Criminal Justice Review

Building on an extension of self-control theory to criminal justice, the current study explored Gottfredson and Hirschi's general theory with data from a sample of 208 male parolees selected from the midwestern United States. Ordered logit regression models linked offender low self-control to an array of outcomes, including social interactions with prison staff, correctional substance abuse, physical assaults against correctional staff, weapon carrying, placement in a disciplinary unit, infraction history, and retaliation against another inmate. Overall, the study demonstrated promising empirical links between low self-control and criminal justice noncompliance as one or both self-control measures (attitudinal Grasmick scale and 3-item disputatiousness scale) were significantly related to every criminal justice outcome net the effects of 20 controls for criminal career, demographic, social background and risk factors, and various correctional risk measures.

Intense interest in disturbing child abductions by the mass media, public safety organizations, and the public has helped sustain a socially constructed mythology and sporadic “moral panic” about the presumed pervasiveness of this threat to children. The result has often been reactionary “memorial” legislation enacted in response to sensational cases. A recent example is the America's Missing Broadcast Emergency Response (AMBER) Alert system, which is designed to interrupt serious child kidnappings in progress by soliciting citizen tips to help officials quickly rescue victims. Drawing on available empirical evidence and theoretical considerations, the authors contend that AMBER Alert has not achieved and probably cannot achieve the ambitious goals that inspired its creation. In fact, AMBER Alert is arguably an example of what could be called crime control theater. It is a socially constructed “solution” to a socially constructed problem, enabling public officials to symbolically address an essentially intractable threat. Despite laudable intentions, AMBER Alert exemplifies how crime control theater can create unintended problems, such as public backlash when the theatrical policy fails and a distorted public discourse about the nature of crime. Considerations for the future of AMBER Alert in particular, and the concept of crime control theater in general, are discussed.

In this study, the effect that the sex offender registry has had on female sex offenders in two states is explored. In-depth personal interviews were conducted with nine registered female sex offenders from Illinois and Texas. Questions were asked about the arrest that led to registration and the effect that sex offender registration statutes have had on their lives. Braithwaite's crime, shame, and reintegration theory was relied on to assess the extent to which the processes described in his theory occurred in this sample. The focus of many of the questions included whether the women were able to reintegrate into their communities or if they were stigmatized. It was found that every respondent reported at least one negative effect on her life as a result of being identified on the public registry. Also, many of the stigmatization processes described by Braithwaite were applicable to the interviewed women.

The emergence of user-friendly Geographical Information Systems (GIS) has revitalized interest in the study of urban crime patterns. Among the avenues of research from this expansion of interest is the study of diffusion of crime within neighborhoods or around urban structures. As with any new technology, initial use often focuses on the tasks and methods of the technology, with little discussion of the appropriateness of such use. This is evidenced in the diverse methodologies employed in measuring diffusion and lack of standardized method in this area. What is more, little research has demonstrated a comprehensive comparison of methods. The difference in employing two methods—radial buffers and adjacent blocks—to determine the number of assaults occurring in the area bordering or adjacent to bars in Omaha, Nebraska is investigated. Results indicate that the particular method used to identify diffusion effects could dictate substantially disparate findings. Implications of this comparison are discussed.

The needs of students seeking graduate degrees in criminal justice have shifted significantly over the past few decades, and this shift has been in conjunction with the changes to the field of criminology and criminal justice. Indeed, criminal justice graduate students today must not only master criminological theory, research, and administrative policy but also need computer and writing skills, as well as exposure to race, gender, and ethical issues. This study examines the focus that modern-day criminal justice graduate programs place on these areas by reviewing their curricula. Specifically, the authors examined 118 criminal justice masters programs that had curricula online during the spring and summer semesters of 2004. They found that the programs' curricula continue to place strong emphasis on traditional courses such as research, theory, and criminal justice administration, while placing less emphasis on courses centering on race, gender, ethics, computer applications, and comparative criminal justice.