Criminal Justice 2006-2007

UNIT 1. Crime and Justice in America 1. What Is the Sequence of Events in the Criminal Justice System?, Report to the Nation on Crime and Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, January 1998 This report reveals that the response to crime is a complex process, involving citizens as well as many agencies, levels, and branches of government. 2. The Road to September 11, Evan Thomas, Newsweek, October 1, 2001 For a decade, America has been fighting a losing war against terrorism. This article chronicles the missed clues and missteps in a manhunt that is far from over. <new>3. Arraigning Terror, Rogers M. Smith, Dissent, Spring 2004 This article discusses the sweeping restructuring of the nation's intelligence-gathering and coercive institutions that took place after September 11th, as well as the dangers to civil liberties that the Bush administration has ignored. Smith also deals with what can be done to provide procedural safeguards against abuses to our civil rights and liberties. 4. Global Trends in Crime, Gene Stephens, The Futurist, May/June 2003 This article makes the point that while crime varies around the world, as statistics show, new tactics have proved effective in the United States. To keep crime in check in the twenty-first century, we'll need to get smarter, not just tougher. 5. The FBI's Cyber-Crime Crackdown, Simson Garfinkel, Technology Review, November 2002 On one side, teen hackers and corrupt employees; on the other, the FBI's computer-crime-fighting units. According to Simson Garfinkel, the U.S. government's first line of defense against cybercrime and cyberterrorism is the FBI's Computer Crime Squads, which form the heart of its new Cyber Division. 6. Toward a Transvaluation of Criminal 'Justice': On Vengeance, Peacemaking, and Punishment, Christopher R. Williams, Humanity and Society, May 2002 This essay reflects the author's effort to understand the dynamics of anger, hate, and violence that permeate not only the system of criminal justice, but human relations on all levels. Williams believes that the institutions of law, politics, and media have an obligation to model practices that are conducive to social health, and such models would not entail attitudes of resentment, hatred, and revenge. 7. Enough Is Enough, Clifton Leaf, Fortune, March 18, 2002 Of all the factors that lead to corporate crime, none comes close to the role of top management in tolerating and even shaping a culture that allows for it. Accounting fraud often starts this way, and prosecutors can make these crimes too complicated. According to Clifton Leaf, they can be boiled down to basic lying, cheating, and stealing. <new>8. Counting Corporate Crooks, Stacy Horn, The New York Times, July 16, 2005 Just how big a problem is corporate crime? We have no idea if white collar crime is going up or down, despite the well-publicized cases of some high ranking officials in corporate America. In terms of the number of lives ruined and the cost to society as a whole, white collar crime might be more pervasive and devastating than murder. 9. Trust and Confidence in Criminal Justice, Lawrence W. Sherman, National Institute of Justice Journal, Number 248, 2002 The criminal justice system is a paradox of progress. It is less corrupt, brutal, and racially unfair than it has been in the past. It has also become more effective, with greater diversity in its staffing. Yet Americans today have less confidence in the criminal justice system than in many other institutions. UNIT 2. Victimology 10. Ordering Restitution to the Crime Victim, OVC Legal Series, November 2002 This bulletin provides an overview of state laws addressing the rights of victims to receive court-ordered restitution from offenders in criminal cases. 11. Telling the Truth About Damned Lies and Statistics, Joel Best, The Chronicle of Higher Education, May 4, 2001 We should not ignore all statistics or assume that every number is false. Some statistics are bad, but others are useful. Joel Best thinks that we need good statistics to talk sensibly about social problems. 12. Violence and the Remaking of a Self, Susan J. Brison, The Chronicle of Higher Education, January 18, 2002 The horror and violence associated with the crime of rape is clearly evident in the words of Susan Brison as she describes her victimization, attempts at coping with the aftereffects, and the eventual remaking of herself into a survivor of this terrible crime. <new>13. The Counselor, Sara Catania, Mother Jones, July/August 2005 An estimated 73 percent of domestic violence assaults go unreported, largely because of women's lack of faith in the system. Filing a report means dealing with a justice system that forces women to testify, bounces them between multiple courtrooms, and leaves them vulnerable. This article discusses the problem from the perspective of an advocate for battered women. 14. Strengthening Antistalking Statutes, OVC Legal Series, January 2002 Stalking is a crime of intimidation. Stalkers harass and even terrorize through conduct that causes fear and substantial emotional distress in their victims. Work must be done in the future to better protect stalking victims by strengthening antistalking laws, according to this U.S. Department of Justice report. <new>15. The Cybersex Offender and Children, Arthur Bowker and Michael Gray, FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, March 2005 Cybersex offenders who target young people use computers for viewing, and sending and receiving child pornography, and when apprehended they will often attempt to justify their actions. This article describes types of offenders and their common defenses, because law enforcement must learn to understand such offenders in order to lay the groundwork for successful prosecutions. UNIT 3. The Police 16. The NYPD's War On Terror, Craig Horowitz, Newyorkmetro.com, February 3, 2003 Frustrated by the lack of help from Washington since September 11th, police commissioner Ray Kelly has created his own versions of the CIA and the FBI within the department, with officers being stationed globally. We will know if he has succeeded, says Craig Horowitz, if nothing happens. 