Monday, October 31, 2011

Criminal justice conundrum | The Post and Courier, Charleston SC - News, Sports, Entertainment

Criminal justice conundrum | The Post and Courier, Charleston SC - News, Sports, Entertainment

"Last May the Supreme Court ordered California to reduce its prison population to ease overcrowding, leading to concerns about the impact on society of the early release of some prisoners.

The event illustrates the tangled interaction of federal and state law in the criminal justice system. While the prosecution of crimes is the principal responsibility of states, the federal government gets involved in many ways.

Congress has greatly expanded the list of federal crimes; states and municipalities are influenced by and to some degree dependent on federal grants; and federal courts set limits on police and prosecutors as well as on prison systems. A federal sentencing commission sets length-of-incarceration standards the states must respect

This tangle produces outcomes that are costly and sometimes counterproductive. It clearly needs a serious review. Any national study especially needs to consider the tensions between state and federal interests.

The widely hailed proposal by Sen. James Webb, D-Va., for a national commission to study the criminal justice system recently fell victim to these tensions. All but four Republican senators voted against bringing up Sen. Webb's bill, denying the required 60-vote super-majority.

The principal argument advanced by the opponents was that the commission's structure and mandate paid insufficient attention to states' responsibilities."

Friday, October 28, 2011

Tougher sentencing will put pressure on prisons - Crime, UK - The Independent

Tougher sentencing will put pressure on prisons - Crime, UK - The Independent

"The jail population in England and Wales could soar towards 95,000 within six years, Whitehall officials forecast yesterday as the Coalition signalled a toughening in its approach to criminal justice policy.

In a defeat for Kenneth Clarke's liberal instincts on sentencing, the Justice Secretary announced automatic jail terms for 16- and 17-year-olds found guilty of knife offences and American-style mandatory life sentences for offenders convicted of a second violent or sexual crime. Just 24 hours earlier he had expressed grave reservations about both policies, but appeared to have been overruled by David Cameron.

After years of increases, the prison population had recently begun to stabilise – and Mr Clarke said last year he believed it could be cut by 3,000. But it will be boosted by up to 1,000 as looters involved in the summer's riots serve tough sentences imposed by courts. The effect on jails is already beginning to be seen, with the prison population rising to a record 87,670 this month.

And according to new projections by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), the numbers behind bars could rise to a possible high of 94,800 in 2017, a total that would require the construction of several new jails. Mandatory prison sentences for knife crime committed by adults will also increase the pressure on the prison population.

Numbers of teenagers in custody had been falling in recent years, but the MoJ yesterday estimated that the mandatory jail sentence for 16- and 17-year-olds guilty of knife offences could lead to the imprisonment of up to 400 youngsters a year. Although Mr Clarke yesterday predicted the new "two strikes and you're out" life sentences for the most violent offenders would affect only 20 people a year, the proposals marked a distinct change of rhetoric by the Government on criminal justice.

They come months after Mr Cameron vetoed the Justice Secretary's plans to give sentence discounts to offenders pleading guilty at the earliest opportunity. The new populist tone – unlikely to be welcomed by the Coalition's Liberal Democrats – echoes the hardline "prison works" approach to law and order of Michael Howard when he was Home Secretary between 1993 and 1997."

Thursday, October 27, 2011

Can restorative justice help balance the scales for African-American youth? - Travel Wires - MiamiHerald.com

Can restorative justice help balance the scales for African-American youth? - Travel Wires - MiamiHerald.com

"CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- Darryl is a 12-year-old African American boy whose mother, Ariel, is a single parent. Ariel left high school after becoming pregnant with Darryl and has struggled to find anything but minimum wage jobs to support her family.

One day when he was out with another friend, Darryl and his friend snuck into the neighbor's house and stole a video game. The neighbors called the police.

One might conclude that the future does not bode well for Darryl. In fact, we probably would not be surprised if we were to learn later on that he was in prison. However, there is much more to his story, and much to learn from it. The police response ultimately resulted in a restorative intervention and provided Darryl with an alternative approach.

All too often, the criminal justice system offers only one solution to addressing transgressions: incarceration. A 2008 study by the Pew Charitable Trusts, an organization that focuses on improving public policies, found that one in 15 black men 18 years of age and older are incarcerated, compared with one in 106 white men. Even more startling, one in nine young African American men between the ages of 20 and 34 are behind bars, compared to one in 30 of the general U.S. population in that age group.

There are no easy answers to the question of what to do about the disproportionate incarceration rates of young African American men. Nor is there a single solution to address the many layers of structural inequalities that perpetuate cycles of poverty and violence in their lives. We know that incarceration does not solve the problem of crime; this is evident in the fact that around 40 percent of released inmates are back in prison within three years. For some people, prison can induce change, but the reality is that once within the "system," many people tend to stay.

