Category: Criminology

 
Produce a case study that critically evaluates the ways in which victims of this crime may develop a sense of inefficacy and inadequacy, and how this might evolve into a wider societal ‘fear’ of becoming a victim of this crime. The study should also examine the ways in which offenders who commit this crime are managed by the criminal justice agencies, and the role the media play in developing and promoting ‘typologies’ of both victims and offenders.

Include question in your answer but do not use towards your page count. Paper should be at least 12 pages with the questions included.
I. Across several different topics this semester we have encountered situations in which the courts grapple with whether the decision to exclude evidence should be made using the standard of totality of the circumstances or whether there should be a Per Se exclusion.

1) Identify at least one case (covered in this course) relating to eyewitness identification where this issue was discussed. Which way did the court come down (that is, did they decide there should be a per se exclusion or did they decide that the standard should be totality of the circumstances)? Briefly describe the details of the case and explain the court’s decision. (2 points)

2) Identify at least one case (covered in this course) related to confessions (either adult or juvenile) in which this issue of per se versus totality of circumstances was discussed. Which way did the court come down (that is, did they decide there should be a per se exclusion or did they decide that the standard should be totality of the circumstances)? Briefly describe the details of the case and explain the court’s decision. (2 points)
3) Identify one advantage of using the per se standard and one advantage of using the totality of circumstances standard to determine if evidence should be excluded. (3 points)

II. The death penalty is a very controversial issue and the courts have flip-flopped in terms of setting standards for implementation of this punishment.

1) Describe a case (covered in this course) in which the Supreme Case considered the impact of race on the imposition of the death penalty. What was the court’s ruling? How did the court deal with social science data related to the issue? Do you think the court appropriately applied the social science data (explain your opinion)? (3 points)

2) What has the Supreme Court most recently decided about the constitutionality of executing mentally retarded defendants? Identify the case, as well as the previous Supreme Court case on this issue, and briefly explain the court’s rationale for its most recent decision. (2 points)

3) What has the Supreme Court most recently decided about the constitutionality of executing juvenile defendants? Identify the case, as well as the previous Supreme Court case on this issue, and explain the court’s rationale for its most recent decision. (2 points)

III. Discuss your understanding of the current state of the field regarding violence risk assessment in terms of the following:

1) What do we mean by an actuarial risk assessment tool? Name one such tool for violence risk assessment and one for sexual violence risk assessment. (2 points)

2) Violence risk can be assessed either through use of actuarial tools or through structured clinical judgment. Describe at least one advantage and one disadvantage of using: a) an actuarial tool; and b) structured clinical judgment, to assess risk of violent recidivism. (3 points)

3) What is the relationship between mental illness and violence? Be sure to cite the bases for your conclusions (that is, cite the research that justifies the conclusion). (3 points)
IV. In order for a defendant to give a valid confession, he or she must do so knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily.

1) In the lecture and the text, we discussed the case of Colorado v. Connelly. Which of the 3 elements (knowing, intelligent, voluntary) was the focus of the Connelly case? Briefly describe the case, the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling (that is, did the court decide that the confession should be admissible or not), and the court’s rationale. (3 points)

2) What are the 3 types of false confessions identified in the literature? Briefly describe the characteristics of these types of false confessions. (3 points)

3) The literature focuses on three factors that can contribute to false confessions: situational factors, intellectual factors , and personality factors. Choose two of these three factors and briefly explain how they can lead to false confessions. (2 points)
Extra Credit question (optional): (2 points)

V. An inmate who has completed his sentence for a charge of Rape is facing commitment as a Sexually Dangerous Predator. His lawyer claims that the hearing cannot proceed because the inmate is mentally ill and not competent to stand trial. The prosecutor does not contest that the man is mentally ill but claims that a sex offender commitment hearing can proceed without the defendant being competent to stand trial. What is your opinion? Explain your rationale.

literature review should present a synthesis of the research evidence (national and
international scholarly and other credible sources) regarding the effectiveness of crime prevention
approaches that might be suitable. The literature review should be formatted as follows:
• Introduction: briefly outlines the problem and introduces the content of the review;
• Body paragraphs: a number of separate paragraphs summarizing and comparing the
research evidence regarding a range of crime prevention approaches;
• Conclusion that makes recommendations (an argument) as to which crime prevention
approaches are most likely to be effective;
• Reference List (alphabetical, not included in word count)
The Literature Review should include Harvard or APA in-text referencing throughout, and be
formatted in 12pt font (Times New Roman or Calibri) with 1.5 line spacing and with justified
(straight) edges.

