For decades, research has consistently demonstrated that minorities are overrepresented in the prison population, yet relatively little is known about whether juror perceptions about race and criminal culpability may impact this problem in the United States. Using Hill's folk theory of race and racism as the theoretical foundation, this cross sectional study examined the relationship between perceptions of the race of the defendant and the verdicts to be handed down. Data were collected from a convenience sample of 25 people who self-reported having served on a jury or were eligible for jury service within the past 5 years in a southwest Georgia community. The instrument used was original and designed to capture basic demographics of the respondents and perceptions about traits of the criminal defendants and their criminal culpability. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and chi-square tests to examine whether participants' perceptions of race, income, and education of the defendant were statistically associated. Income and educational ranges were assigned to the defendants. Findings revealed 76% of respondents believed that baggy clothes are predictors of criminality. Furthermore, 72% of participants associated baggy pants with African Americans. It is possible that a correlation exists between associating African Americans with baggy pants and baggy clothes with criminality. Chi square results indicate that participants' beliefs of whether defendants were 'likely or extremely likely' to commit criminal offenses based on race, education level, and income of the defendants were not statistically significant. These findings may be important to court systems in terms of better understanding race relations in the United States as it relates to justice system equality.

Employer Attitudes and Beliefs About Hiring Post-Incarcerated Offenders in Mississippi by Ora Starks MS, Criminal Justice, 1999 BS, Criminal Justice,1994 Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Human Services Program Criminal Justice Specialization Walden University May 2018

Prior research examining criminogenic risk and need suggests that dynamic factors (i.e., criminogenic needs) are best suited for intervention and treatment as they are changeable over time. Thus, dynamic factors can be targeted to reduce the likelihood of recidivism among youth in the juvenile justice system. The assessment of needs is critical as it allows for the prediction of future delinquency and the ability to provide appropriate services/treatment for juvenile offenders. Several studies have shown that youth present with multiple needs and that these needs differ by gender. Therefore, the current study utilized a sample of adjudicated youth under community supervision from all counties in Florida from 2007 to 2015. Latent class analysis was employed to create need profiles based on dynamic factor domains from the Community Positive Achievement Change Tool (C-PACT). The relationships between the need classes and various justice-related factors and outcomes (i.e., race/ethnicity, age, risk level and static risk factors, change in dynamic needs, and recidivism) were also assessed. Furthermore, the analyses were conducted separately for males and females to examine for possible gender differences. Findings demonstrate that there are different multiple needs that present within males and females. With a few exceptions, the latent classes do not predict recidivism. However, the gender-specific subgroups do predict change in dynamic needs. Based on the findings, theoretical and practical implications are discussed that focus on the use of risk assessment instruments and rehabilitation in the juvenile justice system. Directions for future research are also discussed.

The current research focuses on the risk factors for bully profiles, antisocial behavior across profiles, and patterns of bullying behavior over the span of four school years. The sample was comprised of 1,817 middle school students from seven school districts. Latent profile analysis, multivariate regression techniques, and latent transition analysis were used to meet the five objectives of this study: 1) identify unique subgroups of youth based on responses to different bully experiences, 2) determine similarities and differences in risk factors that are associated with bully experiences, 3) examine antisocial behavior across identified bully profiles, 4) determine if membership in bully profiles is stable or changes over time, and 5) assess the similarities and differences in the risk factors associated with transition patterns over four time points. Results indicated that unique subgroups of youth exist based on bully perpetration and bully victimization experiences. Similarities and differences arose in the risk factors that were associated with bully experiences and transition patterns. However, across the identified bully profiles, antisocial behavior did not vary once time order was established. These results have important implications for research, practice, and policy, which are discussed.

