Coal Ash Disposal in North Carolina: The Road after Eden

Coal ash legislation came to North Carolina in the wake of two significant spills, one at the nearby Tennessee Valley Authority coal power plant in Kingston, Tennessee, and another at the Dan River Steam Station along the Dan River in the town of Eden, North Carolina. These two events, combined with an impending study by the USEPA, would galvanize the North Carolina General Assembly to pass Senate Bill 729 (the Coal Ash Management Act). This bill mirrors the federal system of prioritizing the different energy utilities based on their hazard potential and eventually terminating their use as power production and coal ash storage facilities. Additionally, the act created a coal ash management commission and the process for confirming members. In summation, this legislative step shows the North Carolina General Assembly taking concrete steps to address a problem in the handling of coal combustion residuals. In North Carolina, however, only time will tell if these measures are substantial enough to ward off another Eden.     

White Supremacist Activity and Crossburnings in North Carolina

This study examines whether the incidence of crossburnings rises in areas where white supremacist organizations, such as the Christian Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, have held rallies or demonstrations. Using data from two public interest groups, Klanwatch and North Carolinians Against Racial and Religious Violence, we track crossburnings and white supremacist activities in 100 North Carolina counties annually for the period 1987–1993. Various statistical models, including an event count analysis that allows each county to have its own level or reporting bias, indicate that the base rate at which crossburnings occur rises sharply in counties where a demonstration has taken place. Since none of the suspected crossburners has apparent ties to white supremacist groups, it may be that white supremacist rallies encourage fellow travelers to engage in this form of racial intimidation.     

Is less better?: Boot camp, regular probation and rearrest in North Carolina

Using official data, 331 boot camp participants and a stratified random sample of 369 regular probationers were tracked for rearrests over a threeyear period. Chisquare tests and logistic regression analysis indicate that participation in boot camp was significantly associated with rearrest for drug offenses, offenses categorized as “other,” and all types of offenses combined. Contrary to most prior research, which suggests that boot camp participation has no effect on subsequent criminal behavior, the results in this study indicate that participation in the boot camp program had a detrimental effect on its participants.     

Frequency of pulmonary hemosiderosis in Eastern North Carolina

Pulmonary hemosiderosis has been attributed to airborne fungi in water-damaged homes in studies of a cluster of cases in infants and children in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1997. We have searched for such emerging infectious agents in the Coastal Plain of North Carolina, which is subject to intermittent flooding. Pulmonary tissue from 206 infants and young children whose deaths had been investigated from October 1978 to September 1996 was retained at East Carolina University School of Medicine. Ages ranged from premature newborns to 49-months. One hundred and ten deaths were attributed to sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). New sections were cut and analyzed using hematoxylin and eosin, Prussian blue for iron, and Gomori methenamine silver for fungal organisms. Twenty-three infants and children had iron-containing macrophages. Sixteen of these had underlying illnesses, but 4 were originally diagnosed as SIDS. Only one of these had sufficient hemosiderosis to be considered as having pulmonary hemosiderosis and no fungi were present. One case without iron had fungi and was not originally diagnosed as SIDS. The single case of pulmonary hemosiderosis found in this rural area is not similar to the cluster in Cleveland. The study identifies no fungal organisms as emerging infectious diseases in this area.     

The effect of witnesses, attorneys, and judges on civil commitment in North Carolina: a prospective study

A total of 388 commitment hearings were observed and analyzed for demographic information on patients, name of judge, duration of hearing, identities of those present and those actually testifying, outcome of any procedural challenges, and concurrence of the judges with attorney and physician recommendations. Age, race, and gender of the patient were found to have no significant effect on the outcome of the cases. Disposition of the cases correlated with recommendations by physicians, witnesses, and state attorneys in an overwhelming number of cases. Possible harmful influences of plea-bargaining in commitment hearings are discussed.     

Acute ethanol poisoning: a two-year study of deaths in North Carolina

A 24-month study of fatalities in North Carolina with high blood ethanol levels (300 mg/100 ml or over) revealed 502 cases with either acute alcoholism or the effects of this range of blood ethanol concentration having caused or contributed to death. This investigation reassessed the criteria for ethanol poisoning, including its cause and manner of death, and revealed recurrent patterns common to this syndrome. This inquiry also contrasted the frequency of ethanol poisoning in different areas of the country.     

美国北卡罗来纳州社区矫正简况

一、组织机构（一） 概况。北卡罗来纳州（下文简称“北卡州”）位于美国东南沿海，面积136560平方公里，居民700多万。该州非监禁罪犯的矫正工作由北卡州社区矫正局负责。在2007财政年度，北卡州社区矫正局的雇员总数为2．572人，年度预算1．34亿美元，在册犯人126．381人。社区矫正官与犯人的比例约为1：50。     

Hydraulic Fracturing in North Carolina: How It Came to Be,and What It Means for Our State

This article details the process of legalizing hydraulic fracturing in North Carolina, which began with a request by the North Carolina Congress for a study of implementation strategies and geologic concerns from the state's environmental agencies. Steadily afterwards several pieces of legislation were introduced to create a regulatory scheme to encompass the issuing of drilling permits, regulating operations, and protecting surrounding groundwater. This article illustrates the legislative history, highlighting key components. Lastly, two recent studies regarding groundwater safety around hydraulic fracturing sites are explored in order to gain a brief understanding of the scientific consensus of the process.     

