Legal Studies Commons^™

The Situational Context Of Police Sexual Violence: Data And Policy Implications, Philip M. Stinson, Robert W. Taylor, John Liederbach

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

The horrors of sexual crimes perpetrated by law enforcement officers are laid bare in this study of 669 cases of police sexual violence. Here, authors Philip Matthew Stinson, Robert W. Taylor, and John Liederbach identify three scenarios in which law enforcement officers inflict sexual violence upon their mostly-female victims: 1) “driving while female,” 2) child predation, and 3) involvement in the sex worker industry. Especially sobering is the fact that, as opposed to law enforcement doing its solemn duty to report criminality on the part of fellow police officers, “citizens rather than police initiated the detection of the crimes in …

Examining Racial And Ethnic Disparity In Prosecutor’S Bail Requests And Downstream Decision Making, Connor Concannon

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Rigorous academic research into prosecutorial and judicial decision making has been taking place for over three decades, but a great deal remains unknown about the mechanics of prosecution. A majority of the work done by prosecutors occurs outside of public view, and most research focuses on the ‘back end’ of the adjudication process, leaving unanalyzed numerous decision points made upstream of the final plea and sentencing outcomes. Using unique data from the New York County District Attorney’s Office that tracks 43,971 felony complaints, this research examines racial and ethnic disparity at multiple decision points during case processing, with a focus …

Caregivers’ Expectations, Reflected Appraisals, And Arrests Among Adolescents Who Experienced Parental Incarceration, Cynthia J. Najdowski, Melissa Noel

Psychology Faculty Scholarship

This research sought to identify a potential process by which intergenerational crime occurs, focusing on the effect of parental incarceration on adolescents’ subsequent arrests. We drew from Matsueda’s work on reflected appraisals as an explanatory mechanism for this effect. Thus, the present research examined whether caregivers’ and adolescents’ expectations for adolescents’ future incarceration sequentially mediated the effect of parental incarceration on adolescents’ actual arrest outcomes. Propensity score matching was used to examine this effect in a sample of 1,735 15- to 16-year-olds using NLSY97 data. Parental incarceration was positively related to caregivers’ expectations of adolescents’ future arrest. Moreover, caregivers’ expectations …

Health Implications Of Incarceration And Reentry On Returning Citizens: A Qualitative Examination Of Black Men’S Experiences In A Northeastern City, Jason M. Williams, Sean K. Wilson, Carrie Bergeson

Department of Justice Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

While a great deal of research captures the lived experiences of Black men as they navigate through the criminal legal system and onto reentry, very little research is grounded in how those processes are directly connected to their health. Although some research argues that mass incarceration is a determinant of poor health, there is a lack of qualitative analyses from the perspective of Black men. Black men face distinct pathways that lead them into the criminal legal system, and these same pathways await them upon reentry. This study aims to examine the health implications associated with incarceration and reentry of …

The 23: Racial And Other Demographic Differences In The Assignment Of Risk Factors For Individuals Found Not Guilty By Reason Of Insanity In Virginia, Dominique Raquel Blanchette

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity (NGRI) acquittees uniquely walk the line of involvement in both the criminal justice and mental health systems, both of which have literature indicating the presence of underlying racial biases related to practices and outcomes. The current study examined 366 forensic charts from an inpatient psychiatric hospital in Virginia to examine potential differences in the number of risk factors assigned for NGRI acquittees based on a variety of demographic variables. Information about demographic characteristics, psychiatric history, and criminal history was recorded and analyzed. It was hypothesized that younger age, male gender, a psychotic diagnosis, violent …

Getting Up: An Ethnography Of Hip Hop Graffiti Writers, Their Art, And Perceptions Of Society's Reactions., Theodore Malone

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This ethnographic analysis of the modern hip hop graffiti writing subculture connects the separate but complementary theoretical constructs of serious leisure (Stebbins 1982), dark leisure (Smith and Raymen 2016), recreational specialization theory (Bryan 1977), and edgework (Lyng 1990) and situates the writer “standpoint” (Smith 1987) in terms of interrelations of policy and written discourse. Past research found that writers were motivated by fame and status, to express artistic skills, and to control and destroy space (Brewer and Miller 1990). Others found that writers sought to express contestant notions of style and resist economic and political authority (Ferrell 1996; 2006), and …

Implicit Attitudes, Explicit Attitudes, And Priming: A Preliminary Analysis Of Factors Affecting Use Of Force Decisions, Christopher Allen Forepaugh

