Protecting Juvenile Informants
The current drug-control strategies in use to win the war on drugs have been created by the current Executive Office Administration. This current policy is outlined by the Office of National Drug Control Policy under President Obama. The policy is notably less punitive than the previous administrations War on Drugs policy. Those who are involved in the criminal justice system may see the focus on addiction as a disease becoming the main agenda. The strategy focuses on both the public health and public safety aspects of drug use and addiction. Drug addicts in the criminal justice system may find more avenues for treatment and alternative sentencing than in previous years. The current policy is concerned with prevention and public health. The current administration seeks to reduce drug use and its associated consequences in the United States (Office of National Drug Control Policy).
The relationship between drug use and delinquency is clear and demonstrates an overlap of problem behaviors. “Violent offenses increased markedly with the onset of drug use, as did the carrying of concealed weapons. Continued drug use has been associated with an increase in violent offenses and the frequency of carrying weapons. The onset of drug selling for these juveniles was associated with an increase in violent crime, and the percentage of drug dealers carrying guns rose steadily for those between the ages of 16 and 19. When drug use was discontinued, violent offenses decreased” (Huizinga, 1995). Protecting juveniles can be achieved in the current policy with prevention. Education and the realization that drug addiction is a public health issue can prevent drug use and protect the juvenile.
The use of child informants should be discouraged due to the inability to protect the youth and the reliability of information received from a juvenile. The juvenile’s age restricts available research into safety issues and deaths due to the sealed juvenile records and access to data. The use of child informants cannot be an accepted practice without demonstrating the ability to keep these children safe. The public has no accurate statistical way to note the danger that maybe caused to the child. This is no place for the United States to tread with its youth.
A "child informant" or "juvenile informant" is simply an informant who is under the age of eighteen years. Children under the age of 18 should not be in criminal courts as a defendant or as an informant/witness unless waived to the adult court or emancipated. This allows the documentation on the safety issues to be public and available to researchers. Informants used in court need to be emancipated as an adult to be allowed to be an informant. Only then can we bring to light the safety of the child in doing such acts as providing information on a potentially lethal individual, group or organization such as a gang. These children who testify or provide information could be killed and the documentation on the child’s demise is lost due to the status of age. Children sixteen and under should never be allowed to be an informant/witness in a criminal case. As law enforcement, we have a deontological ethical duty to save a child’s life superseded by none, including the successful prosecution of a vice crime.
The rationalizations set by the Supreme Court in the Roper v. Simmons death penalty case pertaining to the definition of minors should be applied. By their very nature, juveniles are less mature, and therefore less culpable than adults. The testimony given by a child is not sound and the information gathered from a child may not be reliable. The testimony of a minor can create an injustice “A recent study conducted by Northwestern University law professor Steve Drizin and UC Irvine criminologist Richard Leo examined 125 cases in which individuals were exonerated after giving false confessions. The researchers found that 32% of the cases involved minors. "They are more likely to go along, agree and comply with authority figures - to say what the police want them to say - than the general population" (Juveniles News and Developments: 2004, 2011). This fact creates an unjust prosecutorial advantage based on the fictional or embellished testimony of a child. The testimony may be coerced.
Research used by the Supreme Court in deciding the Roper vs. Simmons case stated that adolescence is a transitional period of life when cognitive abilities, emotions, judgment, impulse control, identity -- even the brain -- are still developing was cited by the National Research Council. “Questions concerning adolescent development are becoming more pertinent as scientific research has revealed that, both psychologically and physiologically, juveniles are very different to adults. Clearly, the implications of such research are far reaching. Recent research documenting the extent of change that can occur in the (adolescent) brain... has been heralded as one (of) the most remarkable findings in neuro-biology of the last decade…" (Juveniles, 2011) .
The opinion of the Supreme Court that recognizes the youth factor as a main consideration to desist in capital punishment notes a step in the evolving standards of decency. This evolving standard of decency carries an equal flip-side that should consider testimony of a child invalid or without merit. If the child cannot receive capital punishment for a crime then the testimony in adult court should be considered to be without merit based on the Supreme Court’s own opinions. We should not expect our children to live up to double standards of being a sound adult capable of accurately informing/testifying in one circumstance and child with an underdeveloped brain that warrants protection from the death penalty in the other. As A nation we adopted a presumption that juvenile offenders lack the capacity or maturity to be eligible for the death penalty. We must adopt the same presumption that juvenile offenders lack the capacity or maturity to accurately witness serious and important acts that could create punitive damages in adult court. The testimony of a child should be limited to direct abuse cases and supported by medical documentation.
Assuming the role of the arresting officer, the recommend next steps with the juvenile that offers himself or herself as an informant would be to advise on providing an anonymous tip. I would use the information as a base for the investigation and find another means of proof beyond a reasonable doubt and see to it that the child has no further involvement in the case. The child should be placed as far away as possible from the very real threat to the child’s life. I would not place the responsibilities of my job on a child.
Bibliography
Juveniles. (2011). Retrieved November 15, 2011, from The International Justice Project: http://www.internationaljusticeproject.org/juvConst.cfm
Juveniles News and Developments: 2004. (2011). Retrieved November 15, 2011, from Death Penalty Information Center: http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/juveniles-news-and-developments-2004
Huizinga, D. (1995). Urban Delinquency and Substance Abuse. Juvenile Justice Clearinghouse, 37.
Office of National Drug Control Policy. (n.d.). Retrieved November 16, 2011, from The White House: http://www.whitehouse.gov/ondcp/policy-and-research
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Child Abuse
Child Abuse
The legal definitions of child abuse are an act or omission that endangers or impairs a child’s physical, mental or emotional health and development. Child abuse may take the form of physical or emotional injury, sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, physical neglect, medical neglect, or inadequate supervision. Child neglect and child maltreatment refer to different forms of child abuse. Child abuse is sometimes defined as physical abuse by an act and relates to aggression acted out on a child that results in injuries often characterized by physical injury, such as bruises and fractures. This form of abuse has a defense based on the use of corporal punishment. Child neglect is a form of child abuse that involves a failure to act concerning provisions for care for a child. This is a passive form of abuse and is often characterized by issues such as a failure to provide medical services or nutrition. This form of abuse has a defense to the charge due to financial resources.
It is difficult to estimate the extent of child abuse because the maltreatment of children can easily be hidden from public view. Although state laws require doctors, teachers, and others who work with children to report suspected cases to child protection agencies, many maltreated children are out of the law’s reach because they are too young for school or too young to communicate. Some children are afraid to communicate. Many incidents occur in private and other adults who wittiness abuses consider it a family matter. Between 1.4 and 1.9 million children in the United States were subjected to physical abuse from their parents (Siegel, 2011, p. 183).
The cycle of violence is perpetuated by what is taught to the child. “Children who grow up in dysfunctional homes often exhibit delinquent behaviors, having learned at a young age that aggression pays off” (Siegel, 2011, p. 185). The statistics show that abused children have higher incidence of all of the factors that perpetuate child abuse such as divorce, family isolation and drug use. Some parents cannot separate their relationship with their offspring from the trauma of the abuse they survived. These factors help to pass the cycle of violence from one generation to another.
A high-risk environment for child abuse is created by many different factors. They include homes with drug and alcohol use, homes with a stepparent, homes where a parent was abused as a child and a low family socioeconomic status.
As a society we should merge the juvenile justice system with mental health resources to address the issues of child abuse and to better understand the relationship between abuse and delinquency. Investigations into abuse should be mandatory and combined with any status offense of runaway. The runaway is running away from some form of abuse. They are trying to escape and this is the only way some children can voice themselves. As a society, we should see that the return of a runaway should only be done after a proper mental evaluation and investigation of the parent or parents has been completed. If the child is returned then family therapy is a strong recommendation. A run- away child who has run away from their own family is doing so in an attempt for self-preservation. The failure of law enforcement to recognize this cry for help has placed many children in danger and caused them further victimization.
Bibliography
Siegel, L. J. (2011). Juvenile Delinquency. 20 Davis Drive, Belmont, CA 94002: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
The legal definitions of child abuse are an act or omission that endangers or impairs a child’s physical, mental or emotional health and development. Child abuse may take the form of physical or emotional injury, sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, physical neglect, medical neglect, or inadequate supervision. Child neglect and child maltreatment refer to different forms of child abuse. Child abuse is sometimes defined as physical abuse by an act and relates to aggression acted out on a child that results in injuries often characterized by physical injury, such as bruises and fractures. This form of abuse has a defense based on the use of corporal punishment. Child neglect is a form of child abuse that involves a failure to act concerning provisions for care for a child. This is a passive form of abuse and is often characterized by issues such as a failure to provide medical services or nutrition. This form of abuse has a defense to the charge due to financial resources.
It is difficult to estimate the extent of child abuse because the maltreatment of children can easily be hidden from public view. Although state laws require doctors, teachers, and others who work with children to report suspected cases to child protection agencies, many maltreated children are out of the law’s reach because they are too young for school or too young to communicate. Some children are afraid to communicate. Many incidents occur in private and other adults who wittiness abuses consider it a family matter. Between 1.4 and 1.9 million children in the United States were subjected to physical abuse from their parents (Siegel, 2011, p. 183).
The cycle of violence is perpetuated by what is taught to the child. “Children who grow up in dysfunctional homes often exhibit delinquent behaviors, having learned at a young age that aggression pays off” (Siegel, 2011, p. 185). The statistics show that abused children have higher incidence of all of the factors that perpetuate child abuse such as divorce, family isolation and drug use. Some parents cannot separate their relationship with their offspring from the trauma of the abuse they survived. These factors help to pass the cycle of violence from one generation to another.
A high-risk environment for child abuse is created by many different factors. They include homes with drug and alcohol use, homes with a stepparent, homes where a parent was abused as a child and a low family socioeconomic status.
