Criminal Justice

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
blog
The Most Popular RAND Research of 2021
Dec 22, 2021
As another extraordinary year draws to a close, we continue to believe that objective, nonpartisan research and analysis has a key role to play in navigating what continues to be a difficult time. Here are the 10 research projects that resonated most with rand.org readers in 2021.
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Nuclear Deterrence
blog
Nuclear Deterrence, COVID-19 and Infant Deaths, Criminal Justice Reform: RAND Weekly Recap
Oct 22, 2021
This weekly recap focuses on why the United States doesn’t need more nuclear weapons, increased infant deaths during the pandemic, preventing veteran suicide, and more.
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Criminal Justice
blog
Criminal Justice in the Pandemic Era and Beyond
Sep 7, 2021
The pandemic forced the entire criminal justice system to adapt and innovate in ways it never had before. How can the lessons of COVID-19 improve the future of criminal justice?
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Vaccination
blog
Vaccine Hesitancy, Working from Home, Arctic Diplomacy: RAND Weekly Recap
May 21, 2021
This weekly recap focuses on vaccine hesitancy as a symptom of ‘Truth Decay,’ how to make remote work beneficial for all, U.S. Arctic diplomacy, and more.
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Violent Extremism
commentary
Capitol Rioters Face FBI Arrests and Prosecution. How Not to Make Them Martyrs in the Process
Brian Michael Jenkins @BrianMJenkins
May 14, 2021
NBC News THINK
The righteous wrath of those who view January 6 as an insurrection and believe we need uncompromising prosecution is understandable. But is it strategic thinking? History has shown that prosecutions based on less severe and politically-fraught charges have a greater chance of resulting in the convictions needed to stop this behavior.
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Public Health Preparedness
blog
Trust in the CDC, Teaching Students with Disabilities, Russian Mercenaries: RAND Weekly Recap
Apr 9, 2021
This weekly recap focuses declining trust in the CDC, insights from educators about teaching students with disabilities, Russian mercenaries, and more.
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Terrorism Threat Assessment
commentary
Leaving ISIS Detainees in the Desert Doesn't Serve U.S. Interests
Brian Michael Jenkins @BrianMJenkins
Mar 5, 2019
The Hill
Leaving ISIS detainees in the desert may sound like an apt punishment, but it's dangerous. Repatriation and prosecution could help ensure ISIS volunteers don't scatter to other jihadist fronts.
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commentary
Terrorism on Trial: The Problem of Prosecuting International Jihadists
Antonia Ward
Mar 9, 2018
Georgetown Security Studies Review
The International Criminal Court may be the most ideal institution to try accused terrorists. The court would take into account the legal status of terrorists, the nationalities of their victims, and the location of the crimes — while upholding the core values of Western democracies.
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Criminal Justice
commentary
The Perils of Setting Police Targets: First Time Entrants to the Youth Justice System
Alex Sutherland, Matthew Davies
Jan 18, 2018
Policing Insight
The police play a critical role in determining whether young people are either directed towards or diverted away from the justice system. Introducing policing targets can create perverse incentives and raises particular concerns because of the potential damaging effects that criminalization can have on young people.
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commentary
The Intersection of Algorithms and an Individual's Rights
Dan Grunfeld
Sep 29, 2017
Daily Journal
Data collection, and our reliance on it, have evolved extremely rapidly. The resulting algorithms have proved invaluable for organizing, evaluating and utilizing information. How do individuals' rights come in to play, when data about their lives is compiled to create algorithms, and the resulting tools are applied to judge them?
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Drug Courts
commentary
Should California Drop Criminal Penalties for Drug Possession?
Beau Kilmer @BeauKilmer, Robert J. MacCoun
Jul 20, 2017
San Francisco Chronicle
Californians have a lot to consider when it comes to decriminalizing possession. But now is the time for a rigorous discussion about removing criminal penalties for drug possession, rather than rushing to judgment in the heat of a future election season.
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commentary
Using Digital Data in Criminal Investigations: Where and How to Draw the Line?