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study examines the effects of priming, situational factors, and attitudes on deadly force decision making. A small sample of undergraduates completed high-fidelity deadly force simulations. Simulation results were compared across experimental conditions and various attitudinal and demographic factors. Participants were generally accurate when assessing the threat posed by suspects. Participants primed to expect a threat were more accurate in their decisions but were no more likely to shoot an unarmed suspect. Participants were more accurate when responding to unarmed suspects. Participants more likely to exhibit implicit bias were less accurate. Several attitudinal and demographic traits were associated with deadly …

(Non-Consensual) Sex, Drugs & Rock N’ Roll: Sexual Harassment And Violence At Live Music Events, Miliaikeala Sj. Heen

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Music concerts and festivals draw millions of attendees in the United States and internationally annually. Half of the U.S. population goes to live music events each year, with 33% going to concerts and 18% going to festivals (Nielsen Music 360, 2017). Despite the fact that these events provide security for the safety of both performers and attendees, the context of these events may facilitate various forms of sexual violence. Research has revealed high levels of harassment, groping, and other forms of unwanted sexual behavior at music festivals and concerts. The current study will utilize a national survey to examine unwanted …

Eyewitness Recall And Identification Accuracy: Effects Of Stress In An Extreme Haunt And A Haunted House, William Blake Ridgway

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The impact of stress on eyewitness recall and identification accuracy has been studied extensively but with somewhat inconsistent results. Understanding the effects of stress are important if they are to be generalized to victims or witnesses of real crimes. This study consisted of two experiments that used an extreme haunt and a haunted house to examine attendees’ ability to recall details of and identify actors encountered, as a function of state anxiety and in the context of Deffenbacher’s (1994) catastrophe model of memory performance under anxiety. The results showed that physiological (i.e., heart rate) and psychological (i.e., State Anxiety Inventory) …

Intimate Partner Violence Risk Assessment: The Additive Value Of Victim Reported Risk, Jennifer Joanne Johnson

Dissertations and Theses

Intimate partner violence (IPV) affects millions of people in the United States, causing negative generational consequences to the victim and the community. The criminal justice system has increased its preventative strategies to combat this issue through mandatory arrest laws and the use of risk assessment tools for determining the likelihood of offender recidivism. Risk factors included in standardized and actuarial risk assessment tools have been found to be relatively good predictors for violent recidivism.

This study assesses the predictive accuracy of risk factors through bivariate correlations and multiple logistic regression analysis. The risk factors analyzed include demographic information, mental health …

Prosecutorial And Judicial Decision-Making In Federal Sovereign Citizen Cases, Kyle Kaminicki

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study examines how ideology and extralegal factors shape prosecutorial and judicial outcomes among sovereign citizens (“sovereigns”) compared to other terrorists accused of committing non-violent crimes in the United States. This study is informed by focal concerns theory (Steffensmeier et al. 1998), which suggests that perceptions of blameworthiness, risk, and other practical implications shape prosecutorial and judicial decision-making.

Data come from the American Terrorism Study (ATS) where several measures are used including terrorist background and other extralegal factors (age, race, gender) for sovereign citizens and terrorists affiliated with other ideologies. Data on 308 sovereign citizens indicted in 158 federal court …

Immigrants And Crime, Daniel L. Stageman

Publications and Research

The gap between public perception of immigrant criminality and the research consensus on immigrants’ actual rates of criminal participation is persistent and cross-cultural. While the available evidence shows that immigrants worldwide tend to participate in criminal activity at rates slightly lower than the native-born, media and political discourse portraying immigrants as uniquely crime-prone remains a pervasive global phenomenon. This apparent disconnect is rooted in the dynamics of othering, or the tendency to dehumanize and criminalize identifiable out-groups. Given that most migration decisions are motivated by economic factors, othering is commonly used to justify subjecting immigrants to exploitative labor practices, with …

Reflective Writing In Prisons: Rehabilitation And The Power Of Stories And Connections, Sandeep Kumar

VA Engage Journal

The United States has the highest rate of incarceration in the world. Even though the rate of crime is dropping, incarceration rates remain fairly steady. What’s more, recidivism (i.e., re-offending after conviction for other crimes) is also very high in the US. If offenders continue to offend, even after completing their sentences in a correctional system designed to address their underlying criminal activity, what is the point of having such a system? Can the system be made more accountable and better? Have we considered all the options for criminal reform? This article explores these questions using effective rehabilitation principles to …

Differences In Characteristics Of Criminal Behavior Between Solo And Team Serial Killers, Matthew Woster

Dissertations

Criminal Profiling and classification of serial killers has been an expanding area of research for decades. Recent research has called into question the accuracy and utility of these systems, and calls for further research and development. This study aims to use the Serial Killer Database (SKDB) to examine and classify differences in criminal behavior between serial killers who act alone versus those who act in pairs, groups, or teams. The specific aim of this study is to examine whether there are significant differences between Solo Serial Killers and Team Serial Killers in the Number of Victims, Length of Career, Method …

