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Prosecutorial Dismissals As Teachable Moments (And Databases) For The Police, Adam M. Gershowitz
Prosecutorial Dismissals As Teachable Moments (And Databases) For The Police, Adam M. Gershowitz
Faculty Publications
The criminal justice process typically begins when the police make a warrantless arrest. Although police usually do a good job of bringing in the “right” cases, they do make mistakes. Officers sometimes arrest suspects even though there is no evidence to prove an essential element of the crime. Police also conduct unlawful searches and interrogations. And officers make arrests in marginal cases—schoolyard fights are a good example—in which prosecutors do not think a criminal conviction is appropriate. Accordingly, prosecutors regularly dismiss cases after police have made warrantless arrests and suspects have sat in jail for days, or even weeks. In …
What Motivates Legislators To Act: Problem Definition & The Opioid Epidemic, A Case Study, Taleed El-Sabawi
What Motivates Legislators To Act: Problem Definition & The Opioid Epidemic, A Case Study, Taleed El-Sabawi
Faculty Publications
This article explores why federal legislators may have been motivated to treat the current opioid crisis as a health issue, when past drug problems have been treated as a criminal justice issue. Using theories from political science, policy studies and sociology, this article summarizes leading theories of legislative behavior and applies them to the current opioid crisis, in an effort to better understand what motivates legislators to enact legislation to solve pressing social problems in a way that reframes the problem. Part II of this article provides an overview of the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act, its significance, and how …
Defining The Opioid Epidemic: Congress, Pressure Groups, And Problem Definition, Taleed El-Sabawi
Defining The Opioid Epidemic: Congress, Pressure Groups, And Problem Definition, Taleed El-Sabawi
Faculty Publications
The passage of the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016 evidences a shift in federal legislative support from criminal justice oriented legislative alternatives to more health oriented legislative alternatives to addressing the ongoing Opioid Epidemic. Such a shift was preceded by a redefinition of problem drug use in the policy discourse from an issue of deviancy to a health issue. However, the redefinition of problem drug use as a health issue, has been dominated by policy narratives and causal stories that do not define problem drug use in a manner that aligns with a multi-modal public health oriented legislative …