Law Commons^™

Some Legal And Practical Challenges In The Investigation Of Cybercrime, Ritz Carr

Cybersecurity Undergraduate Research Showcase

According to the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), in 2021, the United States lost around $6.9 billion to cybercrime. In 2022, that number grew to over $10.2 billion (IC3, 2022). In one of many efforts to combat cybercrimes, at least 40 states “introduced or considered more than 250 bills or resolutions that deal significantly with cybersecurity” with 24 states officially enacting a total of 41 bills (National Conference on State Legislatures, 2022).

The world of cybercrime evolves each day. Nevertheless, challenges arise when we investigate and prosecute cybercrime, which will be examined in the following collection of essays that highlight …

Police Funding In The Mountain West, 2020-2022, Lana Kojoian, Miguel Soriano Ralston, Annie Vong, Caitlin J. Saladino, William E. Brown Jr.

Criminal Justice

This fact sheet examines data from Third Way’s report “The Red City Defund Police Problem” which provides information on police funding and other metrics on police forces. The original report offers a review of police funding and operating budgets for the 25 largest Democrat-run cities and 25 largest Republican-run cities in the U.S. This fact sheet includes police force data for 10 Mountain West cities (Aurora, CO; Chandler, AZ; Colorado Springs, CO; Denver, CO; Glendale, AZ; Gilbert, AZ; Las Vegas, NV; Mesa, AZ; North Las Vegas, NV; and Phoenix, AZ).

Congressional Oversight Of U.S. Government Programs, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Provides detailed overview of how the U.S. Congress conducts oversight of federal agency programs. Contents include a letter from a member of Congress to an agency head concerning an environmental development in Indiana, information on the foundations of congressional oversight, details on how Congress may require agency reports on various subjects in public laws, an example of a congressionally mandated report by the Department of Defense, documentation of congressional funding of individual federal agencies, examples of congressional committee hearings, congressional committee issuance of oversight and investigative reports which may include dissenting opinions, Congressional Budget Office cost estimates on congressional committee …

Against Capital Punishment, Zac Bright, Ben Austin (Editor)

Brigham Young University Prelaw Review

Capital punishment has a strong legal precedence in the United States. Capital punishment has been a penal option for those who commit conspicuously wrong acts. For such acts, the punishment seems to be proportional to the crime. In addition to the punishment’s adherence to proportionality, capital punishment mitigates problematic outcomes.

This paper advocates, however, that capital punishment should be classified as “cruel and unusual punishment.” Such violation of the eighth amendment delegitimizes capital punishment. Consequently, The Federal Death Penalty Act of 1994 should no longer be considered a valid law because of its constitutional violation.

Unique Civic Education Program Aims To Teach Young People About Courts And Civility, Robin L. Rosenberg, Beth Bloom

Judicature International

No abstract provided.

Nebraska Transcript (University Of Nebraska College Of Law), Spring 2023

Nebraska Transcript

Serving with Integrity

Bradford known for his creative approach to teaching, legal scholarship by Adam Thimmesch

Depending on Denicola for care and excellence by Matthew Schaefer

Potuto brought New Jersey toughness to Nebraska Law by Harvey Perlman

Schopp: from "semi-psychologist" to prolific law, psychology scholar by John Lenich

Solving Problems

Schmid Research Fellows reflect on program’s 10th anniversary

Weitzel explores corporate behavior, leverages global experience

Agosto makes a home at Nebraska Law

Jefferis draws on extensive knowledge as former civil rights litigator and clinic professor

Nebraska Law reunion weekend honoring the classes of 1963, 1973, 1983, 1993, 2003, and 2013

An Analysis Of Factors In The Policymaking Process That Enabled Prison Sentence Decreases Through The 2022 Organic Law Of Comprehensive Guarantee Of Sexual Freedom/La Ley Del Solo Sí Es Sí In Spain, Cambron Wade

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

To follow through on their ratification of the Istanbul Convention and public outcry after La Manada case, the Spanish Government passed the Organic Law of Comprehensive Guarantee of Sexual Freedom, also known as the law of only yes is yes (or la ley del solo sí es sí) - which came into effect on October 7, 2022. This law changed the Criminal Code by removing the distinction between sexual assault and sexual abuse, which previously caused victims to endure the difficult process of proving that there was violence and intimidation. By moving all sexual acts without consent under the category …