As a society we should merge the juvenile justice system with mental health resources to address the issues of child abuse and to better understand the relationship between abuse and delinquency. Investigations into abuse should be mandatory and combined with any status offense of runaway. The runaway is running away from some form of abuse. They are trying to escape and this is the only way some children can voice themselves. As a society, we should see that the return of a runaway should only be done after a proper mental evaluation and investigation of the parent or parents has been completed. If the child is returned then family therapy is a strong recommendation. A run- away child who has run away from their own family is doing so in an attempt for self-preservation. The failure of law enforcement to recognize this cry for help has placed many children in danger and caused them further victimization.
Bibliography
Siegel, L. J. (2011). Juvenile Delinquency. 20 Davis Drive, Belmont, CA 94002: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
JonBenét Patricia Ramsey (August 6, 1990 – December 25, 1996)
JonBenét Patricia Ramsey (August 6, 1990 – December 25, 1996)
The major points of the offense radiate from the murder of a female child, JonBenét Ramsey; she was a six year old female child from an affluent family in Boulder, Colorado (Adler J, 1997). A two page ransom demand letter was found in the home (McClish, 2001). The letter states a demand of an exact amount, $118,000 (McClish, 2001). This is an odd ransom amount; the price for this child’s life is not $100,000 or $1,000,000, but $118,000.
The first search of the home found no supplemental evidence except a ransom letter (Hewitt, 1997). There were no obvious signs of a break-in and no tracks around the home in the snow (Times, 1997). A detective suggests that Mr. Ramsey and a friend go to the house and look for anything unusual (Bardsley). The first place they go to look is the basement. The body was found in the basement (Hewitt, 1997). It seems so unnatural to first go look in the basement for something unusual after a child is kidnapped, not her room or an area that she may have normally been habituating. JonBenét Ramsey was found by her father and his friend in the basement of her own home with severe head trauma, she had also been strangled (Hewitt, 1997). The Boulder police made several mistakes with the investigation. They did not seal off the crime scene, they did not search the home completely and they overlooked the body of a child in the basement (Hewitt, 1997). The police had blinders on during the initial “kidnapping” investigation. These blinders were created by seemingly caring father, loving mother appearance and the socioeconomic status of the family.
As the murder case progressed many incongruities with this happy family appearance emerged. The media and public opinion shaped the concept of this female child victim. She was a 6 year old child victim on one side and a 6 year old beauty queen on the other side. This begs the question, if she had been a 6 year old Hispanic female karate champ who did not wear makeup and did not look like a starved model, would her murder have received this attention from the media? The public outcry was towards the family for creating a 6 year old beauty pageant model. Some of the public opinion felt that doing this somehow exposed her to pedophiles and most likely precipitated the offense.
The Lifestyle theory suggests that the choices one makes in their associations and activities may shape a victim- prone life history. The public opinion expressed indicated that the involvement in the beauty pageants may have exposed the child to associations who were sexual predators and may have precipitated this murder. In the culture of America it is accepted that women use gender amplifiers to attract the opposite sex. These include perfume, nail polish, makeup, attire and exaggerated feminine behavior. JonBenét Ramsey was trained and possibly forced to use all of these gender amplifiers to a maximum at the age of 6. The female gender role was applied to her young life in an extreme measure. This created different reactions to her case. Some public opinion was for the pageants and many mothers spoke out about the positives of participating in these pageants. There was much greater public opposition to the pageants.
A 1997 Newsweek article by Jerry Alder and Sherry Osborne contains the following excerpt:
“Many people, though, are made viscerally uncomfortable by the sight of prepubescent girls, or for that matter preschoolers, showing off their bodies as a competitive activity. Partly, they don't think it's healthy for the kids, and psychologists tend to agree with them. ``For most kids, [performing] is not a good psychological experience,'' says William Pinsof, president of the Family Institute at Northwestern University, who has studied child actresses and models and found them prone to drug addiction, eating disorders and depression in puberty. ``You end up with hollow children and narcissistic parents.'' Even Page Parkes-Eveleth, owner of successful modeling agencies in Texas and Florida, thinks pageants are bad for children, as well as counterproductive to the goal of getting them big modeling contracts. ``You do not put lipstick on your 6-year-old,'' she says flatly. ``It's everything the modeling industry is against. We're looking for freckles and natural beauty.'' (Adler J, 1997)
This excerpt identifies that there is psychological damage done to the child. The media coverage of the murder of an innocent child often became overshadowed by the beauty queen debate. This debate created a small form of culture conflict within the arena of public opinion. Patsy Ramsey’s norms and values resulted in actions that put JonBenét Ramsey in opposition to expected conduct of children in this country.
The term beauty is often used in the description of JonBenét Ramsey. The term appears to slant the story in many particular ways depending on personal values and the current social temperature. The term beauty used in this 6 year old female child’s murder causes the perpetuation of the case and increases public interest. Marilyn Bardsley and Patrick Bellamy note in the article Murder of JonBenét Ramsey for TruTV “At the time, the media described her as "a painted baby, a sexualized toddler beauty queen". The media plays up on the chivalrous culture of this country to sell the story, as if the murder is an innocent child is not important enough to keep public attention.
If this crime had happened to a male there would be public interest and media attention given due to the age and race of the victim. The case would not have become such a high profile case. The case would be not be continually revisited by the media for so many years. There are cases of male child deaths where the police are begging for media coverage in hopes to find the murder. Does Timothy Wiltsey have the same name recognition as JonBenét? Timothy Wiltsey is a 5 year old South Amboy boy who disappeared 20 years ago, the boy’s skeletal remains were discovered in a marshy area in Edison 11 months later (Considine, 2011). The mother was also questioned in his murder (Considine, 2011).
Michael Janofsky wrote an article in the New York Times stating that Mr. Thomas, an investigator on the Ramsey case for two years says “Mrs. Ramsey had grown frazzled by Christmas night 1996 because of ''an approaching 40th birthday, the busy holiday season, an exhausting Christmas Day and an argument with JonBenet'' over a bed-wetting incident that led to ''some sort of explosive encounter in the child's bathroom'' that resulted in a mortal head wound (Janofsky, 2000). The article continues to state “he concluded that while JonBenet's head was probably injured by accident, Mrs. Ramsey, rather than summon help, panicked after her daughter fell unconscious. That, he says, led her to write a note suggesting that JonBenet had been kidnapped, after which she ''faced the major problem of what to do with the body.'' It was at that point, Mr. Thomas concludes, that the accident turned to murder. He says that on the way to placing her in a remote room of the basement, Mrs. Ramsey realized JonBenet was still alive. ''Only feet away was her paint tote,'' he writes. ''She grabbed a paintbrush and broke it to fashion the garrote with some cord. Then she looped the cord around the girl's neck.'' To make it look like a kidnapping, he says Mrs. Ramsey tied the girl's wrists and taped over her mouth” (Janofsky, 2000).
There is no known offender prosecution to date in the Ramsey case. In my opinion, it does matter who the offender is. If the perpetrator was in fact a sex predator it would lead to implications that support the lifestyle theory. This would implicate the pageants for the association to predators, not the narcissistic parents who force female toddlers into gender roles and make them publicly preform as sexual objects.
Supplemental opinion:
To some it may appear that the chivalrous public does not want to believe that she was killed by a mother with possible severe borderline personality disorder. The mother survived ovarian cancer once before the murder and who knows what mental state this placed her in. A cynical person could believe that Patsy was over imposing femininity on her daughter and living vicariously through JonBenét and the pageants. To some it would appear that this could have caused JonBenét to form a feeling of lack of control in her own young life; this is supported by the bed wetting noted the night of before the murder. In all the images of this young child it is easy to see her beauty and beautiful smile. To some, it takes a closer look to see the smile is false. The corners of her eyes turn down and in many of the images she has bags under her eyes. To some it may appear that this child was abused in some form or another by her own mother.
This is not a healthy environment for a child (Adler J, 1997). These pageants occur every weekend and JonBenét was on the circuit. To some it may appear that these factors, Patsy’s stress caused by her physical illness and an unhappy child showing signs of disorder such as bed wetting, combined and created the explosive event that resulted in the abusive incident that caused death of JonBenét. A cynical person could believe that it is not too far of a stretch of the imagination to assume that Patsy could have staged the kidnapping and planted the DNA for self-preservation. To some it seems that she had already sexualized her child to the extreme for her own benefit. Handwriting analysis could not rule out Patsy as the writer of the ransom note (McClish, 2001). A cynical person could believe that if a DNA match will ever be found it most likely will be one of the Ramsey’s lawyers or a close associate of the Ramsey’s lawyers.
In a CNN interview that aired on March 27, 2000 Larry King interviewed John and Patsy Ramsey who were publicizing their book Death of Innocence. The interview can be seen at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zH9PesH7Wbg&feature=related.
It is one thing to read an interview and see that all the words match up to their innocence. Seeing John and Patsy Ramsey giving accounts can offer some insight into this case. When a person makes a true statement the movement of the head is in the yes or up and down motion (Frank, 2011). This is a noted and researched result of the new and forming science of micro expression. During the interview both patsy and John are stating yes statements and shaking their head to provide the nonverbal leakage of a “no” reply. A cynical person could believe that this indicates a false statement. There are few statements by John Ramsey that allow his statement to be supported with nonverbal leakage that would indicate the truth. The statement that he was investigated for three years, he nods the affirmative. A cynical person could believe that with his other statements of his innocence and recollection of the event, his nonverbal leakage is incongruent with his verbal claims. It would seem to some that he is paying attention to his words and not to his nonverbal leakage. Patsy’s nonverbal leakage is affirmative when she said “Go back and do more DNA testing” she does want this to occur. But in the following statement “We have got to find this person” to some it would seem that she shakes her head no. The affirmative nonverbal leakage towards the DNA retesting could be due to the fact that it is evidence that clears her of this crime and it seems she wants to focus on what clears her. To a cynical person her shaking of her head “no” while stating “We have got to find this person” indicates guilt in the murder of JonBenét Ramsey. A cynical person could also find many other indicators that point to Patsy as the offender in this case.
