Legal Studies Commons^™

Navajo Peacemaking And Māori Restorative Justice: A Comparison Of Process And Procedure, Alethia Z. Fenney

Regis University Student Publications (comprehensive collection)

Due to the failure of some crime control approaches in law enforcement alternatives are being examined to determine their applicability in today's society. One of the approaches gaining criminological attention is "Navajo Peacemaking". another similar style of crime control is the Māori restorative justice process used in New Zealand. The purposed of this research study is to examine and compare these processes to determine their applicability as crime prevention tools in U.S. towns and cities. Walter Miller's Focal Concerns Theory was used to address the difference in motivation between mainstream culture and its subcultures. The results from this study demonstrated …

Cold Case Homicides: An Examination Of Clearance Factors, Matthew M. Lunn

Regis University Student Publications (comprehensive collection)

The killing of one individual by another is something in our culture that garners a lot of attention from the media as well as community leaders. Law enforcement agencies have a duty to find resolution to these crimes. Yet, even with the rapid growth of forensics and the technology associated with it, there are still cases that go unsolved. These cases are commonly referred to as cold case homicides. In order to evaluate whether forensic evidence or investigative technique plays a larger role in the clearance of cold case homicides, a retrospective study was conducted to examine previously solved cold …

Accountability And Evidence-Based Approaches: Theory And Research For Juvenile Justice, David Myers

Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

As part of the ‘accountability movement’ in juvenile justice, policy-makers, funding agencies, and the general public have called for greater accountability from agencies and organizations involved with youthful offenders. Within this context, performance measurement and monitoring, and use of evidence-based programs and practices, have emerged as recommended aspects of juvenile justice system operations nationwide. Little is known empirically, however, about the actual performance of juvenile justice systems or the real changes brought by contemporary reforms, and theory and research on the implementation and sustainability of evidence-based approaches have been slow to emerge. This paper will review the key aspects of …

Bias Crime And Minority Threat, Michele Stacey

Dissertations

Beginning in the 1980s, the term hate crime became part of the research canon of criminologists across the United States. Researchers have examined the characteristics of hate crime victims, offenders, and offenses. However, little is known about the context of hate crime, and more specifically about the ways that the changing demographics of the United States have contributed to hate crime. The dissertation examines the relationship between these demographic shifts and the trend in hate crime from 2000 to 2007 through the use of population averaged panel models. These models assess changes over time and across place in the number …

Effective Parole Supervisor Traits Observed By Texas Parole Officers, David H. Bolding Ii

Regis University Student Publications (comprehensive collection)

This research study uses a quantitative method to identify the traits that Texas parole officers observe make an effective leader. This study adds to what seems to be a void in research on parole supervisors. Prior literature has identified that numerous individual traits and observable traits play an active role in effective leaders. This study uses "Survey Monkey" to employ the use of surveys across Texas, and to ensure confidentiality. By utilizing the method in this study, effective traits can be identified and used as a tool to increase present supervisory capabilities and allow others to have a guide on …

Community Reentry Programs And Their Effect On Recidivism:: A Study Of Life Skills Clients At The Denver County Jail, Valerie M. Gantzler

Regis University Student Publications (comprehensive collection)

Recidivism, or repeat offending, is prevalent among misdemeanants. Their sentences are usually short and become even shorter with mandates to keep county jails from overcrowding. These misdemeanants are then released from jail and go back to the same environments they were in before. Many of these people go on to commit the same or similar crimes and end up back in jail. Jails across the U. S. have begun implementing transitional programs in the hopes that providing repeat offenders with case management, counseling, and other services might enable them to break the habit of repeat offending and make better choices …

Juvenile Risk Factors Affecting Probability Of Rearrest And Treatment Options, Susan D. Kindred

Regis University Student Publications (comprehensive collection)

Studies have been conducted gaining insight into the effectiveness of making arrests and what the effects are to juvenile offense rates especially for those living in lower socioeconomic statuses. Researchers have attempted to develop new theories in order to prevent re-offending, while also analyzing offender risk factors. While individuals continue to re-offend, questions arise if an individual's socioeconomic status, or individual risk factors effect whether or not an arrest will be made for the offense committed and how it will be treated to prevent future offending. This study analyzes case studies addressing the issues of juvenile offending as it relates …

