CCJS 451 Final
Mandatory minimum sentences
ex. three strike laws
Indirect links
Stigmatization for family members, incarceration affects those not in prison for drugs (i.e., minority communities, families, etc.)
Do Guns Kill People?
"If guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns" Instrumentality -Yes, weapon type matters -"Even in the case of earnest...attacks, assailants lack a clear...intent to kill. Whether the victim lives or dies depends on the lethality of the weapon... Availability -legal and other costs of obtaining, possessing, and carrying a gun discourage some violent people from doing so, at least some of the time -That the U.S. is such a violent country does not have much to do with guns; the fact that our violent crimes are so deadly has much to do with guns
Modus Operandi
"The pattern of behaviors displayed prior, during, and after the illicit conduct"
The Prosecutor
***The most powerful actor in the CRJU process Exercises the greatest discretion in the formally organized CRJU network "Their power resides in the authority they have to accept or reject arrests brought by the police and to determine how to charge each case accepted".
Drug Policies
*These are policies that the book suggests are the best: 1. Reducing drunkenness (i.e., alcohol causes the most crimes of all drugs legal and illegal) 2. Reducing the volume of meth, heroin, cocaine 3. Concentrating long sentences on violent dealers rather than large-volume dealers who aren't violent 4. Drug testing +quick and reliable sanctions for probationers and parolees (not harsh punishment, but like mandatory house arrest or treatment, fines)
Stand Your Ground Laws and Race
-A finding of "justifiable homicide" is much more common in the case of a white-on-black killing than any other kind. -Data has shown that compared to white-on-white crimes, stand your ground increases the likelihood of a not-guilty finding, but only when a person is accused of killing a black person. -Basically, there are less consequences for a white person killing a black person than vice versa or even in intraracial situations (white kills white, black kills black). -Think Trayvon Martin
Indeterminate Sentencing
-A period, set by a judge, that specifies a minimum and a maximum time to be served in prison. Sometime after the minimum, the offender may be eligible for parole. -Because it is based on the idea that the time necessary for treatment cannot be set, the indeterminate sentence is closely associated with rehabilitation. -Parole is given when there is evidence that the inmate has been "fixed" (parole board has a role in this kind of sentencing!)
Determinate Sentence
-A sentence that fixes the term of imprisonment at a specific period -Federal law and 16 states have adopted this -Some determinate-sentencing states have adopted penal codes that stipulate a specific term for each crime category -Others allow the judge to choose a range of time to be served -NO PAROLE. **The impact of determinate sentencing on prosecution is small!
Risk Assessment
-Actuarial prediction instruments: surveys -STATIC-99: for people who have already been convicted for a sexual offense
Handguns and Self Protection Purposes
-Although most who have handguns also have rifles, etc. -Less than half say they have a gun primarily for self-protection -Only 3% of people who have a gun have used it for self-defense
In California
-CA and Texas have the largest prison systems in the nation (although LA has the highest incarceration rate) -Note: Because of extreme overcrowding in CA prisons federal courts mandated that more than 40,000 inmates be released. -CA complied and whereas inmate # has dropped it is still the highest **The more incarceration a state uses,the more overcrowded prisons get and the more $ gets sucked out of state budget.
The Wetterling Act (1994)
-Established guidelines for states to track sex offenders where they are (i.e., place of residence).
Megan's Law (1996)
-Made state sex offender registries be available to the public. -Allows states to track sex offenders by confirming their place of residence annually for 10 years or quarterly for the rest of their lives.
The State Inmate Profile
-Male -African-American -Violent crime -Low Education -Low Training -32 years old (but increasing) **Is it cruel and unusual? Disproportionately affected
What was policing like in the 70s?
-One-size fits all Three "R"s: random patrol, rapid response, and reactive investigations
Public opinion of sex offenders
-Over the years, the public has sought to be more punitive on sexual offenders. They are treated as exceptions in the criminal justice systems. -This means that specific policies are only applied to sexual offenders and not other criminals. -This policy of exceptionalism is justified by the impact sexual assault has on victims and society as well as the high rates of recidivism of SOs.