Bibliography
Adler J, K.-O. S. (1997, January 20). The strange world of JonBenet. Retrieved October 14, 2011, from Newsweek [serial online]. January 20, 1997;129(3):42. Available from: Academic Search Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed October 16, 2011: http://web.ebscohost.com.lscsproxy.lonestar.edu/ehost/detail?vid=3&hid=107&sid=64303f6f-ae73-48b3-bba8-c668502e0e79%40sessionmgr111&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN=9701150137
Bardsley, M. (n.d.). Murder of JonBenét Ramsey. Retrieved 10 14, 2011, from TruTV Crime Library: http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/famous/ramsey/index_1b.html
Considine, B. (2011, May 27). Officials offer new reward for information in disappearance, death of South Amboy child 20 years ago. Retrieved October 14, 2011, from New Jersey Real- Time News: http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/05/officials_offering_new_reward.html
Frank, M. H. (2011, June). Evaluating Truthfulness and Detecting Deception. Retrieved October 14, 2011, from FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin: http://www.fbi.gov/stats-services/publications/law-enforcement-bulletin/june_2011/school_violence
Hewitt, B. (1997, March 24). Stalemate. Retrieved October 14, 2011, from People: http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20143772,00.html
Janofsky, M. (2000, April 10). JonBenet's Mother Was Killer, Detective Says. Retrieved 10 14, 2011, from New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2000/04/10/us/jonbenet-s-mother-was-killer-detective-says.html?scp=1&sq=JonBenet's%20Mother%20Was%20Killer,%20Detective%20Says&st=cse
McClish, M. (2001, July 19). JonBenet Ramsey Ransom Note. Retrieved 10 14, 2011, from Statement Analysis®: http://www.statementanalysis.com/ramseynote/
Times, N. Y. (1997, March 12). No Sign of an Intruder At Home of a Slain Child. Retrieved October 14, 2011, from The New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/1997/03/12/us/no-sign-of-an-intruder-at-home-of-a-slain-child.html?scp=1&sq=No%20Sign%20of%20an%20Intruder%20At%20Home%20of%20a%20Slain%20Child&st=cse
The major points of the offense radiate from the murder of a female child, JonBenét Ramsey; she was a six year old female child from an affluent family in Boulder, Colorado (Adler J, 1997). A two page ransom demand letter was found in the home (McClish, 2001). The letter states a demand of an exact amount, $118,000 (McClish, 2001). This is an odd ransom amount; the price for this child’s life is not $100,000 or $1,000,000, but $118,000.
The first search of the home found no supplemental evidence except a ransom letter (Hewitt, 1997). There were no obvious signs of a break-in and no tracks around the home in the snow (Times, 1997). A detective suggests that Mr. Ramsey and a friend go to the house and look for anything unusual (Bardsley). The first place they go to look is the basement. The body was found in the basement (Hewitt, 1997). It seems so unnatural to first go look in the basement for something unusual after a child is kidnapped, not her room or an area that she may have normally been habituating. JonBenét Ramsey was found by her father and his friend in the basement of her own home with severe head trauma, she had also been strangled (Hewitt, 1997). The Boulder police made several mistakes with the investigation. They did not seal off the crime scene, they did not search the home completely and they overlooked the body of a child in the basement (Hewitt, 1997). The police had blinders on during the initial “kidnapping” investigation. These blinders were created by seemingly caring father, loving mother appearance and the socioeconomic status of the family.
As the murder case progressed many incongruities with this happy family appearance emerged. The media and public opinion shaped the concept of this female child victim. She was a 6 year old child victim on one side and a 6 year old beauty queen on the other side. This begs the question, if she had been a 6 year old Hispanic female karate champ who did not wear makeup and did not look like a starved model, would her murder have received this attention from the media? The public outcry was towards the family for creating a 6 year old beauty pageant model. Some of the public opinion felt that doing this somehow exposed her to pedophiles and most likely precipitated the offense.
The Lifestyle theory suggests that the choices one makes in their associations and activities may shape a victim- prone life history. The public opinion expressed indicated that the involvement in the beauty pageants may have exposed the child to associations who were sexual predators and may have precipitated this murder. In the culture of America it is accepted that women use gender amplifiers to attract the opposite sex. These include perfume, nail polish, makeup, attire and exaggerated feminine behavior. JonBenét Ramsey was trained and possibly forced to use all of these gender amplifiers to a maximum at the age of 6. The female gender role was applied to her young life in an extreme measure. This created different reactions to her case. Some public opinion was for the pageants and many mothers spoke out about the positives of participating in these pageants. There was much greater public opposition to the pageants.
A 1997 Newsweek article by Jerry Alder and Sherry Osborne contains the following excerpt:
“Many people, though, are made viscerally uncomfortable by the sight of prepubescent girls, or for that matter preschoolers, showing off their bodies as a competitive activity. Partly, they don't think it's healthy for the kids, and psychologists tend to agree with them. ``For most kids, [performing] is not a good psychological experience,'' says William Pinsof, president of the Family Institute at Northwestern University, who has studied child actresses and models and found them prone to drug addiction, eating disorders and depression in puberty. ``You end up with hollow children and narcissistic parents.'' Even Page Parkes-Eveleth, owner of successful modeling agencies in Texas and Florida, thinks pageants are bad for children, as well as counterproductive to the goal of getting them big modeling contracts. ``You do not put lipstick on your 6-year-old,'' she says flatly. ``It's everything the modeling industry is against. We're looking for freckles and natural beauty.'' (Adler J, 1997)
This excerpt identifies that there is psychological damage done to the child. The media coverage of the murder of an innocent child often became overshadowed by the beauty queen debate. This debate created a small form of culture conflict within the arena of public opinion. Patsy Ramsey’s norms and values resulted in actions that put JonBenét Ramsey in opposition to expected conduct of children in this country.
The term beauty is often used in the description of JonBenét Ramsey. The term appears to slant the story in many particular ways depending on personal values and the current social temperature. The term beauty used in this 6 year old female child’s murder causes the perpetuation of the case and increases public interest. Marilyn Bardsley and Patrick Bellamy note in the article Murder of JonBenét Ramsey for TruTV “At the time, the media described her as "a painted baby, a sexualized toddler beauty queen". The media plays up on the chivalrous culture of this country to sell the story, as if the murder is an innocent child is not important enough to keep public attention.
If this crime had happened to a male there would be public interest and media attention given due to the age and race of the victim. The case would not have become such a high profile case. The case would be not be continually revisited by the media for so many years. There are cases of male child deaths where the police are begging for media coverage in hopes to find the murder. Does Timothy Wiltsey have the same name recognition as JonBenét? Timothy Wiltsey is a 5 year old South Amboy boy who disappeared 20 years ago, the boy’s skeletal remains were discovered in a marshy area in Edison 11 months later (Considine, 2011). The mother was also questioned in his murder (Considine, 2011).
Michael Janofsky wrote an article in the New York Times stating that Mr. Thomas, an investigator on the Ramsey case for two years says “Mrs. Ramsey had grown frazzled by Christmas night 1996 because of ''an approaching 40th birthday, the busy holiday season, an exhausting Christmas Day and an argument with JonBenet'' over a bed-wetting incident that led to ''some sort of explosive encounter in the child's bathroom'' that resulted in a mortal head wound (Janofsky, 2000). The article continues to state “he concluded that while JonBenet's head was probably injured by accident, Mrs. Ramsey, rather than summon help, panicked after her daughter fell unconscious. That, he says, led her to write a note suggesting that JonBenet had been kidnapped, after which she ''faced the major problem of what to do with the body.'' It was at that point, Mr. Thomas concludes, that the accident turned to murder. He says that on the way to placing her in a remote room of the basement, Mrs. Ramsey realized JonBenet was still alive. ''Only feet away was her paint tote,'' he writes. ''She grabbed a paintbrush and broke it to fashion the garrote with some cord. Then she looped the cord around the girl's neck.'' To make it look like a kidnapping, he says Mrs. Ramsey tied the girl's wrists and taped over her mouth” (Janofsky, 2000).
There is no known offender prosecution to date in the Ramsey case. In my opinion, it does matter who the offender is. If the perpetrator was in fact a sex predator it would lead to implications that support the lifestyle theory. This would implicate the pageants for the association to predators, not the narcissistic parents who force female toddlers into gender roles and make them publicly preform as sexual objects.
Supplemental opinion:
To some it may appear that the chivalrous public does not want to believe that she was killed by a mother with possible severe borderline personality disorder. The mother survived ovarian cancer once before the murder and who knows what mental state this placed her in. A cynical person could believe that Patsy was over imposing femininity on her daughter and living vicariously through JonBenét and the pageants. To some it would appear that this could have caused JonBenét to form a feeling of lack of control in her own young life; this is supported by the bed wetting noted the night of before the murder. In all the images of this young child it is easy to see her beauty and beautiful smile. To some, it takes a closer look to see the smile is false. The corners of her eyes turn down and in many of the images she has bags under her eyes. To some it may appear that this child was abused in some form or another by her own mother.
This is not a healthy environment for a child (Adler J, 1997). These pageants occur every weekend and JonBenét was on the circuit. To some it may appear that these factors, Patsy’s stress caused by her physical illness and an unhappy child showing signs of disorder such as bed wetting, combined and created the explosive event that resulted in the abusive incident that caused death of JonBenét. A cynical person could believe that it is not too far of a stretch of the imagination to assume that Patsy could have staged the kidnapping and planted the DNA for self-preservation. To some it seems that she had already sexualized her child to the extreme for her own benefit. Handwriting analysis could not rule out Patsy as the writer of the ransom note (McClish, 2001). A cynical person could believe that if a DNA match will ever be found it most likely will be one of the Ramsey’s lawyers or a close associate of the Ramsey’s lawyers.