Fear Of Crime' & Media Representation Of Crime In Denver, Ryan M. Martinez

Regis University Student Publications (comprehensive collection)

This research project looks at the 'fear of crime' as a concept that is valuable to law enforcement agencies, politicians, and the public. By examining past research, it can be concluded that 'fear of crime' is often studied through the use of victimization surveys despite methodology complications. 'Fear of crime' is studied quantitatively in this project in relation to media articles from The Denver Post from 2008-2010. By performing a longitudinal case study on these incidents, comparing past qualitative research on factors relating to 'fear of crime', and using content analysis of news articles, this study examined which factor if …

Leadership Traits: An Analysis Of Perceived Leadership Qualities In Law Enforcement And Work Production, Joshua T. Hotchkiss

Regis University Student Publications (comprehensive collection)

Leadership is immensely important to most organizations, and its development is a recognized key to organizational success. Leadership, as a construct, has been researched in boundless depth and has been a focal point to establishing increased productivity and success. Law enforcement has placed a special interest in developing leadership as it relates to performance, productivity and succession planning. Although leadership development is a seminal part of law enforcement objectives, it is difficult to implement clear strategies for doing so. This study examines the gap in research as it pertains to leadership traits and work production by analyzing officers' perceptions of …

Examining Sociobiological Fitness Traits In Conjunction With The General Strain Theory In Convicted Rapists, Lorinda R. Hetterle

Regis University Student Publications (comprehensive collection)

The purpose of this study is to determine if sociobiological theories are useful in studying deviant behavior. Due to sociobiology being a field that has only recently been developed, there is little research regarding the overlap between criminology and sociobiology. Using forcible rape as the conduit of research, this study examined if and how sociobiology stressors contributed to the General Strain Theory. Specifically, this research answered the question, "Were sociobiological fitness stressors present in convicted rapists prior to the offense(s)?" Using secondary source data, a content analysis was performed on five separate case studies to qualitatively assess what, if any, …

Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design And Crime Rates In Apartment Settings, Robyn M. Radosevich

Regis University Student Publications (comprehensive collection)

This comparative study has employed qualitative and quantitative methods to examine the implications of the Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) theory. Due to significant inconsistencies in prior research, the effectiveness of CPTED in reducing crime rates was examined. Research analysis has examined the elements of CPTED present at three sample apartment complexes located in a large western city and determined if the apartment settings with physical elements consistent with CPTED experienced lower crime rates. Observational qualitative data and quantitative crime rates were applied in a comparative analysis.

Chasing Until The Wheels Fall Off: Developing A Typology Of High-Risk Police Pursuits In Georgia, Lee Miller Wade

Dissertations

The goal of this research project was to examine the potential variables associated with high-risk police pursuits in the state of Georgia. The objectives of the research project were to develop a typology of high-risk pursuits, ascertain the usage of pursuit termination techniques, and inform on the current status of pursuits amongst accredited agencies in the state of Georgia. The Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police (GACP) initiated data collection of pursuits among accredited agencies as a result of the decision in Scott v. Harris 2007. A sample of 2,155 pursuit reports from 2007 to 2009 was analyzed using descriptive …

The Cultural Complex Of Innocence: An Examination Of Media And Social Construction Of Missing White Woman Syndrome, Sarah Land Stein

Dissertations

This study examined the etiology and promulgation of the sociological phenomenon known as missing white woman syndrome. It was hypothesized that missing white woman syndrome may not be entirely attributable to racial disparity as has been claimed in the past. Rather, citing the work of Dr. Carl Jung, the researcher believed that missing white woman syndrome may be partially explained by a concept known as a cultural complex. The cultural complex that was hypothesized for purposes of this study is one related to innocence: That is, as a western society, we have been culturally overexposed to the blonde, Caucasian female …

Oregonians Nearly Unanimous In Support Of Reentry Services For Former Prisoners, Jody Sundt, Renee Vanderhoff, Laura Shaver, Sarah Lazzeroni

