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There are two clear-as-day facts about today’s criminal justice system: our incarceration rate is way, way up and our crime rates are down in serious ways. The relationship between these two is more difficult to tease apart. Without a background in criminology or knowing a great deal about the criminal justice system, it’s tempting to […]
April 18, 2012 by CrimeCents
“The social costs of obesity may be overstated if obesity reduces the likelihood of arrest because the obese are less criminally active.” I read a lot of academic work in criminology, and few peer-reviewed sentences cause me to laugh out loud. That line from an article by Kalist and Siahaan generated a belly laugh. Their […]
April 17, 2012 by CrimeCents
It’s no secret among victim service providers that funding is down and supporting victims of domestic violence requires ever more creative approaches. Uncovered Artistry offers a unique option that simultaneously provides economic and empowerment support to survivors of intimate partner violence. We interviewed Sarah and Angie to learn more about their work. CD: How did you […]
April 17, 2012 by CrimeCents
After so many years, what relevance is there in the Charles Manson case? I can think of two ways in which his case continues to play a role in the criminal justice system. Manson reminds us that our criminal justice system must be designed to handle the very worst crimes that human beings can imagine. […]
April 13, 2012 by CrimeCents
The Department of Justice does not exactly have a rep on the interwebs for hosting awesome video content. Not surprisingly, this public service announcement was not actually created by DOJ. Good thing, too, because if DOJ ever creates a video I actually like, it’s gonna seriously mess with my current paradigm. Tribal justice remains hard […]
The relationship between crime and the media has never been great — and by “never been great” what we really mean is “news reporting about crime wildly misrepresents actual crime and disrupts the political process by misleading the general public, who, in turn, demand that elected officials act upon outrageously distorted beliefs about crime.” Check […]
April 12, 2012 by CrimeCents
You have to watch this video twice. The first time, you will be mesmerized by this law professor’s raw talent for averaging 22.6 words per second with an unmatched ability to simultaneously entertain, wave his hand around, chew gum, rub his belly, and pat the top of head without breathing. Okay, I exaggerated. But only […]
April 11, 2012 by CrimeCents
Stacy Knutson has reportedly worked for a small salary and tips at the Fryn’ Pan restaurant in Moorhead, Minnesota, for eighteen years. Eighteen years is an awfully long time. And waiting tables generates an awfully small income to help support a family of seven, including her husband and five children. Despite all this, Knutson is […]
April 11, 2012 by CrimeCents
A gun was used to murder my friend and classmate when I was in elementary school. That death haunted not only my childhood, but my college and adult years. In some ways, entering the criminal justice field as an adult was an attempt to resolve that powerful tragedy of my youth. I can still picture […]
April 18, 2012 by CrimeDime
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