Study: Incarcerated people placed in solitary confinement differ significantly from others in prison population

Concern has grown about prison systems’ use of extended solitary confinement as a way to manage violent and disruptive incarcerated people. A new study identified groups that are more likely to be placed in extended solitary management (ESM). The study…

The GovLab launches free online course on “Open Justice”

BROOKLYN, New York, Thursday, July 15, 2021 – Today, The GovLab in partnership with the Electoral Tribunal of the Federal Judiciary of Mexico (TEPJF) , launched a first of its kind, online course on Open Justice through the edX MOOC…

Politecnico di Torino and Ithaca together for the production of maps for the European Agency Frontex

TURIN, 14 July 2021 – Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, since 2004 engaged in migration control, border management and whose responsibilities, extended in 2016 to the fight against cross-border crime and search and rescue services in the…

Escort services and strip clubs don’t increase sex crimes

A new paper in The Economic Journal , published by by Oxford University Press, indicates that the presence of adult entertainment establishments may decrease sex crimes, significantly. The role of entertainment establishments (strip clubs, escort services, adult bookstores, and adult…

Interactive police line-ups improve eyewitness accuracy – study

Eyewitnesses can identify perpetrators more accurately when they are able to manipulate 3D images of suspects, according to a new study. A team of researchers in the University of Birmingham’s School of Psychology developed and tested new interactive lineup software…

Emergency physician residents and health care workers at high risk of physical or verbal assault, new analysis shows

WASHINGTON, D.C.–A new study in Annals of Emergency Medicine highlights the importance of protecting physician residents–early-career doctors still in training–and emergency care teams from incidents of physical or verbal abuse. The survey of 123 physicians, residents, and staff in one…

Foreign-born status, but not acquired US citizenship, protects many immigrants from criminal victimization

Until recently, data on criminal victimization did not include information on the status–immigrant or citizen–of respondents. In a recent study, researchers used new data that include respondents’ status to explore the association between citizenship status and risk of victimization. They…

Parental monitoring and consistency in adolescence can reduce young Black men’s likelihood of criminal behavior

New research examined the effect of different parenting styles during adolescence on crime among African American men. The study found that parenting styles characterized by little behavioral control placed youth at significant risk for adult crime, even though some of…

Study: Electronic monitoring failed to reduce recidivism for girls in juvenile justice system

In recent years, many juvenile courts have adopted in-home detention with electronic monitoring tethers as an alternative to institutional incarceration. A new study examined whether this approach reduces recidivism among girls involved in the juvenile justice system. The study found…

Study: Removing ‘bad apples’ from police forces unlikely to significantly reduce use-of-force complaints

The idea that a small number of “bad apples” are responsible for an outsized share of complaints against police officers has gained considerable traction over the last four decades. A new study considered the extent to which police misconduct is…

SFU cybercrime team fights COVID-19 misinformation with artificial intelligence

Simon Fraser University’s International CyberCrime Research Centre (ICCRC) is engaged in a new project to develop artificial intelligence tools to fight COVID-19-related misinformation campaigns on social media. Throughout the pandemic, anti-science theories on social media that portray COVID-19 as a…

Economic crime is going uninvestgated as Police hide behind the veil of Action Fraud

Fraud is going uninvestigated by police who are “hiding behind the veil” of the Action Fraud national crime reporting agency. In his paper published this week in Policing , Professor Mark Button, director of the Centre for Counter Fraud Studies…

Orphans and exiles: Research shows the impact of family separation

BINGHAMTON, N.Y. — New research from Binghamton University, State University of New York shows the human trauma and family separation that resulted from the Trump Administration’s zero tolerance policy on undocumented immigration. The news reports surrounding the Trump Administration’s “zero…

In Oregon, new gun violence restraining orders appear to be used as intended, but could be used more proactively

Extreme risk protection orders (ERPOs), also known as gun violence restraining orders, are civil court orders that grant temporary restrictions on purchasing and possessing firearms for individuals determined by a civil court judge to be at extreme risk of committing…

Urban crime fell by over a third around the world during COVID-19 shutdowns, study suggests

A team of researchers led by the University of Cambridge and University of Utrecht examined trends in daily crime counts before and after COVID-19 restrictions were implemented in major metropolitan areas such as Barcelona, Chicago, Sao Paulo, Tel Aviv, Brisbane…

New research shows ridesharing services reduce sexual assault

Research Study Key Takeaways: Ridesharing can reduce a passenger’s risk of being a target of sexual assault by providing a more reliable and timely transportation option for traveling to a safer place. The entry of Uber into a city contributes…

