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This thesis explores technologies of power that operate in British Columbia’s policy for consultation with Indigenous peoples about proposed land and resource decisions. I use the concept of settler colonialism to analyze the contents of British Columbia’s consultation and accommodation policy to assess whether and how the policy is oriented toward settler-colonial relationships. I analyze a British Columbia provincial policy document entitled Updated Procedures for Meeting Legal Obligations When Consulting First Nations Interim. By focusing on this policy document, I examine how power operates through settler state law and policy. I critically analyze three technologies of power that operate in British Columbia’s consultation and accommodation policy: the administrative law principle of procedural fairness, recognition politics, and the assumption of legitimate settler sovereignty. I consider how the policy’s focus on process reveals colonial power dynamics. Furthermore, I argue that recognition politics operate in the policy because Indigenous difference is recognized and some space is made for Indigenous actors to exercise authority, however the settler state retains final decision- making authority, which shows a colonial hierarchy of power. Finally, I consider how the assumption of legitimate settler state sovereignty that underlies B.C.’s law and policy is a source of authority through which the settler state has various types of power under the policy, including definitional power and final decision-making power. / Graduate

Resumo: Nessa pesquisa, realizo uma análise sociológica sobre o conceito de estado de direito e mostro as implicações da adoção desse conceito para a formação de uma visão própria do mundo social. Mostro que, se observarmos o estado de direito como uma construção coletiva operada no campo maior do poder, e não como uma formulação doutrinária gerada apenas no universo acadêmico das faculdades de direito, o estado de direito portará muitos significados diferentes, ambíguos e mesmo contraditórios. Mas será precisamente por essas qualidades que serão tão decisivos para a manutenção de uma identidade do poder estatal sob seu emblema. Para compreender o processo histórico através do qual o signo do estado de direito encontra sua supremacia, realizei uma sociologia histórica sobre a ascensão global das elites jurídicas no campo do poder em meio ao processo de decadência do regime militar e a concomitante redemocratização dos anos 1990. Para compreender a ampla gama de significados do estado de direito, decorrentes do caráter coletivo de sua formação, analisei um conjunto extenso de artigos de opinião sobre criminalidade, violência de estado e segurança pública publicados no principal jornal impresso brasileiro desde aquela época, a Folha de S. Paulo. Esses artigos foram escritos por uma variedade expressiva de representantes de elites de diferentes campos sociais, mas prevalentemente por sujeitos com formação acadêmica em direito. Ao reconhecer algumas estruturas compartilhadas entre a maior parte dos debatedores na formação de seus argumentos e discursos, a despeito de tantas diferenças aparentes entre suas perspectivas políticas, busquei os elementos estruturantes de uma teorização própria do social na perspectiva juridicista. / Abstract: In this research, I perform a sociological analysis of the concept of rule of law and demonstrate the implications of this concept in the formation of a particular vision of the social universe. I demonstrate that, if we focus on its construction as a collective one, operated at the major field of power more than a doctrinaire formula generated mainly inside the academic universe of the law universities the rule of law will hold many different, ambiguous and even contradictory meanings. But it is precisely because of this quality that it will be decisive for the conservation of a state power identity under its emblem. To understand the historical process through which the rule of law symbol reaches its supremacy, it was necessary to perform a historical sociology on the global ascension of legal elites in the field of state power, at the historical process of decay of the military regime and further redemocratization at the 1990s. To understand the amplitude of meanings of the rule of law that stems from its collective character, Ive analyzed an extent ensemble of articles published on the most important brazillian newspaper since that time, the daily Folha de S. Paulo. Those articles were written by an expressive variety of elite members from different fields, but most prevailingly individuals with a law formation. As I recognized some structures shared by most of those who appear at these debates, despite of apparently different political perspectives, I sought the structurant elements of a theorization of society under this juridicist perspective.