So how do we prevent people from entering the system? How do we respond appropriately to young people like Darryl who commit a crime? The best response is a preventative one - creating structures that help prevent youth from entering into criminal activity in the first place and provide them with support to become productive citizens. Even so, the reality is that crimes will still be committed. Consequently, we need an alternative approach to address these transgressions."


Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/10/27/2474252/can-restorative-justice-help-balance.html#ixzz1bzwz4O4f

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Ken Clarke in rift with Theresa May over knife-crime children - Crime, UK - The Independent

Ken Clarke in rift with Theresa May over knife-crime children - Crime, UK - The Independent

"Ken Clarke, the Justice Secretary, yesterday opened a fresh rift with the Home Secretary, Theresa May, over whether to jail children found guilty of knife crime.


Plans for automatic prison sentences of six months for knife-wielding adults are currently going through Parliament, but Mrs May has signalled she wants the punishment extended to under-18s.

Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London, and Conservative MPs, have argued that the planned age for an automatic custodial sentence for using a knife to threaten life should be lowered. But appearing before MPs, Mr Clarke made clear he opposed the move, warning it would run counter to Britain's criminal justice system.

The Cabinet colleagues clashed at the Tory conference when Mr Clarke ridiculed Mrs May's claims that an illegal immigrant had avoided deportation under human rights legislation because of his pet cat.

Mr Clarke told the Home Affairs Select Committee that he supported automatic jail terms for knife-carrying adults, but added: "The idea that mandatory sentences now apply to certain types of offence, to young offenders, to children, to juveniles, is a bit of a leap for the judicial system.""

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Civil groups want Zille to act on ‘failures’ of justice system | The New Age Online

Civil groups want Zille to act on ‘failures’ of justice system | The New Age Online

"Civil organisations working in Cape Town townships have asked Premier Helen Zille to institute an independent commission of inquiry into the “continued and systematic failures of the criminal justice system”.

The organisations have criticised the police for failure to investigate criminal cases thoroughly, claiming that investigations were conducted poorly, resulting in criminal cases being taken off the court roll.

Social Justice Coalition, Ndifuna Ukwazi; Equal Education, Treatment Action Campaign, Triangle Project and Women Legal Centre representatives met Zille and community safety MEC Dan Plato recently, and asked Zille to institute an independent commission of inquiry.

This was directly pertaining to “certain failures of the criminal justice system in Khayelitsha”.

The meeting with Zille was in response to a protest of more than 500 people on October 4 who demonstrated outside the provincial parliament where, for the second time, the organisations issued a memorandum of grievances calling for a commission of inquiry to be instituted into the continued failure of the justice system in Khayelitsha, focusing on the conduct of police officers.

The organisations stated that through their work over “many years” they had identified “numerous” problems that prevented the realisation of the residents’ right to justice in Khayelitsha.

“In our collective experience and work, many victims of crime in Khayelitsha and in other working class and poor communities do not have adequate access to justice, a right that is guaranteed by the Constitution and the victims’ charter,” said the organisations.

Zille said she had explained to representatives from the organisations the province only had oversight of the police and that she asked them to submit a formal complaint “as I can only act on receipt of a formal complaint”."

Monday, October 24, 2011

Sex-offender info now on Facebook » Local News » Press-Republican

Sex-offender info now on Facebook » Local News » Press-Republican

"ALBANY — Users of Facebook can now get information about sex offenders living in their neighborhoods

Facebook users can access information about medium- and high-risk sex offenders with just a few clicks — and without leaving the social-networking site.

The New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services has launched its Sex Offender Locator Application, which is accessible via the New York State Public Safety Facebook page: facebook.com/nyspublicsafety.

The Division of Criminal Justice maintains the state's sex-offender registry and a registry subdirectory on the website criminaljustice.ny.gov/nsor that provides information about Level 2 (medium risk) and Level 3 (high risk) sex offenders. The new Facebook application is designed to make that information more readily accessible.

"New Yorkers now have another way to access up-to-date information about sex offenders in their neighborhoods," Division of Criminal Justice Acting Commissioner Sean M. Byrne said in a news release.

"With Halloween around the corner, parents now have another tool to learn where offenders live so they can ensure their children stay away from those locations, as well as strangers' homes. The Facebook app puts that important information at parents' fingertips, whether they are at home or on the go."

In all, 32,994 registered sex offenders are listed on the state's Sex Offender Registry: 12,473 Level 1 offenders; 11,685 Level 2 offenders; 8,163 Level 3 offenders; and 673 offenders whose risk level is pending."