Brian A. Jackson
May 15, 2017
Forensic Magazine
Personal devices such as smartphones and wearables gather and store personal data. How much of this "digital footprint" should be available for criminal investigations?
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Criminal Justice
commentary
What Data Is the Government Keeping About You?
Dulani Woods, Brian A. Jackson
Mar 1, 2017
Inside Sources
Governments are amassing a wealth of data on citizens, a trend that will continue as technology advances. But with no reliable way to ensure that the data is accurate, risks abound. In the criminal justice system, for example, poor quality data could affect individual freedoms and employability.
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commentary
Does the Court System Know as Much About Electronically Stored Information as Your Teenager? It Should.
Duren Banks, Brian A. Jackson
Feb 21, 2017
TechCrunch
Electronically stored information from smart appliances, fitness trackers, and other devices is making its way into the U.S. court system. Judges and lawyers need to better understand this evidence so they can challenge it or rule on its admissibility in court.
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Military Courts
commentary
What Should Trump Do About Gitmo?
K. Jack Riley @K_Jack_Riley
Jan 11, 2017
Newsweek
The new administration has options to deal with the detention facility at Guantánamo Bay. It could maintain the status quo, make improvements to speed the trials, close the facility and relocate the remaining inmates, or accept new detainees.
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Domestic Violence
commentary
Domestic Warning Signs of Mass Shootings
Radha Iyengar Plumb
Aug 6, 2016
U.S. News & World Report
After shootings, there is inevitably public debate over gun safety, constitutional rights, police tactics, terrorism, race, and politics. But these discussions rarely focus on a common factor among the perpetrators: a history of violence against women.
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Crime
commentary
The True Economic Cost of Corruption in Europe: Up to €990 Billion Annually
Marco Hafner, Jirka Taylor
Mar 22, 2016
E!Sharp
Corruption costs Europe up to €990 billion in GDP annually, according to a new study. That's more than eight times previous estimates.
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Criminal Justice
commentary
How to Fix Guantanamo's Broken Justice
K. Jack Riley @K_Jack_Riley, Jerrold D. Green, Richard B. Goetz, Michelle Kezirian
Mar 7, 2016
Newsweek
Replacing military judges with federal judges would expedite the process of resolving the Guantánamo cases in ways that would reflect better on the credibility and legitimacy of the U.S. justice system, while serving the interests of Congress, the president, survivors, and victims' families.
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Homeland Security Legislation
commentary
Oregon Standoff Shouldn't Have an Anti-Terrorism Twist
Brian Michael Jenkins @BrianMJenkins
Jan 13, 2016
Slate
Dwight and Steven Hammond were charged under a law enacted to fight terrorism, not rein in wayward ranchers. Anti-terrorist laws should not be used to strengthen prosecutors' hands in nonterrorist prosecutions—it makes national security needs look like an instrument of oppression.
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Emerging Technologies
essay
How Will Technology Change Criminal Justice?
Jan 7, 2016
In perhaps no other field does society have as direct a stake in getting technology right as in policing. How will technology change the work that law enforcement agencies do and the communities they serve?
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Prisoner Reentry
commentary
What's Next on the Convicted Terrorist's Timeline?
Michael A. Brown
Nov 4, 2015
The Hill
As inmates near the end of their sentences for terrorism-related offenses, and with some individuals already freed, it's time to explore what considerations may be necessary.
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Colombia
commentary
Bringing FARC in from the Cold
Arturo Munoz
Oct 28, 2015
Foreign Policy Concepts
The announcement of a preliminary peace accord by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the Colombian government is not receiving public support. Most Colombians manifest a strong desire for peace but they reject the possibility that crimes committed in the name of revolution should receive amnesty.
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Law Enforcement
commentary
Understanding Police Coordination
Chris Giacomantonio
Oct 9, 2015
Oxford Center for Criminology Blog
Understanding coordination work in policing is worthy of attention by researchers for a number of reasons. When police fail to coordinate their activities adequately, crimes and their detection and prosecution can slip through organizational cracks.