Criminogenic Risks Of Interrogation, Margareth Etienne, Richard Mcadams

Indiana Law Journal

In the United States, moral minimization is a pervasive police interrogation tactic in which the detective minimizes the moral seriousness and harm of the offense, suggesting that anyone would have done the same thing under the circumstances, and casting blame away from the offender and onto the victim or society. The goal of these minimizations is to reinforce the guilty suspect’s own rationalizations or “neutralizations” of the crime. The official theory—posited in the police training manuals that recommend the tactic—is that minimizations encourage confessions by lowering the guilt or shame of associated with confessing to the crime. Yet the same …

A New Atticus Is Afoot: The Portrayal Of Lawyers In Popular Culture, Anna Thrush

Senior Theses

This project analyzes the stereotypical image of lawyers in popular culture, focusing on either overly demonic or unrealistically heroic. Both stereotypes that are common portrayals of attorneys in popular culture are unrealistic and deny society a true comprehension of the profession. Popular culture has molded the image of lawyers to the characteristics that sell, rather than focusing on a realistic portrayal. Therefore, popular culture creates a falsely dramatized image of attorneys to generate revenue, putting the reputation and future of the profession as risk. These stereotypes are exemplified in this project through a close literary analysis of lawyer characters from …

U.S. Government Information Resources For Accountability On U.S. Assistance To Ukraine, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Provides detailed coverage of U.S. Government information resources documenting accountability for U.S. civilian and military assistance to Ukraine. Includes U.S. laws, agencies involved in U.S. arms export policy, Defense Department resources and data, Defense Dept. Inspector General reports, Government Accountability Office reports, congressional committee hearings, a letter from a congressional committee to the Secretaries of Defense and State and U.S. Agency for International Development administrator, congressional debate, and congressional recorded votes.

The Pitfall Of Child Marriage Dispensation: A Study Of Court Judgments In East Java (Dispensasi Perkawinan Anak Yang Menjerumuskan: Studi Putusan Hakim Di Jawa Timur), Iklilah Muzayyanah Dini Fajriyah, Siti Marhamah, Septiani Anggriani

The Indonesian Journal of Socio-Legal Studies

This article conducted study on court decisions on dispensation for marriage that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic (June 2020 to February 2021) from the children’s rights perspective. The library research method was chosen to dissect 19 marriage dispensation decisions (12 decisions from religious courts and seven decisions from district courts) in Kraksaan and Sumenep districts, East Java. Child married couples were randomly selected with one or both parties under the age of 18. Three important findings in this study are: 1) the perspective of the best interests of the child has not been the main consideration for judges; 2) judges …

Doing Death Work: A Mixed Method Examination Of Imprinted Events And Behavioral Responses Of Medical Examiner's Office Employees, Elizabeth L. Gilmore, Kevin Buckler

Qualitative Criminology (QC)

"This study provides a qualitative and quantitative data analysis from interviews of current and former employees of medical examiner offices. These employees’ current and former positions required that they arrive at scenes of natural, accidental, suicidal, undetermined, and homicidal deaths, document and retrieve the decedent(s), and assist in eviscerating the remains to aid forensic pathologists during autopsy procedures. The authors interviewed 14 current or past employees of different medical examiner offices to understand what they liked and disliked about this curious profession and aimed to understand professional struggles. Additionally, study participants answered questions about imprinted events, how they and colleagues …

Editorial, Kevin Buckler

Qualitative Criminology (QC)

This issue contains five articles that utilize various qualitative and mixed methods.

Child Sex Abusers In Protestant Christian Churches: An Offender Typology, Andrew S. Denney

Qualitative Criminology (QC)

Sexual abuse within religious settings has been the focus of prior research for over fifty years. However, most research has focused on the Roman Catholic Church, not Protestant Christian churches. Yet, Protestant Christian Churches are the most prominent religious institutions, both in the physical number of churches and total participants, across the United States. By examining 326 alleged instances of sexual abuse at or through activities provided by U.S. Protestant Christian churches, this study sought to create the first typology of sexual abusers within this setting. This study found that three types of offenders exist within these settings, (1) on-site …

Infidelity, Liability, And Violence, Jason Manning

Qualitative Criminology (QC)

Much criminal violence arises from conflict and is moralistic. The perpetrator is punishing someone for a perceived wrong. Liability refers to accountability for a wrong: Who exactly has to suffer punishment? Here I argue that violence arising from infidelity and sexual jealousy is a strategic research site for studying liability. When these matters trigger lethal violence, there is variation in who the perpetrator targets. Using detailed descriptions of US homicides, as well as the cross-cultural ethnographic literature, I describe and classify three patterns of liability: mate, rival, and dual. I conclude by suggesting sociological factors relevant to explaining these patterns …