Study on intermittency in gang membership underscores value of preventing youth from rejoining gangs

Research has shown that joining a gang is associated with increased criminal behavior. A new study examined whether the intermittent nature of gang membership affects offending. Researchers sought to determine whether the association with increased offending was a consistent attribute…

Nuclear terrorism could be intercepted by neutron-gamma detector that pinpoints source

Scanning technology aimed at detecting small amounts of nuclear materials was unveiled by scientists in Sweden today, with the hope of preventing acts of nuclear terrorism. Bo Cederwall, a professor of physics at KTH Royal Institute of Technology, says the…

Tool to predict recidivism in federal inmates could make more prisoners eligible for early release

Passed in 2018, the First Step Act sought to address re-entry challenges for inmates in the federal prison system. The legislation called for developing an assessment tool to identify inmates for release who had the lowest likelihood of recidivism. A…

Illuminating invisible bloody fingerprints with a fluorescent polymer

Careful criminals usually clean a scene, wiping away visible blood and fingerprints. However, prints made with trace amounts of blood, invisible to the naked eye, could remain. Dyes can detect these hidden prints, but the dyes don’t work well on…

Evaluating the impact and effectiveness of burglar alarms

AN INNOVATIVE and fast-paced research project led by the University of Huddersfield has been awarded a coveted grant from the UK’s Home Office to look at the effectiveness of burglar alarms in reducing residential burglary. The three-month project is being…

Studying the health and wellbeing of police officers during the global pandemic

The University’s Professor Jason Roach will work alongside the National Police Wellbeing Service on a research project that will study to what extent the health and wellbeing of the nation’s police officers has been affected by the pandemic POLICE officers…

Building a picture of fathers in the family justice system in England

The invisibility of dads who lose access to their children because of concerns about child neglect or their ability to provide safe care comes under the spotlight in new research. A research partnership between the University of East Anglia and Lancaster

Dog vs. machine: Who’s a better bomb detector? (video)

WASHINGTON, March 22, 2021 — What’s better at finding a hidden bomb — a dog or an electronic chemical detector? In this episode, the Reactions team travels to the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory to find out: https:/ / youtu. be/…

Evaluating state marijuana laws, rates of self-harm, assault

What The Study Did: Researchers examined whether state medical and recreational cannabis laws were associated with changes in rates of self-harm and assault injuries. Authors: Keith Humphreys, Ph.D., of Stanford University in Stanford, California, is the corresponding author. To access…

Ticket inspections may reduce honesty: a research on bus passengers in Lyon

Ticket inspection on public transport can prompt law-abiding people to behave dishonestly once they have gotten off the bus, according to a study published in The Economic Journal . The study was written by three experimental economists: Fabio Galeotti and…

A law to protect those who support victims of violence against women

Last December, the Parliament of Catalonia unanimously approved the incorporation into its legislation of second-order violence against those who give their support to victims of violence against women. A recent study compiles testimonies of victims, and analyses this form of…

Study: Men of color avoid public places out of fear of involvement with criminal justice agents

The U.S. criminal legal system has expanded at a rapid pace, even as crime rates have declined since the 1990s. As a result, individuals’ interactions with and surveillance by law enforcement are now commonplace. But citizens experience different interactions, with…

Study: Seattle’s minimum wage increase did not change crime or employment rates

Between 2015 and 2017, Seattle, Washington, became the first U.S. city to increase its hourly minimum wage to $15, more than double the federal minimum wage and 60 percent higher than Seattle’s previous minimum wage. A new study examined the…

harp reductions in costs of producing cannabis, fentanyl likely to spur widespread changes in use, dependence

The legalization of cannabis and the arrival of nonmedical fentanyl are fundamentally changing drug markets in North America. A large part of these changes relates to the ability to produce large quantities of the drugs at low costs, which has…

Study: Political, economic, social factors affect local decisions about death penalty

Broad political, economic, and social factors influence disciplinary punishment. In particular, over the last half century, such considerations have shaped jurisdictions’ use of the death penalty, which has declined considerably since the 1990s. A new study examined the factors associated…

Study: Prisoners with mental illness much more likely to be placed in solitary confinement

Past studies on whether incarcerated people with mental illness are more likely to be placed in solitary confinement have yielded mixed results. A new study examined the issue in one state’s prisons, taking into account factors related to incarcerated men…

Lifting the lid on how domestic abusers use technology

New research into how domestic abusers are using computers and other digital technology to monitor, threaten and humiliate their victims will help guide future police investigations. The increased availability of new technology has given perpetrators even more opportunities and methods…