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Can Criminal Justice Be Quantified? - Andrew Cohen - National - The Atlantic

Can Criminal Justice Be Quantified? - Andrew Cohen - National - The Atlantic

"There's an interesting study out from the NYU School of Law which buttresses the argument that America would save a ton of money down the road, and make life easier for many of its citizens, if lawmakers today were able to muster up the moxie to remodel criminal justice systems. It's a concept that requires political foresight and a patient public, which means most politicians and their constituents will blindly reject it, but I hope serious people everywhere take a long look at this.

The report is called "Balanced Justice," a joint project by the Institute for Policy Integrity and the Center for the Administration of Criminal Law, and it again urges policy makers to aggressively employ economic cost-benefit analyses when evaluating decisions about their criminal justice systems. "Public safety can be prioritized and even improved at a lower cost than traditional incarceration," the report concludes, "using techniques like behavioral therapy for young offenders, intensive supervision, or a new iteration of a drug court.""

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Consultants say that Oklahoma should get more from its criminal justice system | Tulsa World

Consultants say that Oklahoma should get more from its criminal justice system | Tulsa World

"MUSKOGEE - Oklahoma's criminal justice system is expensive and not particularly effective, a team of consultants from the nonprofit Council of State Governments' Justice Center said Tuesday.

With House Speaker Kris Steele moderating comments from an audience of about 30, the consultants' presented their preliminary findings for the third time in two days, having previously appeared in Lawton and Enid.

The team is part of the council's Justice Reinvestment program, which is described as a "data-driven approach to reduce corrections spending and reinvest savings in strategies that can decrease crime and strengthen neighborhoods."

The program is credited with helping Texas, Kansas and about a dozen other states redesign their corrections systems.

"Oklahoma has increased spending for corrections by 41 percent while violent crime remains virtually unchanged," Steele said during preliminary remarks. "At least 36 other states have seen decreases in violent crime during that same period."

Project Director Marshall Clement said he and his colleagues had identified three major areas of concern: The state has unchanged or rising crime rates that run contrary to national trends; a high percentage of Oklahoma inmates are released without supervision; and Oklahoma's prison population is increasing at an unsustainable rate.

Clement said Oklahoma's murder rate has remained almost unchanged over the past decade while the national rate has declined 13 percent.

Robbery, he said, has gone up 15 percent in the state while declining 18 percent nationally during the same period.

Clement said the increases may be related to declines in the number of police per capita in the state, especially in Oklahoma City and Tulsa. He noted that Norman had increased its police force by 18 percent relative to its population and had seen a corresponding 48 percent drop in violent crime.

About half of Oklahoma inmates are released from prison without any required supervision, Clement said. State Corrections Director Justin Jones, who was among those in attendance, said that's because so many serve their full sentences before being released.

Later, during questions and remarks from the audience, it was mentioned that many inmates prefer to stay in jail rather than be released under supervision - in part because of the costs associated with supervised release.

According to corrections officials and attorney Mark Bonney, inmates on supervised release have to pay at least $100 to $150 for such things as monitoring devices and behavioral treatment. Sex offenders must take polygraph exams every six months at a cost of about $250 each time.

"I've had people I've sentenced tell me they'd rather serve a full sentence than get out early with supervision," said Muskogee County Special Judge Robin Adair. "That indicates to me the importance of supervision."

Clement said Oklahoma will need an additional 3,000 prison beds in the next few years just to accommodate the population increase caused by the state's 85 percent rule - a state law requiring many offenders to serve at least 85 percent of their sentences.

Jones said the effect of the 85 percent rule has been compounded by a trend toward longer sentences."

Read more from this Tulsa World article at http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=11&articleid=20111019_16_A1_CUTLIN935911

Consultants say that Oklahoma should get more from its criminal justice system | Tulsa World

Consultants say that Oklahoma should get more from its criminal justice system | Tulsa World

"MUSKOGEE - Oklahoma's criminal justice system is expensive and not particularly effective, a team of consultants from the nonprofit Council of State Governments' Justice Center said Tuesday.

With House Speaker Kris Steele moderating comments from an audience of about 30, the consultants' presented their preliminary findings for the third time in two days, having previously appeared in Lawton and Enid.

The team is part of the council's Justice Reinvestment program, which is described as a "data-driven approach to reduce corrections spending and reinvest savings in strategies that can decrease crime and strengthen neighborhoods."

The program is credited with helping Texas, Kansas and about a dozen other states redesign their corrections systems.

"Oklahoma has increased spending for corrections by 41 percent while violent crime remains virtually unchanged," Steele said during preliminary remarks. "At least 36 other states have seen decreases in violent crime during that same period."