“Title Ix Isn’T For You, It’S For The University”: Sexual Violence Survivors’ Experiences Of Institutional Betrayal In Title Ix Investigations, Katherine Lorenz, Rebecca Hayes, Cathrine Jacobsen

Qualitative Criminology (QC)

Institutional betrayal occurs when an institution fails to appropriately respond to harm experienced by a member of the institution, such as by failing to act or by mishandling cases. The concept has been applied to higher education institution’s (HEI’s) response to students who experience sexual violence, particularly Title IX investigations, showing that institutional betrayal is common among student survivors. Yet, to our knowledge, institutional betrayal in HEI Title IX investigations has not been qualitatively explored. We conducted interviews of graduate and undergraduate student sexual violence survivors (n=21) who participated in a Title IX investigation at a U.S. HEI to understand …

Treating Criminal Justice-Involved Serious Mental Illness (Smi) Clients In The Community, Brittany Hood

Qualitative Criminology (QC)

With criminal justice-involved individuals with serious mental illness (SMI) at an all-time high in the criminal justice system, research on community mental health centers (CMHCs) demonstrates a lack of treatment for justice-involved persons. Scholars have argued that providing appropriate treatment to criminal justice-involved individuals with SMI could alleviate symptoms. Therefore improving the effectiveness of mental health treatment to reduce recidivism in this population is paramount. The current study used a qualitative approach to examine how community service providers perceived organizational-level variables and legal constraints to influence treatment decisions for justice-involved individuals with SMI. Findings suggest three critical implications for policy …

With Liberty And Justice For The Wealthy: The Criminalization Of The American Poor, Ashlyn Dickmeyer

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

The last phrase of the Pledge of Allegiance states “with liberty and justice for all”. However, not everyone has access to this liberty and justice. Liberty and justice can be bought in this country for a price, and those who can’t afford to pay it are often left in the hands of those who can. One of the most prominent ways to see this is by analyzing the criminal justice system. Despite clauses in the Fourteenth Amendment and court cases like Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) establishing and upholding that the poor are entitled to equal treatment within the criminal justice …

Sticky Situations: Understanding The Law And Life, Krystal Banks

National Youth Advocacy & Resilience Conference

Law and life go hand in hand. Understanding the law and how it connects to life can be an effective tool in teaching youth and adults the value of making good decisions when it comes to life and the law. Sticky Situations places real-world situations in the context of learning how to apply the law and effectively respond to life's sticky situations.

The Impact Of The Canva Program On The Learning Of The Ninth Grade Students In Jordanian Schools Of Html, Maha Abu Maizer

Al-Balqa Journal for Research and Studies البلقاء للبحوث والدراسات

This is a semi-experimental study that aims at measuring the impact of CANVA on the learning of ninth graders in a Jordanian school of HTML. 50 female ninth graders were randomly selected from 72 students in Aisha Bint Abi Baker school, and were distributed to two groups; control, which was taught traditionally, and experimental, which was taught with CANVA to learn HTML as a part of their computer curriculum. The researcher used a set of 20 multiple choice questions to test their knowledge achievement and skills. After checking the validity and reliability of the test. The results showed that there …

Commercialization Of Separated Human Body Parts - Unpacking Instrumentalization Approach, Arseny Shevelev, Georgy Shevelev

Pace International Law Review

The principle of non-commercialization, which prohibits trade in separated human body parts, has long been firmly embedded in many European legal orders and has become an integral part of them. However, many new uses for human biomaterials have now been discovered, and the need for them has reached a historical climax. This paper aims to explain the main tenets of non-commercialization theory, including such principles as human dignity and need to protect human’s health, and to show that these categories have so far been understood in a very one-sided and visceral way, and largely in contradiction to their true spirit. …

Court Review: Journal Of The American Judges Association, Vol. 59, No. 4, Eve M. Brank, David Dreyer, David Prince

Court Review: Journal of the American Judges Association

Articles

The Role of the Judge in Establishing a VTC, Mishkat Al Moumin, Judge Gayle Williams-Byers, and Amber Menchio

Prospective Jurors’ Attitudes Toward Voir Dire, Wendy P. Heath and Bruce D. Grannemann

Constitutional Losses and (Some) Statutory Wins for Criminal Defendants: Select Criminal Law and Procedure Cases from the Supreme Court’s 2022-23 Term, Eve Brensike Primus and Mark Rucci

Departments

Editor’s Note, David Prince

President’s Column: The American Judges Association--Making Better Judges Since 1959, and Continuing to Lead the Way! Catherine Carlson

Thoughts from Canada: Publication Bans--The Supreme Court of Canada Considers Their Impact Upon the Conflict between the Open …

