latinx students with meaningful learning opportunities that foster a sense of community, alongside a critical consciousness, we facilitated a decolonial pedagogical activity to help …

(Re)Envisioning Factors Contributing To Black Men’S College Success: An Ecological And Critical Reflection Using Photovoice, Collette Brown Rogers

Dissertations

This research uses modified photovoice combined with an ecological and antideficit approach to amplify the voices of Black men who have completed college degrees. The study explores the question: What factors contribute to college completion for Black men? Using a qualitative approach and the Ethos platform to collect images, photo captions, and critical reflection data from a purposive sample of five Black men. Data analysis included inductive and deductive coding, data organization within the ecological systems, and member checking to validate the findings. The study acknowledges the unique challenges Black men face in pursuing higher education. It emphasizes the importance …

Jane Crow Constitutionalism, Evan D. Bernick

Northern Illinois University Law Review

On June 24, 2022 The United States Supreme Court issued its decision on Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization; overturning Roe v. Wade, and destroying fifty years of precedent to protect the constitutional right to abortion in the United States. This overturning sets a dangerous, new precedent that reinforces the State’s control of reproduction, and criminalizes a woman’s right to choose, with very few exceptions. In states like Mississippi, Black women are already experiencing the highest rates of maternal mortality, incarceration, and poverty.

This article posits that Dobbs operates to maintain a racialized and gendered underclass, and names this phenomenon …

Adopting Nationality, Irina D. Manta, Cassandra Burke Robertson

Washington Law Review

Contrary to popular belief, when a child is adopted from abroad by an American citizen and brought to the United States, that child does not always become an American citizen. Many adoptees have not discovered until years later (sometimes far into adulthood) that they are not actually citizens, and some likely still do not know. To address this problem, the Child Citizenship Act of 2000 (CCA) was enacted to automate citizenship for certain international adoptees, but it does not cover everyone. Tens of thousands of adoptees still live under the assumption that they are American citizens when, in fact, they …

On Bringing Alternative Methods To Legal Research Instruction, Tanya M. Johnson

Northern Illinois University Law Review

Legal research is typically taught in a predictable, traditional way, but this doctrinal approach does not provide the skills and techniques needed for research in support of social justice efforts. This essay discusses a legal research course that I teach called Research for Social Justice, which incorporates critical and alternative methodologies that are not usually taught in legal research classes. After describing the content of the course, I focus on explaining what alternative legal research would entail, including a discussion of some alternative methods and strategies that I teach in my course with the goal of introducing students to a …

Seminarians In The Person-Of-The-Therapist (Pott) Training : A Phenomenological Study, Tomichan Moonnanappillil

Dissertations

This dissertation presented a transcendental phenomenological study conducted among eight seminarians in one of the theological schools in Southern Texas, who attended the personof-the- therapist (POTT) training program during the fall semester of 2019. This study aimed to examine seminarian participants' experiences in POTT training, their influence on their selfawareness, and their impact on their emotional maturity and the ability to make responsible life choices. The study was guided by an existential-humanistic philosophical orientation as an overarching theoretical orientation with the subjective epistemological worldview and socialconstructionism paradigm. Findings indicated POTT training positively impacted seminarian participants' human formation, which was foundational …

Disinformation And The Defamation Renaissance: A Misleading Promise Of “Truth”, Lili Levi

University of Richmond Law Review

Today, defamation litigation is experiencing a renaissance, with progressives and conservatives, public officials and celebrities, corporations and high school students all heading to the courthouse to use libel lawsuits as a social and political fix. Many of these suits reflect a powerful new rhetoric—reframing the goal of defamation law as fighting disinformation. Appeals to the need to combat falsity in public discourse have fueled efforts to reverse the Supreme Court’s press–protective constitutional limits on defamation law under the New York Times v. Sullivan framework. The anti–disinformation frame could tip the scales and generate a majority on the Court to dismantle …

The Lived Experience Of Using Opiates Among Young Adults, Catherine Mbewe

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The purpose of this research study is to explore the lived experience of using opiates, as described by young adults aged 18 to 25 years. Over the last 2 decades, opioid use disorders (OUDs) and opiate overdose deaths have increased dramatically in the United States. What used to be a problem primarily contained to minority groups in poor inner-city areas is now increasingly common in all races, genders, ages, and classes. There has also been an alarming increase in opiate use—including fentanyl, both legal and illegal—among young adults. While much of the literature has been focused on the opiate use …