Criminal Justice Policy Research Institute Research Briefs

The vast majority of Oregon prisoners — 94% or more — are released to the community after serving a median sentence of five and a half years. Most former prisoners struggle to resume their family relationships, find employment, secure housing, and access healthcare. The Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) estimates that close to 60% of inmates are addicted or drug dependent, two thirds have an education need such as adult basic education or a GED, and half of inmates have a mental health need. Finally, close to 30% of those released will be convicted of a new felony within three …

Has The Pendulum Swung Too Far? A Legal Evaluation Of Florida's Child Abuse And Neglect Registry, Julianna Debler

HIM 1990-2015

Over the past several years, increasing public emphasis on preventing child maltreatment has resulted in substantial changes to Florida's child abuse and neglect central registry. Many of these recent changes, aimed at preventing child maltreatment, have resulted in over one million false, unsubstantiated, and inconclusive reports of child abuse and neglect within the last decade. While the information held in reports may be useful for identifying and preventing potential child abuse or neglect, due process concerns have been raised with regards to the process of placing a person's name in a report without providing a hearing for challenging or removing …

Victims Of More Than Just Bias Gender's Influence On Jury Awards And Other Monetary Benefits In Workplace Sexual Harassment Claims, Anthony Ferraro

HIM 1990-2015

The main objective in this research was to examine the extent to which gender and gender biases influence monetary benefits received, including jury award amounts, in workplace sexual harassment claims. Two methods were utilized to explore the discrepancies in monetary benefits received based on gender differences. The first method used was a survey to test various gender attitudes, attitudes on sexual harassment, and how influential a victim's gender was on determinations of damage award amounts in sexual harassment cases. 6 two-way factorial univariate between-subject analyses of variance (ANOVAs) were used to analyze the survey data. The second method in this …

Constitutionality Of Drug Possession As A Strict Liability Crime An Analysis Of Florida's Drug Statute, Davis Watson

HIM 1990-2015

The United States has a drug issue that is perpetually problematic. Efforts are being made on every level of government to reduce drug use and deter current and potential future users. Some of these efforts however are putting citizen's rights at risk in a manner that threatens the United States Constitution that hails over both the state and federal governments. My thesis will examine Florida's avant-garde approach to simplifying drug convictions through unprecedented legislation that has already been ruled unconstitutional on its face by the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida. The decade long struggle will …

Deepwater, Deep Ties, Deep Trouble: A State-Corporate Environmental Crime Analysis Of The 2010 Gulf Of Mexico Oil Spill, Elizabeth A. Bradshaw

Dissertations

The 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill was one of the worst environmental disasters of all time. Using the concept of state-corporate environmental crime, this project applies a case study analysis of secondary data sources including publicly available government reports, corporate documents, academic sources and journalistic accounts to examine the causes of the blowout and the response to the spill. Building on Michalowski and Kramer’s Integrated Theoretical Model of State-Corporate Crime, this study introduces an additional level of analysis- that of the industry- between the organizational and institutional levels.

The causes of the Deepwater Horizon explosion are rooted both in …

Single Liquid-Liquid Extraction Of Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol And 11-Nor-Carboxy-Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol At An Acidic Ph, Meghan Ann Tanner

Master's Theses

Because of the high occurrence of marijuana usage in the workplace and in driving under the influence cases, it is important to test for both delta-9-THC and delta-9-THCA in order to determine current and recent usage. The laboratory preparation and analysis of delta-9-THC and delta-9-THCA in urine should be as cost and time efficient as possible. Current extraction of delta-9-THC and delta-9-THCA from urine requires two separate techniques for each. Because delta-9-THC is nonacidic, while delta-9-THCA is acidic, the extractions involve two separate pH levels, while GC/MS analysis requires two separate methods. This separation requires a great deal of time …

Juvenile Delinquency: An Investigation Of Risk Factors And Solutions., Lauren Cardoso

Pell Scholars and Senior Theses

This article proposes that educational and community based programs can help juveniles stay away from crime and prevent recidivism. A presentation of federal and state statistics, along with an analysis of the risk factors for delinquency, will be provided in order to illustrate the important areas that should be addressed in successful programs. Testimonies, including personal interviews with those who have experience working at the RI Training School, DCYF, Boys' Town, Child and Family Services will be shared as evidence of the research found. Finally, recommendations based on the findings will be proposed.