Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Misconduct On Public Transit: An Exploratory Analysis Using The Comments Formerly Known As Tweets, Egbe Etu Etu, Asha Weinstein Agrawal, Imokhai Tenebe, Jordan Larot, Dang Minh Nhu Nguyen

Mineta Transportation Institute

This project developed a simple methodology for using Twitter data to explore public perceptions about misconduct on public transit in California. The methodology allows future researchers to analyze tweets to answer questions such as: How frequent are tweets related to assault, abuse, or other misconduct on public transit? What concerns arise most frequently? What are the types of behaviors discussed? We collected and analyzed data from Twitter posts in California about various types of public transit misconduct from January 2020 to March 2023 to identify the nature and frequency of reported misconduct. Our findings reveal that harassment, uncivil behavior, and …

Carceral Data: The Limits Of Transparency-As-Accountability In Prison Risk Data, Becka Hudson, Tomas Percival

Secrecy and Society

Prison data collection is a labyrinthine infrastructure. This article engages with debates around the political potentials and limitations of transparency as a form of “accountability,” specifically as it relates to carceral management and data gathering. We examine the use of OASys, a widely used risk assessment tool in the British prison system, in order to demonstrate how transparency operates as a means of legitimating prison data collection and ensuing penal management. Prisoner options to resist their file, or “data double,” in this context are considered and the decisive role of OASys as an immediately operationalized technical structure is outlined. We …

Criminal Injustice: An Examination Of Racial Profiling And Discriminatory Police Practices In Canada And The United States, Patricia Advincula

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

The Black Lives Matter movement swept across the United States after the murders of black people at the hands of law enforcement. Not fully acknowledged in the media are the police brutality cases that have also occurred in Canada, a country that prides itself on tolerance, acceptance, and diversity. Police brutality is an unfortunate reality that stems from racial profiling, one of the many symptoms of historically oppressive institutions. In this paper, I will examine police coercion and racial profiling in Canada and the United States. This paper will employ a theoretical framework of conflict theory and minority threat hypothesis …

Semi Structured Interview: Public Perceptions Of Family Resource Centers As Seen By Staff Personnel, With An Emphasis On The Undocumented Community, Eva Gonzalez

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

The value of Family Resource Centers in communities is examined in this research paper, with a focus on legal advocacy in undocumented communities. To begin, do Family Resource Centers provide sufficient resources to the undocumented population? By 2022, there will be over 3,000 FRCs in 30 states, serving over 2 million people per year. Second, how can the Family Resource Center best support Valley Palms' undocumented population? Finally, do Family Resource Centers play an important role in community development? These are some of the questions that helped lead the research when it came down to semi-structured interviews with employees from …

Understanding The Role Of Transportation In Human Trafficking In California, Kezban Yagci Sokat

Mineta Transportation Institute

Human trafficking, a form of modern slavery, is the recruitment, transport, and/or transfer of persons using force, fraud, or coercion to exploit them for acts of labor or sex. According to the International Labor Organization, human trafficking is the fastest growing organized crime with approximately $150 billion in annual profits and 40.3 million individuals trapped in slave-like conditions. While it is not compulsory to involve transportation for human trafficking, the transportation industry plays a critical role in combating human trafficking as traffickers often rely on the transportation system to recruit, move, or transfer victims. This multi-method study investigates the role …

The Efficacy Of Us-Mexico Border Enforcement In Relation To Crime Prevention, Samuel Klopstock

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

The Trump Administration brought substantive changes to United States immigration policies, and labeled undocumented immigrants as predisposed towards criminal behavior. This paper presents a brief historical perspective of three major waves of Mexican immigration to the United States: The Early 1900s – Before World War I, Post-World War I – World War II, End of Bracero Accord – Present, and considers the relationship between immigrants and crime. The author explores contemporary immigration enforcement, both conservative and liberal attitudes towards immigrants, and their effects on policy. Consequences of border enforcement policies and the efficacy of border enforcement in preventing crime are …

The Implications Of A Militarized Police Force In The United States, Nhat Dang

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

The police model in America is slowly changing. From the early days of America, the police were modeled after the London Metropolitan Police. Over time, this has changed from a civilian police model into a more militaristic one. Police militarization in America can be traced to the implementation of the 1033 program, which granted local law enforcement agencies surplus military equipment such as weapons, surveillance gadgets, and armored vehicles. This research paper examines the effects of increasing police militarization on public perception and public trust of police.