Legitimacy
-Perception of fairness -People react better to unfavorable decisions when they believe they have been treated fairly
Prosecutor Accountability
-Perhaps only to her voters -Day-to-day operations are hidden
"Female" Crimes
-Property rather than violent (1/3 of larceny arrests) -Increases in arrests for other crimes, Except for homicide -The rate of violent crime committed by women has declined, but incarcerations have soared -Broader careers
Racial guidelines
-Racial disparities in the correction population that does not reflect actual crime commission. -There is evidence that determinate sentencing structures and sentencing guideline systems can reduce these disparities. E.g., Minnesota=1st state to attach racial and ethnic impact projections to proposed changes in sentencing laws.
What is the effectiveness of registration?
-Reduces sex offending -Direct control -Registration reduces recidivism because police know where they are
What is the effectiveness of notification?
-Reduces sex offending for first-timers; increases it for registered SO -Increases it for registered SOs because of heavy social and financial costs associated with public release of information. - Overall net effect is 10% reduction; 2% reduction in tapes
Campus Sex Crimes Prevention Act (2000)
-Required any person who was obligated to register in a state's sex offender registry to notify the institution of higher education at which the sex offender worked or was a student of his or her status as a sex offender; and to notify the same institution if there was any change in his or her enrollment or employment status. -Basically, it requires sexual offenders in college to be registered too.
Prisons
-State, federal, or local -Confinement facilities -Adults only (with exceptions, such as minors transferred and convicted in criminal rather than juvenile court) -Felons only -Sentences of 1- Year or More
Institutions in State Systems
-Supermax -Max/close -Medium -Minimum -Many modeled after the Auburn penitentiary system -Hold the majority (1.2 mil) of inmates **More than 7 million Americans in the System (prison, jails, corrections)
What is the effectiveness of residency restrictions?
-Unclear **Research is not so sure that living so far away from neighborhoods with kids work. -Hard to find a place to live, so offenders end up being homeless -There is a link between unstable living conditions and reoffending.
What was the The House I Live In video about?
-War On Drugs instigated an increase in organizational involvement on punishing youth users. -The distribution of drugs for money can be the main resources for a neighborhood or for oneself by the drug provided. -State governments placed drugs as illegal once non-white people were gaining the drugs, which showed indirect racism such as Chinese for opium, AA's for cocaine, and Mexicans for marijuana.
Female Inmate Profile
-Young minorities -Never married -With small children -Criminogenic families -Physical or sexual abuse past -Drugs, especially crack -Alcohol
Prevalence of sexual offenses
1 in 6 women; 1 in 33 men **Sexual assault is the most underreported crime
What are the 3 conclusions for sentencing in 1999 according to Tonry (1999) article?
1. No longer anything that can be characterized as the American way to organize sentencing and corrections. 2. Sentencing and corrections policies are fractured or fracturing in most jurisdictions. --There is no monolithic set of policies. There are many individualized approaches. 3. People are trying to implement new and creative policies ---e.g., broad-based community participation in corrections programs, restorative and community elements in programs
Gun Trends
1. 31% of households w/ a firearm -the lowest level of gun ownership in the last 40-some years -But FBI says gun sales are up lately -So # guns in private hands is up (household may have more than 1 gun) 2. Men 3xlikely than women to have guns 3. Whites much more likely than blacks and Latinos to have guns 4. People living in rural areas; in Midwest; in the South 5. More likely a Republican 6. 61% of all people who own guns are white men 7. Handguns have risen in popularity -only used against people
What factors come into play when considering MO for sexual offenses?
1. Age of the offender 2. Age of victim (influences strategies used) 3 Relationship with victim (intrafamilial vs. extrafamilial) 4. Type of location-offender's home is conducive to manipulation **Important to know that all this is based on profiles of those who are caught.
What are the types of target selection scripts?
