Thesis (M.A.)--Carleton University, 2000. / Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1984. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 251-271).

Thesis (LL.M.)--Queen's University, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 117-128)

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.

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’.

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.

No description available.

The racial typification of crime refers to the extent to which crime is represented as a Black phenomenon. Additionally, the ethnic typification of crime, where crime is represented as a Latino phenomenon, has received recent attention. Research on these concepts has found them to be predictive of punitive attitudes toward criminals. However as fairly new concepts, research has yet to clearly identify the factors that may contribute to the formation of these stereotypes. Using a national sample, this paper evaluates whether three potential factors influence attitudes that express the racial/ethnic typification of crime: symbolic or modern racism, media exposure and consumption, and inter-group contact. The results reveal that group contact is the only consistent predictor of both the racial and ethnic typification of crime; group contact is positively associated with the racial and ethnic typification of crime. Implications and directions for future research are discussed. / A Dissertation submitted to the College of Criminology and Criminal Justice in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester, 2012. / March 28, 2012. / Crime, Group Contact, Media, Prejudice, Stereotypes / Includes bibliographical references. / Ted Chiricos, Professor Directing Dissertation; Marc Gertz, Committee Member; Gary Kleck, Committee Member; Patricia Warren, Committee Member.

Prior research on neighborhood effects has focused on structural characteristics such as socioeconomic disadvantage, ethnic heterogeneity, and residential instability, giving less attention to the cultural factors that may influence adolescent behaviors. One of the prominent studies on oppositional culture was conducted by Elijah Anderson (1990, 1999). He observed that structural conditions in disadvantaged neighborhoods created an oppositional culture that endorsed negative behaviors such as violence and early sexual activity. Most research has examined how gaining respect--a key aspect of the oppositional culture--leads to violence, but it has not explored adolescent male sexual activity as an outcome. This research will fill a void in the literature by addressing four research questions. The first two questions will assess whether gaining respect from peers is a significant predictor of adolescent male sexual activity and whether it varies by race. The second set of questions will assess whether the proposed effect of gaining respect from peers on adolescent male sexual activity is moderated by neighborhood disadvantage and whether it varies by race. Using data for male adolescents from Waves I and II of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (AddHealth), the results showed that the need to gain peer respect increased the likelihood of adolescent males becoming sexually active, but there were no significant racial differences in this relationship. Further, gaining peer respect's effect on adolescent male sexual behaviors was not stronger in neighborhoods with higher levels of disadvantage, nor were there significant race differences. Overall, there was limited support observed for the oppositional culture perspective. / A Dissertation submitted to the College of Criminology and Criminal Justice in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Fall Semester, 2011. / July 7, 2011. / Adolescent Male Sexual Activity, Neighborhood Context, Oppositional Culture / Includes bibliographical references. / Eric A. Stewart, Professor Directing Dissertation; Karin L. Brewster, University Representative; Daniel P. Mears, Committee Member.

Researchers have explored two competing ideas as to why people obey the law. Some research has taken the instrumental approach--the belief that the prospect of rewards and punishments drive behavior. Others have taken the normative approach--the belief that internalized judgments about institutions and procedures drive behavior. The latter is the focus of this dissertation. Using a sample of female inmates, this dissertation examines what effects procedural justice of police and courts, the institutional legitimacy of police and courts, and obligations to obey the law. Most prior literature on normative attitudes has tested the political psychology of the mass public. By examining female inmates this study moves beyond the perceptions of the general public and focuses on individuals that have had the most serious interactions with the criminal justice system. Additionally, females are an especially important demographic of interest given their growing presence in the criminal justice system. / A Dissertation submitted to the College of Criminology and Criminal Justice in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2012. / June 20, 2012. / Courts, Legitimacy, Obedience, Police, Procedural Justice / Includes bibliographical references. / Marc G. Gertz, Professor Directing Dissertation; Martin Kavka, University Representative; Eric Stewart, Committee Member; Carter Hay, Committee Member.