UC Irvine online criminology master’s program again rated No. 1 in nation

Irvine, Calif., Feb. 7, 2024 — The University of California, Irvine Master of Advanced Study in criminology, law and society has been named the nation’s best online criminal justice master’s program by U.S. News & World Report for the fifth year in a row.

Researchers blow whistle on forensic science method

If forensic experts have access to a suspect’s gun, they can compare the microscopic markings from discarded shell casings with those found at a crime scene. Finding and reporting a mismatch can help free the innocent, just as a match can incriminate the guilty. But new research reveals mismatches are more likely than matches to be reported as “inconclusive” in cartridge-case comparisons.

National Academies report identifies ways to reduce intergenerational poverty in US

Irvine, Calif., Sept. 25, 2023 — A report released Thursday, Sept. 21, by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine identifies evidence-based programs and policies, such as increased K-12 spending for school districts serving low-income students, to combat intergenerational poverty in the United States.

DePaul University experts available to discuss Chicago mayoral run-off, issues that will decide race

CHICAGO — As Chicago voters head to the polls in less than a month to decide whether Brandon Johnson, a Cook County Board Commissioner, or Paul Vallas, a former CEO of Chicago Public Schools, will be the next mayor of the third largest city in the U.S., DePaul University faculty experts are available to provide insight and commentary.

DePaul University experts available to discuss upcoming Chicago elections

As Chicago voters head to the polls in less than a month to decide the next mayor of the third largest city in the U.S.—in addition to aldermanic elections in all 50 city wards—DePaul University faculty experts are available to provide insight and commentary.

UC Irvine online criminology master’s program again rated No. 1 in nation

Irvine, Calif., Jan. 24, 2023 – The University of California, Irvine Master of Advanced Study in criminology, law and society has been named the nation’s best online criminal justice master’s program by U.S. News & World Report for the fourth year in a row. The 2023 rankings mark the sixth consecutive year in which the UCI program has placed in the top three.

ASA Annual Meeting, Aug. 5-9, Los Angeles; Press Registration Open

Sociologists to Explore Topics of Gun Violence, Policing, Housing Insecurity, Abortion Rights, and More at ASA Annual Meeting, Aug. 5-9, Los Angeles; Press Registration Open

Bowen Law School Receives $1 million from Walmart to Fund Court Observation Project

The UA Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law has received a $1 million grant from Walmart, Inc. The grant will fund a Court Observation Project through Bowen’s new Center for Racial Justice and Criminal Justice Reform. The project will introduce a state-wide court observation initiative that will create and share a transparent body of reliable data and research about Arkansas’s criminal justice system that is otherwise unavailable in the state.

FAU Kicks Off Fall 2021 Virtual ‘Research in Action’ Series

“Research in Action” is a virtual weekly talk series on Zoom. Each week, participants can listen to experts in their fields as they present their latest research and participate in question-and-answer sessions.

Jon Gould is named dean of UCI’s School of Social Ecology

Irvine, Calif., July 13, 2021 — Jon Gould, a distinguished scholar in justice policy, social change and government reform who has held key positions in the U.S. Department of Justice and the National Science Foundation, will become the new dean of the School of Social Ecology at the University of California, Irvine, following a nationwide search.

UCI experts produce guide for defense attorneys fighting use of rap lyrics in trials

Irvine, Calif., June 9, 2021 — Criminology and legal experts at the University of California, Irvine have released Rap on Trial: A Legal Guide for Attorneys, to help protect artists from having their lyrics used against them in court. Rap lyrics have been introduced as evidence in hundreds of cases, and a high-profile ruling by the Maryland Court of Appeals recently allowed a few lines of rap to help put a man behind bars for 50 years.

UA Little Rock Receives Nearly $325,000 NSF Grant to Shine Light on Muslim Hate Crimes in Arkansas

Two criminal justice professors at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock have been awarded a $324,987 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to fund a three-year program to study anti-Muslim sentiment and Muslim hate crimes in Arkansas. Dr. Tusty ten Bensel, director of the School of Criminal Justice and Criminology, and Dr.

2021 Posters on the Hill Spotlights Exemplary Undergraduate Research Projects for Policymakers, Scholars, and the Public

Via a virtual public poster session on April 28, undergraduate researchers from colleges and universities in 42 states and the District of Columbia will share their research projects in the 2021 Posters on the Hill event, sponsored by the Council on Undergraduate Research.

Policing Expert Available to Discuss Derek Chauvin Verdict, Police Policy and Californians’ Views on Police Reform

Christine Gardiner, professor of criminal justice at California State University, Fullerton, is available to discuss the verdict of the Derek Chauvin trial, policing policy, and results from a California public opinion poll conducted in August of 2020, within months of…

UCI online criminology master’s program ranked #1 in the nation for second year in a row

Irvine, Calif., Jan. 26, 2021 — The University of California, Irvine Master of Advanced Study in criminology, law & society has been named the nation’s best online criminal justice master’s program by U.S. News & World Report for the second year in a row. The 2021 rankings also mark the fourth consecutive year in which UCI has placed in the top three.

Maryland Carey Law Experts Available to Discuss Impeachment, Inauguration Security, Capitol Violence

 The University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law has faculty experts available to comment on several aspects of the recent attempted insurrection at the United States Capitol including impeachment, inauguration security/new threats to state capitols, and the police…

Restorative justice preferred among the Enga in Papua New Guinea

A study analyzing 10 years of court cases of the Enga of Papua New Guinea show that they overwhelmingly emphasize restorative justice, allowing all sides to share their side of the story, the community assists paying compensation to the victim, and supports reintegrating the offender back into society.

Researchers from Arizona State University examine risk factors in intimate-partner homicides

Domestic violence was already considered an epidemic long before COVID-19 impacted the world, but the pandemic has caused an uptick in abuse cases, creating a greater need for awareness, education and intervention. October marks Domestic Violence Awareness Month – a time…

Domestic Abuse and COVID-19

As COVID-19 spread across the globe, ravaging a path of illness and death, public health and government officials championed shelter-in-place orders to provide a safe haven away from the virus.  But months later, preliminary data shows that the lockdown orders had the opposite effect on one particular demographic: Victims of intimate partner violence who were trapped at home with their abusers.

Place doesn’t trump race as predictor of incarceration

Steven Alvarado is the author of “The Complexities of Race and Place: Childhood Neighborhood Disadvantage and Adult Incarceration for Whites, Blacks, and Latinos,” published June 1 in the journal Socius, a study showing that for black Americans growing up in better neighborhoods doesn’t diminish the likelihood of going to prison nearly as much as it does for whites or Latinos.

National institute awards $20 million in renewed funding to forensic science center

Irvine, Calif., May 18, 2020 – The National Institute of Standards and Technology has awarded $20 million in renewed funding to the Center for Statistics and Applications in Forensic Evidence, an interdisciplinary group of more than 60 participants at the University of California, Irvine and five other U.S. institutions of higher education.

Race effect: Researchers find black offenders more likely to be arrested than white offenders when committing violent crime together

Racial disparities at every level of the criminal justice system in America are well documented. Now, a new study by Florida State University researchers reveals it also exists at the initial level of arrest, even when the crime is committed by a diverse pair of co-offenders.

As ‘Orange is the New Black’ Ends, UNLV Professor Explores How Conditions Have Changed for Incarcerated Women

The Litchfield Correctional Facility in upstate New York might be the fictitious background of Netflix’s hit series “Orange is the New Black.” But the stories of the inmates — portrayed by Hollywood actresses — could be easily found throughout real…