Throughout the history of the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration (LEAA), which was created in 1968 through the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act, professional and, purportedly, objective evaluations of the agency have been published and congressional hearings have been conducted concerning the performance of the agency and possible directions for the future. The congressional activity has resulted in amended legislation which has affected the purpose, administration, process, program, and level of federal budgetary support of LEAA. The evaluations have made criticisms and offered recommendations regarding those elements of the LEAA program. / This dissertation examines those published evaluations and assesses the degree of concurrence which they have to the amended legislation related to LEAA. The evaluations are described, their place in the congressional hearing process is examined, and the relationship they have to the legislation is assessed. / The findings of this study provide evidence that limited concurrence between evaluations and legislation exists. It is demonstrated that the evaluations are included in congressional liberations, that agreement among the various evaluations concerning recommendations is infrequent, and that Congress makes changes to the legislation without concurrence of those evaluations. The degree to which Congress adheres to recommendations of published evaluations in the case of LEAA leads to the conclusion that factors other than evaluators' recommendations affect legislation and that evaluations are conducted and published for purposes other than to influence legislation. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 42-06, Section: A, page: 2873. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1981.

This study had two primary objectives. First, to determine whether William Glasser's Reality Therapy was capable of developing the belief that a group of juvenile delinquents committed to a public residential treatment facility were responsible for their behavior, as measured by Julian B. Rotter's theoretical construct, locus of control (LOC). Second, to determine if these perceptual changes in LOC were associated with changes in delinquent behavior. / A review of the literature examined the viability of the LOC construct, relationship between LOC and crime and delinquency, relationship between LOC, crime and delinquency and psychotherapy, and relationship between LOC and Reality Therapy. / Instruments utilized in this study were: Elliot and Ageton Self-Report Delinquency Scale, arrest data, Children's Nowicki-Strickland Locus of Control Scale, Siegel Prestige Scale, Reality Therapy Evaluation Scale, weekly school progress reports, and staff log entries. / Three of the six results were found as hypothesized: (1) Before treatment, controlling for socioeconomic status, the treatment group was significantly more externally oriented than the comparison group. (2) Between the beginning and end of treatment, the treatment group had a significant change in LOC in an internal direction. They were in treatment for an average of four months. (3) There were no significant changes in LOC for the comparison group over an equal time span. / The three results that were not as hypothesized were: (1) There was no relationship found between LOC and in-program behavior. (2) Treatment subjects whose LOC did not move in an internal direction, experienced a significant reduction in delinquent behavior six months after treatment as compared to six months prior to treatment. (3) Treatment subjects whose LOC did not move in an internal direction did not experience a significant reduction in delinquent behavior six months after treatment as compared to six months prior to treatment. / Based on the above results, conclusions and implications for treatment were developed. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 46-04, Section: A, page: 1096. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1985.

The purpose of this dissertation is twofold. First, it is an explication of "Critical Criminology"--a theoretical perspective that currently challenges the hegemony of traditional "classical" and "positive" criminologies. It is not, however, a comprehensive explication because not all theorists who consider themselves "Critical Criminologists" are represented. Nevertheless, a non-random but representative group is cited. Secondly, it is a critique of "Critical Criminology." However, it is not an exhaustive critique since not all the criticisms leveled at "Critical Criminology" are examined. It is rather a critique from an historically-informed "critical theory" or "reflexive-revisionist" Marxist perspective. It is argued that an essential criterion of "critical theory" is an analysis of the import of philosophical assumptions. This is considered necessary in order that important components of the theoretical enterprise (e.g., the social and personal contexts in which explanations and conclusions are formed and made) are not omitted, as is typically done in traditional "positivistic" science, in general, and criminology, in particular. In other words, it is maintained that in order to understand the entire theoretical enterprise of "Critical Criminology" and subject it to a "critical theory" or a "reflexive-revisionist" Marxism, not only must the theoretical propositions of "Critical Criminology" be subjected to explication and critique, but so must the philosophical assumptions that inform those theoretical propositions. Specifically then, this dissertation is an explication of some of the philosophical assumptions and theoretical propositions of "Critical Criminology," which, as argued here, are based primarily on an "instrumentalist" (that is, "ruling class determinist") or "structuralist" (that is, "economic determinist") Marxism and a critique of / "Critical Criminology" from a "critical theory" or "reflexive-revisionist" (that is, "relational" or "dialectical") Marxist perspective. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 41-02, Section: A, page: 0811. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1980.