The overall goal of this dissertation is to examine how the built and natural environment influences how potential criminals identify crime sites to offend within. Guided by the theoretical principles of crime site selection and crime pattern theory, this study specifically focuses on the crimes of street robbery and commercial burglary in three unique study locations—Atlanta, GA, Fayetteville, NC, and Rochester, NY. The data for this study were collected from multiple publicly available data repositories. Of these repositories, criminal incident data for the dependent variables were gathered from the National Policing Institute's Police Data Initiative. Data for the independent variables, which are representative of the built and natural environment, were collected from various open-source public and governmental agencies. To assess the influence of the built and natural environment on crime site selection, several techniques were employed. First, general spatial patterns were mapped using both kernel density estimation (KDE) and directional distribution analysis. Subsequently, temporal trends were identified by separating the data into several temporal units of analysis, including by meteorological season, weekday/weekend, and four-hour block increments. To assess multivariate relationships, two machine learning techniques were used: multivariate clustering and random forest classification. In alignment with prior literature, findings indicate that criminal incidents for both street robbery and commercial burglary cluster spatially and temporally. Of note, there are seasonal trends identified within the data, as well as trends relating to the time of day. Results from the multivariate clustering analysis reveal several unique spatial clusters of variables within each study location. The random forest classification and regression analysis rank ordered the importance of independent variables in their relationship to the criminal incidents in question. This ordering varied considerably depending on the temporal unit of analysis in question, which suggests the spatial predictors of street robbery and commercial burglary differ by season, weekday and weekend, and time of day. These results hold theoretical, methodological, and practical implications within the scope of environmental criminology.

Juvenile delinquency among the nation's youth is an ongoing concern. An essential task of juvenile justice workers is to identify and measure risk factors that impact a youth's likelihood of recidivating. The Florida Department of Juvenile Justice (FDJJ) utilizes the Positive Achievement Change Tool (PACT) to assess the risk for recidivism among all juveniles referred to the system. The current study examined how youths' level and types of risk, as well as the ability of the PACT to predict the odds of reoffending and the time to reoffend, vary across urban and rural communities. This study drew upon theories of social disorganization and collective efficacy (Raudenbush & Sampson, 1999; Shaw & McKay, 1942) and Andrews and Bonta's (2010) Risk-Need-Responsivity (RNR) model. Secondary data was used from 10,229 juvenile probationers in Florida to conduct bivariate analyses including chi-square tests of significance, independent samples t-tests, area under the curve estimations, multivariate logistic regression, and survival analyses. Results indicated that a greater proportion of urban youths than rural youths were rated at higher risk levels for recidivism. Of the eight types of risks examined, only past antisocial behavior, current antisocial peers, and current substance abuse varied significantly across community type. Also, a significant relationship was found between recidivism and community type. Finally, the PACT predicted both the odds of recidivism and time to recidivism more accurately for urban youths than for rural youths. The findings of this study may help guide juvenile justice practitioners in more accurately identifying risk factors and in determining whether one risk assessment instrument is sufficient for assessing juveniles from different types of communities.

Law enforcement agencies across the United States are establishing real-time crime centers (RTCCs) at a rapid rate, yet research exploring the decisions to establish them is lacking. This study therefore attempts to fill that void by using a mixed methods approach to examine whether adaptive organizational theories, consisting of contingency theory (Lawrence & Lorsch, 1967; Woodward, 1965), resource dependency theory (Pfeffer & Salancik, 1978), and institutional theory (DiMaggio & Powell 1991; Meyer & Rowan, 1977), can be used to explain a law enforcement agency's decision to set up an RTCC. This cross-sectional mixed methods design comprised two different studies (Study 1 & Study 2). Study 1 consisted of a content analysis of newspaper articles (N = 235) that listed the terms "real-time crime center" or "real time crime center". The content analysis revealed that both resource dependency theory and contingency theory were likely factors for a law enforcement agency's decision to establish an RTCC. Study 2 included interviews of agency leaders of Florida law enforcement departments that had established an RTCC (N = 11) and those that had not (N = 2). A qualitative analysis of the interviews with agency leaders indicates that traditional organizational theories may not fully explain law enforcement agencies' adoption of RTCCs. The interviews partially confirmed the content analysis of newspaper articles while revealing a theme of front-line and mid-management influence on decision-making. This study found that internal lower-ranking "champions," not external forces, are the primary reason law enforcement agencies are establishing RTCCs, a term known as institutional entrepreneurship (DiMaggio 1988; Eisenstadt, 1980). This study is important because it provides a foundation for explaining why law enforcement agencies choose to set up RTCCs, a law enforcement organizational element whose establishment across the United States does not appear to be slowing anytime soon. This study also highlights an aspect of institutional theory not found in the criminal justice literature. Lastly, limitations and future directions for research are discussed.