Resumo: Nessa pesquisa, realizo uma análise sociológica sobre o conceito de estado de direito e mostro as implicações da adoção desse conceito para a formação de uma visão própria do mundo social. Mostro que, se observarmos o estado de direito como uma construção coletiva operada no campo maior do poder, e não como uma formulação doutrinária gerada apenas no universo acadêmico das faculdades de direito, o estado de direito portará muitos significados diferentes, ambíguos e mesmo contraditórios. Mas será precisamente por essas qualidades que serão tão decisivos para a manutenção de uma identidade do poder estatal sob seu emblema. Para compreender o processo histórico através do qual o signo do estado de direito encontra sua supremacia, realizei uma sociologia histórica sobre a ascensão global das elites jurídicas no campo do poder em meio ao processo de decadência do regime militar e a concomitante redemocratização dos anos 1990. Para compreender a ampla gama de significados do estado de direito, decorrentes do caráter coletivo de sua formação, analisei um conjunto extenso de artigos de opinião sobre criminalidade, violência de estado e segurança pública publicados no principal jornal impresso brasileiro desde aquela época, a Folha de S. Paulo. Esses artigos foram escritos por uma variedade expressiva de representantes de elites de diferentes campos sociais, mas prevalentemente por sujeitos com formação acadêmica em direito. Ao reconhecer algumas estruturas compartilhadas entre a maior parte dos debatedores na formação de seus argumentos e discursos, a despeito de tantas diferenças aparentes entre suas perspectivas políticas, busquei os elementos estruturantes de uma teorização própria do social na perspectiva juridicista. / Abstract: In this research, I perform a sociological analysis of the concept of rule of law and demonstrate the implications of this concept in the formation of a particular vision of the social universe. I demonstrate that, if we focus on its construction as a collective one, operated at the major field of power more than a doctrinaire formula generated mainly inside the academic universe of the law universities the rule of law will hold many different, ambiguous and even contradictory meanings. But it is precisely because of this quality that it will be decisive for the conservation of a state power identity under its emblem. To understand the historical process through which the rule of law symbol reaches its supremacy, it was necessary to perform a historical sociology on the global ascension of legal elites in the field of state power, at the historical process of decay of the military regime and further redemocratization at the 1990s. To understand the amplitude of meanings of the rule of law that stems from its collective character, Ive analyzed an extent ensemble of articles published on the most important brazillian newspaper since that time, the daily Folha de S. Paulo. Those articles were written by an expressive variety of elite members from different fields, but most prevailingly individuals with a law formation. As I recognized some structures shared by most of those who appear at these debates, despite of apparently different political perspectives, I sought the structurant elements of a theorization of society under this juridicist perspective.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Lehigh University, 1997. / Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 239-250).

This dissertation analyzes the relationships between four state gun laws—universal background checks, waiting periods, may-issue permitting, and violent misdemeanor prohibitions—and firearm homicide and suicide rates among Blacks and Whites in the United States. Using eighteen years of publicly available data, the study examined relationships employing a generalized difference-in-difference linear regression model with fixed effects for states and years. The results indicate that state gun laws in the United States frequently affect mortality rates among Blacks and Whites in different ways. Waiting periods, for example, are associated with large reductions in firearm homicide rates among Blacks but not Whites; may-issue permitting is associated with moderate reductions in firearm homicide rates among Whites but not among Blacks. The study also identifies several statistically significant interactive effects between gun laws and factors such as poverty, police presence, and the density of federally licensed firearm dealers. The dissertation concludes by discussing the value of these findings for informing both public policy and scholarly research in policy analysis and public administration. Most importantly, I argue that policymakers and gun violence researchers must increase their efforts to frame and analyze gun violence in the United States through the lens of social equity. / Doctor of Philosophy / The rates at which Blacks and Whites in the United States die as the result of gun violence differ markedly. This dissertation uses statistical analysis of eighteen years of data collected from governmental and scholarly sources to examine whether four different types of state gun law—universal background checks, waiting periods, may-issue permitting, and violent misdemeanor prohibitions—are related to gun death rates for Blacks and Whites and whether and how these relationships vary between the two. The results suggest that gun laws often affect mortality rates among Blacks and Whites differently. For instance, waiting periods appear to lead to fewer gun homicides among Blacks, while may-issue permitting is associated with fewer gun homicides among Whites. Relationships between different gun laws and the number of gun deaths Blacks and Whites experience also vary depending on levels of poverty, police presence, and the number of federally licensed gun dealers in specific geographic areas. The dissertation concludes by discussing how these findings might help policymakers and suggest topics for future research. Most importantly, the dissertation argues that researchers and policymakers should discuss gun violence in the United States in terms of its disproportionate impacts on different groups.

