Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Grass Is Always Greener: Analyzing Crime Concentration And Specialization In Urban Greenspace Environs, Cheyenne Pamela Hodgen, Kathryn Wuschke

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

Greenspaces play an important role in the urban landscape, with prior research suggesting that they are associated with numerous health and social benefits for residents. Despite this, research conflicts regarding the relationship between greenspaces and crime, with some studies finding these locations to be criminogenic and others finding them to be protective against local crime. This study examines this relationship in Portland, Oregon, considering different greenspace types as well as different crime types. Further, this study presents a novel methodological adaption to measure crime concentration and specialization around discrete location types by integrating a street network buffer into the standard …

Racial Politics In The Contemporary Prison Society: The Importance Of Race And Ethnicity To Prison Social Organization, Arynn A. Infante, Stephanie J. Morse, Chantal Fahmy, Kevin A. Wright

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

Prior research documents race and ethnicity as central to how individuals navigate the social and physical space of prisons. Racial segregation persists as a feature of prison life, and in navigating this racialized structure, racial groups construct and enforce a set of racialized norms to govern behavior (i.e., the “racial code”) that reinforce and reify prison racial politics. These processes, however, have remained largely descriptive in nature. Using data from a sample of incarcerated men in Arizona prisons (N = 251), this article extends prior work by operationalizing the concept of the racial code, assessing its dimensionality, distinguishing it from …

Pathways Of Crime: Measuring Crime Concentration Along Urban Roadways, Kathryn Wuschke, Martin A. Andresen, Patricia L. Brantingham

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

Some urban spaces are associated with disproportionate numbers of criminal events, while other areas are relatively free from disorder and crime. The relationship between urban space and crime concentration has received increased attention in recent years, with the location quotient frequently presented as a tool to identify and quantify such concentration. This measure has several limitations, with one significant concern surrounding the choice of denominator with which to standardize local and global rate calculations. In response, we present a new methodological adaptation to the location quotient, improving the measurement of crime concentration along linear features. To test this adaptation, we …

Policing In An Era Of Sousveillance: A Randomised Controlled Trial Examining The Influence Of Video Footage On Perceptions Of Legitimacy, Megan Mohler, Christopher M. Campbell, Kelsey S. Henderson, Brian Renauer

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

Controversial incidents of police-citizen interactions, coupled with advancements in internet media technology has created a new dynamic of how public perceptions of the police might be influenced. This paper reports results of an experiment examining how videos of police-citizen interactions found on social media platforms might influence civilian perceptions of legitimacy and procedural justice. Using 173 randomly assigned participants and a pre/post-test design, we compare perceptual effects of positive, negative, and neutral depictions of police-citizen interactions. Results indicate all media had an effect on perceptions of legitimacy, with negative content yielding the largest effects, significantly diminishing global perceptions of legitimacy, …

Juveniles In The Interrogation Room: Defense Attorneys As A Protective Factor, Caitlin N. August, Kelsey S. Henderson

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

Juveniles are more susceptible in the interrogation room than adults, due to a host of vulnerabilities that put them at risk. Scholars have suggested that requiring the presence of a defense attorney during interrogations can protect juveniles from making an unintelligent waiver; variations of this type of policy have been mandated in some states across the United States (e.g., Illinois and California). The current study takes an exploratory, qualitative approach to examine how defense attorneys may act as a protective factor in the interrogation room. We interviewed 19 juvenile defenders using a semi-structured interview method; questions focused on experiences in …

Examining The Effect Of Case And Trial Factors On Defense Attorneys' Plea Decision-Making, Kelsey S. Henderson

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

Defense attorneys are attuned to the defendant’s likelihood of conviction at trial, based on the strength of the evidence, in forming their plea decisions. A higher threshold for conviction (i.e. unanimous jury verdict rule versus majority rule), could affect defense attorneys’ willingness to take cases to trial. In this study, we examined defense attorney decision-making by presenting defense attorneys with a hypothetical case summary in which the jury verdict rule was unanimous versus majority rule (experiment one, N = 82), and the strength of the evidence was weak versus strong (experiment two, N = 81). In experiment one, there was …