Over the years, innovations such as community-oriented policing, problem-oriented policing, and crime analysis have helped police agencies control, reduce, and prevent crime and disorder, and improve police and community relations. However, research shows that some officers are resistant to using these innovations in practice. Few studies have examined the causal mechanisms behind innovation resistance. This doctoral dissertation details a study that utilized a mixed method approach to partially test a framework that encompassed two theories to explain officer resistance to innovation: The Model of Consumer Resistance to Innovation from the consumer psychology and marketing fields (Ram & Sheth, 1989), and the Monolithic Model of Police Occupational Culture (Paoline, 2003) from the police culture literature. The study was conducted at a midsize Central Florida police agency. The department recently introduced two new innovations, a community policing activity called the Community Interaction Project and an in-car computer system called Street Smart. The primary goal of the study was to examine officer attitudes toward these innovations using the theoretical framework. An Internet-based survey was disseminated to sworn staff (N = 263). In depth interviews were conducted with a sample of command staff and patrol officers (n = 19). Ordinary least squares multiple linear regression analysis of the survey results revealed that themes from the police occupational culture predicted innovation resistance barriers to the Community Interaction Project. The interviews revealed several additional themes that explain resistance to the Community Interaction Project and Street Smart. The dissertation concludes with a discussion of theoretical and methodological contributions to social science. Policy implications are provided for police practitioners. Limitations and future directions for study are also discussed.

In the aftermath of school shootings, policymakers presented the expansion of school resource officers (SROs) in the nation's schools as a method for keeping students safe. Recently, policing in the United States has come under increased scrutiny, and several school districts across the country cancelled their SRO contracts with law enforcement agencies. Notably, these contradictory decisions have been made with limited empirical knowledge surrounding, the roles, preparedness, and impact of SROs. A county in Florida substantially expanded its SRO program in the 2016-17 school year creating a new unit within the local sheriff's office and an opportunity to investigate these topics. A convergent parallel mixed methods design was applied to examine this new unit, consisting of a quantitative strand using interrupted time series analysis to assess the new program's effect on school-based arrests and Baker Act apprehensions, and a qualitative strand collecting and analyzing participant observations of training requirements and in-depth interviews with the SROs to explore their responsibilities, roles, and preparation for the position. Qualitative findings demonstrate that the primary role of the SROs is safety and security, while some also engage in a secondary role of engaging in positive interactions with the school community. Ambiguity exists surrounding execution of these roles, with the SROs relying a great deal on other relevant actors during decision-making. SROs identified the importance of careful selection for the position, training requirements are described, and problems with the training are identified. Contrary to this study's hypotheses, quantitative results show that the new unit did not have a statistically significant impact on overall school-based arrests, but disaggregating the data showed a significant impact on felony arrests. Similarly, there was no statistically significant impact on overall Baker Act apprehensions of students, however, there is preliminary evidence of an impact on elementary school-aged students.

The rate of suicidality in jail is estimated to be eight times greater than that of the general population, yet the identification of risk factors for suicidality among people incarcerated in jail has not been explored by researchers (Fazel, Grann, Kling & Hawton, 2011; Hayes, 1999; Noonan & Ginder, 2013). To date, the breadth of the literature on suicidology almost exclusively deals with the prison population or general public, and official data of completed suicides. However, when analyzing suicidality in jail and prison populations, it is evident they are not interchangeable and suicidal behaviors include more than just completed suicides. Identifying correlates of suicidality, the fuller spectrum of suicidal behaviors, allows for prevention and programming to be implemented before fatal self-harm occurs. This study seeks to identify correlates of suicidality, using the importations and deprivations models, of people incarcerated in jail as a means of better understanding this crisis, propose subsequent research, and equipping policymakers with the information they need to take action. Using data from self-reported surveys of jail inmates, this study focuses on predictors of a spectrum of suicidal behaviors other than completed suicide. This is the first such study on suicidality in jail environments and will inform research and policy.