Bail And Mental Illness, Samuel Wiseman

Faculty Scholarship

In many parts of the United States, the bail system is strikingly unfair, imposing burdensome, and often unmeetable, financial conditions on pretrial liberty even for low-risk defendants. Reforms that reduce or eliminate cash bail and lower pretrial detention rates have made progress in recent years, but now face growing opposition even in generally progressive jurisdictions such as San Francisco and New York City. One source of this opposition is rising concern about crime—particularly crime associated with the unhoused, who disproportionately suffer from mental illness, including substance abuse disorder. This is not a coincidence, as one effect of a cash-bail system, …

Assessing Visions Of Democracy In Regulatory Policymaking, Shoba Sivaprasad Wadhia, Christopher J. Walker

Articles

Motivated in part by Congress’s failure to legislate, presidents in recent years seem to have turned even more to the regulatory process to make major policy. It is perhaps no coincidence that the feld of administrative law has similarly seen a resurgence of scholarship extolling the virtues of democratic accountability in the modern administrative state. Some scholars have even argued that bureaucracy is as much as if not more democratically legitimate than Congress, either in the aggregative or deliberative sense, or both.

How The “Black Criminal” Stereotype Shapes Black People’S Psychological Experience Of Policing: Evidence Of Stereotype Threat And Remaining Questions, Cynthia J. Najdowski

Psychology Faculty Scholarship

Cultural stereotypes that link Black race to crime in the U.S. originated in and are perpetuated by policies that result in the disproportionate criminalization and punishment of Black people. The scientific record is replete with evidence that these stereotypes impact perceivers’ perceptions, information processing, and decision-making in ways that produce more negative criminal legal outcomes for Black people than White people. However, relatively scant attention has been paid to understanding how situations that present a risk of being evaluated through the lens of crime-related stereotypes also directly affect Black people. In this article, I consider one situation in particular: encounters …

Error Aversions And Due Process, Brandon L. Garrett, Gregory Mitchell

Faculty Scholarship

William Blackstone famously expressed the view that convicting the innocent constitutes a much more serious error than acquitting the guilty. This view is the cornerstone of due process protections for those accused of crimes, giving rise to the presumption of innocence and the high burden of proof required for criminal convictions. While most legal elites share Blackstone’s view, the citizen-jurors tasked with making due process protections a reality do not share the law’s preference for false acquittals over false convictions.

Across multiple national surveys, sampling more than 10,000 people, we find that a majority of Americans views false acquittals and …

Judging Firearms Evidence And The Rule 702 Amendments, Brandon Garrett, Nicholas Scurich, Eric Tucker, Hannah Bloom

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

The Pledging World Order, Melissa (M.J.) Durkee

Scholarship@WashULaw

There is an emerging world order characterized by unilateral pledges within a legal or “legal-ish” architecture of commitments. The pledging world order has materialized in the international legal response to climate change and in other diverse sites. It crosses and blurs the public-private divide. It erodes distinctions between multilateralism and localism, law and not-law, and progress and stasis. It is both a symptom of and a contributor to the dismantling of the Westphalian and postwar orders. Its report card is mixed: While pledging can be highly ineffective as a legal technology, the pledging world order may respond to some legitimacy …

“Progressive” Prosecutors And “Proper” Punishments, Benjamin Levin

Scholarship@WashULaw

After decades of relative inattention to prosecutorial elections, academics and activists recently have focused on “progressive prosecutors” as a promising avenue for criminal justice reform. That said, the growing literature on progressive prosecutors reflects little clarity about what makes a prosecutor “progressive.” Recent campaigns suggest disparate visions of how to operationalize “progressive prosecution.” In this chapter, I describe four ideal types of progressive prosecutor: (1) the progressive who prosecutes, (2) the proceduralist prosecutor, (3) the prosecutorial progressive, and (4) the anti-carceral prosecutor. Looking to sentencing policy as a case study, I examine how these different ideal types illustrate different visions …

Prosecuting The Crisis, Benjamin Levin

Scholarship@WashULaw

Over the past decade, activists and academics have celebrated the rise of the so-called “progressive prosecutor” movement. District attorney candidates—often former public defenders or civil rights lawyers—have promised to use prosecutorial discretion to address the injustices of the criminal system. A proliferation of such campaigns, and the electoral successes of some of these candidates have raised questions about progressive prosecution: what does it actually mean to be a progressive prosecutor? Does progressive prosecution work? Do progressive candidates follow through on campaign promises? And, how enthusiastic should defense attorneys, reformers, and critics of the carceral state be about progressive prosecution? The …