The Effects Of Variations In Confession Evidence And Need For Cognition On Jurors' Decisions, Kelsey S. Henderson, Lora M. Levett

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

The reliability of a confession partially depends on the interrogation methods used and the confession’s content. Confronting suspects with evidence gives a suspect knowledge of nonpublic details, increasing the likelihood of a false confession (Gudjonsson & Pearse, 2011; Leo, 2009), and makes the confession harder to judge as more or less reliable. That is, if a confession is consistent with case facts but details of the crime were communicated to the suspect during interrogation, it is difficult to judge whether the confession is a product of the suspect’s knowledge of the crime or the details that were communicated during the …

Plea Bargaining: The Influence Of Counsel, Kelsey S. Henderson, Lora M. Levett

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

For the criminal defendant, his attorney acts as his loyal and zealous advocate before the court (American Bar Association, 2015), and due process protections of the U.S. adversarial system have afforded this relationship special privilege. In this chapter, we explore the influence and role of the attorney in plea decision making. We first explore the legal context of the attorney’s role in plea bargaining, reviewing several cases that address a defendant’s right to effective assistance of counsel. We then review the shadow of trial theory and other theoretical perspectives as they relate to the attorney’s role in the plea-bargaining process, …

Investigating Predictors Of True And False Guilty Pleas, Kelsey S. Henderson, Lora M. Levett

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

An estimated 90% to 95% of convictions are obtained via guilty pleas, and roughly 11% of individuals exonerated with the help of the Innocence Project falsely pleaded guilty (innocenceproject.org). Despite the prevalence of guilty pleas (and the existence of false guilty pleas), relatively little scholarship has examined what influences a defendant to plead guilty (Redlich, 2010). In this study, we investigated factors that affected whether guilty and innocent students who were accused of cheating pleaded guilty or took their case before the Student Conduct Committee in a hearing (analogous to a trial). Using social psychological literature on social influence (Cialdini …

Prevention Of Violent Crime: A Review Of The Literature, Portland State University. Criminology And Criminal Justice Senior Capstone

Criminology and Criminal Justice Senior Capstone Project

During the course of the term, our group was tasked with researching the prevention of violent crime. Our research consisted of examining scholarly articles containing original information regarding the definition and prevalence of violent crime, victims, offenders, modus operandi, prevention strategies and implications for policy and training. Our findings are closely linked to data found in the United States. We began our research with original definitions of the prevention of violent crime contained in the articles. The prevalence of violent crime is discussed, including how measurements were determined. The characteristics of, and factors associated with being a victim of …

Reinvigorating Regime Politics, Christopher Shortell

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

This paper seeks to reinvigorate the theory of regime politics in the judiciary among legal scholars, taking into account the critiques offered. The paper reviews the extant literature on regime politics, including its origins, before examining the criticisms this approach engendered. The valid concerns highlight the limited development of regime politics as a theory, despite the empirical work conducted in this tradition. This paper aims to address that shortcoming, explicitly identifying the underlying assumptions of regime politics theory and then developing testable hypotheses based on those assumptions.

Comparisons In Parole Supervision: Assessing Gendered Responses To Technical Violation Sanctions, Christopher M. Campbell, Ryan M. Labrecque, Megan Mohler, Molly Christmannn

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

Presentation focuses on the gender differences in community supervision and asks, "Is there a difference in how men and women respond to sanctions for technical violations?"

The Effect Of Gang Affiliation On Post-Solitary Confinement Institutional Misconduct, Ryan T. Motz, Ryan M. Labrecque, Paula Smith

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

Presentation focuses on the effects of solitary confinement on inmate misconduct.

Reducing Violence In Correctional Institutions: Revalidation Of The Inmate Risk Assessment For Violent, Nonsexual Victimization (Rvnsv), Ryan M. Labrecque, Heidi Scherer, James T. Mccafferty

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

Presentation focuses on inmate victimization in correctional institutions.

