Law Enforcement and Corrections Commons^™

"Give Us Free": Addressing Racial Disparities In Bail Determinations, Cynthia E. Jones

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

This article considers racial disparities that occur nationally in the bail determination process, due in large part to the lack of uniformity, resources, and information provided to officials in bail proceedings. It argues that the almost unbridled decision making power afforded to bail officials is often influenced by improper considerations such as the defendant's financial resources or the race of the defendant. As a result of these failures, the bail determination process has resulted not only in racial inequalities in bail and pretrial detention decisions, but also in the over-incarceration of pretrial defendants and the overcrowding of jails nationwide. The …

Addressing Sexual Violence Against Youth In Custody: Youth Workers’ Handbook On Identifying And Addressing Sexual Violence In Juvenile Justice Settings, Brenda V. Smith, Jaime M. Yarussi

Research Reports & White Papers

From 1999 to 2012, The Project on Addressing Prison Rape (the Project) at American University’s Washington College of Law had a cooperative agreement with the National Institute of Corrections (NIC) to provide training to high-level correctional decisionmakers on key issues in addressing and investigating staff sexual misconduct. In 2003, with the enactment of the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA), the Project’s focus shifted to addressing prison rape—both staff sexual misconduct and offender-on-offender sexual abuse. In 2006, Smith Consulting began a collaborative effort with the Project and NIC to focus efforts on addressing sexual abuse of youth in custody. This handbook …

Fifty State Survey Of Criminal Laws Prohibiting Sexual Abuse Of Individuals In Custody, Brenda V. Smith

The Project on Addressing Prison Rape - Surveys

This document provides information regarding enacting state, statute number, statute title, coverage, definition and notes, penalties, and defenses (if given) for criminal laws prohibiting sexual abuse of inmates by staff.

Crashing The Misdemeanor System, Jenny M. Roberts

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

With “minor crimes” making up more than 75% of state criminal caseloads, the United States faces a misdemeanor crisis. Although mass incarceration continues to plague the nation, the current criminal justice system is faltering under the weight of misdemeanor processing.

Operating under the “broken windows theory,” which claims that public order law enforcement prevents more serious crime, the police send many petty offenses to criminal court. This is so even though the original authors of the theory noted that “[o]rdinarily, no judge or jury ever sees the persons caught up in a dispute over the appropriate level of neighborhood order” …

After Dothard: Female Correctional Workers And The Challenge To Employment Law, Brenda V. Smith, Melissa C. Loomis

Project on Addressing Prison Rape - Articles

This article examines a profession where women have made great strides - corrections. Using an equality framework, corrections and other non-traditional professions were the first target of the feminist movement in the 1970s. By and large, feminists were successful in creating greater porosity for women in law enforcement, emergency services, corrections, and the military. While women have entered these traditionally masculine spaces, they still suffer from an achievement gap. They are still underrepresented in leadership positions and marginalized in these settings; are still the targets of discrimination based on race, gender, and perceived sexual orientation; and are less likely than …

In Search Of Racial Justice: The Role Of The Prosecutor, Angela J. Davis

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

This article examines the role of prosecutors in establishing and maintaining racial disparities in the criminal justice system, and examines efforts of the Prosecution and Racial Justice Program of the Ve,:-a Institute of Justice to enact reform within prosecutors' offices. After providing an overview of the debate on causes of such racial disparities generally, the article examines how seemingly race neutral charging and plea-bargaining decisions by prosecutors can actually cause and perpetuate racial disparities. As a model for reforming such practices, the article evaluates and critiques the Prosecution and Racial Justice Program and makes recommendations for how this program can …

Prea 101 For Adult Prisons, Brenda V. Smith

Presentations

No abstract provided.

Prea 101 For Juvenile Justice Agencies, Brenda V. Smith

Presentations

No abstract provided.

Prea 101 For Community Corrections Agencies, Brenda V. Smith

Presentations

No abstract provided.