Racializing Algorithms, Jessica M. Eaglin

Articles by Maurer Faculty

There is widespread recognition that algorithms in criminal law’s administration can impose negative racial and social effects. Scholars tend to offer two ways to address this concern through law—tinkering around the tools or abolishing the tools through law and policy. This Article contends that these paradigmatic interventions, though they may center racial disparities, legitimate the way race functions to structure society through the intersection of technology and law. In adopting a theoretical lens centered on racism and the law, it reveals deeply embedded social assumptions about race that propel algorithms as criminal legal reform in response to mass incarceration. It …

Prison Housing Policies For Transgender, Non-Binary, Gender-Non-Conforming, And Intersex People: Restorative Ways To Address The Gender Binary In The United States Prison System, John G. Sims

University of Richmond Law Review

“[I]t was the end of the last quarter of 2019 where I was able to drop the lawsuit against the correctional officer who had sexually harmed me when I knew . . . that the carceral state is not the way for me to find healing . . . . I was not going to seek my transformation and restoration through this system.”

Each year, rhetoric and legislation attacking transgender, non-binary, gender non-conforming and intersex individuals seemingly grows louder. Many political institutions in the United States perpetuate and enable the oppression of these individuals, one of which is the United …

The Role Of United States V. Cooley And Mcgirt V. Oklahoma In Determining Criminal Jurisdiction In Indian Country, Prof. Dustin Jansen

Tribal Law Journal

Understanding jurisdiction is paramount to deciding whether federal, state, or tribal courts can exercise jurisdiction for crimes committed in Indian country. The evolution of federal Indian law has created a legal landscape that is far from consistent. For the Indian law practitioner, it is important to stay abreast of the latest case law available to understand where proper jurisdiction lies. The latest cases of McGirt v. Oklahoma and United States v. Cooley are the newest case law available that demonstrate the Supreme Court’s reasoning and analysis in determining proper jurisdiction.

Easy Victims Of The Law: Protecting The Constitutional Rights Of Juvenile Suspects To Prevent False Confessions, Tayler Klinkbeil

Child and Family Law Journal

The inherently coercive nature of custodial interrogation is the very reason the Supreme Court handed down the famous Miranda v. Arizona decision; the court recognized the increased vulnerability that suspects under questioning are subjected to when placed in a situation designed to elicit incriminating information.¹ Legal scholars and judiciaries alike agree that the likelihood of police questioning resulting in a false admission of guilt or self-incriminating statements is disproportionately more probable if the subject of the questioning is a minor.² The constitutional protections that are afforded to juvenile suspects subjected to custodial interrogations are those set out in …

Pathways To Offending: Domestic Sex Trafficking, Julie Williams

Dissertations

Multidisciplinary professionals across criminal justice, public policy, education, and health and

human services have all attempted to understand the complex phenomenon of sex trafficking to assist victims, correct offenders, and prevent future abuse. However, current research has struggled to agree on terms, definitions of terms, best measures of prevalence, and recommendations to address sex trafficking in the United States. This review of current literature aims to offer a synthesized framework to conceptualize domestic sex trafficking perpetrator behaviors (what they do), their uses of force, fraud, and coercion (how they do it), and their motivations and justifications/rationalizations for those behaviors (why …

Dna Shedding Propensity And Individual Characteristics, Genesis Echavarria

Student Theses

This study attempted to correlate individual biological characteristics to the amount of DNA recovered from a person’s hands (representative of shedding propensity). We used adhesive D-Squame tape to collect DNA from the fingers of more than 100 volunteers with and without controlled activity after handwashing. Two no-activity samples were taken after 30 min from the non-dominant hand and two samples from the dominant hand were collected after 60 min of controlled activity. Involuntary touches during the 60-min activity period were counted. All samples were extracted for DNA, quantitated, and genotyped to detect mixtures. Skin measurements for hydration, sebum, and melanin …

Analysis Of Polymer-Coated Bullets Using Spectroscopic Methods, Liana R. Albano

Student Theses

Polymer-coated bullets have gained popularity because they can reduce the user’s exposure to heavy metals in the ammunition. The synthetic jacket, which surrounds the lead core, is advantageous because it prevents metal-on-metal contact between the bullet and the bore. A challenge for firearms identification is that polymer-coated bullets do not retain unique markings that can be used to identify the gun, the way standard metal-coated bullets do. However, metal-coated bullets will result in a similar challenge if the bullet is too deformed once it is recovered. Another issue is that the composition of the polymer coating was never disclosed by …

Detection Of Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol And Cannabidiol In Utero Exposure By Umbilical Cord Analysis, Emily Pagano

Student Theses

With the rising consumption of cannabis and cannabinoid-containing products among different demographics, including pregnant women, it is increasingly necessary to develop analytical tools to be able to determine prenatal cannabis exposure. The aim of this study was to develop and validate a sensitive and specific method, using umbilical cord, to determine in utero exposure to delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD). After homogenization and hydrolysis, samples were extracted using liquid-liquid extraction and analyzed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MSMS). MS analysis was performed in electrospray ionization negative mode and two multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) transitions were monitored per analyte. The linearity …