Justice In Hybrid-Democracy: Blood Feuds And Albania Post Communism, Isabella Mahan

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

In 1991, Albania shifted from severe communist rule to a regime claiming to be democratic. However, to this day, Albania maintains undemocratic elements. This paper analyzes the impact of hybrid state capacity in the context of state-led justice and the implications for citizen compliance. Albanian culture possesses a deep history of reliance on Kanun and traditional justice in conjunction with the state's inconsistency and unreliability. It further establishes the disconnect between people and the state. Despite attempts to progress towards modernity, traditions of blood feuds reemerged with the movement away from communism. The failure to properly transition from authoritarianism to …

Examining Perceived Effects Of Same-Sex Marriage Legalization Among Sexual Minority Women: Identifying Demographic Differences And Factors Related To Alcohol Use Disorder, Depression, And Self-Perceived Health, Laurie A. Drabble, Amy A. Mericle, Cat Munroe, Angie R. Wootton, Karen F. Trocki, Tonda L. Hughes

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Introduction

Reductions in structural stigmas, such as gaining access to legalized same-sex marriage, are associated with positive psychological and physical health outcomes among sexual minorities. However, these positive outcomes may be less robust among sexual minority women (SMW).

Methods

This study examined how perceptions of the impact of legalized same-sex marriage among SMW may (1) differ by demographic characteristics and (2) predict alcohol use disorder, depression, and self-perceived health. A diverse sample of SMW (N=446) completed an online survey in 2020 assessing the perceived impact of legalized same-sex marriage across six social-ecological domains: (1) personal impact, (2) stigma-related …

Measuring The Impact Of Legal Recognition Of Same-Sex Marriage Among Sexual Minority Women, Laurie A. Drabble, Amy A. Mericle, Angie R. Wootton, Cat Munroe, Libo Li, Karen F. Trocki, Tonda Hughes

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Reductions in structural stigma, such as gaining access to legalized same-sex marriage, is associated with positive psychological and physical health outcomes among sexual minority adults. However, these positive outcomes may be less robust among sexual minority women (SMW; e.g., lesbian, bisexual, queer) than sexual minority men and new measures are needed to develop a more nuanced understanding of the impact of affirming policies on the health and well-being of SMW. This study assessed the psychometric properties of measures developed to assess the psychosocial impacts of legalized same-sex marriage on the lives of SMW. Participants (N = 446) completed an online …

Perceived Psychosocial Impacts Of Legalized Same-Sex Marriage: A Scoping Review Of Sexual Minority Adults’ Experiences, Laurie A. Drabble, Angie R. Wootton, Cindy B. Veldhuis, Ellen D.B. Riggle, Sharon S. Rostosky, Pamela J. Lannutti, Kimberly F. Balsam, Tonda L. Hughes

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

A growing body of literature provides important insights into the meaning and impact of the right to marry a same-sex partner among sexual minority people. We conducted a scoping review to 1) identify and describe the psychosocial impacts of equal marriage rights among sexual minority adults, and 2) explore sexual minority women (SMW) perceptions of equal marriage rights and whether psychosocial impacts differ by sex. Using Arksey and O’Malley’s framework we reviewed peer-reviewed English-language publications from 2000 through 2019. We searched six databases (PubMed, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Web of Science, JSTOR, and Sociological Abstracts) to identify English language, peer-reviewed journal articles …

State Secrecy: A Literature Review, Stephane Lefebvre

Secrecy and Society

What is secrecy? What is a state secret? Which state secrets deserve protection from disclosures? How are state secrets protected from disclosure? In this review, I use these questions as an organizing framework to review the richness of a very disparate, largely US-centric, but also multidisciplinary literature. In doing so, I highlight the social nature of secrecy - that it is a social construct with social effects and consequences - and the need for further research to unveil those rationalities that specific discourses on state secrecy put forward to legitimize the nondisclosure of state secrets.

Teaching Trade Secret Management With Threshold Concepts, Haakon Thue Lie, Leif Martin Hokstad, Donal O'Connell

Secrecy and Society

Trade secret management (TSM is an emerging field of research. Teaching trade secret management requires the inclusion of several challenging topics, such as how firms use secrets in open innovation and collaboration. The threshold concepts framework is an educational lens well suited for teaching subjects such as TSM that are transformative and troublesome. We identify four such areas in trade secret management and discuss how threshold concepts can be a useful framework for teaching. We then present an outline of a curriculum suited for master’s programs and training of intellectual property (IP) managers. Our main contribution is to fields of …

Concealing In The Public Interest, Or Why We Must Teach Secrecy, Susan Maret

Secrecy and Society

Secrecy as the intentional or unintentional concealment of information is the subject of investigation within the humanities, social sciences, journalism, law and legal studies. However, the subject it is not widely taught as a distinct social problem within higher education. In this article, I report personal experience with developing and teaching a graduate level course on a particular type of secrecy, government secrecy, at the School of Information, San Jose State University. This article includes discussion on selecting course materials, creating assignments, and navigating controversial histories. This article also sets the stage to this special issue of Secrecy and Society …

Conceptualizing Global Indigenous Rights, Kerri J. Malloy

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

No abstract provided.