In a CNN interview that aired on March 27, 2000 Larry King interviewed John and Patsy Ramsey who were publicizing their book Death of Innocence. The interview can be seen at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zH9PesH7Wbg&feature=related.
It is one thing to read an interview and see that all the words match up to their innocence. Seeing John and Patsy Ramsey giving accounts can offer some insight into this case. When a person makes a true statement the movement of the head is in the yes or up and down motion (Frank, 2011). This is a noted and researched result of the new and forming science of micro expression. During the interview both patsy and John are stating yes statements and shaking their head to provide the nonverbal leakage of a “no” reply. A cynical person could believe that this indicates a false statement. There are few statements by John Ramsey that allow his statement to be supported with nonverbal leakage that would indicate the truth. The statement that he was investigated for three years, he nods the affirmative. A cynical person could believe that with his other statements of his innocence and recollection of the event, his nonverbal leakage is incongruent with his verbal claims. It would seem to some that he is paying attention to his words and not to his nonverbal leakage. Patsy’s nonverbal leakage is affirmative when she said “Go back and do more DNA testing” she does want this to occur. But in the following statement “We have got to find this person” to some it would seem that she shakes her head no. The affirmative nonverbal leakage towards the DNA retesting could be due to the fact that it is evidence that clears her of this crime and it seems she wants to focus on what clears her. To a cynical person her shaking of her head “no” while stating “We have got to find this person” indicates guilt in the murder of JonBenét Ramsey. A cynical person could also find many other indicators that point to Patsy as the offender in this case.
Bibliography
Adler J, K.-O. S. (1997, January 20). The strange world of JonBenet. Retrieved October 14, 2011, from Newsweek [serial online]. January 20, 1997;129(3):42. Available from: Academic Search Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed October 16, 2011: http://web.ebscohost.com.lscsproxy.lonestar.edu/ehost/detail?vid=3&hid=107&sid=64303f6f-ae73-48b3-bba8-c668502e0e79%40sessionmgr111&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN=9701150137
Bardsley, M. (n.d.). Murder of JonBenét Ramsey. Retrieved 10 14, 2011, from TruTV Crime Library: http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/famous/ramsey/index_1b.html
Considine, B. (2011, May 27). Officials offer new reward for information in disappearance, death of South Amboy child 20 years ago. Retrieved October 14, 2011, from New Jersey Real- Time News: http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/05/officials_offering_new_reward.html
Frank, M. H. (2011, June). Evaluating Truthfulness and Detecting Deception. Retrieved October 14, 2011, from FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin: http://www.fbi.gov/stats-services/publications/law-enforcement-bulletin/june_2011/school_violence
Hewitt, B. (1997, March 24). Stalemate. Retrieved October 14, 2011, from People: http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20143772,00.html
Janofsky, M. (2000, April 10). JonBenet's Mother Was Killer, Detective Says. Retrieved 10 14, 2011, from New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2000/04/10/us/jonbenet-s-mother-was-killer-detective-says.html?scp=1&sq=JonBenet's%20Mother%20Was%20Killer,%20Detective%20Says&st=cse
McClish, M. (2001, July 19). JonBenet Ramsey Ransom Note. Retrieved 10 14, 2011, from Statement Analysis®: http://www.statementanalysis.com/ramseynote/
Times, N. Y. (1997, March 12). No Sign of an Intruder At Home of a Slain Child. Retrieved October 14, 2011, from The New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/1997/03/12/us/no-sign-of-an-intruder-at-home-of-a-slain-child.html?scp=1&sq=No%20Sign%20of%20an%20Intruder%20At%20Home%20of%20a%20Slain%20Child&st=cse
What I Want My Words to do to You
What I Want My Words to do to You
The reflections of reality that progress throughout the film, What I Want My Words to do to You composed by Eve Ensler, personally creates three main questions. First, “How do we as a society define repentance?” There must be some point where we deem a person to be repentant. The second question is “Did these women receive bias and unusually harsh sentences due to media and/or social standards that ignored many mitigating factors?” These women stepped out of the female gender role and into the criminal role. The social temperature at the time of the trial is fostered by public opinion and creates a backlash in support of sentencing that is applied in an unfair and unjust manner. There seems to be very little consideration given to the women’s individual situations. The final question is “Does repentance indicate a suggestion of an offender’s rehabilitation?” If so the debt to society has been repaid, it would be considered, to a cynical person, to be a violation of the 8th Amendment’s provision for prevention of cruel and unusual punishment to detain these women after they have been rehabilitated. There are many other factors to consider when assuming the previous thought such as the victims, the victims family’s and the harm the women caused to society.
The use of writing in the prison such as in this particular forum helped the women identify with the factors of the crimes they committed and provided for a validation of victimization that in most cases precipitated the crime. These women, for the most part did not carry the sole legal responsibility of the crimes committed. Some cases share the blame with the actions of others such as husbands, friends or family, yet, to a degree society holds blame in all of these cases. Society creates the female gender prison and then punishes these women too harshly for lashing out at the victimization through their crimes and for taking a role often perceived as male. The writing helped them come to terms with the offense and to identify the guilt they live with daily. This creates a repentance that is imperative to the rehabilitative purpose.
Repentance
The first question created as a response to the writings and the film about defining repentance can be observed with skepticism or compassion. The society at large may view repentance with skepticism due to the view of the women as hardened criminals. The compassionate response of repentance looks at the words and emotions displayed by these women. Who they are and what they are composed of individually is being expressed in the words they write. Repentance of a crime can be based on acknowledgement of involvement and guilt over the actions. These women for the most part displayed guilt. Some women displayed so much guilt that it took on an individual form of self-hate. This is displayed by Cynthia Berry who was molested by her uncle in her childhood. She defends the victim with aggression wards herself and states that she will not have atonement until she dies. This is her own view of herself that demonstrates hopelessness; she is stating she will never be forgiven no matter how she repays her debt to society.
The definition of repentance is to feel remorse for what one has done or failed to do. These women do show repentance for the crimes they committed. Some women in this forum are avoiding the repentance to the crime by avoiding the culpability in the crime and admit blaming their situation on external factors instead of looking at the internal cause. Pamela Smart admits that the writing has caused her to look towards her responsibility in her situation instead of the circumstantial factors such as the judge, jury and trial. The essays create her progress towards repentance. Some women have reached repentance, some appear to be far from accepting their part in the crimes and some have taken the quest for repentance to extreme and have reasoned it to be unattainable. The film demonstrates that redemption is possible after committing a crime with repentance.
Bias/ Social Standards / Mitigating Factors
These women received bias and unusually harsh sentences due to media and/or social standards that ignored many mitigating factors. They have made mistakes and they were judged on the finality of the crimes, not on the life that lead to these crimes. Jan Warren was “Desperate, she made a mistake: She agreed to sell cocaine for her cousin. It was the only time Warren had ever sold drugs, and it turned out to be a police sting. Under strict New York drug laws; Warren was given fifteen years to life” (Perl, 2003). The penalty for this one mistake seems excessive and did not consider the lack of criminality in her previous life. She was not a hardened criminal, she did need money and turned to drug sales - If she had sold her body to get the money she would have received a slap on the wrist even though they are both crimes against morality. The reality is that prostitution hurts society as much as drugs, if not more and for a first time offender the fifteen to life is too punitive. Jan Warren did not go to the low of selling her body to make money; some may feel she was trying to keep at least few morals and self-respect as a desperate woman.
Cynthia Berry was molested by her uncle. Her pain was the fuel for the motivation of her crimes. The victimization created who she became, a prostitute. It appears that she was hollow and numb. When she snapped, she snapped big. She killed an old man who wanted companionship. The impression that she may have seen her uncle in her victim is taken from her writings. Other analysis of her essays leads to the assumption that at the time of the killing she was insane. Her anger expressed at the compassion of her peers indicates she may be coping with insanity presently. A cynical person could conclude she is in the wrong place. She would have been better served by the court if she had been committed to a therapeutic mental setting. The impression that her mental state caused by the victimization she suffered was overlooked by the system and even though she is a murder she is receiving injustice because she is in need of many years of therapy.
. Many of these females seem to be saying from their criminal actions "I am NOT a victim anymore". But, they are speaking in the wrong (violent) language and compiling it into one moment of rage (mistake). Most of these women became so numb they did not even realize that they were a victim.
Keila Pulinario was raped by her best-friend, she did not even see that that she was in need of victim services; if she had reported the rape, she would have received help. Abused women often do not see police officers as their allies. In some cultures, the woman is in more danger if she involves the police. Her best friend mocked her when Keila confronted him about the rape. She was searching for an apology and validation. Rape is not cause for justifiable homicide, but is a serious event that should have been considered by the prosecutor and judge. The roles would not have been considered the same if a man killed another man who raped him. The punishment would have not been so severe. This is a bias that is against women. The point is made by Jan Warren after the statement that she was raped and they found the guy, she hoped it was not because it was of her color. It is a noted disparity in cultures and races on reporting crime. The siege mentality is present in many neighborhoods and prevents reporting crime (Siegel, 2009, p. 171). This could be the case with Keila Pulinario, the confrontation went wrong and her offender precipitated his own murder. This supports the reverberation within the victim/offender cycle. She did not receive any validation or justice from the victimization and became an offender because of it.
Rehabilitation
Repentance indicates a suggestion of an offender’s rehabilitation. Rehabilitation is supported in the film by the changes the women have undertaken since incarceration. The women in prison are not the same creatures who committed the crimes. The woman, who demonstrates this best is “Judith Clark, a 1960s and 1970s political activist, has spent 30 years in prison for her role as a getaway driver in a 1981 robbery that left three people dead. Now 61 years old, she has undergone a profound transformation, from an unrepentant radical to a respected educator and caring role model. The only way she'll ever be released from prison is if the Governor grants her clemency (J.Clark, 2011).” Why is she not being released? She is no longer a threat to anyone and she displays a positive reformation. If this is not the goal, then what is the whole point of corrections?
