A Closer Look at the Paradox: Examining Immigration and Youth Reoffending in Arizona

The bulk of existing research on immigration and crime suggests that, counter to a number of theoretical perspectives and overall public and political opinion, indicators of immigration are either unrelated or negatively related to criminal behavior. Notably absent from this line of research is assessments of the impact of immigration on the social outcomes of ex-offenders and youth. Youthful ex-offenders in particular represent a vulnerable population that could be expected to benefit most from the protective effects of immigration as identified in the literature. Accordingly, in the present study we determine the importance of concentrated immigration (net of individual-level factors) in reoffending for a sample of previously arrested youth in the state of Arizona. In addition, we examine whether the effects of immigration on reoffending behavior are contingent on the individual characteristics (e.g. race, ethnicity, and gender) of youth. The implications for the ongoing theoretical, empirical, and policy debates surrounding immigration and crime are discussed.     

Propensity for Violence among Homeless and Runaway Adolescents: An Event History Analysis*

Little is known about the prevalence of violent behaviors among homeless and runaway adolescents or the specific behavioral factors that influence violent behaviors across time. In this longitudinal study of 300 homeless and runaway adolescents aged 16-19 years at baseline, we use event history analysis to assess the factors associated with acts of violence over three years, controlling for individual propensities and time-varying behaviors. The results indicate that females, non-minorities, and non-heterosexuals were less likely to engage in violence across time. Those who met criteria for substance abuse disorders (i.e. alcohol abuse, alcohol dependence, drug abuse) were more likely to engage in violence. A history of caretaker abuse was associated with violent behaviors, as were street survival strategies such as selling drugs, participating in gang activity, and associating with deviant peers. Simply having spent time directly on the streets at any specific time point also increased the likelihood for violence.     

文化视野下的中国犯罪论体系争鸣

近年来中国刑法理论界围绕传统四要件理论和德日三阶层体系孰优孰劣的争论,其实质是不同法文化的冲突,是文化冲突在刑法学领域的具体体现。这种文化冲突,既是我国刑法学理论自我反思的结果,也是自清末以来不同理论之间进行选择和论争过程的延续。围绕中国犯罪论体系的理论争鸣具有重要的文化现实意义,它有助于促进刑法学理论知识的发展,促成刑法学派在中国的早日形成,同时也有利于营造良好的学术生态环境。     

The Early Offender Project: A Community-Based Program for High Risk Youth

Oakland County, Michigan, directly north of Detroit, has a population of approximately one million. It is largely suburban with rural outskirts. Oakland County has a tradition of creative and varied youth services.     

法眼看虎

虎年已至,蓠象更新,《中圜法律》舆您携手步人新一年。虎是人们喜爱又惺怕的凶猛勤物,所以中园留帮中既有“英雄虎脆”的豪遭,也有“苛政猛于虎”的沉痛。追入20世纪以柬,随着人颓“徵服”自然能力的提高,曾经魔虞虎啸山岗的老虎们,命逼式微,世界各地的老虎敷量急蒯下降。雎然如此,封老虎的喜爱和惺怕仍是人颓共同的文化心理。     

The National Partnership for Environmental Priorities Program

The National Partnership for Environmental Priorities (NPEP) program was created by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) to reduce or eliminate the nation's production of hazardous wastes and products. The NPEP is a voluntary program that provides incentives to public, private, and federal organizations that minimize their use and generation of thirty-one priority chemicals. These chemicals are considered to be persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic in the environment and present health risks to human and ecological receptors. The USEPA estimates that 90 percent of priority chemicals are used or produced during manufacturing of various household and industrial products and, as a result, end up in municipal and industrial waste streams. Ultimately, these chemicals find their way back into the environment through wastewater discharges, incineration, or other disposal practices. The NPEP program supports the goals of the National Waste Minimalization Program by encouraging simple waste minimalization solutions such as recycling, replacement, or elimination of wastes or products that contain priority chemicals, and cradle-to-cradle management of waste. Although the USEPA does not limit waste minimalization practices to only the priority chemicals, the program has set specific goals to track the elimination of these thirty-one chemicals to the environment on an annual basis.     

Westmoreland County Youth Commissions: A Diversionary Program Based on Balanced and Restorative Justice

The Westmoreland County Youth Commission is a diversionary program based on Balanced and Restorative Justice. The purpose of the program is to reduce caseload and lower costs of the juvenile court as well as provide youths with a rehabilitation program with close supervision. This study was exploratory in nature to describe what has been happening with youths diverted to the Youth Commissions. Data was collected from the 19 Youth Commissions, and a total of 559 cases were reviewed. Outcome data reveals that young offenders were assessed individually, and sanctions were imposed to hold them accountable, cultivate competency, and have them become cognizant of their part in community protection/public safety. Overall, 91% of the youths completed the program. Thus, this program appears to be a viable alternative to juvenile court processing.     

Perverse Effects of Unfulfilled Norms: A Look at the Roots of Favoritism

In four experiments, 120 subjects had to judge and reward the performance of players in a game. When no player fulfilled the norm of the game, subjects gave rewards arbitrarily or favored their friends among the players; when some players fulfilled the norm of the game, subjects made fair judgments, rewarding the players who fulfilled the norm, and they did not favor their friends. These findings suggest that research on in-group favoritism should include a serious discussion of the formal norms that regulate people's decisions when they have to allocate rewards.     

Toward Improved Legal Service Delivery: A Look at Four Mechanisms

A legal service delivery system intended to facilitate the providing of services by private practitioners should, to be complete, include among its functions three that are of special importance. First, it should diagnose legal problems. Second, it should make available to a person with a legal problem the information needed for informed selection of a lawyer. And third, it should, when necessary, help the prospective client to make the initial contact with a lawyer. Lawyer advertising, specialty certification, lawyer directories, and lawyer referral services perform some of these functions, but no one mechanism performs all three adequately. A system combining the lawyer directory with an expanded lawyer referral service might do so and thus might be a more complete answer to the problem of delivery of legal services.