Through a qualitative approach of seven life-sentenced prisoner interviews, I explore prisoner practices, relations, and perceptions to gain a certain insight into how the prisoners manage themselves and their sentence. The research findings reveal that, through self-forming activities and practices, prisoners self-govern their conduct in an attempt to maintain an autonomous sense of self while attempting to improve their chances for release. I conclude that a Foucauldian analysis of subjectivity is a useful tool to investigate the prison as it reveals how prisoners continually negotiate their concept of 'self' between the goals of the prison and with their own ways of 'doing' and 'being'. Despite its controlling nature, prisoners subtly resist individualizing forms of power that seek to submit them towards conformity. Such an approach opens a space for prisoner agency to emerge and directs our attention towards those forming activities of the prison that fail to correspond with the lived realities of the prisoner and their concept of 'self'. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

L'objet de cette recherche qualitative est de saisir, de lire, de penser le temps à travers le discours de ceux pour qui il pose problème, qui en prennent particulièrement conscience parce qu'il pose problème: les détenus purgeant de longues sentences dans le système correctionnel canadien. À travers une série d'entretiens semi-directifs dans des établissements fédéraux à securité moyenne et maximale, cette étude tente de (re)construire la perception et l'aménagement du temps chez ces détenus. Condamné à une peine privative de liberté, l'individu est aussi condamné au "temps cadre" des institutions carcérales: à une encapsulation du temps par rapport au temps des milieux libres, à une enregimentation de son temps par l'entremise de la routine monotone de l'institution, puis à une négation ou restriction de son libre aménagement du temps. L'analyse des entretiens démontre qu'en général, le temps semble très long pour les détenus. Certains moments semblent s'écouler particulièrement lentement: les périodes d'attente au début et à la fin de la sentence ainsi que les moments où les détenus sont confrontés aux activités de loisir du milieu libre. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

Public events such as protest demonstrations can lead to violent confrontations between protesters and police. This study attempts to identify factors that may lead to the excessive use of force by police at protest demonstrations. A review of the literature revealed nine factors that may influence police behaviour: the presence of aggressive and violent protesters, high levels of officer stress, high levels of officer aggression, a loss of professional self-control, the influence of personal problems and the attitudes of individual officers, the influence of peer relations and the police sub-culture, insufficient and inadequate supervision, inadequate training and equipment, and insufficient and inaccurate communication, information, and planning. An analysis was conducted of six investigative reports of alleged excessive use of force by police at protest demonstrations. The results indicate that the predominant factor that led to the excessive use of force was insufficient and inaccurate communication, information, and planning by police and security personnel. Limitations of this thesis include the small number of official inquiry reports available; the subjective nature of coding, scoring, and ranking of factors; and the possibility that not all the factors that were identified in this study were considered by investigators of each of the six events as having contributed to the excessive use of force. The general purpose of this study is to provide police with comprehensive information regarding elements of policing which affect their actions when in crowd control or protest situations.

This thesis examines the use of victim impact statements (VIS) in Canada by means of a questionnaire completed by Crown Attorneys in the province of Ontario. The thesis begins with a brief historical overview of the emergence of this sentencing tool, followed by a detailed examination of the current victim impact statement provisions in the Criminal Code . The paper then moves towards identifying areas of consensus in the research literature surrounding victim impact statements (such as the infrequency of their use and the degree of public and judicial support for them). The thesis then identifies areas of conflict surrounding victim impact statements (such as whether they are worth the time and expense to the criminal justice system and the victim, and what ways they might infringe on the rights of the offender). It then outlines the methodology used in the construction of the survey and describes the sample of Crown Counsel participating in this study. The thesis then summarizes the results of the questionnaire. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

This thesis is a qualitative discourse analysis of the case of Karla Homolka. The purpose of this thesis has been to examine how Karla Homolka was socially constructed within the three data sources: (1) the trial transcripts from R. v. K. Bernardo, 1993; (2) her testimony In Chief, cross-examination, re-dress, and re-cross-examination from R. v. P. Bernardo, 1995; and (3) The Report to the Attorney General on Certain Matters Relating to Karla Homolka, 1997. A critical examination of how Homolka was constructed as being representative of both the two sides of three dichotomies was conducted. The three dichotomies are: (1) angelic/demonic; (2) Madonna/whore; and (3) woman in danger/dangerous woman. Evidence supporting Homolka's construction as being simultaneously the two sides of each dichotomy was found. The motives behind the varying claims purported by the different claims-makers were examined. It was concluded that Homolka's characterization as being simultaneously in danger and dangerous led to the clouding of the comprehension of her character and her role in the crimes she committed. This confusion regarding her persona has demonstrated that there is a newly emerging category of offender, that of the sexually violent female predator. It was proposed that this confusion might lead correctional officials to be more oppressive and possibly more punitive with respect to other violent women.