17. Racial Profiling and Its Apologists, Tim Wise, Z Magazine, March 2002 Racial profiling cannot be justified on the basis of general crime rate data. But, according to Tim Wise, "unless and until the stereotypes that underlie [it] are attacked and exposed as a fraud, the practice will likely continue..." The fact remains that the typical offender in violent crime categories is white. 18. Ethics and Criminal Justice: Some Observations on Police Misconduct, Bryan Byers, Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (ACJS) Today, September/October 2000 Bryan Byers discusses police misconduct in terms of ethical violations as well as police departments' responses to such behavior. 19. Community Policing: Exploring the Philosophy, David M. Allender, The FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, March 2004 Confusion on the part of citizens, politicians, academics, and even law enforcement managers about what constituted community policing arose from the beginning, writes Allender. This article explains how understanding the concept of community policing can help law enforcement agencies design and implement successful programs. 20. The Blue Plague of American Policing, Robert A. Fox, Law Enforcement News, May 15/31, 2003 Cops are unhappy, which may lead to the reason why they commit suicide three times more often than other Americans. Cops suffer more depression, divorce more, and drink more. Police officers feel estranged from their departments and from a public that is eager to find a scapegoat for its own problems. <new>21. Talking With the Police, Jones Moy and Brent Archibald, The Police Chief, June 2005 In many communitites in this country, large numbers of adults have limited English-speaking skills, and misunderstandings and miscommunications between residents and police are common. This article looks at how a California police department grappled with the challenge of helping non-native English speakers understand common police procedures. <new>22. Suicide by Cop, Anthony J. Pinizzotto, Edward F. Davis, and Charles E. Miller III, FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, February 2005 How the Uniform Crime Reports classifies "suicide by cop" is discussed in this article. No single behavior or piece of physical evidence usually will suffice to establish the motive of the offender. The officer's perspective and the offender's perspective are important elements that are examined in 3 case studies. UNIT 4. The Judicial System 23. Jury Consulting on Trial, D. W. Miller, The Chronicle of Higher Education, November 23, 2001 The notion of "scientific jury selection" took hold in the early 1970s; since then, however, scholars have found little evidence that social science makes a big difference in jury selection. Furthermore, even if research offered lawyers a wealth of predictive information, they would not always be able to use it as they do not have complete control over jury selection. 24. Jury Duty: When History and Life Coincide, Elisabeth I. Perry, The Chronicle of Higher Education, October 25, 2002 Women no longer get an automatic pass when it comes to jury duty. In a recent trial, the gender and racial politics of the jury's deliberations proved determinative to the trial's outcome. 25. Looking Askance at Eyewitness Testimony, D. W. Miller, The Chronicle of Higher Education, February 25, 2000 Eyewitness identification often leads to the conviction of innocent people. In this article, psychologists offer advice on how to handle such evidence. 26. Justice & Antonin Scalia, Julia Vitullo-Martin, Commonweal, March 28, 2003 The author of this article sketches a picture of a Supreme Court justice who can be provocative and even shocking on race, and combative on issues that usually call for compassion, such as the death penalty. 27. When Prosecutors Err, Others Pay the Price, Andrea Elliott and Benjamin Weiser, The New York Times, March 21, 2004 Disciplinary action against a prosecutor is rare, even after misconduct such as deliberately withholding evidence. A recent study found that more than 2,000 cases of prosecutorial misconduct resulted in dismissed charges, reversed convictions, or reduced sentences. The author recounts the experiences of some of those who were wrongly convicted and the steep price they had to pay. <new>28. United States Supreme Court: "Three Strikes and You're Out!", Joseph Scuro, Law and Order, September 2004 Since the Supreme Court decisions upholding the constitutionality of "three strikes" laws, studies have shown that the vast majority of third felony offenses involved non-violent or drug possessions related offenses. These "three strikes" felons became violent and dangerous as they sought to escape capture. UNIT 5. Juvenile Justice 29. A Century of Revolutionary Changes in the United States Juvenile Court Systems, Charles Lindner, Perspectives, Spring 2004 Today's juvenile court is so different from the original setting, and more similar to the criminal courts than at any prior time in the past century. This turnabout is causing many to ask whether a separate juvenile court is needed any longer. The author points out that the juvenile court is replicating the adult criminal court's move toward harsher and more punitive sentences. 30. DARE Program: Sacred Cow or Fatted Calf?, Julia C. Mead, The New York Times, February 1, 2004 Numerous studies across the country cast doubt on DARE's effectiveness. Its graduates are no less likely to use drugs than any other children. The studies have concluded, and the lack of discussion about DARE's shortcomings along with its widespread popularity are seen as part of the problem. 