Body-worn cameras are a promising new development in policing. They have been linked to positive outcomes such as decreases in use of force and complaints against officers. However, this new technology has produced a number of issues that could thwart a successful body-worn camera program implementation. One issue is the extent in which officers possess positive attitudes toward using body-worn cameras. If officers do not view body-worn cameras positively, cameras may not be used to their full potential. A promising factor that has emerged from past research in explaining attitudes toward body-worn cameras is organizational justice. Broadly, organizational justice is defined as the extent in which members of an organization are treated fairly and believe this to be the case. Organizational justice has been linked to positive organizational outcomes such as increased compliance with organizational directives and positive evaluation of organizational leadership. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between organizational justice and attitudes toward body-worn cameras in police officers across three agencies. Findings indicated that there was no observable relationship between perceptions of organizational justice and attitudes toward body-worn cameras. There were a number of competing explanations for the findings, including potential measurement issues, possible intervening variables, and the possibility that there is no relationship between organizational justice and attitudes toward body-worn cameras.

Si, juridiquement, la responsabilité s’envisage comme l’aptitude et l’obligation de répondre de ses actes, d’en assumer les conséquences ; sa reconnaissance suit, en pratique, deux objectifs distincts : la réparation d’un préjudice et la sanction de celui se trouvant à l’origine du dommage. Or, qu’il s’agisse de parvenir à l’une ou l’autre de ces finalités, l’on observera que des régimes de responsabilité ont précisément été pensés et organisés à l’occasion de l’activité judiciaire. Toutefois, si ces systèmes prévoient la réparation du « dommage causé par le fonctionnement défectueux du service de la justice » et/ou la sanction d’un juge personnellement fautif, la reconnaissance d’une responsabilité du fait de la fonction juridictionnelle, elle-même, reste diffuse, voire taboue face à la traditionnelle levée de boucliers, lesquels concernent principalement les garanties attachées à l’office juridictionnel et les qualités de l’acte juridictionnel lui-même. Pourtant, si la fonction juridictionnelle comporte en elle-même un « facteur risque » - l’aléa judiciaire – force est de constater qu’elle s’exerce, aussi et parfois, en méconnaissance du droit objectif ; réalité, qui, mise notamment en exergue par la jurisprudence de la Cour européenne des droits de l’homme, se révèle assurément préjudiciable non seulement pour les parties concernées, mais, au-delà, pour la collectivité toute entière. Partant, en reconnaissant que « dire le droit et trancher les litiges » puisse s’effectuer – marginalement mais assurément – en méconnaissance d’un droit au respect de la légalité, la question de la consécration d’une responsabilité du fait de la jurisdictio, parallèlement aux régimes actuellement en vigueur, se poserait. Aussi, et sans pour autant considérer qu’une décision soit en elle-même fautive, il s’agirait de rechercher dans quelle mesure et selon quelles modalités pourrait émerger une responsabilité du juge, laquelle serait précisément juridictionnelle / Legally, responsibility is defined as the ability and the obligation to answer for one’s actions and bear the consequences; in practice, establishing responsibility has two separate aims: the compensation of a loss and the sanction imposed on the party having caused the damage. We will observe that legal responsibility systems have been designed and organised for both purposes. These systems provide for the compensation of “damage caused by the defective functioning of justice” and/or the sanction of a judge personally at fault. However, recognition of the responsibility of the jurisdictional function itself remains vague, and can still be a taboo in the face of the traditional hue and cry it triggers, which mainly result from the safeguards attached to the jurisdictional office and the very quality of the jurisdictional act. Although the jurisdictional function itself contains a “risk factor” – legal hazard – one also has to admit it is sometimes exercised in ignorance of objective law. This is a reality which has been underlined by the European Court of Human Rights, among others, and which is surely detrimental not only to the parties involved, but also to the community as a whole.Therefore, admitting that “judgement may be passed and disputes settled” while – rather rarely, but definitely – ignoring the right to see the law obeyed raises the question of adding the sanction of a responsibility borne by the jurisdictio to the systems currently in use. So without questioning the validity of the judgement itself, we would have to establish to what extent and under what terms the judge’s responsibility might emerge. Such responsibility would indeed be jurisdictional