Each state and territory within the United States is required by the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act [42 U.S.C. 5101 et seq.] to maintain a mandatory suspected child abuse and neglect reporting law, requiring certain professionals who regularly see children to report any suspicions of child maltreatment to child protective services. It is well documented that mandatory reporters fail to report each case of suspected child maltreatment they witness. This study sought to determine whether differences in three specific variables within the mandatory report laws had an effect on the frequency with which medical personnel report suspected child abuse and neglect. The three variables analyzed were: definitional scope of emotional abuse; standard of knowledge required for a report; and severity of penalty imposed on those who knowingly fail to report cases of child abuse and neglect. Data was obtained from the Child Maltreatment 2006 annual report printed by the Health and Human Services Administration of Children, Youth and Families. Of the three variables assessed, only severity of penalty yielded a significant association with report rate. States with lower report rates were significantly more likely to have lenient penalties for failure to report compared with those who had report rates above the national average (O.R. = 5.0, 95% C.I. = 1.165-21.465). It is recommended that states consider increasing the severity of the sanctions enforced for failure to report suspected child abuse and neglect. Although standard of knowledge requirements were not significantly associated with report rates, the literature suggests that standardization of this portion of the mandatory report laws could improve report rates, particularly among physicians.

abstract: I present a new framework for qualitative assessment of the current green purchasing practices of U.S. state governments. Increasing demand from citizens for green public purchasing has prompted state governments to adopt new, and improve existing, practices. Yet there has been little assessment of public green purchasing in academic research; what has been done has not provided the conceptual support necessary to assess green purchasing practices as a single component of the procurement process. My research aims to fill that gap by developing a conceptual framework with which to assess the status of green purchasing practices and by applying this framework to determine and describe the status of green purchasing in the five most populous U.S. states. The framework looks at state purchasing practices through the lenses of policy, policy implementation, and transparency. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.A. Sustainability 2012

The United States of America is facing an important decision. Should illegal immigrants be allowed to obtain driver’s licenses? Thus far ten states and the District of Columbia as well as Puerto Rico have passed laws permitting this to come into fruition. The purpose of this thesis is to gain an understanding of the significance that licensing laws have on this country. This thesis will compare the views and beliefs of both the proponents and opponents to this law. This thesis also discusses how Florida is deeply affected due to its large Hispanic immigrant population. This issue is laden with passion and emotion due to the desire of many to see this group of people that are currently undocumented, have the ability to lead a more normal life and conversely the fear that allowing licenses will give undocumented aliens privileges of citizens and encourage illegal immigration. The views on these laws are divided throughout the nation. The lawfulness is examined in reference to rewarding and promoting illegal immigration and the cumulative negative effects that this can have on this country. The driver’s license requirements were analyzed for each individual state. News articles were researched and used to enrich the pros and cons on this topic. This research was then used to give a recommendation for Florida law

This dissertation outlines a theory of law capable of explaining both the legal systems of domestic states and other types of legal phenomena different from state law that I will call non-state legal phenomena. Central examples of non-state law include indigenous and customary laws, the international legal order, the European Union, and transnational commercial law. This theoretical framework aims to formulate and resolve questions about the common features shared by different types of legality and the distinctive legal character of non-state legal phenomena. It also sets the stage for doctrinal and politico-moral inquiries about these phenomena. My account draws liberally from central themes of HLA Hart’s theory of state law that I deem applicable outside the domestic context. One key idea is the notion of normative order or unified complexes of interrelated rules that regulate specific domains of action. The refined Hartian view that I develop here distinguishes between two kinds of normative orders, sets and systems, which differ in their characteristic features and that allow for different doctrinal and moral inquiries. While these tools can be used to explain both state and non-state normative phenomena, I shall consider as law the normative orders of political communities, i.e. groups whose participants efficaciously employ intense forms of social pressure to secure conformity to norms that regulate pressing politico-moral issues. With these elements in place, the legal domain can be characterized as a constellation of sets and systems that constitute political communities at the state, non-domestic, international, supra-national, and potentially global levels. The argument proceeds as follows. Chapter 1 sets the stage of this inquiry. Chapter 2 explicates the key insights of the Hartian framework. Chapter 3 defends the applicability of this framework to non-state contexts. Chapter 4 illustrates its explanatory virtues by applying it to two regimes of international trade law. The conclusion summarizes the central insights of this view and highlights the avenues for future research. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / This dissertation outlines a theory of law capable of explaining both state and non-state legal phenomena. This theoretical framework aims to formulate and resolve questions about the common features shared by different types of legality and the distinctive legal character of non-state legal phenomena, and to help to set the stage for further inquiries about them. My account draws liberally from HLA Hart’s theory of state law. The argument proceeds as follows. Chapter 1 sets the stage of this inquiry. Chapter 2 explicates the key insights of the Hartian framework. Chapter 3 defends the applicability of this framework to non-state contexts. Chapter 4 illustrates its explanatory virtues by applying it to two regimes of international trade law. The conclusion summarizes the central insights of this view and highlights the avenues for future research.