1. Coercive -Home intrusion track: aggressor uses the victim's residence -Outdoor track: ambushes victim in a familiar public outdoor place -Physical violence 2. Manipulative -Sophisticated= prostitution market or workplace -Family infiltrator= seeks victims within a family setting or through his occupation (i.e., teachers, coaches) -Opportunitstic; attacks in a place where he is in power 3. Non-persuasive -Direct action track: pursues victim in a public place and makes contact directly -Public indoor spaces (i.e., mall, bar) 4. Internet (i.e., cyber poaching)**
Alternatives to Incarceration
1. Community service 2. Shock probation 3. Intensive Supervision Program (ISP) 4. Community-based corrections
Unintended consequences for the War on Drugs
1. Contribution to high incarceration rate in the U.S. 2. Financial costs on society 3. High drug arrests 4. Increase in random searches and stops of people with NO probable cause 5. Largely affects young African Americans, who are disproportionately incarcerated 6. U.S. now incarcerates a larger number of women in comparison to other countries. 7. Indirectly affects communities
Criticisms of Indeterminate-Shifting to Determinate Sentencing
1. Convicts -Rehab 'game playing' -Discretion V. Discrimination **When one has discretion, they may use it based on their own biased standards 2. Research -"Rehabilitated" offenders recidivate often -This is an argument against parole which goes together with indeterminate sentencing 3. Politicians -Punitiveness rhetoric -Tough-on-crime
Alternative Gun Control Laws
1. Designed to raise the price of guns and reduce general availability 2. Designed to influence who has these weapons 3. Designed to affect how the guns are used and with what effect.
Effects of Overcrowding
1. Fewer programs 2. Fewer recreational opportunities 3. Suicide increases 4. In-prison violence increases ...regardless of prison type 5. Health Impact --HIV; TB; and other infectious diseases are on the rise INCREASED USE OF IMPRISONMENT IS POSITIVELY RELATED WITH HIGHER CRIME
What are the four sentencing systems?
1. Indetereminate 2. Determinate 3. Mandatory 4. Sentencing Guidelines
What are 4 competing conceptions of sentencing and corrections coexist in the United States today according to Tonry (1999) article?
1. Indeterminate sentencing 2. Comprehensive structured sentencing: guidelines for sentences, community penalties, etc. 3. Community/restorative sentencing: community/restorative principles for dealing with serious crimes. Community-based corrections. 4. Risk-based sentencing: public safety and individualized risk management
Caseload and plea-to-trial ratios
1. Jurisdictions with huge caseloads often have low ratios of pleas to trial, while those with much smaller caseloads often have high ratios. 2. Offices with less selective screening policies (take marginal cases) tend to have higher plea-to-trial ratios and higher conviction rates.
Pleas-to-Trials Ratio
1. No rules or standards -Workloads not always a factor 2. Quality v. quantity policy shapes ratios -Offices that aim for more convictions by accepting more marginal cases and putting greater effort into negotiating guilty pleas, they apply the (lower) "probable cause" standard for arrest --They have higher pleas-to-trials ratio 3. Why abolition is not an option -Pleas deprive defendants of their rights and victims of the security of long sentences Abolition would be both ineffective and counterproductive -It would jeopardize the informant system
Impact on Victims
1. PTSD -Particularly prevalent among female victims 2. Negative short- and long-term outcomes 3. Shadow of sexual assault: possibility of sexual assault existing in non-sexual crimes that include face to face contact like robbery -Sexual terrorism: sexual assault victimizes all women because it impacts women's everyday decision making (i.e., not going out alone at night)
Sex offenses are divided up into what two categories? (Sex Offenders)
1. Rape 2. Sexual Assault
Alternative Processing
1. Restorative Justice 2. Risk Assessment
Sentencing guidelines (in their majority consider which two factors?)
1. Severity level of conviction offense 2. Criminal history
How to Prevent SO
1. Situational crime prevention -Target hardening: making it harder to commit crime -Controlling tools/weapons and access to facilities -Extending guardianship -Strengthening formal surveillance -Utilizing place managers -Assisting natural surveillance: improve surveillance at possible crime sites -Controlling prompts: remove situational triggers 2. Reducing permissibility: challenging distorted beliefs, excuses, etc. 3. Child education
What are some legislative developments for SO?