Accreditation and the state of North Carolina: The revitalization of national standards

From the mid to late 70s, the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (ACJS) developed a process for accrediting post-secondary criminal justice education programs. The academy gave form to the program by developing guidelines and a complex organizational network. However, the program did not reach fruition for a variety of economic and political reasons and it is doubtful that the Academy will attempt to resurrect the program soon. Even though the accreditation movement was abandoned on the national level, the North Carolina Association of Criminal Justice Educators (NCACJE) decided to implement the program and stepped into a very lengthy and political process.     

The intersection of race and gender: an examination of sentencing outcomes in North Carolina

This study examines the intersection of offenders’ race and gender in the sentencing process using data on felony cases sentenced in North Carolina. Analyses examine the likelihood that charges were reduced in severity between initial filing and conviction, the likelihood of imprisonment, and the length of sentence imposed, and test whether race affects punishment similarly for men and women. Results indicate that status characteristics predict both reductions in charge severity and the severity of the final sentence, and that racial disparity is conditional on gender. However, the results are not entirely consistent with predictions derived from the extant literature. Gender significantly predicts case outcomes at each stage, but black men were not uniformly disadvantaged, and black women received the least severe treatment in two out of four analyses. Theoretical implications for the intersection of race and gender in sentencing theories are discussed.     

Criminal Justice Education and Training in North Carolina: History and Development from 1920 to 1980

This paper examines and analyzes primary and secondary data relative to the history and development of criminal justice education and training in North Carolina for six decades. Emphasis is focused on the early attempts to provide education and training for criminal justice personnel from 1920 to 1940, the expansion and improvement in criminal justice education and training from 1940 to 1960, and the establishment of criminal justice education and training programs in two-year community colleges and technical institutes and four-year senior public and private postsecondary education institutions from 1960 to 1980. In addition to discussing the similarities and differences in the methods utilized by institutions to establish criminal justice education and training programs, this paper discusses the curricula, course offerings, and characteristics of the faculties, as well as internal and external conditions, forces, and factors that influenced the history and development of education and training programs for criminal justice personnel. As a result of the impact of these and various influences from within police departments and individual institutions, educational and governmental state agencies, and from demands and needs of criminal justice personnel and society for better protection and safety, criminal justice education and training programs were in force at 15 two-year community colleges, 30 two-year technical institutes, 10 four-year senior, public institutions, and eight four-year, senior, private institutions in North Carolina in 1978.     

Ethanol, marijuana, and other drug use in 600 drivers killed in single-vehicle crashes in North Carolina, 1978-1981

Although the use of ethanol, marijuana, and other drugs may be detrimental to driving safety, this has been established by direct epidemiological evidence only for ethanol. In this study, the incidences of detection of ethanol (and other volatile substances), delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), barbiturates, cocaine and benzoylecgonine, opiates, and phencyclidine were determined in an inclusive population of 600 verified single-vehicle operator fatalities that occurred in North Carolina in 1978 to 1981. The incidence of detection of amphetamines and methaqualone were determined for drivers accepted for study during the first two years (n = 340) and the last year (n = 260), respectively. Blood concentrations of 11-nor-deta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol-9-carboxylic acid (9-carboxy-THC) were determined in THC positive drivers. EMIT cannabinoid assays were performed on blood specimens from all drivers accepted for study during the third year, and the feasibility of using the EMIT cannabinoid assay as a screening method for cannabinoids in forensic blood specimens was investigated. The incidence of detection of ethanol (79.3%) was far greater than the incidences determined for THC (7.8%), methaqualone (6.2%), and barbiturates (3.0%). Other drugs were detected rarely, or were not detected. Blood ethanol concentrations (BECs) were usually high; 85.5% of the drivers whose bloods contained ethanol and 67.8% of all drivers had BECs greater than or equal to 1.0 g/L. Drug concentrations were usually within or were below accepted therapeutic or active ranges. Only a small number of drivers could have been impaired by drugs, and most of them had high BECs. Multiple drug use (discounting ethanol) was comparatively rare. Ethanol was the only drug tested for that appears to have a significantly adverse effect on driving safety.     

When farmworkers and advocates see trafficking but law enforcement does not: challenges in identifying labor trafficking in North Carolina

This article reports on the perceptions and experiences with labor trafficking of farmworkers, stakeholders, and law enforcement representatives in North Carolina. We found a sizeable number of farmworkers who had experienced labor trafficking violations, albeit with a convenience sample; and community agencies reported stories of labor trafficking victimization. However, most of the state and local law enforcement agencies that we attempted to contact simply ignored our requests for information about labor trafficking or reported no evidence of such victimization. Notwithstanding the sample limitations, we found a general lack of awareness of agricultural labor trafficking problems among law enforcement officials in our surveyed jurisdictions. We question whether our current law enforcement system will ever be in a position to effectively enforce the anti-labor-trafficking law; and suggest an alternative specialized mechanism be established.