Conclusion
Final summation, the film supports the belief that we all create our own prisons and serve as our own jailers. The women build a jail of guilt and some find peace and some do not. The film makes one wonder about one’s own created prisons. The past haunts all of them and is another restriction of the mental prison. The women in prison wrestle with the same guilt issues as free people do, just on a deeper level due to the crimes. There is a point where guilt, repentance, remorse and self-realization merge to offer the humanity and kindness that is surprisingly, found in prisons. These women are not heartless and coldblooded as perpetuated by the media. The film causes even the most skeptical person to reassess preconceived notions about our sisters in white. All people, including males can benefit from the enlightenment given by the film.
Bibliography
J.Clark. (2011). Judith Clark. Retrieved October 30, 2011, from Friends of Judith Clark: http://judithclark.org/
Perl, R. (2003, November 24). The Last Disenfranchised Class. Retrieved October 30, 2011, from Center for the Investigative Reporting: http://centerforinvestigativereporting.org/tags/prison
Siegel, L. (2009). Criminology. In L. Siegel, Criminology (pp. 388-389). Belmont, CA, U.S.A.: Wadsworth.
The reflections of reality that progress throughout the film, What I Want My Words to do to You composed by Eve Ensler, personally creates three main questions. First, “How do we as a society define repentance?” There must be some point where we deem a person to be repentant. The second question is “Did these women receive bias and unusually harsh sentences due to media and/or social standards that ignored many mitigating factors?” These women stepped out of the female gender role and into the criminal role. The social temperature at the time of the trial is fostered by public opinion and creates a backlash in support of sentencing that is applied in an unfair and unjust manner. There seems to be very little consideration given to the women’s individual situations. The final question is “Does repentance indicate a suggestion of an offender’s rehabilitation?” If so the debt to society has been repaid, it would be considered, to a cynical person, to be a violation of the 8th Amendment’s provision for prevention of cruel and unusual punishment to detain these women after they have been rehabilitated. There are many other factors to consider when assuming the previous thought such as the victims, the victims family’s and the harm the women caused to society.
The use of writing in the prison such as in this particular forum helped the women identify with the factors of the crimes they committed and provided for a validation of victimization that in most cases precipitated the crime. These women, for the most part did not carry the sole legal responsibility of the crimes committed. Some cases share the blame with the actions of others such as husbands, friends or family, yet, to a degree society holds blame in all of these cases. Society creates the female gender prison and then punishes these women too harshly for lashing out at the victimization through their crimes and for taking a role often perceived as male. The writing helped them come to terms with the offense and to identify the guilt they live with daily. This creates a repentance that is imperative to the rehabilitative purpose.
Repentance
The first question created as a response to the writings and the film about defining repentance can be observed with skepticism or compassion. The society at large may view repentance with skepticism due to the view of the women as hardened criminals. The compassionate response of repentance looks at the words and emotions displayed by these women. Who they are and what they are composed of individually is being expressed in the words they write. Repentance of a crime can be based on acknowledgement of involvement and guilt over the actions. These women for the most part displayed guilt. Some women displayed so much guilt that it took on an individual form of self-hate. This is displayed by Cynthia Berry who was molested by her uncle in her childhood. She defends the victim with aggression wards herself and states that she will not have atonement until she dies. This is her own view of herself that demonstrates hopelessness; she is stating she will never be forgiven no matter how she repays her debt to society.
The definition of repentance is to feel remorse for what one has done or failed to do. These women do show repentance for the crimes they committed. Some women in this forum are avoiding the repentance to the crime by avoiding the culpability in the crime and admit blaming their situation on external factors instead of looking at the internal cause. Pamela Smart admits that the writing has caused her to look towards her responsibility in her situation instead of the circumstantial factors such as the judge, jury and trial. The essays create her progress towards repentance. Some women have reached repentance, some appear to be far from accepting their part in the crimes and some have taken the quest for repentance to extreme and have reasoned it to be unattainable. The film demonstrates that redemption is possible after committing a crime with repentance.
Bias/ Social Standards / Mitigating Factors
These women received bias and unusually harsh sentences due to media and/or social standards that ignored many mitigating factors. They have made mistakes and they were judged on the finality of the crimes, not on the life that lead to these crimes. Jan Warren was “Desperate, she made a mistake: She agreed to sell cocaine for her cousin. It was the only time Warren had ever sold drugs, and it turned out to be a police sting. Under strict New York drug laws; Warren was given fifteen years to life” (Perl, 2003). The penalty for this one mistake seems excessive and did not consider the lack of criminality in her previous life. She was not a hardened criminal, she did need money and turned to drug sales - If she had sold her body to get the money she would have received a slap on the wrist even though they are both crimes against morality. The reality is that prostitution hurts society as much as drugs, if not more and for a first time offender the fifteen to life is too punitive. Jan Warren did not go to the low of selling her body to make money; some may feel she was trying to keep at least few morals and self-respect as a desperate woman.
Cynthia Berry was molested by her uncle. Her pain was the fuel for the motivation of her crimes. The victimization created who she became, a prostitute. It appears that she was hollow and numb. When she snapped, she snapped big. She killed an old man who wanted companionship. The impression that she may have seen her uncle in her victim is taken from her writings. Other analysis of her essays leads to the assumption that at the time of the killing she was insane. Her anger expressed at the compassion of her peers indicates she may be coping with insanity presently. A cynical person could conclude she is in the wrong place. She would have been better served by the court if she had been committed to a therapeutic mental setting. The impression that her mental state caused by the victimization she suffered was overlooked by the system and even though she is a murder she is receiving injustice because she is in need of many years of therapy.
. Many of these females seem to be saying from their criminal actions "I am NOT a victim anymore". But, they are speaking in the wrong (violent) language and compiling it into one moment of rage (mistake). Most of these women became so numb they did not even realize that they were a victim.
Keila Pulinario was raped by her best-friend, she did not even see that that she was in need of victim services; if she had reported the rape, she would have received help. Abused women often do not see police officers as their allies. In some cultures, the woman is in more danger if she involves the police. Her best friend mocked her when Keila confronted him about the rape. She was searching for an apology and validation. Rape is not cause for justifiable homicide, but is a serious event that should have been considered by the prosecutor and judge. The roles would not have been considered the same if a man killed another man who raped him. The punishment would have not been so severe. This is a bias that is against women. The point is made by Jan Warren after the statement that she was raped and they found the guy, she hoped it was not because it was of her color. It is a noted disparity in cultures and races on reporting crime. The siege mentality is present in many neighborhoods and prevents reporting crime (Siegel, 2009, p. 171). This could be the case with Keila Pulinario, the confrontation went wrong and her offender precipitated his own murder. This supports the reverberation within the victim/offender cycle. She did not receive any validation or justice from the victimization and became an offender because of it.
Rehabilitation
Repentance indicates a suggestion of an offender’s rehabilitation. Rehabilitation is supported in the film by the changes the women have undertaken since incarceration. The women in prison are not the same creatures who committed the crimes. The woman, who demonstrates this best is “Judith Clark, a 1960s and 1970s political activist, has spent 30 years in prison for her role as a getaway driver in a 1981 robbery that left three people dead. Now 61 years old, she has undergone a profound transformation, from an unrepentant radical to a respected educator and caring role model. The only way she'll ever be released from prison is if the Governor grants her clemency (J.Clark, 2011).” Why is she not being released? She is no longer a threat to anyone and she displays a positive reformation. If this is not the goal, then what is the whole point of corrections?
Conclusion
Final summation, the film supports the belief that we all create our own prisons and serve as our own jailers. The women build a jail of guilt and some find peace and some do not. The film makes one wonder about one’s own created prisons. The past haunts all of them and is another restriction of the mental prison. The women in prison wrestle with the same guilt issues as free people do, just on a deeper level due to the crimes. There is a point where guilt, repentance, remorse and self-realization merge to offer the humanity and kindness that is surprisingly, found in prisons. These women are not heartless and coldblooded as perpetuated by the media. The film causes even the most skeptical person to reassess preconceived notions about our sisters in white. All people, including males can benefit from the enlightenment given by the film.
Bibliography
J.Clark. (2011). Judith Clark. Retrieved October 30, 2011, from Friends of Judith Clark: http://judithclark.org/
Perl, R. (2003, November 24). The Last Disenfranchised Class. Retrieved October 30, 2011, from Center for the Investigative Reporting: http://centerforinvestigativereporting.org/tags/prison
Siegel, L. (2009). Criminology. In L. Siegel, Criminology (pp. 388-389). Belmont, CA, U.S.A.: Wadsworth.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
POP Interactive Module Paper
POP Interactive Module Paper
Dana Cowan
The Center for Problem-Oriented Policing is a website that provides enhanced problem-oriented policing learning tools to help professionalize policing. The interactive module provides a fictitious community avatar that includes lower Scott Avenue. Lower Scott Avenue is becoming plagued with prostitution and a rise in crime. The community, public agencies, and the private sector are voicing dissatisfaction with the government and the police. The purpose of this paper is to report and explain how problem-oriented policing and the SARA model combined to correct a localized problem of prostitution on lower Scott Avenue. The downward spin of the neighborhood created by the influx of criminal elements and prostitution required all phases of the SARA model to improve the stability of lower Scott Avenue.
Problem-oriented policing is an approach to policing that uses the examination in depth of many available sources to learn about each problem. This is done in hopes of finding a more effective strategy for prevention. Problem-oriented policing uses sources that are outside of the normal business of the criminal justice system, these include other public agencies, the community and the private sector. The input and cooperation of these sources can contribute to the reduction of the problem. The ability to analyze and use the problem analysis triangle to correctly assess the prostitution problem in lower Scott Avenue, and then assemble the most appropriate response is the goal of the interactive module.
