Societal views of justice for adolescents accused of murder

Examines citizens' views about when juveniles accused of homicide should be tried and punished as adults. Responses from two randomly selected samples of adult Georgia residents suggest that these views are strongly influenced by whether adolescent defendants have been victims of abuse. Laypersons prefer juvenile court for juveniles who kill abusive parents (76% for first time offenders. 77% for those with one prior adjudication). Respondents are split concerning how to punish abused juveniles who have two prior adjudications (49% recommend juvenile court) and abused juveniles with one prior offense who kill a neighbor (48% recommend juvenile court). Most respondents, however, prefer adult court for repeat offenders who kill and have no history of child abuse. These findings suggest that legislative automatic transfers are overly simplistic compared to the contextual sensitivity of community sentiment. Policymakers may have serious misconceptions of societal views of fairness in this area.     

Violence in relationships: A seventh grade inventory of knowledge and attitudes

The purpose of this research was to contribute to existing efforts of battered women's advocates, schools, and researchers by developing a valid and reliable inventory to evaluate educational interventions regarding violence in relationships. Content validity was established by national experts (N=32)solicited to complete an inventory rating scale and comment on the statements' ability to elicit early adolescents' knowledge and attitudes about violence in relation-ships. The revised inventory was tested with seventh grade health education students (N=99).The test-retest reliability criterion was .50. Spearman's rho correlations were .566 for the knowledge section and .669 for the attitude section. Knowledge and attitude sections were measured for internal con- sistency with Cronbach's alpha, with respective values of .3178 and .7207. Item analyses with Wilcoxon Rank Sum tests identified 11 knowledge statements and one attitude statement as significantly discriminating at both test and retest. Gender differences were noted and additional findings were reported. Recommendations for the further establishment of a valid and reliable inventory were made.     

Assessment of prison escape risk

The literature concerning assessment of escape probability in prison inmates appears to be somewhat contradictory: A variety of potential predicator variables have been studied with mixed results. Only four state correctional systems report using a formal risk assessment predictive procedure or instrument (Hinshaw, 1978). Traditional correctional criteria (e.g., length of sentence, violent crimes, sex crimes, etc.) have been found to be of limited, utility at best (Lane & Rans, 1982). Alternative predictor variables which have been examined inchide the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), juvenile history, employment history substance abuse patterns, and marital status.