Project Director Marshall Clement said he and his colleagues had identified three major areas of concern: The state has unchanged or rising crime rates that run contrary to national trends; a high percentage of Oklahoma inmates are released without supervision; and Oklahoma's prison population is increasing at an unsustainable rate.

Clement said Oklahoma's murder rate has remained almost unchanged over the past decade while the national rate has declined 13 percent.

Robbery, he said, has gone up 15 percent in the state while declining 18 percent nationally during the same period.

Clement said the increases may be related to declines in the number of police per capita in the state, especially in Oklahoma City and Tulsa. He noted that Norman had increased its police force by 18 percent relative to its population and had seen a corresponding 48 percent drop in violent crime.

About half of Oklahoma inmates are released from prison without any required supervision, Clement said. State Corrections Director Justin Jones, who was among those in attendance, said that's because so many serve their full sentences before being released.

Later, during questions and remarks from the audience, it was mentioned that many inmates prefer to stay in jail rather than be released under supervision - in part because of the costs associated with supervised release.

According to corrections officials and attorney Mark Bonney, inmates on supervised release have to pay at least $100 to $150 for such things as monitoring devices and behavioral treatment. Sex offenders must take polygraph exams every six months at a cost of about $250 each time.

"I've had people I've sentenced tell me they'd rather serve a full sentence than get out early with supervision," said Muskogee County Special Judge Robin Adair. "That indicates to me the importance of supervision."

Clement said Oklahoma will need an additional 3,000 prison beds in the next few years just to accommodate the population increase caused by the state's 85 percent rule - a state law requiring many offenders to serve at least 85 percent of their sentences.

Jones said the effect of the 85 percent rule has been compounded by a trend toward longer sentences."

Read more from this Tulsa World article at http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=11&articleid=20111019_16_A1_CUTLIN935911

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Commission For Major Criminal Justice Overhaul Back On Track In Congress

Commission For Major Criminal Justice Overhaul Back On Track In Congress

"WASHINGTON -- Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.) on Monday afternoon offered his National Criminal Justice Commission Act as an amendment to a major appropriations bill now before the Senate. A standalone version of the NCJCA stalled in the Senate in 2010 despite bipartisan support in the House.

If created, the Commission would "undertake a comprehensive review of the criminal justice system, encompassing current Federal, State, local, and tribal criminal justice policies and practices, and make reform recommendations for the President, Congress, State, local, and tribal governments," according to the amendment. The last time Congress conducted such a review was in 1965.

Once established, the Commission would have $5 million and 18 months to put out a report on what can be done to fix -- if not entirely overhaul -- the American criminal justice system.

Speaking to HuffPost soon after he first proposed the NCJCA in 2009, Webb said, "I heard from Justice [Anthony] Kennedy of the Supreme Court, from prosecutors, judges, defense lawyers, former offenders, people in prison, and police on the street. All of them have told me that our system needs to be fixed, and that we need a holistic plan of how to solve it."

Indeed, Justice Kennedy did his part in May of this year when he delivered a 5-4 decision ordering California to release about 46,000 prisoners from the state's notoriously overcrowded prison population. Overall, the United States houses 25 percent of the world's prisoners despite only having 5 percent of the global population.

Webb has also shown skepticism toward the effectiveness of the "war on drugs," noting the 1200 percent increase in incarceration of drug offenders since its Reagan-era inception. In a 2009 radio interview, Webb called the prospect of marijuana legalization a "very legitimate question" for the Commission to consider."

Monday, October 17, 2011

Health News - Innovative justice responses to sexual violence needed

Health News - Innovative justice responses to sexual violence needed

"By: Deborah Marshall - Victims of sexual violence need more than legal reform in seeking justice, according to a Griffith University study. They need "visionary change" in policy perspectives.

"Conventional and Innovative Justice Responses to Sexual Violence" by Professor Kathleen Daly, from the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, reveals that despite 30 years of sexual violence law reform, conviction rates in Australia, Canada, England and Wales continue to fall.

The overall conviction rate for sexual offences reported to the police for five common law jurisdictions, including Australia was 18 per cent in an earlier period (1970-1989), but had declined to 12.5 per cent in recent years (1990-2005).

Professor Daly said research on conviction rates and victims' experiences in the legal process showed that justice system responses remained inadequate.

"Victims continue to express dissatisfaction with how the police and courts handle their cases and with their experiences of the trial process."

Professor Daly said one explanation for decreasing conviction rates was as more sexual offenses were reported to police, they contained a higher share of known relations and rape contexts that do not match the "real rape" construct of stranger relations – visible physical injury, and being assaulted in a public setting.

She said legal officials, along with other members of society, could have negative stereotypes of victims unless the assault contexts conformed to this construct.