Cette thèse porte sur les demandes d'amendements, sur les débats parlementaires et sur les modifications législatives qu'a subies le Code criminel canadien en matière de protection des animaux entre 1892 et 1927. Il s'agit d'une analyse documentaire portant sur des débats parlementaires et sur un fond d'archives (RG-13) afin de mettre en lumière le processus de réforme pénale en matière de protection des animaux et les justifications que le sous-tendent.

Despite increasing attention to the issue of female offending, little empirical research has been conducted on women's violence within Canadian prisons. This thesis provides a descriptive and exploratory analysis of violence in federal correctional institutions for women offenders in Canada. More specifically, it examines the nature and extent of violent incidents, the characteristics of violent perpetrators, and the individual and environmental influences for prison violence. To further our understanding of this phenomenon, three theoretical perspectives and their relation to female prison violence are investigated, including the strengths and limitations. These include feminist theory, prison adjustment theories, and theory of sex differences in aggression. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

Deux perspectives dominent le sujet de la pornographie homosexuelle masculine dans la littérature. La première, dite pro féministe, voit la pornographie homosexuelle comme outil de renforcement du masculin et de subordination des homosexuels. La deuxième perspective, utilitariste, lit la pornographie homosexuelle masculine comme un outil essentiel pour la libération politique des homosexuels, comme moyen d'éducation quant aux pratiques sexuelles sécuritaires et comme moyen de valider une sexualité longtemps maintenue sous le joug de l'interdit. Ce qui surprend à la vue de tous ces arguments autour de l'objet est le manque quasi-total d'étude empirique pour soutenir de tels discours. Cette recherche de nature exploratoire a comme mandat de dégager la signification que les clients donnent face à la diffusion de matériel pornographique vidéo dans certains bars homosexuels de deux grandes villes de l'est du Canada. Le peu qui existe à l'intérieur de la littérature sur les bars homosexuels met l'accent sur leur importance en termes de socialisation, comme lieu social sécuritaire et protégé et finalement comme espace propice à l'exploration sexuelle. Nous utilisons pour cette recherche la méthode de l'entretien semi-dirige avec des acteurs clés du milieu (4 sujets) et des clients réguliers (7 sujets). La méthode de la théorisation ancrée est utilisée afin de dégager les thèmes récurrents. L'analyse, utilisant un cadre interactionniste symbolique, nous permet de nous sortir des deux perspectives dominantes et ainsi mettre en lumière le fait que la pornographie présentée en contexte de sociabilité peut servir a créer une ambiance sexuelle, favorisant ainsi la rencontre et les activités sexuelles à l'intérieur même de l'espace social protégé que sont les bars homosexuels masculins.

La présente thèse porte sur l'examen des arguments drogue-criminalité employés par une gamme d'acteurs sociaux qui ont témoigne et/ou déposé un mémoire/document ou encore procédé à la rédaction des rapports produits aux récents Comité spécial du Sénat sur les drogues illicites et Comité spécial sur la consommation non médicale de drogues ou médicaments de la Chambre des communes, afin de soutenir une prise de position sur la politique à suivre en matière de drogues. S'agissant d'une analyse documentaire, un échantillon de 52 interlocuteurs oraux et/ou écrits a été constitué, interlocuteurs provenant de six milieux, soit les milieux gouvernementaux, les milieux policiers, les milieux de l'intervention, la communauté scientifique, les mouvements militants et le grand public. L'analyse de cette imposante documentation nous a permis de constater que selon les discours drogue-criminalité employés, les données sur lesquelles ces discours s'appuient et les intérêts personnels, collectifs et corporatistes enjeu, les interlocuteurs seront tentés d'adopter une approche antiprohibitionniste ou, à l'autre extrême, une approche plus ou moins prohibitive et répressive s'inscrivant dans le prohibitionnisme qui a actuellement cours en matière de drogues, au Canada.

This thesis develops a new theoretical framework outside the research that assumes women engaging in the street sex trade are 'victims' or 'workers', and instead examines the possibility that elements of both categories may be present in their reality. Street sex work is considered as labour, while leaving room for the possibility of the existence of survival sex. This qualitative research consists of an exploratory study of the viability, utility and limitations of a labour framework for understanding and analyzing the experiences of adult female street sex workers interviewed in the Ottawa area. The findings reveal a number of characteristics unique to street sex work that challenge existing labour frameworks and direct us to rethink street sex work beyond employment. These characteristics are specifically related to the criminalized nature of the work and include, among other things, the reported violence perpetrated by police and clientele. Moreover, by deconstructing common stereotypes attributed to female street sex workers, we are able to normalize sex work and address issues of stigma. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)