Criminology and Criminal Justice Commons^™

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 …

How Restorative Justice Practices Affect Adolescent Recidivism Rates: An Examination, Jordan A. Grant

University Honors Theses

This thesis explores the current implementation of restorative justice practices in various parts of the United States of America to determine if there is a link between the use of these practices and lowered recidivism rates. The literature reviewed for this paper span multiple juvenile justice systems giving a stronger view of how different states support victims, juvenile offenders, and the communities they impact at large. Through the literature found, the majority found the use of restorative justice programming reduced recidivism rates for the populations included in the samples. In future research, there is a continued gap in whether or …

Substance Use, Neurocognitive Deficits, And Criminal Recidivism, Emily H. Kim

Student Theses

Many offenders demonstrate substance use and neurocognitive impairments. Substance use directly impacts executive functioning due to poor impulse control, leading to impaired decision- making. Substance use and neurocognitive deficits also contribute to recidivism. Incarcerated individuals with substance use disorder have higher rates of recidivism, and executive dysfunction has been shown to contribute to recidivism due to low behavioral inhibition skills and deficiency with cognitive flexibility. There is a discontinuity in literature, however, since many studies only investigate either substance use or neurocognitive deficits to predict recidivism. However, it is important to examine the interaction of these factors to predict future …

The Relationship Between Traumatic Brain Injuries, Impulsivity, And Crime, Brian Ramanauskas

Student Theses

The rate of traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) are increasing each year, impacting an estimated 1.4 million Americans. After further investigation, researchers have concluded that 8.5% of the general public sustains at least one TBI, whereas this number ranges from 25% to 87% in criminal populations. In the literature, impulsivity is frequently described as poorly conceived, prematurely expressed, or inappropriate behaviors. Additionally, poor impulse control has been shown to significantly impact the likelihood of criminal activity, increasing the rate of recidivism. The current study examined an archival dataset of 95 incarcerated individuals from a private correctional facility in a large mid-Atlantic …

Delinquency In The Caribbean: Stakeholder Perceptions Of Root Causes, Laura Nolterieke

Honors Theses

There is a gap in the research on juvenile delinquency within the Caribbean context. As countries such as St. Lucia, Guyana, St. Kitts, and Nevis have growing delinquency and crime rates, there is a need to bridge this gap in the literature. This research sought to examine the main causes of juvenile delinquency within St. Lucia, Guyana, St. Kitts, and Nevis, as described by juvenile justice stakeholders, such as probation officers, prosecutors, and judges, within their respective countries. Through the use of grounded theory, the data were coded and analyzed using a constant comparison method. From these data, six themes …

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, …

The Language Abilities Of Justice-Involved Adults, Talaya Patton

Student Theses

This study explores the relationship between language abilities and involvement with the justice system across the lifespan. Previous research has demonstrated a significantly higher prevalence of language impairment in juvenile justice populations, relative to the general population. These language impairments have been found across both expressive and receptive abilities, often previously undiagnosed.Further, juvenile justice involvement is a well-established predictor for later adult criminal behavior.However, no studies to date have explored the effects of language abilities and juvenile justice involvement on future outcomes, namely continued justice involvement in adulthood. The current study utilizes archival data on 95 incarcerated men to analyze …

Animal Assisted Therapy On Law Enforcement Mental Health: A Therapy Dog Implementation Guide, Melena Purvis

Honors Projects

The mental health of law enforcement officers is an ever increasing problem, with our nation’s police officers seeing a constant increase in things like PTSD, depression, and other mental illnesses. However, mental health is already a highly stigmatized topic that is not commonly addressed, and a police subculture of strength and toughness just reinforces that stigma and makes it that much harder for police officers struggling with these issues to get help. This project combines innovation with research to come up with a way to try and improve the mental health of those officers struggling. It provides a manual for …

The Impact Of Prison Facility Characteristics On The Various Uses Of Solitary Confinement, Emily Berst

Senior Honors Projects, 2020-current

Researchers have not yet dedicated sufficient attention to the effect of prison facility characteristics on the various uses of solitary confinement. This study employs nationally representative correctional facility survey data to assess how certain prison characteristics affect the use of disciplinary segregation, administrative segregation, and protective custody. The prison characteristics include inmate total, female facility, proportion of inmates in maximum custody, proportion of black inmates, overcrowding, staff-to-inmate ratio, proportion of inmates with work assignments, and total assaults. The study also evaluates how the various forms of solitary confinement impact prison violence/misconduct. Poisson regression models suggest that the use of all …

Keep Kids Out Of Prison: Community-Based Alternatives For Nonviolent Juvenile Offenders, Anessa L. Pennington

Intuition: The BYU Undergraduate Journal of Psychology

Abstract

While juvenile crime has dropped over the past 20 years, tens of thousands of juvenile offenders are still incarcerated around the country, many of whom are nonviolent offenders. Researchers have found that detention centers, sometimes indistinguishable from adult prisons, do little to reduce recidivism and rehabilitate the offender. Rather, detention brings about more adverse effects than it does benefits. If incarceration isn’t working, how are the United States and other countries to deal with and deter juvenile crime? Community-based programs are a promising alternative to incarceration; instead of jumpsuits and cramped cells, community-based programs rely on community resources and …

Invisible Harm: Verbal Sexual Coercion Among College Students, Char Chezanne

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

This paper provides a review of literature and research on verbal sexual coercion on college campuses by focusing on heterosexual dynamics. The studies involved explore the factors that influence sexually coercive behavior, including parenting styles, heteronormative beliefs, and risk-taking behaviors. Furthermore, this paper reviews current informal and formal responses to campus sexual coercion by focusing on the overlooked power dynamics that influence sexual consent. This paper concludes that restorative justice serves as an alternative to traditional justice for campus-based sexual coercion because of its flexibility and applicability to nuanced sexual assault cases.