The Problematic Nature Of Execution By Lethal Injection In The United States And People’S Republic Of China, Franchesca Fanucchi

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

The United States and the People’s Republic of China perceive the death penalty as a fundamental feature of the criminal justice system. Lethal injection procedures provide these countries with the humane disguise necessary to preserve capital punishment in an environment of evolving societal standards. However, this essay examines the highly problematic nature of execution by lethal injection due to numerous medical, procedural, and bureaucratic concerns often concealed from the public and press. The low-visibility nature of lethal injection in the United States and China has become troublesome, especially since it prevents public, academic, and medical evaluation on the procedure's humaneness …

It's Complicated: The Impact Of Marriage Legalization Among Sexual Minority Women And Gender Diverse Individuals In The United States, Laurie Drabble, Angie Wootton, Cindy Veldhuis, Ellen Perry, Ellen Riggle, Karen Trocki, Tonda Hughes

Faculty Publications

This mixed-methods study explored perceptions of the impact of marriage legalization in all U.S.states among sexual minority women and gender diverse individuals. Survey data were collectedfrom a nonprobability sample of individuals 18 years or older who identified as lesbian, bisexual,queer, same-sex attracted or something other than exclusively heterosexual—as well asindividuals who identified as transgender or gender nonbinary (for example, genderqueer, transwoman, trans man, nonbinary, or gender non-conforming). The analytic sample included 418participants in an online survey who responded to open-ended questions about the perceivedimpact of marriage legalization. Qualitative analyses revealed perceptions of marriagelegalization that situated individual meanings in the context …

Scientific Evidence Admissibility: Improving Judicial Proceedings To Decrease Erroneous Outcomes, Leica Kwong

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

In the United States, Federal Rules of Evidence 702, the Frye and Daubert standards govern the admissibility of scientific evidence in the courtroom. Some states adopted Frye while others adopted Daubert, causing varying judicial outcomes. The verdicts in some cases may be erroneous due to a nationally used standard. Frye has broad criteria of requiring scientific evidence to be generally accepted. While Daubert contains more requirements for the evidence to be admissible, such as peer review, publication, and scientific principles. Daubert, alongside FRE 702, provides a thorough guideline for trial judges who have the gatekeeping role to decide admissibility aiming …

Justifying Justice: Six Factors Of Wrongful Convictions And Their Solutions, Colby Duncan

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

There have been over 300 post-conviction DNA exonerations in the history of the United States. While this number may initially seem significant, there is still an unfathomable population of wrongfully convicted prisoners who have yet to be considered for retrials. Unaddressed wrongful conviction cases highlight the unacceptable weaknesses in the U.S. justice system, weaknesses that include poor investigative tactics and the acceptance or allowance of inaccurate and unreliable evidence. This paper will dutifully analyze the causes that lead to wrongful convictions and amply discuss potential solutions, all of which includes eyewitness misidentification, improper forensics, false confessions, informants, government misconduct, and …

Physical Match: Uniqueness Of Torn Paper, Marilyn Aguilar

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

In the forensic science field, it is generally accepted that all tears and fractures are unique; however, there is limited scientific evidence to support this. This study tests the claim that all tears are unique, focusing on paper. One-hundred Office Depot brand 3” x 5” blank, white index cards were torn in half by hand. Six halves were randomly removed; the remaining 94 halves were mixed and then matched by a novice using end-match analysis. The removal of the 6 random halves left 44 matching pairs. Of the remaining halves, all 44 pairs were correctly matched. The results show that …

Delineating Victims From Perpetrators: Prosecuting Self-Produced Child Pornography In Youth Criminal Justice Systems, Bryce Westlake

Faculty Publications

Video recording technology advancements and accessibility has been paralleled by a growth in self-produced child pornography (SPCP). Although social and judicial attention has been given to instances of teenage sexting, Internet-based forms of SPCP, such as webcam/website sex tourism, have almost been ignored. While some of the proposed legislation reform has referenced video-based SPCP, the majority has focused on SPCP distributed through cellular phones; excluding that which is manifested online or through entrepreneurial efforts. The purpose of this article is to introduce non-sexting SPCP, using the case study of Justin Berry (in the United States), and to propose a broad …