31. The Peer Court Experience, James P. Gray, Perspectives, Summer 2003 Nationally, the peer court (also known as youth court or teen court) movement is stong; as of July 2003, there were 900 youth court programs in 46 states. This article by a superior court judge provides insight into one of them, describing what happens when a real juvenile court case is brought before a jury of high school students. <new>32. Juvenile Injustice, Angie Cannon, U.S. News & World Report, August 9, 2004 State juvenile justice systems are in a shockingly chaotic state as a result of overcrowding, violence, and abuse. The premise of the first juvenile court was that kids were different from adults, and the aim was rehabilitation, not punishment. As violent crime among juveniles rose during the late 1980s, many states moved away from rehabilitation and today almost every state has laws making it easier to try kids as adults. <new>33. Youth Gangs in Rural America, Ralph A. Weisheit and L. Edward Wells, NIJ Journal, Issue No. 251 A study shows that many assumptions about rural youth gangs are inaccurate. Gang activity in rural America is not as extensive as many fear and rural gangs are unlike urban ones in many respects. These differences suggest that the policies and practices aimed at suppressing urban gangs may not be the best approaches in rural areas. UNIT 6. Punishment and Corrections 34. Kicking Out the Demons by Humanizing the Experience-An Interview With Anthony Papa, Preston Peet, Drugwar.com, May 1, 2002 Anthony Papa is an artist and activist who uses his art to promote prison and drug-war reform. He was arrested in a drug sting operation in 1985 and served 12 years in Sing Sing prison for his first offense, under the Rockefeller drug laws, before being granted clemency. 35. The Results of American Incarceration, Todd R. Clear, The World & I, December 2003 Any answer to the question, "What do we get from imprisonment?", has to recognize that U.S. imprisonment operates differently than it does in any other democratic state in the world. The author discusses the American "war" on crime, with the resulting 600 percent increase in prison population, proposing that our prison population results mostly from U.S. policies enacted to deal with crime, and much less from crime itself. 36. Correctional Boot Camps: Lessons From A Decade of Research, Dale G. Parent, National Institute of Justice Journal, June 2003 Despite a decade of popularity, boot camps as an alternative sanction have had difficulty meeting these correctional objectives: reducing recidivism, prison populations, and operating costs. 37. Do We Need the Death Penalty?, Dudley Sharp and Steven W. Hawkins, The World & I, September 2002 The authors present differing perspectives on the issue of the death penalty. Sharp argues that the death penalty is just and right, saying that sometimes it is simply the most appropriate punishment for vile crime. Hawkins presents cases of innocent people wrongly convicted who spent years on death row, and makes the argument that most people facing execution are victims of racism, poverty, and other probelms. <new>38. Incarceration, Inc., Sasha Abramsky, The Nation, July 19-26, 2004 Private prisons thrive on cheap labor and the hunger of job-starved towns. As sordid as it is, it's no great surprise that the private prison industry would want a piece of the Iraq pie. Abramsky says that under the current Administration the industry has aggressively expanded its reach at both the state and federal levels, cashing in on post-September 11 opportunities. <new>39. Stress on the Job: No Easy Training Solutions, Fred Jay Krieg and Robert Newell, The Correctional Psychologist, Vol. 37, No. 3, July 2005 Corrections officers are in a unique position to experience stress, and research has concluded that increased education and training can reduce workplace related stress. Studies also suggest that increased understanding of legal and social issues, as well as a greater understanding of stress, account for this; however, the research is less clear whether college is the answer. <new>40. The Yoga of Redemption, Matthew Gilbert, Spirituality and Health, March/April 2005 Can asanas and meditation turn violent offenders and at-risk youth into law-abiding citizens, and perhaps even emissaries for spirtitual growth? New research makes a compelling case. Advocates claim that the real potential lies in getting prison inmates to acknowledge and deal with the pain they've caused. <new>41. The Unforgiven, Jennifer Gonnerman, Mother Jones, July/August 2005 The subject of domestic violence has receded from the headlines in recent years, but the numbers suggest that it's still a major social problem. One of the successes of the domestic violence movement has been its ability to publicize the plight of battered women serving prison time for crimes related to their abuse. Gonnerman tells the story of a friend's fight to get clemency for a woman who never deserved the harsh punishment she received from the criminal justice system. 42. The Unique Brutality of Texas, Why the Lone Star State Leads the Nation in Executions, Joseph Rosenbloom, The American Prospect, July 2004 Joseph Rosenbloom looks at why Texas continues to execute people at an incredible rate. He finds that the reasons are rooted not so much in public opinion as in the fact that conservative Republicans have consolidated their power over the state's main political institutions, including the judiciary system. A judge who appears to offer leniencey in a capital case knows that such a decision may cost him dearly in the next Republican primary. <new>43. Uncaptive Minds, Ian Buruma, The New York Times Magazine, February 20, 2005 Buruma writes about what teaching a college-level class at a maximum-security prison did for the inmates, as well as for himself. He found that it was obvious how precious education was to the inmate-students, because of the way they behaved to one another. He also found that prisoners who benefit from higher-education programs are more inclined to behave themselves.