Step 1. CHOOSE: 5 Tables or Figures or a Combination
In Week 8 you read Chapter 2 of Brookman, “Patterns and Characteristics of Homicide in the UK.”
This chapter provided a description of:
(1) Homicide Counts, Rates, and Trends; and
(2) Characteristics of Offenders, Victims, and Circumstances.
There are 14 Tables and 8 Figures in Chapter 2.
After reading Chapter 2, you must choose 5 Tables, Figures, or a Combination.
Your choices will enable you to engage in a Comparative Analysis of Homicide Data between the US and the UK.
Because the sizes of the respective countries are so different, you must focus on only those tables and figures that
provide Rates and Percentages as this type of data is not susceptible to population disparities.
• You cannot directly compare Count or Frequency data between the two countries because the population
disparity is so immense between the US and the UK.
• Some Brookman tables are not easy to recreate using the US Homicide data.
• Others can be created quite easily.
• Some Tables do not have any US analogues at all and are shown below as CANNOT USE.
• Some Tables you can choose, but they are bad choices – please see above.
YOUR CHOICE OF THE 5 TABLES FROM BROOKMAN CHAPTER 2 IS CRUCIAL
Step 2. GET THE US DATA TO MATCH YOUR FIVE BROOKMAN TABLES
Below is a list of all the Brookman tables and figures and where you go to create the US data:
BROOKMAN: Where to get US Data: Step 3. CREATE THE US TABLE TO MATCH THE BROOKMAN TABLE
Step 4. Explain why you chose the five (5) tables/figures that you found the most interesting.
20pts.
Step 5. Compare the 5 tables/figures from Brookman to the 5 tables/figures for the US and discuss the
70pts. similarities or differences.
Step 6. * Include in your paper the Brookman Tables and the comparison US Tables and Figures.
10pts. * You can scan the Brookman tables and insert them into the Appendix or retype them.
* You do not need to try to put any Brookman Figures into the paper. Only her Tables.
Basically your goal is to compare and contrast the homicide data for the two countries to demonstrate the
extent to which aspects of homicide in the two countries are alike and where they are different.

You will have to complete quiz in one sitting. In other words, once you start the quiz it must be completed. You cannot log out and return to it at another time. You have 60 minutes to complete the quiz.Once started, this test must be completed in one sitting. Do not leave the test before clicking Save and Submit.

Using the main assumptions of Classical Criminology and its more modern version known as Rational Choice Theory, what do you think are the most significant arguments for and against capital punishment?

As part of this Essay, and after considering both sides, should capital punishment be abolished and or retained…and specifically why?

the following (4) questions using web, print and book sources. Each question should be answered with minimum 250 words and contain 2 sources.

1.Why do serial killers get so much attention? Is the attention they receive a contemporary issue due to the media advances of the modern era? What role does the media play in the attention they receive?

2.How can researchers explore biology and environment when trying to identify common denominators for serial offenders? How do we explain those in society, having the same common denominators who do not commit crime?
3.How, and why, do criminals, justice academics, and professionals distinguish between serial murderers and mass murderers? Discuss the similarities and differences between these types of killers.

4.Why, in judgements of dangerousness, are practitioners prone to have a high ratio of false positives? What are some of the pitfalls of profiling that can lead to such conclusions?

This paper will address criminal just reform to include crime reduction and prison reductions. This will be addressed in a sort of holistic approach to the issue at hand and subissues will be touched upon because in criminal justice everything is relative. For example, abortion, medical marijuana, education, etc. all play a role in the criminal justice system. The rational-choice theory and political systems theory must be utiliz

In Week 3 you worked with the 2nd set of Homicide Data based on the spreadsheet I provided and the datafor a third state that you procured from the FBI’s website. The specific topic was State Long Term Trends& Patterns. You compared three states to one another and to the national data that were examined in Week2.

Writing Assignment 1 directs you to address the following issues based on Weeks 2 & 3.
1. 30pts. What does the Week 2 graph show about the trend in Homicide Rates across a 50+ year
period?

Make sure you offer as many Explanations as possible [not descriptions of the trends as
these are already available in the notes].
2. 45 pts.

In Week 3 you compared three states to the National data AND to each other in terms of theHomicide and Non-negligent Manslaughter rate and you created a graph.
Compare the three states to the US AND to each other in terms of the Homicide and NonnegligentManslaughter rate and discuss the following:

1. Do the three states show the same trend across time as the national data?
2. Which state looks the most like the national trend?
3. Which states, if any, look closer to one another?
3. 25pts. Best Possible Explanation / Hypothesis
After studying the data, what is your Best Possible Hypothesis concerning:
1. Why one of the states shows Homicide rates that are closer to the national results?
2. Why the two states that look more alike do so.

FORMAT
Your paper must be word-processed, double spaced, with margins of 1″ on all four sides, with page
numbers, and Times New Roman 12 font. The paper MUST be a minimum of 5 typed pages and amaximum of 6.

Some of you may inevitably want to submit a longer paper. But, please be advised that itwill generally not be necessary to write more than about 5-6 pages to cover all the required itemssatisfactorily.

For Issue #2 above, you need to cut and paste the graph from your analyses into an Appendix so I can seethe data for myself. Naturally, I already have the Issue # 1 results from the BJS main page.v

Review the attached PDF file on youth involvement in white collar (i.e., “consumptive”) crimes and the following video and reading:
Required Video (Differential Association and Social Learning):
After exploring these three sources, prepare a 2-3 paragraph short essay for our discussion board that discusses the current economic crisis in the United States (e.g., income inequality, unemployment, lack of access to affordable education) and the possibility that an increase in crime could occur connected to these economic or social conditions (hint: think Merton’s Strain Theory and other social learning theories).
Tying the readings into your assignment, also discuss how future of non-violent crime may unfold. Be sure to discuss the types of crimes that might increase, which demographics might engage in them, and any specific theories from your readings this week that relate to them.
Use the Discussion Thread that I’ve set up in our Course Site to post your response.

As a bit of a twist to your usual commenting on a particular post from one of your classmates, rather than simply critiquing their posting, try and OFFER A SOLUTION to the problem of increasing crime that they’ve presented.