"The demonisation of some sexual offenders makes them seem so monstrous that women’s everyday victimisation experiences by partners, friends, and colleagues cannot be imagined as 'real rape'.

"Many commentators believe the crux of the problem lies in cultural beliefs about gender and sexuality, which dilute and undermine the intentions of rape law reform."

She said finding the balance between censuring wrongs and validating and vindicating victims required imaginative and innovative ways of thinking about justice beyond prosecution and trial, or of increasing punishment.

"We require a shift in the priorities of legal reform, away from the trial and toward mechanisms of encouraging admissions to offending, including the pursuit of alternative pathways of participation and support for victims, offenders, and others affected by sexual violence."

She said the criminal justice system should not be considered the principle site for changing people's behaviour and attitudes about gender and sexuality."

Friday, October 14, 2011

Criminal justice departments prepare for N.O. budget process - New Orleans News, Breaking News, Sports & Weather - FOX 8 Live WVUE-TV Channel 8

Criminal justice departments prepare for N.O. budget process - New Orleans News, Breaking News, Sports & Weather - FOX 8 Live WVUE-TV Channel 8

"New Orleans -- With just under two months left for the Mayor and the council to decide how to spend nearly a half a billion of your tax dollars next year, there’s a lot of talk about the budget process.

“It should be somewhere I suspect in the range of $485 million. It’s about what it was last year,” says Councilwoman Stacy Head.

Head says she suspects every department would like to have more money, but she says there is only so much of it to go around. When it comes to the criminal justice system, Head says it’s about spending smart.

District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro says he plans to ask the city for slightly more money for his office. Even so, he’s been critical of the Criminal District Court judges over the past year about wasting resources, saying they need to work harder.

“The court system does not operate terribly efficient and if you talk to any group, they’ll say it’s the other one’s fault. But bottom line, it’s the DA’s office, it’s the Public Defender’s office and it’s the judges,” says Head.

The councilwoman says those three agencies need to get together and figure out how to move cases through the system more efficiently.

Last year, $200,000 was cut from Criminal District Court. This year, the court plans to ask for that money back, bringing its overall budget to somewhere around $3 million."

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Michelle Alexander: More Black Men Are In Prison Today Than Were Enslaved In 1850

Michelle Alexander: More Black Men Are In Prison Today Than Were Enslaved In 1850

"More black men are behind bars or under the watch of the criminal justice system than there were enslaved in 1850, according to the author of a book about racial discrimination and criminal justice.

Ohio State University law professor and civil rights activist Michelle Alexander highlighted the troubling statistic while speaking in front of an audience at the Pasadena Branch of the American Civil Liberties Union, Elev8 reports.

Alexander, the author of "The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness," reportedly claimed there are more African American men in prison and jail, or on probation and parole, than were slaves before the start of the Civil War.

More than 846,000 black men were incarcerated in 2008, according to U.S. Bureau of Justice estimates reported by NewsOne. African Americans make up 13.6 percent of the U.S. population according to census data, but black men reportedly make up 40.2 percent of all prison inmates.

The criminal justice system is the newest in a long line of societal structures that have disenfranchised people of color, Alexander argues in her book, according to ColorLines.

In an excerpt from her book published on her website, Alexander writes that despite today's belief in "colorblindness," our criminal justice system effectively bars African American men from citizenship, treating them as a separate caste:

"Denying African Americans citizenship was deemed essential to the formation of the original union. Hundreds of years later, America is still not an egalitarian democracy. The arguments and rationalizations that have been trotted out in support of racial exclusion and discrimination in its various forms have changed and evolved, but the outcome has remained largely the same."

More African American men were disenfranchised due to felony convictions in 2004 than in 1870, "the year the Fifteenth Amendment was ratified prohibiting laws that explicitly deny the right to vote on the basis of race," she wrote in a Huffington Post blog published last year."

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Victim agencies to receive grants | The Tribune

Victim agencies to receive grants | The Tribune

"Two Lawrence County agencies that assist crime victims will receive grants from the Ohio Crime Victim Compensation fund totaling more than $136,000, according to Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine’s office.

The Criminal Justice Program in the Office of Lawrence County Prosecutor J.B. Collier Jr., will receive $66,800 in grant funds while the Lawrence County Domestic Violence Task Force domestic violence shelter have been awarded $69,500, according to a press release.

Officials with both agencies say the annual grants, which are awarded as part of the State Victims Assistance Act and the federal Victims of Crime Act, are vital to providing local services to victims of crimes and domestic violence in Lawrence County. The grants require a 25 percent local match.

Kathy Beals, director of victim’s assistance in Collier’s office, said the grant money is used to cover personnel costs for its three victims advocates. Advocates serve as a liaison between the victim and the prosecutor, she said.