1. The Wetterling Act (1994) 2.Megan's Law (1996) 3. Campus Sex Crimes Prevention Act (2000) 4. Jessica's Law (FL, 20005) 5. Civil commitment laws 6. Chemical or surgical castration 7. Public harassment and murder
Female Prison Population
25 years ago: 4% Now: 6-7% of the total prison population -About 10% of entering prisoners are women Dramatic increases in -Arrest AND Incarceration rates
Firearm Deaths
33, 636 (10.6) 10.7 mv deaths Similar to 1998 (11.4) Most caused by accidents*** A year of gun killing in the United States is the equivalent of the Korean War. In other words, homicide rate is very high in this country.*** Large majority of homicides involve guns -Victims disproportionately male, young, black** -Leading cause of death -Yet, the most common criminal use of guns is to threaten Data on victim self-defense against murder is contradictory
The geriatric inmate
American prisons are getting "gray" due to 3 strikes legislation. --Bulk of crime is committed between ages 20-30. Individuals who fall in this age group could possibly grow old in prison. Thus, geriatric centers need to be established in prison.
Sentencing (Courts and Sentencing)
A legally constructed process for determination of the criminal sanctions applied to offenders as a consequence of their criminal convictions -A product of multiple decision-making
Mother Inmates
About ¼ of all female inmates are pregnant or have infants -Can't keep children with them -Give them away few days after birth Consider halfway houses? About 80% are mothers ***Separation from family is the most frequently reported pain of incarceration for women
Stand Your Ground Laws
Are related to self-defense
Differential Treatment in Prisons
Are women and men treated differently? YES 1. Leniency of CJ system is one reason --However, this leniency turns into more punitiveness for non serious offenses --For example girls way more likely to be incarcerated for running away and being unruly than boys are Other reasons: 2. Female crime's non violent nature 3. No prior history 4. A man to blame 5. Motherhood 6. Paternalistic attitudes
Zero-tolerance policing
Based on broken windows theory--arrest for small infractions, i.e., jaywalking, public drunkenness. Idea that serious crimes will not occur. PROACTIVE -Costs: time, issues with being arrested for minor infractions
What is Evidence-Based Policing? (Law Enforcement)
Basing policing on what unbiased (neutral and objective) research evidence suggests to be the most cost-effective -Still rare in policing: many police officers are resistant to evidence-based policing b/c they feel that it contradicts their experience, too much to change tactics Twofold challenge: 1. Generating research at a rapidly growing rate 2. Communicating the results to police leaders and officers effectively
Stand Your Ground Laws and Gender
Battered Women's Syndrome sends the legal and social message that women should retreat even from their own homes in the face of objective, repeated harm to their bodies; Stand Your Ground sends the legal and social message that men can advance against strangers anywhere on the basis of vague, subjective perceptions of threats. Male violence is not only tolerated, but celebrated; women's violence is not only discouraged, but stigmatized. -Invoking the image of vulnerable women to promote aggressive self-defense rhetoric serves to distract from the reality that violence remains chiefly a male privilege. -Think Marissa Alexander
What is the difference between community policing and problem-oriented policing?
COP and POP are similar but differ in that POP uses technology (crime mapping) and social science to address the sources and causes of crime in the particular neighborhood that the PD serves (it requires more funds and more education/training). COP is mostly about improving relations between cops and the community (officers walking around rather than driving, getting coffee in local shops, giving lectures in local schools etc).
What is the effectiveness of treatment?
Cognitive behavioral therapy and chemical castration seem effective
There is no pure determinate sentencing
Consistent with: 1. Abolition of parole 2. Sentencing guidelines/Structured sentencing 3. Mandatory minimum sentences 4. Three-strikes laws 5. Truth-in-sentencing- laws
Perceptions: Correctional officers and female inmates
Correctional Officers: 1. Females are harder to manage 2. More difficult to deal with routinely 3. Complain too much 4. Are involved in petty disputes 5. Suffer adaptation issues (Men adapt to the prison environment faster) Female Inmates: 1. We are treated like children 2. We are punished for petty violations (unlike men)
Other effects
Costs Property values Family disruptions Increased homelessness
Economic-compulsive crime
Crimes committed to maintain crime habit
Do Sexual Offenders have higher recidivism?
