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Graduate Catalog, Georgia Southern University

Graduate Catalogs

No abstract provided.

African American Youth-Identity, Invisible Powers & Hypnotic Blaxploitation-Themed Film Tropes: From Superfly & Drug Culture To Black Panther & Wakanda, Daniel Mitchell

Screenwriting and Film Studies Theses (MA/MFA)

This thesis project explores the most influential effect of the blaxploitation era. It is during a time shortly after the Civil Rights and Black Power Movements, where black youth are still enduring identity issues. The point of departure for central discussion of this work revolves around the mesmerizing Hollywood blaxploitation film, Superfly. It arrived on the big screen in 1972. The hit movie and its soundtrack seemingly hypnotized countless young African American youth in urban areas to become drug dealers and users. This coincided with Nixon’s War on Drugs collusion with government agencies, and the secret COINTELPRO operation. They …

Toward Modernization: Using Strategic Development To Address Deficits In The Juvenile Justice System, David A. Mcleod, Emily A. Roberts

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Journal

The Juvenile Justice System was established on the premise of rehabilitative action for behaviors that have led youth to the criminal justice system. However, the system has increasingly moved away from this original concept toward a punitive model. The authors present how this movement resulted in the devolution of human rights for the youth involved, a decrease in public safety, and a radical departure from fiscal responsibility related to the theoretical origins of rehabilitation. Studies on topics ranging from costs of correctional centers to trauma experienced by youth in these systems, along with many others, are compared to identify specific …

Plea Bargains: Efficient Or Unjust?, Jeffrey Bellin, Erin Blondel, John Flynn, Elana Fogel, Anjelica Hendricks, Carissa Byrne Hessick

Faculty Publications

The vast majority of state and federal cases end in plea bargains. The practice has eased backlogs and may benefit some defendants — but the trade-offs, some say, are too steep. Is there a better way?

Book Review, Staci J. Pratt

Publications

No abstract provided.

Sex Exceptionalism In Criminal Law, Aya Gruber

Publications

Sex crimes are the worst crimes. People generally believe that sexual assault is graver than nonsexual assault, uninvited sexual compliments are worse than nonsexual insults, and sex work is different from work. Criminal codes typically create a dedicated category for sex offenses, uniting under its umbrella conduct ranging from violent attacks to consensual commercial transactions. This exceptionalist treatment of sex as categorically different rarely elicits discussion, much less debate. Sex exceptionalism, however, is neither natural nor neutral, and its political history should give us pause. This Article is the first to trace, catalog, and analyze sex exceptionalism in criminal law …

Regulating The Risks Of Ai, Margot E. Kaminski

Publications

Companies and governments now use Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) in a wide range of settings. But using AI leads to well-known risks that arguably present challenges for a traditional liability model. It is thus unsurprising that lawmakers in both the United States and the European Union (“EU”) have turned to the tools of risk regulation in governing AI systems.

This Article describes the growing convergence around risk regulation in AI governance. It then addresses the question: what does it mean to use risk regulation to govern AI systems? The primary contribution of this Article is to offer an analytic framework for …

The Politicization Of Criminal Prosecutions, Wadie E. Said

Publications

This Article offers a critical review of how political considerations rooted both in domestic and foreign policy-have distorted the criminal process, thereby offering a complementary analysis of what ails the criminal justice system. This analysis builds on the by-now well-known critiques of the racial and socioeconomic discrimination at the system's heart. The result is a criminal justice system that allows political considerations to dictate results far more than they should. In domestic prosecutions, criminal law is mostly used to target those who seek to question the legitimacy of state policies, state agencies (especially the police), or corporate interests, rendering the …

Privacy Peg, Trade Hole: Why We (Still) Shouldn’T Put Data Privacy In Trade Law, Margot E. Kaminski, Kristina Irion, Svetlana Yakovleva

Publications

No abstract provided.

Redress For Wrongful Convictions: A Response To Professor Medwed, Justin Murray

Publications

No abstract provided.

Preface: New Directions In Prosecutorial Reform, Miriam Aroni Krinsky, Justin Murray, Maybell Romero

Publications

This Preface, which introduces the American Criminal Law Review’s Symposium Issue on Reform-Minded Prosecution, begins by describing the power that prosecutors hold in the criminal legal system, which has historically gone unchecked and unquestioned. As mass incarceration, police violence, and wrongful convictions began to permeate the public consciousness, many communities focused their attention on the critical role of their local elected prosecutor and elected leaders who promised to do the job differently. Reform-minded prosecutors have enjoyed remarkable electoral successes over the past decade such that close to twenty percent of the U.S. population now resides in a jurisdiction with a …

Assessing The Perceived Impact Of A Local, Community-Engaged Mural Project On Preservice Art Educators In Foundational Coursework, Caitlin M. Black