Risk Assessment In Criminal Justice, Kris R. Henning, Ryan M. Labrecque

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

Presentation focuses on risk assessment in criminal justice

Assessing For Racial Disparity In The Use And Effects Of Disciplinary Segregation: A Propensity Score Matching Analysis, Ryan M. Labrecque

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

Presentation focuses on impact of disciplinary segregation in correctional institutions

Domestic Violence Risk Assessments: Considerations For Selection And Use, Ryan M. Labrecque

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

Focuses on Senate Bill 789 (Increases penalty for crime of strangulation) and what to consider when mandating law enforcement officers to perform domestic violence risk assessments.

Improving Police-Community Partnerships: A Review Of The Literature, Portland State University. Criminology And Criminal Justice Senior Capstone

Criminology and Criminal Justice Senior Capstone Project

Our examination of community-based policing research and literature includes thirty-two articles. The articles contained original information on departmental procedure, training, and interactions, both positive and negative, between law enforcement organizations and the communities they serve. The overall goal of community-based policing is to improve the relationships between police and their local communities. Community-based policing promotes positive relationships and collaboration between the police and the citizens in communities in which they serve. In order to improve police legitimacy and community relations throughout the country, proper training and a set of new performance standards needs to be implemented nationwide. Maintaining trust with …

Perceptions Regarding Public Safety In Portland’S King Neighborhood, Kris R. Henning, Greg Stewart

Criminal Justice Policy Research Institute Research Research Briefs

The Portland Police Bureau (PPB) is partnering with Portland State University (PSU) and neighborhood groups to develop new strategies for improving police-community relations and reducing crime. Our most recent initiative seeks to provide residents with greater voice in where PPB officers work in their neighborhood and what steps the City takes there to address public safety concerns.

The King neighborhood in Northeast Portland was chosen as the starting point for this work following a recent gang related shooting at King School Park. Officers from North Precinct had already begun outreach to the community and they wanted additional input from the …

Can Expert Testimony Sensitize Jurors To Variations In Confession Evidence, Kelsey S. Henderson, Lora M. Levett

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

Confession evidence can be extremely damaging in the courtroom; jurors are more willing to convict based on the presence of a confession than eyewitness evidence and character testimony (Kassin & Neumann, 1997). To date, no research has examined whether jurors notice variations in confession evidence based on whether the confession is consistent or inconsistent with the crime evidence (a likely low quality confession). In Study 1, mock jurors read a trial summary in which a suspect’s confession was consistent or inconsistent with other case facts. Jurors were marginally more likely to convict if the confession and case facts were consistent …

An Evaluation Of The Impact Of Solitary Confinement On Offenders With Mental Illness, Paula Smith, Ryan M. Labrecque, Paul Gendreau

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

The primary goal of the current study is to examine the impact of solitary confinement (SC) on institutional misconducts in offenders with mental illness. The presentation focuses on the following questions:

• Does the experience of SC reduce institutional misconducts in offenders with mental illness?
• Does the length of time spent in SC influence subsequent institutional misconducts in offenders with mental illness?

Improving Police Officer Responses To Persons With Mental Illnesses: A Review Of The Literature, Portland State University. Criminology And Criminal Justice Senior Capstone

Criminology and Criminal Justice Senior Capstone Project

Addressing mental illness in the American criminal justice system is necessary in order to ensure both citizens and officers are safe. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2011), published studies show approximately 25 percent of all adults in the U.S. have a mental illness and nearly 50 percent of adults in the U.S. will develop at least one mental illness during their lifetimes. The U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Statistics also indicates nearly 25 percent of state prisoners and jail inmates with a mental health problem have three or more prior incarcerations (as cited in Glaze …

Urban, State, And Federal Regimes In Local Politics: The Role Of The Judiciary, Christopher Shortell

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

The study of urban politics often focuses on the ability of urban regimes to successfully pursue their interests and goals. However, scholars of urban politics only peripherally consider the role that courts play. And when courts are incorporated, they are treated as exogenous to the political system. This paper argues for the importance of treating the judiciary as endogenous to the local political system. Courts are themselves political institutions and should be understood as such in the study of politics at the local level. Doing so offers several benefits, including accounting for the ways in which state-level preferences operate as …

Building The 21st Century Legal Resource Center & Law Library, Portland State University. Hatfield School Of Government. Center For Public Service, Mark G. Harmon, Shannon Grzybowski, Bryan Matthew Thompson, Stephanie Cross

Center for Public Service Publications and Reports

A Report on the Current Status of the Multnomah County’s Law Library and Recommendations for Addressing the Needs of Current Patrons.