“We lead them through the criminal court proceedings, educate them and go to these court proceedings if they are not able to attend,” Beals said. She added advocates also help victims file compensation claims for uncovered medical and/or counseling bills and help them register for the VINELink service. She said in Lawrence County advocates assist victims of both felony and misdemeanor crimes.

“If there were no victim advocacy for Lawrence County, the prosecutors themselves could not contact every victim in the cases, so their voices wouldn’t be heard essentially. There are too many cases for them to actually cover,” Beals said.

Elaine Payne, director of the Lawrence County Domestic Violence Task Force, said the funds are equally important for her agency. Without the annual assistance its domestic violence shelter would “absolutely shut down,” she said. As it is, she added, the agency struggles to raise the required 25 percent local match every year."

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Forgiveness, regret and justice

"The culture of South Korea places a high value on honor, or face. When someone expresses regret or asks forgiveness they are seen as repudiating their inappropriate behavior and choosing proper conduct. This choice to behave in a proper manner reduces their dishonor and saves face. Admission of wrongdoing, expressing regret, and asking for forgiveness are behaviors that are also granted high standing in the Korean criminal justice system. A defendant who admits to wrong behavior receives a reduced sentence. A defendant who proclaims their innocence is perceived as unrepentant and, if convicted, receives a harsher penalty. The regretful offender usually obtains release from confinement during the pre-trial period and a defendant who obtains the forgiveness of the victim, or the victim’s family, often escapes jail time even for the most egregious offenses.

However, this system often results in court decisions that confound Western sensibilities and, more and more frequently, infuriate the Korean populace. Recently two cases have brought attention once again on the often inscrutable decisions of the Korean courts. The first case revolves around the release of the box office film Dogani , or “the Crucible,” which dramatizes the sexual molestation of students at a school for the hearing-impaired from 2000 to 2005 and highlights the minimal punishment imposed on the perpetrators. The second case is a recent decision by the Seoul high court drastically reducing the prison sentences imposed by the lower court on four young men in their 20s convicted of the prolonged sexual assault of a 12-year-old girl. In both cases when reducing the prison sentence, or imposing probation in lieu of prison, the courts referred to the perpetrators expressions of regret and, more significantly, to the fact that the perpetrators had reached settlements with the victims and their families.

However, the question arises whether reducing criminal sentences or choosing whether to impose only probation based on these factors is appropriate. On closer examination it is clear that this system creates perverse incentives. A defendant’s knowledge that a reduction of the severity of the prison sentence imposed will be based on an admission of guilt and its concomitant perceived regret may cause even an innocent defendant to admit guilt in order to reduce the potential penalty. This becomes even more likely when a defendant realizes that admission of guilt can result in avoiding jail time or even the potential cessation of prosecution. Nonetheless as society must rely on the criminal justice system to accurately distinguish between the innocent and the guilty, everyone under the law must hope that the incentives created by this factor never result in any severe violation of an innocent individual’s basic human rights to life or liberty.

Regardless of society’s hope regarding infrequent admissions of guilt by innocent individuals, nothing can excuse the court’s predilection towards reducing or even vacating the criminal sentences of those offenders who obtain the forgiveness of the victim, or the victim’s family. From a purely philosophical standpoint when a person commits a crime, that person commits it not just against the victim, but against the entire society. According to this theory of social contract, victims simply do not have the power to free the perpetrator from punishment. The offender is punished because of their violation of the social contract under which all members of a society have agreed to live. The victim may be eligible for compensation for pain and suffering, but the offender cannot escape the punishment of society. Repeated failure by the courts to adequately punish offenders for violations of the social contract inevitably undermines the rule of law that governs society and increases everyone’s vulnerability to crime."

Read more: http://www.koreaherald.com/opinion/Detail.jsp?newsMLId=20111011000131

Monday, October 10, 2011

Katy Welter: Finding the "Fat Catchers" of Criminal Justice

Katy Welter: Finding the "Fat Catchers" of Criminal Justice

"Cook County criminal justice can learn some valuable lessons from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Oakland A's. Namely, experts are often overconfident. They make mistakes because they see the world from a narrow, limited perspective, and they have inadequate, unsystematic information. Their incorrect diagnoses can be tremendously costly. Rather than rely on the personal observations and experience of experts to solve our problems, it may be better to make simple, incremental changes and then observe the results.

In 2002, the NIH abruptly terminated one of the largest medical studies ever conducted. The reason? The treatment provided to tens of thousands of menopausal women, hormone replacement therapy, turned out to increase the patients' risk of heart disease and cancer. This was particularly shocking because, for decades, the treatment had been widely thought to be relatively low risk. Doctors had not detected the complications.