Going Viral: Youth And Sexual Assault In The Digital Age, Anna Gjika

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation examines the growing phenomenon of using digital media technologies to capture and perpetuate sexual abuse. Focusing on instances of high-profile juvenile sexual assault, I use case studies, interviews, focus groups, and thematic media analysis to investigate (a) how crime, gender, status and technology intersect for young people growing up digital, and (b) the ways technology intersections with sexual abuse to create new forms of crime, new ways to victimize and perpetuate harm, as well as new opportunities to investigate and address sexual violence both through the criminal justice system and in the public. I argue that young people …

The Influence Of Social Media On Murder, Brandy Jones

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This research contains information on how much or if at all social media influences murder. Social media has such a big impact on the lives of many around the world, it is almost impossible to avoid. There is research on how social media effects brain processes and may even cause addiction. And there is research on why people commit murder, but there is little to no research on the role social media can play in some murders. Social media is almost like an alternate universe where people can pretend to be the people they want to be in real life, …

Sanctuary Cities And Their Respective Effect On Crime Rates, Adam R. Schutt

Undergraduate Economic Review

According to the U.S. Center for Immigration Studies (2017), cities or counties in twenty-four states declare themselves as a place of “sanctuary” for illegal immigrants. This study addresses the following question: Do sanctuary cities experience higher crime rates than those cities that are not? Using publicly available data, this regression analysis investigates the relationship between crime rates in selected cities and independent variables which the research literature or the media has linked to criminal activity. Results of this research reveal that sanctuary cities do not experience higher violent or property crime rates than those cities that are not sanctuary cities.

Criminal Injustice: Considering White Privilege And Colonization In The Examination Of Racial Bias In The United States Criminal Justice System, Jane E. Sanders

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Laws and institutions in the United States have consistently marginalized people of color throughout the country's history. This research examines the United States' criminal justice system while considering how the country’s past of oppression has resulted in a racially biased system. Through analysis of policies, literature, and quantitative data, the primary goal of this research is not only to exhibit that racial discrepancies exist within the criminal justice system, but also to question how they persist in order to determine a solution. By utilizing both qualitative data collected through existing social theory as well as quantitative data showing varying perceptions …

School Violence Threat Assessment: Professional Development Training For K-12 Educators, Christopher J. Potter

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

While threats of violence are relatively common in U.S. K-12 schools, the likelihood of a threat being carried out is very low. School leaders must take all threats of school violence seriously but must also have evidence-informed means to discern less-serious, transient threats from more serious, substantive ones. School violence threat assessment training is a vital professional development tool, to ensure safer schools while avoiding unnecessary labeling of students or overly harsh consequences through disciplinary over-reaction. This manual supplements an abbreviated professional development training presentation on school violence threat assessment based on research and models developed by Dr. Dewey Cornell, …

Extreme Ideologies, Situational Factors, And Terrorists’ Target Selection, Evan Mudgett

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the current study is to examine how ideology and situational factors shape terrorist target selection in the United States. While a growing number of studies have examined target selection by terrorists, the current study is the first to consider how combinations of factors present situated opportunities for terrorists to select particular types of targets as opposed to others. Guided by the situational crime prevention approach, this study relies on data from the American Terrorism Study (ATS) to measure attributes of incidents perpetrated by far-right and Islamic extremists and target selection. The outcomes of interest include government versus …

Juvenile Diversion Programs: Comparing Minnesota County Characteristics To Determine Their Role In Pre-Trial Diversion Programs, Kaydin Schmitt

Political Science Theses and Capstones

The main goal of the juvenile justice system is to rehabilitate offenders and prevent youth from entering the adult justice system. One approach is through the use of diversion programs. The state of Minnesota requires all counties to offer at least one type of pre-trial diversion program. However, there is no ubiquitous program; the number and types of programs differ between counties, and the reason for these differences between jurisdictions is under-researched. I analyze the number and types of pre-trial diversion programs in Minnesota counties and compare them to various county characteristics to determine which characteristics play a role in …

Public Perceptions Of Police Militarization: A Nuanced Understanding Of Public Support For Police Practices, Leobardo Lopez-Cristobal

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In recent years, there has been heavily publicized incidents of police use of military weapons and tactics, which has raised concerns regarding the militarization of police. More famously, in 2014, Ferguson police utilized military weapons and tactics to quell the masses after the police shooting of Michael Brown incited protests and riots. Despite an overall decrease in incidents of police use of force and deadly shootings, individual dramatic events of police militarization paint a picture of a militarized police force. This coincides with an overall increase in military equipment transfers (e.g., weapons, vehicles) to police agencies in the United States. …

Examining Crime Reporting Behaviors In The Presence Of Body-Worn Cameras, Tanya Dudinskaya