Gun Control In America: A Global Comparison, Lee Spieller

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

The United States has a high number of gun-related deaths compared to the rest of the world. Many approaches attempt to help mitigate these deaths, but few have proven ultimately successful on a national level. The purpose of this paper is to establish the need for gun reform by determining the relationship between guns and fatalities and covers how the US and foreign countries approach gun control. More specifically, this paper will examine each of the different approaches: firearm access restrictions, licensing restrictions, carry restrictions, and issuing parameters for concealed weapon permits. This examination will include firearm homicide rates as …

The Black Woman's Burden: A Discussion Of Race, Rape Culture, And Feminism, Rawabi Hamid

Themis: Research Journal of Justice Studies and Forensic Science

Current feminist and anti-rape movements in the United States seek to amplify the voices of women regarding sexual assault. Unfortunately, within this amplification, the voices of Black women are often excluded, which is a direct effect of historically ignoring the abuses of Black women and rarely ever bringing their abusers to justice. These injustices, often committed by white men and perpetuated by white women, create a destructive rhetoric in stereotyping Black women while also silencing them throughout modern movements, especially those of feminist and anti-rape causes. This essay will examine the consequences of three problematic aspects of US history and …

Making Freedom Free: A Call For Bail Reform In America’S Broken Criminal Justice System, Jordan L. Sharpe

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

Studies have shown that in the past fifteen years, the number of people jailed in the United States has sharply increased, thereby continuing the upward trend of incarceration that erupted in the 1980s. Jail populations are steadily increasing; yet, in the past fifteen years, the number of people convicted of crimes has stayed the same. The reason for this phenomenon: individuals are forced to remain in jail not because they are deemed a threat to public safety, but because they cannot afford the cost of bail. This system has drastically deviated from its original purposes and now destroys lives by …

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 …

An Empirical Examination Of Courts Of Appeals Judges’ Voting In First Amendment Retaliation Cases Involving Police Officers, Mary Ann Boyd

Criminology & Criminal Justice Theses - Archive

The impact of judicial ideology on voting in First Amendment decisions has been the subject of many empirical investigations in U.S. Courts of Appeals and District Courts. However, little attention has been devoted to studying how ideology impacts voting in First Amendment retaliation claims brought by law enforcement officers against their departments. This study is designed to fill this gap in the literature. Judges must consider and balance the right of public employees to exercise individual self-expression and autonomy while also safeguarding the rights of public institutions that provide necessary services to the public (Tsesis, 2015). Often the lines can …

Forecasting Success: Using The Texas Risk Assessment System To Predict Early Discharge In A Large Sample Of High, Moderate, And Low Risk Offenders, Carley Rene Shelton

Criminology & Criminal Justice Theses - Archive

Little is known regarding predictive factors that contribute to adults successfully completing felony probation—particularly those who are granted early release. The current study attempts to fill this gap by analyzing data from a large, urban, community supervision and corrections department to examine what predictive factors—as identified by the Texas Risk Assessment System (TRAS) impact successful early release from adult felony probation. Results from multivariate logistic regression models revealed that the TRAS domains of criminal history and education/employment were significant predictors of early dismissal from felony community supervision as was the total TRAS risk score. Additionally, being male and black significantly …

Absent Father Timing, Criminal Behavior, And Arrest Across The Life Course, Krysta N. Knox

Criminology & Criminal Justice Theses - Archive

Although prior research has examined the link between having an absent biological father and self-reported delinquency, few studies have assessed the influence of the timing of paternal absence (i.e., the child’s age when father leaves). Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health), the present study examines the impact of the timing of biological father absence on delinquency and arrest across the life course. Results of negative binomial regression reveal that biological father absence before birth, early in childhood, (birth to age 5) and late adolescence (age 14 to 18) was significantly related to …

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 …

The Violence Against Women's Act: From The Criminalization Of Domestic Violence Through Modern Political Challenges, Carrie Anderson

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

The Violence Against Women’s Act, or VAWA, is a landmark piece of federal legislation to combat domestic violence in the United States. It passed in 1994 following various state efforts to stop intimate partner violence. Broad federal legislation was needed to end domestic violence because of the unique nature of the crime including the strong connection between victims and perpetrators, the vast scale of the problem, and the reoccurring nature of domestic violence (Fagan, p. 28-29, 1996). VAWA has been expanded through reauthorization efforts in 2000, 2005, and 2013. Reform efforts have focused on increasing protections for victims especially focusing …