Mass Incarceration: Slavery Renamed, Samantha Pereira

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

This paper aims to analyze the connections between slavery and mass incarceration. It begins by giving background information regarding the topic and setting the framework to argue that slavery was never abolished, but was instead continued using mass incarceration. The paper then goes on to further explain this concept by examining the constitutional and judicial laws in the United States, slave plantations and prisons, with regard to geographical, architectural, and operational design, and finally, the role of society in both systems. The framework for continuing slavery was set with the passing of the 13th Amendment and has since been expanded …

The Victimization Of The Misconceived: The Mentally Ill In The Criminal Justice System, Margarita Trejo

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

It is unfortunate to say that the number of people who suffer from a serious mental illness has been drastically increasing in the criminal justice system since the late 1960s. This drastic change has captivated the minds of the public, forced them to develop a fallacious stereotype, and labeled the mentally ill population as wrongdoers. This image, however, is inaccurate. In reality, these people are the victims of a broken system. This paper establishes the victimization that a person with a serious mental illness experiences as they are processed through the criminal justice system. The following elaborates how victimization is …

Medical Apartheid: A Book Review, Carmen Kennedy

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

No abstract provided.

Officer-Involved Domestic Violence: The Mediating Factors, Isaac Baron

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

Domestic and family violence has been a critical issue in contemporary society. Efforts have been made in researching the causes, effects, and mediating factors of domestic violence in relation to the workplace. Studies demonstrate that a relationship between conflict crossing over from the work to the home environment exist. Additional studies demonstrate that domestic violence does affect the workplace; however, there is little to no scientific data on the reverse relationship. The reverse relationship regards whether the workplace affects the occurrence of domestic violence. This research paper will dive into this topic, and on the lack of data available. Supporting …

Increasing Police Accountability And Improving Use Of Force Policies In The United States, Leica Kwong

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

Communities, and their respective police departments, have significant impacts on the social and legal matters they are involved with, making it crucial for both parties to strive to maintain strong, collaborative relationships. Positive interactions between police and the public are therefore extremely vital and beneficial to all involved. Police officers should be held accountable for their transgressions and subject to transparency for their on-duty actions through legal records. Several issues lie in the policies and procedures which requires more attention in its analysis. Changing policies and procedure in the United States regarding police use of force to remedy inconsistencies calls …

Domestic And International Firearm Laws: Can Implementation Be Used To Nationally Decrease Firearm Violence And Mass Shootings, Kenneth Banuelos

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

The issue of firearm violence in the United States is highly controversial, as there are sound arguments on both sides of the discussion. Advocates of stricter gun laws often refer to both international and domestic examples that highlight the effectiveness of more restrictive firearm policies. Japan and Australia are two such countries that are continually referred to when a tragedy, such as a mass shooting, occurs in the United States and initial reactions often emphasis a need for fewer guns in the general public. Opposition to the proposed reforms of firearm policies cite the importance of the Second Amendment which …

Trans Women In Incarceration: Housing, Healthcare, And Humanity, Stanislaw Bielous

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

This paper seeks to analyze the experience of male-to-female transgender inmates housed in men’s prisons and to propose housing and healthcare policies with humanity and safety for all in mind. To do this, the paper examines gender dysphoria and its treatments, transgender prisoners’ increased risk of victimization, current housing placement policies, and lastly, transgender prison healthcare practices. Ultimately, this paper proposes the use of fair and adequately trained panel-based placement teams, the provision of comprehensive mental and physical health care and the establishment of impartial grievance procedures.

Lacking Regulated Policy For Dna Evidence, Maia Lister

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

Despite its strong presence in criminal justice, DNA analysis is still a minimally regulated area. This minimal regulation devalues DNA evidence through the inconsistencies in these areas. The analysis methods of low template DNA lack a uniform method resulting in varying levels of reliability. Utilizing familial searches to assist in criminal investigations can potentially violate citizen rights. Such violations can also be found in the collection of DNA samples before an arrestee is tried or convicted. There are, however, regulations that could be applied universally to combat the problems that were discussed.

Us China Trade Dispute Over Intellectual Property, Mozi Luo

Master's Projects

How have Section 301 investigations impacted trade relations between China and the U.S. in clean energy area, and between Japan and the U.S. in semiconductor and auto part areas, and does the impact provide a guide for the possible outcome of the upcoming Section 301 investigation of China?

After President Donald Trump’s memorandum on August 14, 2017 stating that China’s behavior regarding intellectual property rights (IPR) and the high technology industries adversely influences the U.S. economy, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) declared the initiation of a section 301 investigation of China on the topic of technology transfer and intellectual …