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study merged the methodological frameworks of qualitative case study and narrative inquiry (Sonday et. al, 2020) to assess the perceived impact of a local, community-engaged mural art project (Mending Walls) on undergraduate preservice art educators in foundational coursework. The study was grounded in existing research in three areas: community-engaged murals, community-engaged pedagogy, and community-engaged teacher preparation. These concepts were used to frame the study and provide further rationale for the inquiry. The purpose of this case study was to understand how undergraduate preservice art educators perceived the impact of using a local, community-engaged mural project (Mending Walls) in …

Religious Convictions, Anna Offit

Faculty Publications

The Anglo-American jury emerged at a time when legal and religious conceptions of justice were entwined. Today, however, though the American public remains comparatively religious, the country’s legal system draws a distinction between legal and religious modes of determining culpability and passing judgment. This Article examines the doctrine that governs the place of religious belief and practice in U.S. jury selection proceedings. It argues that the discretion afforded to judges with respect to applying the Batson antidiscrimination doctrine has given these beliefs and practices an ambiguous status. On the one hand, judges aim to protect prospective religious jurors from discrimination. …

The Tesla Meets The Fourth Amendment, Adam M. Gershowitz

Faculty Publications

Can police search a smart car’s computer without a warrant? Although the Supreme Court banned warrantless searches of cell phones incident to arrest in Riley v. California, the Court left the door open for warrantless searches under other exceptions to the warrant requirement. This is the first article to argue that the Fourth Amendment’s automobile exception currently permits the police to warrantlessly dig into a vehicle’s computer system and extract vast amounts of cell phone data. Just as the police can rip open seats or slash tires to search for drugs under the automobile exception, the police can warrantlessly …

Political Default. The Implications Of Weaponizing Global Financial Infrastructure, Lev E. Breydo

Faculty Publications

In response to Russia’s unlawful invasion of Ukraine, the U.S. has led a broad-based global coalition to punish the aggressor with an “unprecedented” sanction regime. Those measures have targeted “the Russian government’s basic tools to manage its macroeconomy,” with a particular emphasis on its sovereign debt. That concerted focus, as this Article empirically demonstrates through analysis of bond and credit default swap data, ultimately resulted in Russia’s first foreign currency debt default in over a century — despite the nation’s ability and seeming willingness to pay.

Notwithstanding aptly-deserved “just deserts” considerations, a forced — or “political” — Russian sovereign debt …

Shop Talk: Decreasing The School-To-Prison Pipeline For African American Male Students, Treveda Michelle Redmond

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation used a plan, do, study, act (PDSA) cycle from improvement science toimplement a tier three intervention for African American male students in a middle school. The students who participated in the intervention were considered at-risk for school failure based upon behavior and grades in the first quarter of the school year. Community members assisted in creating a shop-talk experience for the students where they were able to engage with each other and successful African American male members of the community. Results indicate the shop-talk intervention was successful. Planning for the next PDSA cycle is discussed as well and …

A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis Of Factors Associated With Burnout Among Early Childhood Education And Care Providers, Lee Wells

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Burnout among the early childhood workforce has gained widespread attention in research and policy due to greater awareness of the negative impacts on children, providers, and organizations. Early childhood education and care (ECEC) providers create supportive and nurturing environments that facilitate early learning and development for young children. Accordingly, ECEC providers are the connective tissue between program intentions and outcomes. Despite the critical nature of the field, early childhood providers continue to be underpaid, under-resourced, and undervalued, leading to a high risk of burnout. With turnover rates of ECEC providers higher than ever, the link between burnout and attrition has …

Mmpi: Black And White Differences In The United States, Stevie Schapiro, Denieka Ellis, Charles J. Golden

Archives of Assessment Psychology

Findings across different versions of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) have found that Black individuals score higher than White people, most commonly on the Schizophrenia (Sc/8), Infrequency (F), and Lie (L) scales. Studies have found evidence for test bias (Arbisi et al., 2002; Castro et al., 2008; McNulty et al., 1997; Timbrook & Graham, 1994), whereas others have not found meaningful differences between the two groups (Munley et al., 2001; Mcnulty et al., 1997; Ben-Porath et al., 1995; Johnson & Brems, 1990; Penk et al., 1982; Smith & Graham, 1981; Harrison & Kass, 1967). This literature review sought to …

State Ex Rel. Matloff V. Wallace: Reversing Course On Subject Matter Jurisdiction, Andrew Case

American Indian Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Administration Of Injustice: The Conflict Between Federal And Tribal Criminal Jurisdiction, Grace Slaff

American Indian Law Review

No abstract provided.