Analysis:
Analysis is the key to identifying the problem and provides discernment of the underlying causative factors. The analysis of the problem required interviewing the community, public agencies, and the private sector. The private sector was the first group chosen to be interviewed. The reasoning behind this is the businesses are the life blood of a community. Knowledge can be gained on the depth and scope of the problem from how it is affecting the financial perspective of the community.
Ken Harrison is the owner of Crafty Furniture Store located at 375 Scott Ave. The interview with Ken Harrison revealed many facts and provided the perception that the prostitution problem was serious. He stated a public health concern with the finding of used condoms on the stores loading dock. He has witnessed the victimization of prostitutes and found some unconscious. He states that “customers complain that they have been solicited on their way into the store” this is an indication that the problem is affecting the capital gain of the neighborhood. He notes that the drug use is becoming very obvious. The prostitution problem is making a victim of the business and the business owner to a small degree. These crimes of morality affect many citizens and take an unacceptable toll on the community.
The second interview was with Bill Webster the front desk manager at the Secrete Inn located at 388 Scott Ave. He was defensive from the start of the interview. He admitted providing rooms for the prostitutes and is receiving financial gain from the crimes. He appears to have been harassed by local police and government officials due to his culpability in the crimes occurring. This harassment is counterproductive due to creating an unwilling community partner. This business has potential to abstain from facilitating a place for the crime if approached in the correct manner.
The next input for the analysis was from the community citizens. The prostitution and crime rates have a direct effect on the citizens of the community. The crime rates affect every facet of everyday living in the community. The citizens often become victimized in their own homes and neighborhoods. If they have not been victimized, they have fear and anxiety over becoming a victim created from living with the everyday possibility of victimization. This fear changes behaviors, living standards and even spending habits. Citizens in the Unites States should not fear the community they live in due to crime. These citizens pay taxes and provide funds for the government; they deserve to be provided safety- at the very least.
The first citizen I interviewed was Chris Glatz a resident of the 600 block of Scott Avenue. He revealed that the sex trade was occurring every night, not only on the weekends. He said that before he can let his kids go outside to play he must clean up syringes and condoms from the night before. This is, as described above, a public health concern. Chris Glatz has provided a convincing testimony that there is a major crime problem on lower Scott Avenue. The second interview with Randy Bright a 50-year resident concurred with the first citizen interview and provided insight to the prostitution being the root of the problem causing the loss of business to the area. This loss of business leaves the community with only business that profit from the prostitution. These businesses such as bars and liquor stores do not support the community and are most active at night, adding to the problem. Other interviews revealed information on the fact that many upright citizens have moved away due to the crime rates.
The next tier of the analysis was to cover the government and police interviews. The contemplation that has been created from the previous interviews is “What has been attempted to correct the problem?” The strategies enacted by the police did not appear to be effective. Commander Brian Rule of the Scott Avenue District police stated that the public knows very little about prostitution, and the police do not have the funds to do anything about the problem. He states that the police just try to reduce the signs of prostitution so the complaints are kept to a minimum. This is a very discretionary way to deal with the problem. He reports that the financials of the police do not provide the resources needed to do anything. This discretionary response has added to the problem. When there is a financial barrier to protecting citizens of the community; the community’s churches and originations can be enlisted to help. The means of this is to build a good rapport with these community originations. Instead of ignoring the problem, Commander Brian Rule could extend a hand towards outreach and volunteers from the community. Officer Jordan confirmed the Commanders comments. She states that the prostitutes are migrating into the upper end of Scott Avenue. This migration will continue to grow and the upper end of Scott Avenue will soon be in advanced decline. The community decay will progress to surrounding areas.
All of Scott Avenue will be known as the red light district if there is no effective change. After analyzing the provided statistics it was noted that the calls for police service related to prostitution in target area (CAD records) went up five times (28 to 141) in one year. The statistics and crime reports appear to indicate that the primary business in the lower Scott Avenue area is the sex trade. This crime against morality has destroyed the very community that is based on common morals. This hopelessness is displayed in law enforcement’s actions and felt by the businesses and citizens of this community.
The analysis of Scott Avenue created 76% budget expenditure. This included interviewing offenders to see what about the area appeals to them. This helped in identifying specific factors in the problem analysis triangle that provide for this crime to occur. The query is to discover what is so appealing to the criminal towards the location. What is attracting these crimes to the area? The bars on Scott Avenue and the loss of other businesses (creating empty buildings) are making the street appealing to crime, drugs and prostitution.
Response:
The response to the crime provides choices of correction for the criminal behavior. They range from crackdowns to improved lighting. Many of these choices offer some level of abatement to the crimes. Nothing appears to have a long term effect as the mayor requested. The community as a whole has deteriorated to a point that is beyond enforcing a few of these choices. Many of the choices provided would have been successful it they had been implemented over a year ago. The time to use small measures has passed. This is supported by the loss of many of the businesses and the economy of the community was based on these businesses. The enacting of these choices will prevail in a reduction of crime only for a short while due to the location being previously primed for criminality.
The Broken Windows Theory suggests a proactive stance against the influx of crime to an area within a small time frame of the deprecation of a property from the community. In the lower Scott Avenue area this was not the case. The overlooking of prostitution by law enforcement and the acceptance of it by some businesses in the community exacerbated the decline of the community. The restoration of the lower Scott Avenue will require extreme measures and change. In the future, communities would benefit from community involvement, zero tolerance, establishing a highly visible police presence and crackdowns at the first sign of an increase in reports of crime, drug use and prostitution. These are preventative measures not necessarily restorative measures and will be effective short term. Lower Scott Avenue needs restorative not preventative measures to redirect the area back to a viable community.
The response recommended provides the long term solution and gets to the underlying causes of the problem. Due to the decay of the community the recommendation is to redevelop the area economy at 100% expenditure of the budget. This economic redevelopment will bring in new businesses to the area, fix up areas that are in distress, provide visibility and create a sense of safety for the residents and the community as a whole.
Meeting the Mayor’s Needs
The mayor needs solutions that are long term and get at the underlying causes of the problem. The recommendation provided demands radical changes and can be costly both in political and financial terms. The probability of the success of economic redevelopment plan is high. The economic redevelopment plan favors long-term solutions. The assessment of the recommendation one year later revealed that the plan reduced the overall crime rates and complaints to the previous year’s statistics. The Citizen Survey Data noted the seriousness of problems reduced from 8.3 at the time responses were implemented to 3.1 one year later. Visibility of prostitutes at 12:00am reduced from 16 at the time responses were implemented to one sighting a year later. The volume of discarded drug/prostitution paraphernalia reduced from 394 at the time responses were implemented to 18 one year later. This result is remarkable and indicates a significant public health improvement. The solutions are effective and if current trends prevail the crime in the area will be abated. The economic redevelopment plan is the only foreseeable way to improve the conditions of lower Scott Avenue long term. The community has been subjected to policies that created situations of harassment and quite possibly violations of civil rights. This has done nothing to improve relations with the community. When the terms of protecting citizens and implementing plans becomes based on winning elections the measures taken are usually short term and ineffective putting the citizens in jeopardy from victimization and causes the long term destruction of a community.
Final Summation, the policies of the mayor and how he has run his elected office show a lack of care towards the people of the community. He has let the crime wave progress and reacts to it only because he is receiving political pressure. In fact, it may be better for the people of this community if he does not acquire reelection. The overlooking of prostitution by law enforcement is a reflection of the mayor’s political values. In his failure to act, the mayor caused the loss of many of the businesses that in turn degraded the economy of the community. This reduces property values and in turn reduced tax revenue needed to run the city. This revenue reduction is usually compensated at the expense of law enforcement and creates a greater difficulty in protecting the citizens. The mayor could have advocated to increase the financials of the police and provided the resources needed to help correct the problem when it was first noted.
The Center for Problem-Oriented Policing has helped me understand the SARA model in a creative and thought provoking way. I did not consider interviewing offenders as a tool that could be part of the analysis phase. The analysis section taught me how to gather information and organize it into groups that hone in on the root of the problem. I discovered a way of optimizing the approach to a recurring problem. The model effectively addresses a specific crime and disorder problem and teaches how to investigate and solve the underlying issues.
Dana Cowan
The Center for Problem-Oriented Policing is a website that provides enhanced problem-oriented policing learning tools to help professionalize policing. The interactive module provides a fictitious community avatar that includes lower Scott Avenue. Lower Scott Avenue is becoming plagued with prostitution and a rise in crime. The community, public agencies, and the private sector are voicing dissatisfaction with the government and the police. The purpose of this paper is to report and explain how problem-oriented policing and the SARA model combined to correct a localized problem of prostitution on lower Scott Avenue. The downward spin of the neighborhood created by the influx of criminal elements and prostitution required all phases of the SARA model to improve the stability of lower Scott Avenue.
Problem-oriented policing is an approach to policing that uses the examination in depth of many available sources to learn about each problem. This is done in hopes of finding a more effective strategy for prevention. Problem-oriented policing uses sources that are outside of the normal business of the criminal justice system, these include other public agencies, the community and the private sector. The input and cooperation of these sources can contribute to the reduction of the problem. The ability to analyze and use the problem analysis triangle to correctly assess the prostitution problem in lower Scott Avenue, and then assemble the most appropriate response is the goal of the interactive module.
Analysis:
Analysis is the key to identifying the problem and provides discernment of the underlying causative factors. The analysis of the problem required interviewing the community, public agencies, and the private sector. The private sector was the first group chosen to be interviewed. The reasoning behind this is the businesses are the life blood of a community. Knowledge can be gained on the depth and scope of the problem from how it is affecting the financial perspective of the community.