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This research study was designed to gain a better understanding of the potential impacts a body-worn camera can have on a witness reporting a crime to an officer. This study uses an online survey distributed through Qualtrics and asks participants to respond with their likelihood of reporting the crime they are prompted (such as property damage, DUI, drug sale, assault, and robbery) in the presence or absence of a body-camera, and the recording of their statement. The main concept that is being examined is whether there are potential negative consequences of body-cameras such as preventing witnesses from coming forward because …

Hispanics And The War On Drugs: An Explanation For The Rise In Hispánica Imprisonment, Bryan James Haakma

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this study was to understand racial disparities that persist throughout the criminal justice system. Since the early 1970s, the U.S. female prison population has risen at a faster rate than the male prison population (Harmon & Boppre, 2016; Morín, 2008, 2016). Overall, a plethora of research has linked the rise in imprisonment to the War on Drugs and the criminalization of drug use. This thesis examined these questions: 1) are drug crime initiatives driving the rise in Hispanic female imprisonment in comparison to Black and White females and 2) using Blalock’s (1967) theory on group threat, do …

Hot Spots Of Crime: Seasonal Patterning Of Campus Crime, Karen Zahid Armenta Rojas

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Provisions of the Clery Act require institutional reporting of crime on college campuses. Using the Clery Act data from Boise State University in Boise, Idaho, this study examines crime type fluctuation through seasonal patterns using a hot spot analysis. The data are mapped to identify geospatial patterns of crime through the seasons. This study investigates if certain crime types peak depending on the season and if the introduction of resident housing locations shift hot spots around campus using 2012-2018 Boise State Crime Logs. Results illustrate varying patterns of crime on campus through the seasons but general stability in the spatial …

An Investigation Of White-Collar Criminal Sentencing Disparities In Six Federal District Courts, Lauren Frances Elizabeth Galloway

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Since the turn of the century, sentencing research has consistently shown that certain aspects of the social context generally condition individual-level sentencing variations. I further explore this postulation in assessing how legal changes affect courtroom decisions; and in analyzing how extra-legal offender characteristics and judicial attributes influence the likelihood and length of white-collar incarceration sentences. The study hypothesized an emergent sociotemporal trend, largely driven by implementation of white-collar sentencing legislation and a return to judicial discretion, whereby white-collar offenders sentenced in the years post-Booker would receive more lenient punishments (i.e., less likely to be incarcerated and shorter incarceration sentences) than …

Public-School Systems Are Criminalizing Our Young People: Giving Voice To The Marganilized, Carrie Stoltzfus

Graduate Theses & Dissertations

A phenomenological qualitative study using Critical Race Theory and counter-storytelling was completed to investigate what K-12 public schools should be doing to keep young people out of the school-to-prison pipeline (STPP). This study took place in a large city in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. Interviews were completed with former students of the researcher who were previously incarcerated, educational professionals, and justice system professionals. Additionally, observations of the court systems and document reviews were completed in order to triangulate findings. Themes emerged around factors that lead to incarceration and the preferred practices to support young people to avoid …

Non-Traditional Church Involvement As A Life-Course Turning Point: Qualitative Interviews With Religious Offenders, William Hunter Holt

Dissertations

This research project conducted and then analyzed qualitative interviews from former and current addicts and criminal offenders who are voluntarily participating in the Christian faith at the same non-traditional, Protestant church. An abridged case study of this church is also provided for background and context. Life-course theory and grounded theory are utilized.

Both the offenders and this church were chosen in an attempt to better understand how the offenders’ involvement at this house of worship, along with their faith in general, have impacted them. Obtaining the perspectives of the offender is essential for three reasons. First, qualitative research conducted in …

An Analysis Of Police Pursuits In Ct During 2019, Erica Boccuzzi

CJ Masters Theses

Police pursuits can occur at any time, any location and can have numerous outcomes. There is past research on this topic which has been compared to this current study. The purpose of this research project is to analyze pre-existing data alongside the data collected by the researcher. The goal of this project serves to study every aspect of a police pursuit as provided through a mandatory pursuit form. In specific, the research was collected from different departments within the state of Connecticut during the 2019 calendar year. The pursuit form includes crucial information which can provide insight regarding pursuits in …

Are Police Actions Towards African Americans Different From Other Races?, Colby King

Political Science Theses and Capstones

Research implies that African Americans and other minorities experience racial disparities in their encounters with police. Their white counterparts tend to not experience any racially driven disparity. Oftentimes this research does not use different characteristics while testing for racial disparity, leaving much more to be explored when researching police encounters among minorities. I will be using data from the United States Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics to test some of these characteristics. This study will test demographics regarding the citizens race and gender, as well as the nature of their police encounters. Using these demographics, we can find …