Women’S Representation In The Highest Court: A Comparative Analysis Of The Appointment Of Female Justices, Melody Ellis Valdini, Christopher Shortell

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

The presence of women justices in the highest court varies significantly from country to country. Using an original data set of women’s representation in the highest constitutional courts in 50 democracies, we assess the causes of this variation. We find, contrary to the prevailing view, that the strength of the institution is not significantly related to the number of women on the court. Instead, we find that the existence of a “sheltered” versus “exposed” selection mechanism is the critical determinant of women’s presence. That is, when the selectors are sheltered from electoral accountability, they are less likely to select women …

Prevention And Management Of Stress In Policing: A Review Of The Literature, Portland State University. Criminology And Criminal Justice Senior Capstone

Criminology and Criminal Justice Senior Capstone Project

Working as a police officer can be a rewarding job, but it can also be a stressful one. Policing is one of the few professions where individuals deal with many stressors, which exceed the usual expectations of society. Although there is no way to eliminate stress and the burnout it can cause, there are methods law enforcement agencies can utilize to help officers prevent stress from worsening and to make it more manageable. This literature review contains information to help police agencies train officers about prevention and management of stress in the workplace. It is based on 29 studies from …

Urban Politics And The Judiciary: Treating Courts As Endogenous, Christopher Shortell

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

The study of urban politics often focuses on the ability of urban regimes to successfully pursue their interests and goals. However, scholars of urban politics only peripherally consider the role that courts play. And when courts are incorporated, they are treated as exogenous to the political system. This paper argues for the importance of treating the judiciary as endogenous to the local political system. Courts are themselves political institutions and should be understood as such in the study of politics at the local level. Doing so offers several benefits, including accounting for the ways in which state-level preferences operate as …

Correlational Analysis Of Oregon Juvenile Justice Data, Portland State University. Hatfield School Of Government. Center For Public Service, Masami Nishishiba, Stephanie Hawke, Phil Keisling

Center for Public Service Publications and Reports

In July 2014, the Center for Public Service (CPS) at Portland State University undertook a project commissioned by the Clackamas County District Attorney’s Office to conduct a preliminary analysis of data related to Oregon’s juvenile justice system. The statistical analysis focused on identifying possible correlations between indicators of juvenile justice interventions and public safety outcomes within Oregon counties. Results indicated a handful of significant correlations. Generally, across counties and variables, higher levels of intervention correlated significantly with higher levels of public safety outcomes and higher levels of non-intervention correlated significantly with lower levels of public safety outcomes. Within both the …

Implementing Hotspot Policing: A Review Of The Literature, Portland State University. Criminology And Criminal Justice Senior Capstone

Criminology and Criminal Justice Senior Capstone Project

Crime has the power to disrupt our communities in many ways. It unearths feelings of anger and fear, promotes vulnerability, and often results in effects that remain long after the crime has been committed. Those enlisted to protect society attempt to target criminal acts before they occur, and often employ tactics that predict future criminal behavior. It often seems that officers have solved a particular issue and extinguished crime in a problem area, but discover it was only pushed into another community. This compilation of research analyzes the nature of crime and attempts to provide solutions for the ongoing study …

“Fixed” Sentencing: The Effect On Imprisonment Rates Over Time, Mark G. Harmon

Criminology and Criminal Justice Faculty Publications and Presentations

Objective: Sentencing guidelines, statutory presumptive sentencing, determinate sentencing, truth in sentencing, and three strikes are important components of the criminal justice system. The main purpose behind a relatively-fixed sentence is to remove judicial discretion by insuring that convicted felons receive a reasonably-assumed sentence depending on the crime committed. The current study assessed shifts in year-to-year changes in incarceration rates within all 50 states from the years 1965 to 2008 due to the adoption of sentencing reforms.

Methods: The study tests two competing theories, a normative theory and critical theory of the expected effects of reforms on imprisonment. Data was analyzed …