Depends how you measure it and what you compare it with -study population; definitions (how you define sexual assaults and attempts); sources; follow-up periods; sample characteristics When you compare sex offense recidivism-->sex offenders are more likely to commit other sexual offenses when they recidivate (not other crimes) -For example, robbers are more likely to recidivate in comparison to sexual offenses for all crimes. -Common perception that all or most SO reoffend is untrue. There is no empirical data that all or most sexual offenses reoffend, -Some subpopulations pose high risk, i.e., homosexual child molesters
Jails (Corrections)
Detention facilities -Convicted and unconvicted persons John Irwin said: Jails are populated disproportionate with members of the "ramble" class -Most of them have NOT committed serious crimes
Do drug polices increase, decrease, or have no effect on crime? (Drugs)
Drug control policies can cause/increase crime -When drugs are banned, tightly regulated, or heavily taxed as to support an illicit drug market, violence among drug dealers and in the markets is likely. -Drug policies and enforcement contribute to mass incarceration in the U.S.
Does drug use increase criminal activity among users?
Drugs directly and indirectly relate to crime commission.
Drug market
Drugs lead to drug market that is characterized by violence, organized crime, etc. Counteragrument: wouldn't exist if drugs were made legal
Psychopharmacologic crime
Drugs make people angry, impulsive, etc. i.e., they lead people to shoot others. Counterargument: not all drugs make people this way (i.e., marijuana calms people)
Community Policing
Emerged because there was a bad relationship between minorities and police. -Adresses racial conflicts -Gets people to trust the police, so more crime can be reported -Qualities: community cooperation, handling non criminal matters, softer image PREVENTATIVE **many jurisdictions report using CP, but they don't (hard to access effectiveness)
Civil commitment laws
Gives discretion to jury or judge to decide if a SO should be released to the community following their confinement period or whether they should be placed in a secure DSHS-operated facility for control, care, and treatment.
What does the phrase "Great American Gun War" refer to? (Gun Policies)
In search of an effective gun-control policy
What is policing like today?
Increasingly guided by statistical evidence -Triple "T" policing: Targeting, testing, and tracking 1. Police should conduct and apply good research to target scarce resources on predictable concentrations of harm from crime and disorder. 2. Once police choose their high-priority targets, they should review or conduct tests of police methods to help choose what works best to reduce harm 3. Once police agencies use research to target their tested practices, they should generate and use internal evidence to track the daily delivery and effects of those practices, including public perceptions of police legitimacy
Intrafamilial vs. Extrafamilial Offenders
Intrafamilial offenders expose kids to porn, use gifts, and threats, whereas extrafamilial ones use alcohol and drugs.
Sexual assault in prison
Is a major problem in American prisons. -Predatory assaults are overrepresented in prisons -Sex is used as a tool of power and control
Shall Issue Laws
Lott and Mustard (1997): jurisdiction is one that requires a license to carry a concealed handgun, but where the granting of such licenses is subject only to meeting determinate criteria laid out in the law. Shall- issue laws have had little effect on violent crime or property crime
"Ferguson Effect" in America
May be tied to why crime has gone up. Police wear body cameras, afraid of getting into trouble
Jessica's Law (FL, 20005)
Notification by police when sexual offenders move into your community.
Koban Japanese Police Box
Police work from these that are strategically placed in specific areas. Contributes to Japan's low crime rate -Kind of focused on community policing (can give directions to citizens, tell pedestrians it is safe to cross street, etc.) -Shapes of boxes can appeal to residents (i.e., owl, bell, etc.) -Officers can reside in residential Koban
Innovative policing
Policing that is largely preventive; non-intimidating
Arguments for guns
Practical: 1. People kill people (it's the people you have to worry about, not guns) 2. Unfeasible to prevent determined criminals from obtaining a gun 3. Self-defense (people may use gun even when they legitimately shouldn't, i.e., vigilantism) Philosophical -Different value system
Sentencing guidelines/Structured sentencing
Provide guidance at the moment of judicial sentencing through rules and recommendations addressed to sentencing judges
Democratic Policing
Providing protection while respecting rights -effective policing in terms of public safety without violating people's constitutional rights ex. building rapport with community members from different cultural backgrounds, trained to know cultural differences -research has shown that female police officers receive less complaints from the public, more communicative, handle situations better -suggestions for police to live in/be familiar with the area where they patrol -more minorities on police force? -emphasize post-secondary education (not just hs or Associate's) -accountability
Reactive Policing
Reactively going to scene of the crime after it has been committed (i.e, responding to phone calls and seeing suspicious activity while patrolling) TRADITIONAL policing
No le prosequi
Refers to the prosecutor's decision to drop the case (not charge the offense) 1. Insufficient evidence -Physical -Testimonial 2. Triviality of offense -May be dropped or diverted 3. Unappealing/unconventional cases -Domestic disputes; disputes between acquaintances --Also much less likely to result in conviction 4. Very few (< 1%) cases dropped for technicality
The effectiveness of mandatory arrests for domestic violence (Sherman Study).
