Victim-offender race and support for capital punishment: A factorial design approach

Existing research suggests that juries are more likely to condemn murderers to death when offenders are black victims are white. It remains to be seen, however, whether these decisions reflect broader racial prejudices in society that are imported into the jury room. If they do, then insuring equity in capital sentencing may be beyond reach. Accordingly, this study uses factorial design methodology to examine whether members of the general public are more supportive of capital punishment when asked to rate a vignette describing a murder involving a white victim and black offender as opposed to other victim-offender racial combinations. Our analyses suggest that the race of the offender, but not the victim, has a significant influence on support for capital punishment. Thus, procedural safeguards alone may be unable to eliminate racial bias in capital sentencing.     

Rip-Off transfers: Source of social progress

This article advocates taking from the weak and giving to the strong.     

Undetected opiate use: A comparison of official drug user files and a private methadone clinic's patient records

To address the question of the extent of undetected opiate use and the characteristics of this user-population, a research study was undertaken comparing a random sample of ‘walk-in’ patients from a private methadone treatment clinic to police intelligence files on drug-users in a major eastern U.S. city. An independent law enforcement agency substantiated the accuracy of the police files, and the treatment agency had procedures which verified the addiction of the patients. The result of the comparison of these two information sources disclosed that: (1) 51.8 percent of the patients were unknown to the law enforcement authorities; (2) a higher percentage of blacks were unknown than whites, and (3) seventy percent of the addicts under thirty years of age were not known to the police as drug users. These findings tend to discount official estimates of addiction rates often based on law enforcement records, and suggest some interesting treatment methods and research questions.     

The pleasures of youth: Parent and peer compliance toward discretionary time

In the past, research into an adolescent's leisure time has almost exclusively focused on furnishing a record or checklist of activities. This investigation evaluates attitudinal dimensions of leisure, peer identification, and parental accommodation as it relates to patterns of leisure present in an affluent adolescent subculture. Two factors emerged from the attitudinal study, representing achievement and egalitarian dispositions. Patterns of peer and parental compliance were measured against these dispositions. Parental and peer influences were found to affect the outcome of an adolescent's attitudes. Differences between sexes and between early and late adolescence were also discovered to influence levels of compliance with parents and peers, thereby affecting an adolescent's leisure attitudes.Received Ph.D. in sociology from State University of New York at Buffalo, where he specialized in the study of leisure and recreation. Currently, as a research sociologist, pursues studies in attitudes toward wilderness among youth and investigates patterns of association in leisure and outdoor recreation. A monograph on the adolescent and leisure is planned which will have a cross-cultural and comparative perspective.Received Ph.D. in sociology from Vanderbilt University. Current interests include the study of relationships between religious attitudes and drug usage among adolescents and is currently completing a monograph on serpenthandling religions.     

Application of the Suchey-Brooks method to three-dimensional imaging of the pubic symphysis

Age determination is a major field of interest in forensic anthropology. Among the different methods based on macroscopic skeletal study, the Suchey-Brooks method, which analyzes the pubic symphysis, is one of the most reliable. We applied the Suchey-Brooks method to three-dimensional computed tomographic reconstructions of the pubic symphysis. We demonstrated excellent agreement between the results of analysis of bone samples and those of the three-dimensional images, in particular regarding ridges of the articular surface and delimitation of the extremities. The accuracy of age estimation did not significantly differ (Wilcoxon test) between the Suchey-Brooks method applied to bones and the same method applied to CT images. Using high-quality images, this approach seems as reliable as the standard Suchey-Brooks method and offers several advantages: no bone preparation, no damage to bone material, and the possibility of application to living individuals.     

The verdict is in: how did they decide? Using drivers’ self-reported data to understand officers’ decision making during traffic stop encounters

ABSTRACT

In the United States, traffic stop is the most common form of police-citizen encounter, and for many citizens, it is the only way they will ever interact with the police. The frequency of traffic stop encounters has therefore attracted a significant research interest. In the past several years, researchers have attempted to explain the dynamics of these interactions, with the hope to change attitudes and influence policy formation. To supplement the efforts of previous researchers, the current effort analyzed self-reported data from citizens to understand police decision making at three decision points during traffic stop encounters. Specifically, the present study aims to answer three questions: what variables predict whether an officer will let a citizen go without doing anything or decide to do something? If the officer decides to do something, what influences the officer’s decision to choose an outcome over others? What are the drivers of use of force in traffic stop encounters? Results from the regression models suggest that reasons for the stop, verbal assault, officer and suspect characteristics are important predictors of police decision making behavior during traffic stop interaction. The findings have serious implications for developing better police-citizen relationships as well as improving public attitudes toward the local police.