Showing papers in "Justice Research and Policy in 2001"
TL;DR: In this article, an approach based on police early warning systems was proposed to assess the racial and ethnic distribution of people stopped by the San Jose Police Department (SJPD) using the first traffic stop data reports from the SJPD.
Abstract: In response to widespread allegations of racial and ethnic discrimination in traffic stops, a practice that has been labeled “racial profiling,” law enforcement agencies are now collecting data on traffic stops that include the race or ethnicity of drivers. Interpreting these data to determine whether a pattern of race discrimination exists poses enormous difficulties. Specifically, it is not clear what baseline (often referred to as “the denominator”) should be used to assess the racial and ethnic distribution of people stopped. Using the first traffic stop data reports from the San Jose Police Department as a case study, this paper examines baselines that are commonly used or discussed as appropriate. The paper argues that resident population data and/or official crime data are not adequate as baselines. As an alternative, the paper proposes an approach based on police early warning systems.
122 citations
TL;DR: This article examined the relationship between where the offenders live and where children congregate to see whether offenders choose to reside in areas with high concentrations of children, and concluded with a discussion of the policy implications of the findings.
Abstract: Despite the publicity surrounding several high-profile sex offender incidents in the 1990s, relatively little research has been done on sex offenders themselves. This article reports on a study of sex offenders in one Arkansas county who had children as victims. Specifically, we examined the relationship between where the offenders live and where children congregate to see whether offenders choose to reside in areas with high concentrations of children. We use routine activities theory as a foundation for explaining our results, and conclude with a discussion of the policy implications of the findings.
78 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a survey of law enforcement officers from a stratified national sample, as well as interviews with advocacy and human rights professionals, discuss all of these factors and their impact on hate crime reporting.
Abstract: Due to sporadic and often perfunctory compliance with the Hate Crime Statistics Act of 1990, official data on hate crime currently tell us little about the prevalence of hate crime nationally. Reasons for this include lack of departmental infrastructure to support accurate reporting, lack of training, officer disincentives to accurately report, and, perhaps most importantly, hesitation on the part of victims to involve law enforcement in these matters. Using a survey of law enforcement officers from a stratified national sample, as well as interviews with advocacy and human rights professionals, this article will discuss all of these factors and their impact on hate crime reporting. Suggestions for improvement involve working on police/minority group relations, as well as building appropriate departmental infrastructure.
46 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present three case studies through which objectives and performance measures are conceptualized for community policing performance measures and present a case study for each of them, as well as case studies for the objectives and metrics.
Abstract: As the philosophy of policing moves from a traditional to a community-oriented approach, performance measures must shift as well. Unlike the typical police performance measures of arrest and crime rates found in traditional police philosophies, community-oriented policing performance measures are more general and tend to measure the extent to which police affect the quality of life in the communities they serve as well as the problems they solve. This manuscript begins the process of developing effective community policing performance measures and presents three case studies through which objectives and performance measures are conceptualized.
40 citations
16 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present a patchwork of federal, state, and local policies addressing crimes motivated by bias or hate toward particular groups. But they do not discuss the role of local police in these policies.
Abstract: Local police are responsible for implementing a patchwork of federal, state, and local policies addressing crimes motivated by bias or hate toward particular groups. The research presented here exa...
12 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors demonstrate how police agencies can use GIS to shift some of their focus to more internal matters and take advantage of the inferential capabilities of the geography-based approach.
Abstract: Police departments across the country have turned to geographic information systems (GIS) to identify crime patterns within their jurisdictions, design responses, and evaluate their performance. In addition, many agencies have adopted a geography-based, COMPSTAT-like process to hold police managers accountable for activity within their commands. However, a purely external and descriptive focus fails to take full advantage of all that a true GIS has to offer. This is particularly true when trying to understand complex police-citizen interactions. In this article, we demonstrate how police agencies can use GIS to shift some of their focus to more “internal” matters and take advantage of the inferential capabilities of the geography-based approach. We concentrate on citizen complaints against police in the city of Philadelphia over a two-and-a-half-year period (1998–2000). Data include the type of complaint, the location of the incident, the home address of the complainant, and a variety of census measures. ...
11 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined the effectiveness of an experimental training program designed to improve officers' recognition of juveniles' developmental difference and change their attitudes toward their role in handling aggressive or potentially aggressive juveniles.
Abstract: Law enforcement training programs rarely address how juvenile developmental differences affect police encounters with aggressive or potentially aggressive juveniles. This neglect is surprising since a large percentage of police threat of or use of force contacts are with juveniles. While additional training represents one strategy to address this shortcoming, it is unclear whether such training affects the police officers' perceptions of juveniles and their attitudes toward handling juvenile aggression. This study examines the effectiveness of an experimental training program designed to improve officers' recognition of juveniles' developmental difference and change their attitudes toward their role in handling aggressive or potentially aggressive juveniles. Results showed that training affected officer responses in the desired direction directly following training and at follow-up. Additionally, these findings indicated that a majority of trained officers who encountered aggressive juveniles utilized ver...
11 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined 557 violent young offenders from Pennsylvania, of which 138 were judicially waived to adult court and 419 were retained in juvenile court, and found that the transferred youths were more likely to be released from secure custody prior to a final disposition of their charges.
Abstract: This study focused on the immediate justice system response to violent youths in juvenile versus adult court. We examined 557 violent young offenders from Pennsylvania, of whom 138 were judicially waived to adult court and 419 were retained in juvenile court. Statistical analyses revealed that the transferred youths were more likely to be released from secure custody prior to a final disposition of their charges. Of those offenders who were released, the transferred youths also were more likely to recidivate and exhibited more serious predispositional recidivism than did the retained juveniles. These findings suggest the presence of an initial “custody gap” for violent youths waived to the adult criminal system.
9 citations
TL;DR: The authors examines racial parity in the formal disciplinary system of the Philadelphia Police Department (PPD) using data drawn from a random sample of 499 Philadelphia police officers and linked to race discrimination.
Abstract: This article examines racial parity in the formal disciplinary system of the Philadelphia Police Department (PPD). Data drawn from a random sample of 499 Philadelphia police officers are linked to ...
8 citations
TL;DR: The role of the Sentencing Commission in the District of Columbia's criminal justice system has been discussed in this article, where it is argued that a continuous learning system that makes data-driven decisions and continuously monitors its environment to build knowledge for future action is needed.
Abstract: The District of Columbia's criminal justice system is being restructured following Congress' enactment of the National Capital Revitalization Act of 1997, which will govern sentencing of all felony offenses committed on or after August 5, 2000. The Revitalization Act abolishes parole for offenders convicted of violent crimes. In addition, all District of Columbia prisoners will serve their felony sentences with the Federal Bureau of Prisons, and every felony prison sentence must be followed by a period of post-release supervision in the community. This paper reviews selected past, present, and likely future challenges to the District's sentencing and corrections system. It discusses the role to date of the Sentencing Commission, which, it is argued, provides a vehicle for creating a continuous learning system within the District of Columbia. A continuous learning system—a system that makes data-driven decisions and continuously monitors its environment to build knowledge for future action—would engage practitioners such as attorneys and probation officers, policymakers in the legislative, executive and judicial branches, and knowledge-builders including Commission members and staff.