At a recent conference in downtown Chicago, Jens Ludwig of the University of Chicago told a group of prosecutors (and a few observers) about the relevance of this to criminal justice policy. According to Ludwig, the initial hormone replacement studies made the treatment seem safe and effective because the women who signed up for the experimental treatment were likely to be health conscious--and, thus, were especially likely to be healthy. As a result, few of those women developed heart disease or cancers. If the women needing treatment had been randomly assigned to varying therapies, including hormone replacement, the risks of the hormones would have been seen. But the selection bias, as it's called, masked the negative effects, and it was subtle enough to escape the experts' notice, yet significant enough to devastate the NIH trial.

Similarly, innovative criminal justice reforms may produce misleading results if they are not implemented using systematic research methods. For example, a three percent decrease in recidivism is too small to be seen by decision makers active in the day-to-day administration of justice, but a change of that size could be detected in a well-designed experiment. And a 3% reduction in recidivism would save taxpayers and the victims of crime millions of dollars. It is something you would want to know about."

Friday, October 7, 2011

‘Incendiary,’ a Documentary About Willingham Case — Review - NYTimes.com

href="http://movies.nytimes.com/2011/10/07/movies/incendiary-a-documentary-about-willingham-case-review.html">‘Incendiary,’ a Documentary About Willingham Case — Review - NYTimes.com

"“Incendiary: The Willingham Case” covers a man’s execution in Texas for the murder of his children by arson. But this involving documentary, while sympathetic to opponents of the death penalty, isn’t focused on sorting out the ethical rights and wrongs of the practice. It centers instead on whether we understand or respect evolving standards of scientific evidence.

The much-reported case, in short: In 1991 two fire investigators in Corsicana, Tex., found evidence of arson that led to the execution of Cameron Todd Willingham in 2004. Years later, when nationally recognized experts examined the trial, that evidence was largely debunked. Even Texas standards had changed, suggesting that the forensic findings in the case were based more on folklore than on science.

Yet the state judicial system and oversight panels did not accept those new conclusions. Where “Incendiary” will most capture attention, though it does so soberly and professionally (no Michael Moore-style hyperbole here), is in its examination of the political role in that process. Specifically, it examines whether Gov. Rick Perry, who is now seeking the Republican presidential nomination, and his appointees — particularly John Bradley, the prosecutor who from 2009 to earlier this year led the scientists on the recently formed Texas Forensic Science Commission — interfered with the hearing of re-examined forensics because it would have prevented a faithful assurance that no mistakes had been made.

The Innocence Project, including one of its founders, Barry Scheck, became involved in the case, making for some of the film’s most combative scenes. For contrast, Mr. Willingham’s original court-appointed lawyer, David Martin, is interviewed outdoors, where his remarks are interrupted by the crows of roosters. He calls his client a psychopath and a sociopath; says later scientific findings go against his common sense and personal experience; and hints that attorney-client privilege prevents him from saying more.

Mr. Martin is confident in his convictions. The filmmakers are confident about their science. Justice, this strong documentary asserts, is at risk in the division."

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Jackson Death Trial Showcases iPhone Forensic Capabilities - PR Newswire - sacbee.com

Jackson Death Trial Showcases iPhone Forensic Capabilities - PR Newswire - sacbee.com

""iPhone users would be stunned to learn the amount of recoverable data we can get," says Mark McLaughlin of Los Angeles based Computer Forensics International. "When you hit delete it doesn't necessarily mean that message, text or picture is gone forever. You're just telling the iPhone, don't show it to me anymore and it flags that deleted data so it can be overwritten. So depending on the activity after the deletion, we may be able to bring it back like it was never deleted."

DEA Computer Forensics Examiner Stephen Marx testified today in the Michael Jackson Death Trial that he found emails the defendant Dr. Conrad Murray had sent hours before Michael Jackson died on June 25, 2009. Not only did Marx recover critical timeline emails, he also discovered digital medical charts thought to be non-existent. But the key piece of evidence was a damaging audio recording of an impaired Michael Jackson reportedly made by Murray.

Computer forensic examiners like McLaughlin, routinely use very sophisticated software tools, such as EnCase, on civil and criminal cases. They start by first making a copy of the iPhone's entire memory – which includes active and deleted data. This exact copy doesn't disturb the original data which makes the examination forensically sound and admissible in court. Then the copy can be searched either visually or by using keywords. The recovered data is ultimately put into known iPhone categories and displayed."

Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/2011/10/05/3963662/jackson-death-trialshowcases.html#ixzz1a1PtaEbL

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Justice Reforms Help Child Witnesses | Stuff.co.nz

Justice Reforms Help Child Witnesses Stuff.co.nz

"Under 12s will be allowed to pre-record their evidence to court or appear by video link to protect child witnesses and speed up-hearings, under new measures to be introduced next year.