Dade County (Miami, Florida) government officials, made various attempts in recent years to reduce the number of robberies committed against tourists in the Greater Miami area. This exploratory, descriptive study reviewed those efforts focusing on the most recent attempt, a problem-oriented police response, the Tourist-Oriented Police Program (TOP). TOP's area of assignment was examined to determine if robberies were reduced and if robberies increased in the surrounding area, indicating possible displacement. Additionally, the robbery and tourist robbery rates of the county were examined to determine if TOP may have been a causal factor in any change. Data from area police departments of robberies occurring from 1989 through 1994 were retrieved and analyzed. Utilizing an interrupted time series design model, raw numbers and percentages of robberies in several geographic areas were compared. A subjective interpretation of the data suggests that TOP was a causal factor in reduction, and that robberies were not significantly, if at all, displaced into other areas.

abstract: The Santa Cruz River Basin shared by Northern Sonora and Southern Arizona is one example of transboundary water resources in the borderlands region that accurately portrays the complexities of binational management of common pool resources, such as water. Industrialization fueled by trade liberalization has resulted in migration to and urbanization along the border, which have created human rights issues with the lack of water and sanitation, groundwater overdraft of the shared aquifers, and contamination of these scarce resources. Effluent from wastewater treatment plants continues to play increasingly important roles in the region, the use of which has been a source of tension between the two countries. Contributing to these tensions are the strains on binational relations created by border militarization and SB 1070. A shift in water management strategies to increase pubic participation within decision-making, increase the flexibility of the water systems, and increase cross-border collaboration is needed to ensure human and ecological sustainability in the Santa Cruz River Basin. By incorporating direct communication and local capacity as per common pool resource theory, recognizing the connections and implications of management actions through socio-ecological systems understanding, and promoting the organic drivers of change through ecologies of agents, just and vigorous futures can be envisioned and advanced. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Justice Studies 2015

The rural revolution, as coined by the Ontario Landowners' Association (OLA), has gained considerable momentum in the past five years. Its activism in the pursuit of environmental justice, initiated by the perception of a government too intrusive into rural affairs, has evolved both externally and internally of governmental decision making structures. The association has moved from primarily using purposeful illegality, such as demonstrations, to active involvement in provincial politics. In this context, the qualitative research presented in this thesis is guided by three research objectives: (1) to develop a conceptual framework of environmental justice; (2) to examine the utility of the components of this conceptual framework within the rural revolution context; and, (3) to explore the perceptions of key stakeholders regarding the Ontario Landowner Associations' influence on rural public policy efforts to attain environmental justice. These three research objectives seek ultimately to address the central research purpose: To explore the concept of activism as a tenet of environmental justice by examining the case study of the OLA. The primary focus of the central research purpose, therefore, is on the traits of the OLA, or associated research themes, that have the potential to influence public policy content, its implementation, and its acceptance in rural Ontario. These associated research themes are: the OLA's targeted issues, the OLA's mission, leadership, activism forms, barriers and facilitators to activism, membership, and any additional insights. Four stakeholder groups sensitive to environmental public policy directed at rural communities have been consulted. They are provincial and municipal elected politicians (architects of policy), managers and planners of provincial ministries (implementers of policy), rural and agricultural commodity and interest groups (recipients of policy), and the Ontario Landowners' Association (challengers of policy). A conceptual framework of environmental justice has been proposed and is presented here. Moreover, the perceptions revealed by the respondents allow for an examination of the utility of the environmental justice 'instruments' and 'barriers and facilitators' sections of the conceptual framework. Research results show that the OLA's influence on rural public policy is perceived to be based on the organization's credibility, which is in turn perceived as dependent upon a combination of the associated research themes. It is hypothesized that these findings not only pertain to the OLA, but have determined the variables responsible for the perception of an effective activism group in general. Furthermore, this research has reiterated the importance of perception studies. These reflections may well transcend the OLA case study and may prove meaningful for all stakeholder groups in the understanding of activism seeking to sustain or reclaim environmental justice. These reflections may also facilitate mutual respect for different points of view and differing contributions to environmental management.