Forensic science supports the legal profession by scientifically ascertaining facts for use in resolving disputes. The principles of forensic science are the principles of science as constrained by the law. This dissertation addresses the problem that there is no clear statement of science or the scientific method upon which to base, or to assess, the examinations of forensic science. / The law imposes three requirements on its deliberations and thus on forensic science: evidential proof is necessary in legal decisions, such proof must be compatible with the nature of legal decisions and that proof must meet the requirement of evidentiary reliability. Developing proof is an iterative process of constructing, testing and evaluating a theory relating to the issues in dispute. This cyclic process operates at three levels: the case theory, a hypothesis to test the theory and testing procedures to assess whether the hypothesis is false. / The process of proof forms the structure of the scientific method. The distinctive essence of the scientific method is the criteria used to assess its credibility. These criteria include: objectivity, testability and reproducibility. Using the scientific method, forensic scientists conduct two types of examination--classification and individuation--for the purposes of identifying objects and explaining events. In order to draw a conclusion of value to the court, forensic science must have a valid theory, appropriate to the situation, and evidential facts, relevant to the case. This can be summarized in a six-part syllogism:(UNFORMATTED TABLE OR EQUATION FOLLOWS) / The criteria of forensic science are examination specific. Schooled in the concept of proof and the philosophy of science, and equipped with a set of guidelines elucidating the scientific principles relating to forensic science, a judge can rule on the admissibility of a scientific examination and a forensic scientist can assess the reliability of his examination. This dissertation provides such a set of guidelines. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 57-03, Section: A, page: 1329. / Major Professor: Leroy C. Gould. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1996.

Prior court research has focused primarily on the judge's sentencing behavior and to a lesser degree the prosecutor's charging decision. None of these studies have taken into account relationships between multiple case decisions. This analysis is a comparison of three criminal court decisions made by the prosecutor, judge, and defense attorney. Using 1986 felony court data from three Florida Counties, OLS regression, corrected for sample selection bias, is employed to determine the effects of case and offender attributes on the arraignment charge severity, the conviction charge severity, and the penalty severity decisions. A typology describes the context of environmental influences which could affect decision-making within counties, classified as large, medium, and small felony caseload counties. / Decisions were compared across counties and within counties with the expectation that decision-making factors would be different across counties for the same decision because of the contextual differences of each county. Within counties the factors should be similar for each decision because of the cooperative nature of the courtroom workgroup. / Differences across counties revealed a concern for the crime rate and court processing characteristics such as whether bond was made. The small caseload county decisions were based on seriousness of the crime, but the actual decision-making appeared to be somewhat haphazard. Within counties, each decision was characterized by a few similar factors, but the nature of each decision was responsible for differences across the three judgments. The utility of the typology is discussed and suggestions for future research to develop the typology are made. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 51-09, Section: A, page: 3231. / Major Professor: Marc G. Gertz. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1990.

This dissertation addresses the question of consistency in appellate decisions of the Florida Supreme Court in death penalty cases decided between 1973 and mid-1986. The theoretical perspective of the study is retributive. This perspective is used because it is the basis of the United States Supreme Court's approval of current death sentencing statutes. The legal requirements of a retributive justification of capital punishment have been stated both by the United States Supreme Court and the Florida Supreme Court. These requirements are the basis of the hypotheses tested in the study. / The review of the literature summarizes both statistical and qualitative research. The history of Florida's current death penalty law is given, and the Florida Supreme Court's role in reviewing capital cases is described in detail. The methods chapter discusses the data sources and difficulties encountered in the coding of certain variables. The chapter ends with a list of the specific hypotheses to be tested. / The data are analyzed both statistically and qualitatively. Results of the statistical analysis are mixed, with some hypotheses supported and others not supported by the data. Several areas in which the court's performance does not seem to meet the legal standards are identified. The qualitative analysis found serious problems in the Florida Supreme Court's review of cases. The dissertation concludes that the court has failed to consistently apply its own standards of review to the cases it considers. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 51-01, Section: A, page: 0300. / Major Professor: Gordon P. Waldo. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1989.

A pilot study of sentencing practices within the Danish court system is carried out within a systems analysis paradigm. This is the first research to use de-aggregated data from Danish criminal courts. Three jurisdictions representing urban, suburban, and rural populations are analyzed in regard to sentencing practices. Initial results indicate an overall pattern of uniformity and leniency without benefit of strict sentencing guidelines. In regard to sentencing structures these findings carry significant implications for U.S. policy makers. / This comparison utilizes a regression strategy to analyze length of sentences and a logit equation for the initial incarceration decision. The legally relevant variables emerge as strong indicators of length of sentence. Differences do emerge among the jurisdictions in regard to the effects of pre-trial detention, type of offense, and ethnicity of defendants. In order to continue this line of inquiry suggestions are made for future comparative analysis regarding judicial attitudes and philosophies. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 57-01, Section: A, page: 0457. / Major Professor: Marc Gertz. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1996.

A social ecological perspective is used to analyze county primary homicide rates for the elderly population, persons aged 55 or older. Structural, socioeconomic, medical resources, and demographic variables are analyzed in a regression analysis for primary homicide (involving family, friends, and acquaintances) rates. Neither a structural, socioeconomic, nor medical resources explanation is supported; however, several variables, particularly education, are shown to be important in explaining variations in elderly primary homicide rates. Unemployment, migration, urbanization, physician rate, percent males, and percent nonwhite are significantly related to elderly primary homicide rates. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 51-12, Section: A, page: 4280. / Major Professor: Gordon P. Waldo. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1990.

Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 40-07, Section: A, page: 4244. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1979.

Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 32-12, Section: A, page: 7103. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1971.