Predictive Policing And Reasonable Suspicion, Andrew Ferguson

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

Predictive policing is a new law enforcement strategy to reduce crime by predicting criminal activity before it happens. Using sophisticated computer algorithms to forecast future events from past crime patterns, predictive policing has become the centerpiece of a new smart-policing strategy in several major cities. The initial results have been strikingly successful in reducing crime.This article addresses the Fourth Amendment consequences of this police innovation, analyzing the effect of predictive policing on the concept of reasonable suspicion. This article examines predictive policing in the context of the larger constitutional framework of “prediction” and the Fourth Amendment. Many aspects of current …

Ending Silence: Youth Speaking Up About Sexual Abuse In Custody - Mary’S Friend, Brenda V. Smith, Stephanie A. Kinard, Jaime M. Yarussi, Michael J. Auger

Research Reports & White Papers

focusing on female youth age 10-13

A Quick Guide For Lgbti Policy Development For Youth Confinement Facilities, Brenda V. Smith

Research Reports & White Papers

This Quick Guide will help agencies and facilities develop a comprehensive response to working with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) youth. It is not meant to provide an answer to every question or an in-depth discussion of all issues that agencies face or that the LGBTI population faces while in custody. It provides an overview of the important issues that agencies should consider when working to house and treat LGBTI youth in a way that is safe and consistent with an agency’s mission, values, and security guidelines … This Quick Guide is organized chronologically according to the decisions …

A Quick Guide For Lgbti Policy Development For Adult Prisons And Jails, Brenda V. Smith

Research Reports & White Papers

This Quick Guide will help agencies and facilities develop a comprehensive response to working with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) inmates. It is not meant to provide an answer to every question or an in-depth discussion of all issues that agencies face or that the LGBTI population faces while in custody. It provides an overview of the important issues that agencies should consider when working to house and treat LGBTI inmates in a way that is safe and consistent with an agency’s mission, values, and security guidelines … This Quick Guide is organized chronologically according to the decisions …

Ending Silence: Youth Speaking Up About Sexual Abuse In Custody - Sheila’S Dilemma, Brenda V. Smith, Stephanie A. Kinard, Jaime M. Yarussi, Michael J. Auger

Research Reports & White Papers

focusing on female youth age 14-18

Ending Silence: Youth Speaking Up About Sexual Abuse In Custody - Carol’S Question, Brenda V. Smith, Stephanie A. Kinard, Jaime M. Yarussi, Michael J. Auger

Research Reports & White Papers

focusing on sexual minority youth

Confronting Race In The Criminal Justice System: The Aba's Racial Justice Improvement Project, Cynthia E. Jones

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.

Uncomfortable Places, Close Spaces: Theorizing Female Correctional Officers’ Sexual Interactions With Men And Boys In Custody, Brenda V. Smith

Project on Addressing Prison Rape - Articles

This Article examines female-perpetrated sexual abuse in custodial settings and its place at the intersection of race, class, and gender in order to disentangle complex and overlapping narratives of abuse, sex, desire, and transgression. Ultimately, this Article confronts our discomfort with and reluctance to acknowledge the fact that women sexually abuse men and boys in custody, and it offers possible explanations for these behaviors.

Juveniles Convicted As Adults: An Annotated Bibliography Of Current Research., Brenda V. Smith, Jaime Yarussi

Project on Addressing Prison Rape - Articles

This publication compiles case law, new stories, reports and helpful sites on the issue of juveniles convicted as adults (as of 2012).

Ending Silence: Youth Speaking Up About Sexual Abuse In Custody - Charlie’S Report, Brenda V. Smith, Stephanie A. Kinard, Jaime M. Yarussi, Michael J. Auger

Research Reports & White Papers

focusing on male youth age 10-13

Ending Silence: Youth Speaking Up About Sexual Abuse In Custody - Billy Speaks Out, Brenda V. Smith, Stephanie A. Kinard, Jaime M. Yarussi, Michael J. Auger

Research Reports & White Papers

focusing on male youth age 14-18

Staring Down The Sights At Mcdonald V. City Of Chicago: Why The Second Amendment Deserves The Kevlar Protection Of Strict Scrutiny, James J. Williamson Ii

Legislation and Policy Brief

In June of 2008, the Supreme Court handed down a landmark decision in District of Columbia v. Heller, declaring that a District of Columbia law prohibiting the possession of handguns in a private home for personal protection violated the Second Amendment of the Constitution.  Justice Scalia, writing for a 5-4 majority, recognized that the protections provided by the Second Amendment apply to individuals—not just “militias”—and emphatically declared that “the enshrinement of constitutional rights necessarily takes certain policy choices off the table.  These include the absolute prohibition of handguns held and used for self-defense in the home.”  After four years of …

"No New Babies?" Gender Inequality And Reproductive Control In The Criminal Justice And Prisons System, Rachel Roth