The aim of this research is to examine the criminal justice system in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to illustrate the role of judges, and to describe the current scale of judicial independence within the realm of Chinese legal culture and the current political system. The importance of this research is to collect evidence which defines the nature of policy debate on China's judicial reform project to promote greater independence. The thesis begins with an overview of the current Chinese judicial system. Chapter One takes account of the considerable problems of the judiciary and the debate over reform which is addressed in existing literature, including the most recent policy guidelines of judicial reform announced in late 2007. According to the policy, it is clear that judicial reform is ongoing; what the Chinese Communist government requires is a mature, realistic and overarching reform program that promotes justice, ensures rule of law, and serves to engender political and social stability in China. Put simply, judicial reform towards greater independence must be compatible with the characteristics of Chinese society. Based upon such a background, the research questions and methodology are introduced in Chapter Two. This thesis focuses on two research questions:  Question One - How can ‘Chinese characteristics’ be understood in relation to judicial reform?  Question Two - What are the current factors that have limited judicial independence? Three methods were employed to obtain data relevant to my research. Firstly, I employed content analysis of secondary data, whereby I reviewed Chinese constitutional and criminal legal codes, and literature on Chinese judicial culture, independence and reform. Secondly, I generated primary empirical data, and employed a structured interview with 60 judges in order to understand judges’ feelings regarding judicial independence. Thirdly, I undertook participant observation, in which I acted as a lawyer's assistant involved in a criminal case, in which a suspect had pleaded not guilty. During this period, I conducted unstructured interviews with five lawyers and one county-level Chief-Prosecutor. Chapter Three aims to answer the first research question by illustrating ‘Chinese characteristics’ relevant to judicial reform. On considering Chinese characteristics, according to the most recent CPC guideline policy, judicial reform invokes relationships with legal culture, contemporary political and economic circumstances. Therefore, an analysis of relevant literature is made in order to understand Confucian legal traditions, Marxist and Maoist legal ideology, current political principles and economic conditions. At the end of this chapter, a brief of analysis of the significant relationship between rule of law and economic growth is made in order to explain why China needs greater judicial independence. Chapter Four, Five, Six and Seven form the core of the dissertation, and answer the second research question, intended to provide an overview of the extent of existing judicial independence in China, and highlight the major factors that could influence judges’ decisions. I have analysed judges’ responses regarding the current constitutional and institutional design, and on the recommendation of some judges, selected some additional evidence to highlight influences over the judiciary from other government bodies. In Chapter Four, findings from the interviews with judges concerning their occupational environment are analysed, to give a picture of the judge's position in China today. Chapter Five explores the Congress’ lawful power of supervising judicial decisions on individual cases. This presents one of the core Socialist constitutional configurations, whereby all state organs are answerable to the Congress. Following this, findings are given from the participant observation of a criminal trial in which a suspect pleaded not guilty. These findings are analysed in Chapter Six in order to provide a detailed examination of the links between the executive and the judicial branches. Chapter Seven analyses the relationship between the Communist Party and judges, which is the most sensitive, yet unavoidable topic regarding judicial reform in China. Chapter Eight brings the findings of the two research questions together to engage in a comprehensive debate of policy and draft possible judicial reform suggestions which may promote judicial independence within the parameters of established ‘Chinese Characteristics’.

No description available.