Justice Minister Simon Power has just announced a package of reforms to '' dramatically improve'' how children are treated in the criminal justice system.

Under new laws, to be introduced next year, a child's evidence must be recorded within six months. A youngster could only be re-called for further questioning only when ''absolutely necessary.''

Specialist intermediaries will also be brought in to improve the questioning of complainants under 18. They will be trained in the 'cognitive development and language comprehension' of children and funded using money raised by the $50 offender levy.

Child witnesses will also be allowed to have a 'support person' present while giving evidence. Currently they have to apply to a judge for permission.

Judges must also warn juries not to draw interferences from the demeanour of children who pre-record their evidence.

"Introducing specialist intermediaries and pre-recording a child's evidence and then playing it back at trial can be an effective way of sparing the children the trauma of attending trial many months later,'' Power said.

The inquisitorial-style package of reforms will be contained in the Evidence Amendment Bill, expected to be introduced into Parliament next year.

Power said the reforms were shaped by an Auckland University of Technology report on child witnesses, and a visit to Germany and Austria last year to investigate inquisitorial systems of justice.

"It disturbs me that AUT's research found that 30 per cent of children wept while testifying, more than 70 per cent of them did not understand a question posed by a defence lawyer, and that 65 per cent were accused by the defence of lying," Power said.

He said the judiciary will play a more active role in determining whether questions to be put to child witnesses are appropriate. "

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Conservative Party Conference 2011: we must tackle 'feral underclass', says Ken Clarke - Telegraph

Conservative Party Conference 2011: we must tackle 'feral underclass', says Ken Clarke - Telegraph

"In his speech to the Conservative Party Conference, Mr Clarke said jails should be ''places of retribution but also places of reform."

Mr Clarke said he was ''dramatically'' expanding the working prisons programme and welcomed the support of eight major companies, including Virgin and Marks & Spencer.

The Justice Secretary, who has faced claims he is soft on crime, told the gathering in Manchester: ''At Altcourse Prison near Liverpool, prisoners do 40 hours of hard work every week in a metal workshop.

''Part of their earnings goes to fund services for victims of crime and because these prisoners have got some skills, they are less likely - a lot less likely - to return to prison.

''So the burden on the taxpayer, on you and me, is less.

''I am in the process of expanding this working prisons programme quite dramatically.
''It's is not something Government can do alone, we need the private sector, socially responsible private partners, on board.''

High-profile business leaders including Sir Richard Branson and Marks & Spencer boss Marc Bolland called for more criminals to be given jobs in a bid to harness the talents of ''potential superstars'' in the prison population in a joint letter to the Financial Times.

Among the other signatories are Matthew Davies of Pets at Home, Steve Holliday of National Grid, Ian Sarson of Compass Group, James Reed of Reed Specialist Recruitment, Malcolm Walker of Iceland Foods and James Timpson from the family key cutting and shoe repair empire.

Mr Clarke said: ''The idea is to provide hard work in prison so that prisoners would be doing something productive, instead of doing nothing.

''Plotting a more honest future instead of planning their next crime, earning money to pay back to victims instead of dreaming of creating new victims through future crimes.''

Mr Clarke repeated his claim that a ''feral underclass'' was responsible for the rioting that spread through English cities this summer. "

Monday, October 3, 2011

Supreme Court Turns to Criminal and First Amendment Cases - NYTimes.com

Supreme Court Turns to Criminal and First Amendment Cases - NYTimes.com

"WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court, which has been focused in recent terms on the rights of corporations and on curbing big lawsuits, returns to the bench on Monday with a different agenda. Now, criminal justice is at the heart of the court’s docket, along with major cases on free speech and religious freedom.

“The docket seems to be changing,” Justice Anthony M. Kennedy told reporters at a judicial conference in August.

“A lot of big civil cases are going to arbitration,” he said. “I don’t see as many of the big civil cases.”

Still, the shift in focus toward criminal and First Amendment cases will soon be obscured if, as expected, the justices agree to hear a challenge to the 2010 health care overhaul law. That case promises to be a once-in-a-generation blockbuster.

In the meantime, the justices will hear an extraordinary set of cases that together amount to a project that could overhaul almost every part of the criminal justice system.

The court will decide whether the police need a warrant to use advanced technology to track suspects, whether jails may strip-search people arrested for even the most minor offenses, whether defendants have a right to competent lawyers to help them decide whether to plead guilty, when eyewitness evidence may be used at trial, and what should happen when prosecutors withhold evidence.

“The Supreme Court has positioned itself to improve the quality of the criminal justice process from beginning to end,” said Eric M. Freedman, a law professor at Hofstra University. "