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

Acta's Constitutional Problems: The Treaty Is Not A Treaty, Sean Flynn

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

On the eve of the United States’ entry into the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (“ACTA”), there is considerable confusion as to just what legal effect the agreement will have. In written answers to Senator Ron Wyden, the United States Trade Representative (“USTR”) went to lengths to describe ACTA as non-binding, asserting that “ACTA does not constrain Congress’ authority to change U.S. law,” and that it would operate only as an “Executive Agreement” that “can be implemented without new legislation.” But European negotiators have described the agreement to their legislature in very different terms, asserting that ACTA is “a binding international agreement …

Crime Mapping And The Fourth Amendment: Redrawing 'High Crime Areas', Andrew Ferguson

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

This article addresses how “crime mapping” technology has the potential to reshape Fourth Amendment protections in designated “high crime areas.” In the past few years, the ability of police administrators to identify and officially label “high crime areas” has rapidly expanded. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and crime mapping technology has simplified the collection and analysis of crime statistics. These GIS crime mapping technologies can produce almost perfect information about the level, rate, and geographic location of crimes in any given area.While effective policing tools, these technologies have constitutional consequences that are only now being considered. Under existing Supreme Court precedent, …

Promoting Safeguards Through Detention Visits, Claudio Grossman, Brenda V. Smith, Ariela Peralta, Suzanne Jabbour, Alison A. Hillman De Velasquez

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.

Curriculum: Investigating Allegations Of Staff Sexual Misconduct With Offenders (Facilitator's Guide), Brenda V. Smith, Morris L. Thigpen, Thomas Beauclair, Dee Halley, Jaime M. Yarussi, Marcia Morgan, Aaron Aldrich, Darrell Alley, Roy Austin, Diane Berman, Susan Carle, Wally Carmichael, Deborah Connor, Dan Dunne, Karen Giannakoulias, Katherine Huffman, Madeleine Lamarre, Susan Mccampbell, Andie Moss, Mary Pinn, Susan Poole, Keith Reid, Jo Sterns, Melissa Turner, A.T. Wall

Research Reports & White Papers

Investigating Allegations of Staff Sexual Misconduct with Offenders is a 36-hour educational program that addresses the complex issues in investigations of staff on offender sexual abuse in correctional settings. It is primarily designed for investigators, prosecutors, human resource administrators, and high-level correctional administrators, but can be adapted for other audiences.

Before the lesson plans begin on page 31, you will find background information for the instructor. First you will find the proposed program agenda for the training, a list of topics and break times. This provides the instructor with a snapshot of the entire training; each module, topic and time …

Fifty State Survey Of Juvenile Sex Offender Registration Statutes, Brenda V. Smith

The Project on Addressing Prison Rape - Surveys

This publication is part of a larger scholarly project and one in a series that aims to create a “legal toolkit” for addressing sexual violence in custody. This chart collects statutes from the fifty states and territories that address registration of juvenile sex offenders. The chart lists: All registrable offenses; information maintained in the registry; the legal basis for juvenile sex offender registration; the duration of registration, community notification and website information; and limitations on residency or employment.

Ghostwriting: Filling In The Gaps Of Pro Se Prisoners' Access To The Courts, Ira P. Robbins

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

Compared with other litigants, pro se prisoners are at an inherent disadvan-tage when they try to vindicate their rights. They lack many of the resources enjoyed by non-prisoner litigants. They have limited finances and limited access to legal-research materials. Even if they had such access, their illiteracy would lessen its effectiveness. Moreover, many attorneys are unwilling or unable to undertake full representation of prisoner litigants. As a result, pro se prisoners struggle to navigate the complex legal system, often losing their cases on procedural grounds before ever reaching a decision on the merits. This Article argues that, in order to …

Fifty State Survey Of Vulnerable Persons Statutes, Brenda V. Smith

The Project on Addressing Prison Rape - Surveys

This document provides information regarding enacting state, statute number, statute title, coverage, definitions and notes, penalties, and applicability to youth for criminal laws prohibiting the abuse of individuals by their caregivers.

Fifty State Survey Of Official Misconduct Statutes, Brenda V. Smith

The Project on Addressing Prison Rape - Surveys

This publication is part of a larger scholarly project and one in a series that aims to create a “legal toolkit” for addressing sexual violence in custody. This survey is in chart form and compiles statutes that address official misconduct in all fifty states, as well as surrounding territories. This chart includes information on the statutes, relevant definitions, penalties, and administrative procedures.