Sherman conducted experiments in 5 areas--Omaha, Milwaukee, Charlotte, Dade County (FL), and Colorado Springs--to replicate Minneapolis study. --Found that mandatory arrest for domestic violence is NOT evidence-based policing --Also found that the effects of arrest on recidivism varied depending on if suspect was employed. ***Only suspects who were employed at the time of arrest were deterred. ***Arrested, unemployed suspects were not deterred and were more likely to recidivate.
Sentencing discretion
The ability to affect sentencing outcomes through the exercise of official authority
Chemical castration vs. Surgical castration
The former involves administering drugs to sexual offenders to remove the desire to have sex. While the latter involves the removal of testes, which releases testosterone-->diminished sexual desires
Anticipatory Socialization
The problem with prisons, is that prisoners get accustomed to prison lifestyle. Actually affects both prison and guards. Known as Institutionalization or Prisonization. --Thus, the goal is anticipatory socialization: keeping prisoners focused on returning to society.
Issues with female inmates
The reason why women are increasingly getting involved in the criminal justice system is due to how judges and other parties process their crimes. It is not that women are getting more violent.
Reliability of background checks
The reliability of the screening process in identifying proscribed applicants is limited by the generally poor quality of criminal history records and inaccessibility of mental health records, and by the fact that most jurisdictions would-be buyers are identified only through a driver's license or other document that is readily forged. Nonetheless, data suggests that the screening process has been effective in keeping guns out of the hands of some violent criminals in some states. Brady Background checks demonstrate that a considerable number of proscribed people do attempt to to buy handguns from licensed dealers without concealing their identity. THERE IS NO GUARANTEE
Problem-Oriented Policing
Using evidence and technology (i.e., GIS) to determine what places need police resources the most Qualities: Work smarter, not harder; focus on problems; policing is not only law enforcement; SARA Ex. Hot Spot Policing -Also involves accessing other problems (i.e., unemployment, few street lights, etc.) -Hard to implement: officers may not know how to use GIS, not enough resources, costs $ MOST EFFECTIVE
Treatment v. Custody
Treatment always incidental to custody --Claim that Prisons never "gave up" on treatment, but really they never gave in --Odd that prison is referred to as a "correctional institution" because only 5-10% of prison budget is allocated to treatment.
True or false, Majority of SO are sexual polymporphous?
True. Sexual offenders switch from victim to victim
Hot Spot Policing
Typically focuses on small area/few addresses that have a high concentration of crime. 50% of all crime comes from 3% of these areas (hot spots)
Utilitarian and non-utilitarian punishments (know example of cheating)
Utilitarian: (for the greater good) -Deterrence: swift, fit the punishment, and certain; ex. XF -Rehabilitation: ex. study halls, code of conduct training -Incapacitation: ex. academic suspension, expulsion, testing by yourself with cameras -Restoration: ex. round table with parents, teacher, students, etc.; cheater apologizes for wrong done, solution to repair harm Non-utilitarian -Retribution -Just deserts: Punishments must be closely fitted to crime seriousness, and offender culpability, restricted by the offender's state of mind during the commission of the offense
Who has a higher probability for of recidivism for sexual offenses?
Young (18-25), single, conviction for other sexual offenses, prior sexual offenses, victim not related to offender, victims were male/strangers
Young Offenders vs. Older Adult Offenders
Younger offenders use a wider range of strategies as well as more violence than adults; adult offenders who abuse older children more likely to use manipulative strategy. Typical characteristics of young offenders: 1. Male 2. Knows victim 3. Common strategies to gain access and compliance=victim de-sensitization/grooming (depends on age of the victim; suggestibility)