Indian Country’S Continued Struggle With The Opioid Crisis: Focused Problem Areas, The Federal Government’S Response, And What More Can Be Done, Ashlynn M. Wilkerson

American Indian Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Quest For Institutionalization Of Indigenous Conflict Resolution Mechanisms In The Ethiopian Criminal Justice System To Spur Social Change In The Country, Daniel Wolde Sugamo

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative case study with the exploratory design was to explore the barriers, as perceived by Ethiopia’s national elders and women ambassadors of peace, that may impede the incorporation of Indigenous conflict resolution mechanisms (ICRMs) within the federal criminal justice system of the country to spur social change and to provide a clear policy orientation for this incorporation to take place. The servant leadership model and an ubuntu-based leadership approach provided the theoretical framework. A sample group of 20 elders who represent a number of ethnic groups at the national level participated in one-on-one interviews, and 15 …

Engaging Predominantly White Churches In Racial Justice Work, Christopher B. Rakestraw

DSW Capstone Projects

Over the past three years, the tragic deaths of many people of color have renewed nationwide discourse on racial injustices and racism. White churches seeking to become anti-racist are confronted with a number of obstacles. This capstone project addresses the topic of Engaging Predominantly White Churches in Racial Justice Work through three interconnected scholarly products. Each product draws from the research of sociology, psychology, social work, education, and religion to investigate a different aspect of the overarching subject.

The Systematic Literature Review examines the impact of white racial identity on the racial attitudes of Predominantly White Church (PWC) congregants. Evidence …

The Perfect Storm: Motherhood, Intimate Partner Violence, And Covid-19, Kelly Blauschild

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is an insidious societal problem with potentially lethal ramifications. At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, widespread conditions and virus risk mitigation procedures like social distancing and stay-at-home orders exacerbated factors that contribute to IPV such as poverty and substance use. Though anyone can experience IPV, mothers carried unparalleled burdens in the early weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic such as increasing childcare responsibilities, growing financial difficulties, and worsening mental health, and many of these factors have been linked to experiencing IPV. The growing body of literature indicates a rise in IPV during COVID-19, but little has …

Average Or Outlier? Introductory Statistics Adjunct Instructors’ Beliefs, Practices, And Experiences, Samantha Estrada, Erica Martinez

Psychology Faculty Publications and Presentations

In recent years, the adjunct faculty phenomenon has grown steadily. This research focused on adjunct instructors teaching introductory statistics courses. The purpose of the study was to give a voice to adjunct instructors by allowing them to describe their experiences teaching statistics. We conducted a qualitative study with 15 adjunct instructors of introductory statistics through semi-structured interviews. The participants came from several fields: psychology, nursing, and business, among others. Thematic analysis was used to find themes of statistical anxiety, use of technology in the classroom, lack of curriculum flexibility, and connection to the host institution. Our findings can inform institutions …

Crescas, Hard Determinism, And The Need For A Torah, Aaron Segal

Faith and Philosophy: Journal of the Society of Christian Philosophers

No abstract provided.

The Problematic Structure Of Indigent Defense Delivery, Eve Brensike Primus

Michigan Law Review

The national conversation about criminal justice reform largely ignores the critical need for structural reforms in the provision of indigent defense. In most parts of the country, decisions about how to structure the provision of indigent defense are made at the local level, resulting in a fragmented patchwork of different indigent defense delivery systems. In most counties, if an indigent criminal defendant gets representation at all, it comes from assigned counsel or flat-fee contract lawyers rather than public defenders. In those assigned-counsel and flat-fee contract systems, the lawyers representing indigent defendants have financial incentives to get rid of assigned criminal …

The Impact Of Post-Dobbs Abortion Bans On Prenatal Tort Claims, Aviva K. Diamond

Michigan Law Review

In June 2022, the Supreme Court revoked Americans’ fundamental right to abortion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. However, the Court said nothing about how its decision would impact tort claims related to reproductive care. Many states have since adopted near-total or early-gestational- age abortion bans, which has not only diminished access to reproductive care, but has also incidentally impaired the ability of plaintiffs to bring long-recognized prenatal tort claims. Prenatal tort claims—wrongful pregnancy, birth, and life—allow victims to recover when a medical professional negligently performs reproductive or prenatal care. This Note identifies the impact that post-Dobbs …

A Real Chance To Effect Real Change, Robert C. Boruchowitz

Faculty Articles

No abstract provided.

An Appeal To Books, Amir H. Ali

Michigan Law Review

This feels a fit, even urgent, moment to celebrate our books and the role they play vis-à-vis the law, the courts, and the truth.

As this issue goes to print, our nation’s highest court faces forceful criticism that some of its most significant decisions have been detached from objective fact. In recent Terms, the Supreme Court’s majority has doubled down on deciding major constitutional questions based on “history and tradition”—that is, the majority’s understanding of what the nation was like centuries ago. Just as quickly as these justices praised the objectivity of their fealty to history, they met widespread rebuke …