Ken Harrison is the owner of Crafty Furniture Store located at 375 Scott Ave. The interview with Ken Harrison revealed many facts and provided the perception that the prostitution problem was serious. He stated a public health concern with the finding of used condoms on the stores loading dock. He has witnessed the victimization of prostitutes and found some unconscious. He states that “customers complain that they have been solicited on their way into the store” this is an indication that the problem is affecting the capital gain of the neighborhood. He notes that the drug use is becoming very obvious. The prostitution problem is making a victim of the business and the business owner to a small degree. These crimes of morality affect many citizens and take an unacceptable toll on the community.
The second interview was with Bill Webster the front desk manager at the Secrete Inn located at 388 Scott Ave. He was defensive from the start of the interview. He admitted providing rooms for the prostitutes and is receiving financial gain from the crimes. He appears to have been harassed by local police and government officials due to his culpability in the crimes occurring. This harassment is counterproductive due to creating an unwilling community partner. This business has potential to abstain from facilitating a place for the crime if approached in the correct manner.
The next input for the analysis was from the community citizens. The prostitution and crime rates have a direct effect on the citizens of the community. The crime rates affect every facet of everyday living in the community. The citizens often become victimized in their own homes and neighborhoods. If they have not been victimized, they have fear and anxiety over becoming a victim created from living with the everyday possibility of victimization. This fear changes behaviors, living standards and even spending habits. Citizens in the Unites States should not fear the community they live in due to crime. These citizens pay taxes and provide funds for the government; they deserve to be provided safety- at the very least.
The first citizen I interviewed was Chris Glatz a resident of the 600 block of Scott Avenue. He revealed that the sex trade was occurring every night, not only on the weekends. He said that before he can let his kids go outside to play he must clean up syringes and condoms from the night before. This is, as described above, a public health concern. Chris Glatz has provided a convincing testimony that there is a major crime problem on lower Scott Avenue. The second interview with Randy Bright a 50-year resident concurred with the first citizen interview and provided insight to the prostitution being the root of the problem causing the loss of business to the area. This loss of business leaves the community with only business that profit from the prostitution. These businesses such as bars and liquor stores do not support the community and are most active at night, adding to the problem. Other interviews revealed information on the fact that many upright citizens have moved away due to the crime rates.
The next tier of the analysis was to cover the government and police interviews. The contemplation that has been created from the previous interviews is “What has been attempted to correct the problem?” The strategies enacted by the police did not appear to be effective. Commander Brian Rule of the Scott Avenue District police stated that the public knows very little about prostitution, and the police do not have the funds to do anything about the problem. He states that the police just try to reduce the signs of prostitution so the complaints are kept to a minimum. This is a very discretionary way to deal with the problem. He reports that the financials of the police do not provide the resources needed to do anything. This discretionary response has added to the problem. When there is a financial barrier to protecting citizens of the community; the community’s churches and originations can be enlisted to help. The means of this is to build a good rapport with these community originations. Instead of ignoring the problem, Commander Brian Rule could extend a hand towards outreach and volunteers from the community. Officer Jordan confirmed the Commanders comments. She states that the prostitutes are migrating into the upper end of Scott Avenue. This migration will continue to grow and the upper end of Scott Avenue will soon be in advanced decline. The community decay will progress to surrounding areas.
All of Scott Avenue will be known as the red light district if there is no effective change. After analyzing the provided statistics it was noted that the calls for police service related to prostitution in target area (CAD records) went up five times (28 to 141) in one year. The statistics and crime reports appear to indicate that the primary business in the lower Scott Avenue area is the sex trade. This crime against morality has destroyed the very community that is based on common morals. This hopelessness is displayed in law enforcement’s actions and felt by the businesses and citizens of this community.
The analysis of Scott Avenue created 76% budget expenditure. This included interviewing offenders to see what about the area appeals to them. This helped in identifying specific factors in the problem analysis triangle that provide for this crime to occur. The query is to discover what is so appealing to the criminal towards the location. What is attracting these crimes to the area? The bars on Scott Avenue and the loss of other businesses (creating empty buildings) are making the street appealing to crime, drugs and prostitution.
Response:
The response to the crime provides choices of correction for the criminal behavior. They range from crackdowns to improved lighting. Many of these choices offer some level of abatement to the crimes. Nothing appears to have a long term effect as the mayor requested. The community as a whole has deteriorated to a point that is beyond enforcing a few of these choices. Many of the choices provided would have been successful it they had been implemented over a year ago. The time to use small measures has passed. This is supported by the loss of many of the businesses and the economy of the community was based on these businesses. The enacting of these choices will prevail in a reduction of crime only for a short while due to the location being previously primed for criminality.
The Broken Windows Theory suggests a proactive stance against the influx of crime to an area within a small time frame of the deprecation of a property from the community. In the lower Scott Avenue area this was not the case. The overlooking of prostitution by law enforcement and the acceptance of it by some businesses in the community exacerbated the decline of the community. The restoration of the lower Scott Avenue will require extreme measures and change. In the future, communities would benefit from community involvement, zero tolerance, establishing a highly visible police presence and crackdowns at the first sign of an increase in reports of crime, drug use and prostitution. These are preventative measures not necessarily restorative measures and will be effective short term. Lower Scott Avenue needs restorative not preventative measures to redirect the area back to a viable community.
The response recommended provides the long term solution and gets to the underlying causes of the problem. Due to the decay of the community the recommendation is to redevelop the area economy at 100% expenditure of the budget. This economic redevelopment will bring in new businesses to the area, fix up areas that are in distress, provide visibility and create a sense of safety for the residents and the community as a whole.
Meeting the Mayor’s Needs
The mayor needs solutions that are long term and get at the underlying causes of the problem. The recommendation provided demands radical changes and can be costly both in political and financial terms. The probability of the success of economic redevelopment plan is high. The economic redevelopment plan favors long-term solutions. The assessment of the recommendation one year later revealed that the plan reduced the overall crime rates and complaints to the previous year’s statistics. The Citizen Survey Data noted the seriousness of problems reduced from 8.3 at the time responses were implemented to 3.1 one year later. Visibility of prostitutes at 12:00am reduced from 16 at the time responses were implemented to one sighting a year later. The volume of discarded drug/prostitution paraphernalia reduced from 394 at the time responses were implemented to 18 one year later. This result is remarkable and indicates a significant public health improvement. The solutions are effective and if current trends prevail the crime in the area will be abated. The economic redevelopment plan is the only foreseeable way to improve the conditions of lower Scott Avenue long term. The community has been subjected to policies that created situations of harassment and quite possibly violations of civil rights. This has done nothing to improve relations with the community. When the terms of protecting citizens and implementing plans becomes based on winning elections the measures taken are usually short term and ineffective putting the citizens in jeopardy from victimization and causes the long term destruction of a community.
Final Summation, the policies of the mayor and how he has run his elected office show a lack of care towards the people of the community. He has let the crime wave progress and reacts to it only because he is receiving political pressure. In fact, it may be better for the people of this community if he does not acquire reelection. The overlooking of prostitution by law enforcement is a reflection of the mayor’s political values. In his failure to act, the mayor caused the loss of many of the businesses that in turn degraded the economy of the community. This reduces property values and in turn reduced tax revenue needed to run the city. This revenue reduction is usually compensated at the expense of law enforcement and creates a greater difficulty in protecting the citizens. The mayor could have advocated to increase the financials of the police and provided the resources needed to help correct the problem when it was first noted.
The Center for Problem-Oriented Policing has helped me understand the SARA model in a creative and thought provoking way. I did not consider interviewing offenders as a tool that could be part of the analysis phase. The analysis section taught me how to gather information and organize it into groups that hone in on the root of the problem. I discovered a way of optimizing the approach to a recurring problem. The model effectively addresses a specific crime and disorder problem and teaches how to investigate and solve the underlying issues.
Monday, October 3, 2011
Dothard v. Rawlinson, 433 US 321 (1977)
Dothard v. Rawlinson, 433 US 321 (1977)
Brief descriptions of the basic facts that are related to this case begin with a 22-year-old female, Dianne Kimberly Rawlinson (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977). She attempts to gain employment with the Alabama prison system (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977). She weighs 110 pounds and does not qualify for employment as a guard due to the minimum weight requirement of 120 pounds (Landmark Civil Rights Cases Opened Door for SPLC Official's Law Enforcement Career, 2011). She was denied employment due to the height and weight requirements for the job of correctional counselor trainee (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977). Rawlinson filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleging sex discrimination. A civil suit was filed by the Southern Poverty Law Center and created the district case that became the Supreme Court Case: Dothard v. Rawlinson, 433 US 321 (1977). The two parties are the Alabama corrections officials and Dianne Kimberly Rawlinson (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977). The District Court must decide if the standard requirement for employment violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.The Supreme Court must decide if the District Court ruled in error when it decided that it was a discriminatory practice and did violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
The Supreme Court takes issue with the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the question; do employment requirements that remove 41% of women (national level) (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977) as acceptable candidates for the job create a discriminatory practice? Is a woman’s choice to work in a “dangerous field” superseded by the need to protect her from harm (Cushman, 2001)? These two questions become the main Constitutional questions.
The Supreme Court decision upheld the lower court’s ruling that is was a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Court voted 8 to 1 that the requirements were a violation of Title VII. The Court did find that bona fide occupational qualifications could permit the hiring of one gender. In this case it was reasoned that women working in an all-male prison environment were subject to the unique harm of rape. This part of the filing was remanded and sent to the lower court for revision (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977).
. Title VII violations primarily revolved around racial bias during the 1970’s. The Rawlinson case was one of the few cases of the time period that involved sexual discrimination in hiring practices. The Court felt that this was unlawful sexual discrimination. The Civil Rights Act was a new precedence in law standards and was used to correct many disparities in the United States. The Court felt that the choice of a woman to work in a field superseded the paternalistic view that she may not be able to protect herself and must be discriminated against for her safety. The Court further identifies that there is a danger working in prisons no matter the gender of the employee. The opinion of the court noted that the close contact of females to inmates created a bona fide occupational qualifications situation where women guards were at more risk than male guards (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977).