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Criminal Justice
commentary
In the Interest of Justice
K. Jack Riley @K_Jack_Riley
Jun 26, 2015
As the line between criminal justice and national security continues to blur, K. Jack Riley offers three principles that can help young criminology practitioners and scholars.
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Alcohol
commentary
Could You Lose Your License to Drink?
Beau Kilmer @BeauKilmer
Jun 23, 2015
CNN
Criminal justice reform requires creating demand for bold ideas about simultaneously reducing incarceration and crime. Given the prominent role alcohol plays in crime — and the strong results from South Dakota's 24/7 Sobriety program — suspending one's “license to drink” seems well worth considering.
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Police-Community Relations
blog
Examining Police, Community Relations
May 8, 2015
The “Strengthening Police-Community Trust” panel held Wednesday at RAND's Pittsburgh offices felt ripped from the headlines, and from the outset the discussion was focused on what the moderator called “the intersection between the community and the police.”
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Police-Community Relations
commentary
Progress After Ferguson? Good Ideas Need Good Implementation
Nelson Lim, Greg Ridgeway
Mar 9, 2015
The RAND Blog
President Obama's Task Force on 21st Century Policing has done a great service by providing dozens of sound recommendations—good ideas that could help avoid another Ferguson. Now we need good implementation to go along with them.
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Police-Community Relations
commentary
Can Big Data Help Build Trust in the Police?
Nelson Lim
Dec 11, 2014
Newsweek
After two controversial grand jury decisions not to indict police in the deaths of unarmed African Americans, a White House task force has 90 days to provide recommendations for promoting accountability among law enforcement agencies to cultivate trust between police and communities. The timeline may seem impossible, but, sadly, these issues are old and the solutions are well known.
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Police-Community Relations
commentary
In Ferguson's Wake, How a Data-Driven Approach Can Improve Police-Community Relations
Keith Henry
Sep 16, 2014
The RAND Blog
Community leaders and police departments have a responsibility to their citizens to address questions about their policing practices, such as: What are the most significant areas of concern? How severe are the problems? What are the most effective solutions?
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Developing Countries
commentary
First Steps Toward Addressing DR Congo's Rape Crisis
Mahlet Atakilt Woldetsadik
Jun 11, 2014
The RAND Blog
An effort to address atrocities against women in the Democratic Republic of Congo has fallen short of advocates' hopes for justice. With its focus on criminal prosecution, the strategy failed to consider the weak infrastructure of the judicial system, left victims' needs unmet, and did little to address prevention.
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Drug Courts
commentary
New Approach to Prison and the War on Drugs
Beau Kilmer @BeauKilmer
Aug 13, 2013
BBC.co.uk
If you want to reduce cocaine consumption and drug-related crime, you get more bang for the buck if you put money into treatment rather than paying for the increase in incarceration produced by federal mandatory minimum sentences, writes Beau Kilmer.
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Counterterrorism
commentary
A Final Word on the NDAA
Brian Michael Jenkins @BrianMJenkins
May 7, 2012
Foreign Affairs
While I have no doubt of Levin's determination to protect the constitutional rights of American citizens, incremental adjustments and seemingly small compromises, each sensible under the circumstances, can have a cumulative effect that erodes the very liberty we are trying to protect, writes Brian Michael Jenkins.
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Counterterrorism
commentary
The NDAA Makes It Harder to Fight Terrorism
Brian Michael Jenkins @BrianMJenkins
Feb 1, 2012
Foreign Affairs
Much of the debate over this bill has focused on the political issue of executive authority versus rule of law. In doing so it has overlooked the indirect and insidious effects the new law may have on the United States' largely successful counterterrorist campaign, writes Brian Michael Jenkins.
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Health Care Costs
commentary
California's Prisoner Shuffle
Lois M. Davis @LoisMDavis
Aug 19, 2011
Los Angeles Times
The state needs to deal with prison overcrowding and inadequate medical care for prisoners in ways that don't simply transfer the burden to county criminal justice systems and the healthcare safety nets of local communities, writes Lois Davis.
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