Magister Commercii (Industrial Psychology) - MCom(IPS) / There have been good arguments made for the development of aggressive affirmative action policies with the end goal of quickly moving black South Africans into corporate and high ranks within management of organisations. One of the central arguments in favour of aggressive AA policies is the risk of racial polarization post-apartheid should a quick fix not be initiated. It makes good business and economic sense for AA policies to be implemented as black consumers coupled with black managers will have the eventual end point of lower unemployment and crime, through job creation and security of the representative majority. / South Africa

This thesis is an empirical exploration of cracked trials at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court. Cracked trials are cases which are listed for trial but on the day they are due to be tried are disposed of in some other way. The thesis presents quantitative and qualitative data extracted from prosecution case files, as well as interviews with legal professionals, to examine the reasons for cracked trials, focusing on those trials which crack as a result of a late guilty plea. The data are analysed in order to explore the features of cracked trials, and the defence lawyer’s role in late guilty pleas (identified as significant by previous studies) is also examined. The existing literature has identified plea bargaining as a significant cause of late guilty pleas; the extent to which this was a feature within the sampled cases is assessed, and the nature of the plea bargains which were present in the data is explored. It is argued that the data demonstrate that plea bargaining played a key role in those cases which cracked as a result of a late guilty plea and that several types of plea bargain were prevalent within the sample. In light of these findings, the thesis analyses the reasons for the criminal justice system’s reluctance to acknowledge the role of plea bargaining in cracked trials (despite some recent formalisation of plea bargaining itself), and examines the extent to which grounds for policy and academic objections to plea bargaining and cracked trials were evidenced in the data collected. The thesis then considers whether either policy objections (that cracked trials represent defendants ‘playing the system’) or academic objections, (that plea bargains create pressure on defendants to plead guilty, and cracked trials are a manifestation of that pressure) are necessarily true, and whether plea bargaining could alternatively be viewed as a legitimate consensual or contractual exchange of concessions. The thesis concludes with the argument that a contradictory and hypocritical approach to plea bargaining has created a situation whereby the significance of plea bargaining is often ignored by a criminal justice system which has come to rely upon it. It is argued that the policies pursued in an attempt to reduce cracked trials are therefore flawed in their failure to acknowledge that cracked trials are inextricably bound together with plea bargaining.

In the last two decades, many countries going through transitional justice have established truth commissions. Unlike conventional war tribunals, most truth commissions are established by the local government and local human rights groups. Truth commissions are still a nascent political choice, yet a sizable literature has developed around it, evaluating its potential as a new institution for dealing with the past and moving towards restorative justice. This work examines four major questions debated in the transitional justice literature over truth versus justice: 1) whether or not a truth commission is an valid alternative mechanism to seeking out retributive justice, 2) whether or not truth commissions are the product of political compromise which avoiding justice, 3) if truth commissions can be the agent of new national identity and national unity founded on the principles of universal human rights, and 4) if amnesty can be legitimized. This work aims to determine to what extent the idea itself of truth commissions has been actualized up to now and what lot it may expect in the future, despite incidental political restrictions and difficulties in the political transition. Despite the common assertion that the goals of truth commissions are to bring about official acknowledgment of the past, restore the dignity of the victims, and achieve reconciliation in divided society, this paper does not intend to evaluate the truth commissions in the past based on these criteria; nor does this work intend to argue what truth commissions can resolve in the transitional justice societies. Rather, this paper seeks to uncover what social reaction or human emotions truth commissions in the past have evoked in a divided society. To explore the question, this paper focuses on the distinctive activities and merits of truth commissions from the standpoint of retributive justice and looks into the important implication in the interaction between the victims and the perpetrators, as well as between the audience and those two parties. Roger Errera, a member of the French Conseil d’Etat, stated that “Memory is the ultimate form of justice.” Inspired by the statement, this work argues that justice can be found in the act of pursing truth, remembering it, and responding to those voices from the past. / Arts, Faculty of / Asian Research, Institute of / Graduate