Identification Of Different Hair Dyes In Dyed Hair Using Attenuated Total Reflectance (Atr Ft-Ir), Surface Enhancing Raman Spectroscopy (Sers) Techniques, Nicholas Lovera

Student Theses

This investigation compares the ability of Attenuated Total Reflection Fourier Transfer Infrared Spectroscopy (ATR FT-IR) and Surface Enhance Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) to identify and differentiate different hair dye brands on dyed hair samples. Hair is a common type of trace evidence found at crime scenes and can provide numerous information through forensic hair analysis. Cosmetic hair treatment such as dying the hair different colors has grown and became popular, thus it can be a very common type of trace evidence. This study can provide a forensic scientist an additional method for analyzing dyed hair samples. The goal was to compare …

Impact Of Blood Preservatives And Anticoagulants On Cannabinoid Quantitative Analysis, Bridget O'Leary

Student Theses

The expanded use of recreational and medicinal cannabis products, as well as the appearance of new cannabinoid derivatives, increases the importance of implementing pre-analytical (sample collection) protocols and the development of recommendations for cannabinoid testing in biological samples. The accurate quantification of cannabinoids in biological samples is critical for providing a correct result interpretation, especially if specific thresholds have been legally set, as in drugs and driving cases in certain states. Previous studies have mainly focused on the impact of time and temperature on the stability of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (delta-9-THC) and metabolites in blood samples; however, the influence of the type …

Out Of The Shadows: What Social Science Tells Us About The Shadow Docket, Nicholas D. Conway, Yana Gagloeva

Nevada Law Journal

No abstract provided.

The Capital Shadow Docket And The Death Of Judicial Restraint, Jenny-Brooke Condon

Nevada Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Issues In Implementing Special Domestic Violence Criminal Jurisdiction In Alaska's Tribal Courts, Danika Watson

Alaska Law Review

Until 2022, all but one of the 229 Alaska tribes were barred from special domestic violence criminal jurisdiction (SDVCJ): Congress's jurisdictional tool for tribal courts to address domestic violence and hold perpetrators of violence against Alaska Native women criminally accountable. The reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) in 2022 brought SDVCJ to Alaska's rural Native communities. This landmark achievement was made possible by decades of advocacy from Alaska's tribal, state, and federal leadership. In the wake of VAWA 2022, Alaska tribes and tribal justice systems face several significant legal, political, and cultural challenges. This Article outlines the legal …

Perceptions Of Major Barriers On The Leed Scorecard Preventing Projects From Reaching The Platinum Level, Gavin R. Beadle

Construction Management

This paper is an overview of the main barriers faced by general contractors when working with the LEED Scorecard on their projects. Oftentimes projects either do not chase LEED certification or are held up at the gold or silver certification levels, never making it to the highest-level being platinum. The purpose of this paper is to identify the main factors general contractors are facing causing their projects to be held up at a lower certification level or not certified at all. In addition to examining the main factors, some specific credits on the scorecard will also be examined that are …

The Slow Race: Achieving Equity Through Legislative And Agency Minority Impact Statements, Jancy Nielson

Minnesota Journal of Law & Inequality

No abstract provided.

The Court’S One-Way Street: L.S. Ex Rel. Hernandez V. Peterson’S Missed Opportunity To Expand Children’S Constitutional Rights, Kona Keast-O’Donovan

Minnesota Journal of Law & Inequality

No abstract provided.

Keep Your Hands Off My Fingerprints: How State Constitutionalism Can Stop On-Site Fingerprinting Dragnets, Roger Antonio Tejada

Minnesota Journal of Law & Inequality

No abstract provided.

Debunking The Skepticism Of International Law: An Application Of The Three Dominant Paradigms Of Sociology To Public International Law, Christian Jay Myers

Penn State Law Review (2003 - Present)

No abstract provided.

Making Matters Worse: An Analysis Of Paragraph 22(2)(I) Of The Child And Family Services Act, Sophie Fiddes

Dalhousie Journal of Legal Studies

The 2017 amendments to Nova Scotia’s Child and Family Services Act were made with the purported purpose of better protection of children. This paper assesses the amendments to paragraph 22(2)(i) and the addition of subsection 24(2) to the Act that changed the law in relation to children who are exposed to intimate partner violence. This paper argues that the amendments have had a negative effect on children and their families, resulting in an increase of children in temporary care since 2017. The paper concludes that intimate partner violence would be better addressed by placing domestic violence considerations in the best …