One full opinion of dissent was given for the case by Justice White. Justices Marshall and Brennan provided a partial dissent concerning the latter issue of close contact ruling (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977). Justice White stated that Rawlinson failed to prove up her case by using statics that were not specific to the subject. In this failure, Rawlinson had no right to sue. In the opinion of Justices Marshall and Brennan, they both concur with the ruling on the height and weight requirement and dissent from the ruling on close contact. The opinion asserted that undesirable behavior among the prison population as an excuse for denying job opportunities to female applicants is unacceptable.
The ruling on this case restricted the discrimination of women by removing unlawful job requirements. Hiring requirements can no longer be based on factors or requirements that remove women as acceptable candidates for the job (Cushman, 2001). The affects are far reaching to women in Criminal Justice. Criminal Justice is currently a field that is composed of a primarily male workforce. This ruling has provided access to many jobs for female employees. This ruling establishes that women can do the job as well as a man. The ruling has affected women’s ability to gain employment in fields including Law Enforcement and Corrections. A positive example of this case ruling is noted by a Southern Poverty Law Center Article in 2011: “Glenda Deese was working at the Dallas County Courthouse in Alabama when she asked a state trooper how she could join the force. “He politely told me I shouldn't worry about it because I couldn't become a trooper anyway," she recalls” (Landmark Civil Rights Cases Opened Door for SPLC Official's Law Enforcement Career, 2011). This court ruling provided her with an open door and she became “the second-highest ranking official in the Alabama Department of Public Safety” (Landmark Civil Rights Cases Opened Door for SPLC Official's Law Enforcement Career, 2011). There is no differential reason that a woman cannot do the same job as a man. The job can be done by a human no matter the gender. The paternalistic attitude of society politely harms women and keeps them in poverty with dead end jobs. Rulings such as this provide a way to correct this dehumanizing practice. This ruling is slowly changing social values by correct education on the accepted fiction that women are weak. If women are weak it is because society told them to be weak. . Dana Cowan concurs with the partial dissent opinion provided by Justices Marshall and Brennan. The ruling on the height and weight requirement is sound; the ruling on bona fide occupational qualifications violates Title VII. In no way should a woman be prevented from gaining employment due to the possibility of unruly, dangerous inmates. The fact of danger is understood and accepted and should be a woman’s choice. Ruling on preconceived notions based what may happen to the woman is paternalistic, bias and legal fiction. Barring a woman from employment on these grounds is asinine. Alabama was purposely discriminating against women due to one main fact: if the height and weight requirements were not enforced with discriminatory intent, the women would have been given the waiver provision. Rawlinson and Mieth (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977) were not given the waiver option making this employment denial an absolute discrimination with intent (Bartlett, 2002). Pam Horowitz, the former SPLC attorney who worked on Dothard v. Rawlinson (Landmark Civil Rights Cases Opened Door for SPLC Official's Law Enforcement Career, 2011) is a trailblazer and should be considered a hero for many women working in Criminal Justice.
Bibliography
Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321. (1977, June 27). Retrieved 10 01, 2011, from US Supreme Court Cases & Opinions: http://supreme.justia.com/us/433/321/case.html#328
Landmark Civil Rights Cases Opened Door for SPLC Official's Law Enforcement Career. (2011, July 11). Southern Poverty Law Center, 1.
Bartlett, K. (2002). Gender and Law. New York, New York: Aspen Publishers , Inc.
Cushman, C. (2001). Supreme Court Decisions and Women's Rights. Washington , Washington D.C, U.S.A.: CQ Press.
Brief descriptions of the basic facts that are related to this case begin with a 22-year-old female, Dianne Kimberly Rawlinson (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977). She attempts to gain employment with the Alabama prison system (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977). She weighs 110 pounds and does not qualify for employment as a guard due to the minimum weight requirement of 120 pounds (Landmark Civil Rights Cases Opened Door for SPLC Official's Law Enforcement Career, 2011). She was denied employment due to the height and weight requirements for the job of correctional counselor trainee (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977). Rawlinson filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleging sex discrimination. A civil suit was filed by the Southern Poverty Law Center and created the district case that became the Supreme Court Case: Dothard v. Rawlinson, 433 US 321 (1977). The two parties are the Alabama corrections officials and Dianne Kimberly Rawlinson (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977). The District Court must decide if the standard requirement for employment violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.The Supreme Court must decide if the District Court ruled in error when it decided that it was a discriminatory practice and did violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
The Supreme Court takes issue with the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the question; do employment requirements that remove 41% of women (national level) (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977) as acceptable candidates for the job create a discriminatory practice? Is a woman’s choice to work in a “dangerous field” superseded by the need to protect her from harm (Cushman, 2001)? These two questions become the main Constitutional questions.
The Supreme Court decision upheld the lower court’s ruling that is was a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Court voted 8 to 1 that the requirements were a violation of Title VII. The Court did find that bona fide occupational qualifications could permit the hiring of one gender. In this case it was reasoned that women working in an all-male prison environment were subject to the unique harm of rape. This part of the filing was remanded and sent to the lower court for revision (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977).
. Title VII violations primarily revolved around racial bias during the 1970’s. The Rawlinson case was one of the few cases of the time period that involved sexual discrimination in hiring practices. The Court felt that this was unlawful sexual discrimination. The Civil Rights Act was a new precedence in law standards and was used to correct many disparities in the United States. The Court felt that the choice of a woman to work in a field superseded the paternalistic view that she may not be able to protect herself and must be discriminated against for her safety. The Court further identifies that there is a danger working in prisons no matter the gender of the employee. The opinion of the court noted that the close contact of females to inmates created a bona fide occupational qualifications situation where women guards were at more risk than male guards (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977).
One full opinion of dissent was given for the case by Justice White. Justices Marshall and Brennan provided a partial dissent concerning the latter issue of close contact ruling (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977). Justice White stated that Rawlinson failed to prove up her case by using statics that were not specific to the subject. In this failure, Rawlinson had no right to sue. In the opinion of Justices Marshall and Brennan, they both concur with the ruling on the height and weight requirement and dissent from the ruling on close contact. The opinion asserted that undesirable behavior among the prison population as an excuse for denying job opportunities to female applicants is unacceptable.
The ruling on this case restricted the discrimination of women by removing unlawful job requirements. Hiring requirements can no longer be based on factors or requirements that remove women as acceptable candidates for the job (Cushman, 2001). The affects are far reaching to women in Criminal Justice. Criminal Justice is currently a field that is composed of a primarily male workforce. This ruling has provided access to many jobs for female employees. This ruling establishes that women can do the job as well as a man. The ruling has affected women’s ability to gain employment in fields including Law Enforcement and Corrections. A positive example of this case ruling is noted by a Southern Poverty Law Center Article in 2011: “Glenda Deese was working at the Dallas County Courthouse in Alabama when she asked a state trooper how she could join the force. “He politely told me I shouldn't worry about it because I couldn't become a trooper anyway," she recalls” (Landmark Civil Rights Cases Opened Door for SPLC Official's Law Enforcement Career, 2011). This court ruling provided her with an open door and she became “the second-highest ranking official in the Alabama Department of Public Safety” (Landmark Civil Rights Cases Opened Door for SPLC Official's Law Enforcement Career, 2011). There is no differential reason that a woman cannot do the same job as a man. The job can be done by a human no matter the gender. The paternalistic attitude of society politely harms women and keeps them in poverty with dead end jobs. Rulings such as this provide a way to correct this dehumanizing practice. This ruling is slowly changing social values by correct education on the accepted fiction that women are weak. If women are weak it is because society told them to be weak. . Dana Cowan concurs with the partial dissent opinion provided by Justices Marshall and Brennan. The ruling on the height and weight requirement is sound; the ruling on bona fide occupational qualifications violates Title VII. In no way should a woman be prevented from gaining employment due to the possibility of unruly, dangerous inmates. The fact of danger is understood and accepted and should be a woman’s choice. Ruling on preconceived notions based what may happen to the woman is paternalistic, bias and legal fiction. Barring a woman from employment on these grounds is asinine. Alabama was purposely discriminating against women due to one main fact: if the height and weight requirements were not enforced with discriminatory intent, the women would have been given the waiver provision. Rawlinson and Mieth (Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321, 1977) were not given the waiver option making this employment denial an absolute discrimination with intent (Bartlett, 2002). Pam Horowitz, the former SPLC attorney who worked on Dothard v. Rawlinson (Landmark Civil Rights Cases Opened Door for SPLC Official's Law Enforcement Career, 2011) is a trailblazer and should be considered a hero for many women working in Criminal Justice.
Bibliography
Dorthard V. Rawlinson, 433 U. S. 321. (1977, June 27). Retrieved 10 01, 2011, from US Supreme Court Cases & Opinions: http://supreme.justia.com/us/433/321/case.html#328
Landmark Civil Rights Cases Opened Door for SPLC Official's Law Enforcement Career. (2011, July 11). Southern Poverty Law Center, 1.
Bartlett, K. (2002). Gender and Law. New York, New York: Aspen Publishers , Inc.
Cushman, C. (2001). Supreme Court Decisions and Women's Rights. Washington , Washington D.C, U.S.A.: CQ Press.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
The Mentally Ill Population
The Mentally Ill Population
The Mentally Ill Population carries certain characteristics that are common. Female offenders have more serious mental health symptoms (Siegel, Criminology, 2009, p. 139). Substance abuse is higher in the mentally ill population (Siegel, Criminology, 2009, p. 139). Stress can exacerbate an inmate’s disorder when they are confined (Regoli, 2008, p. 394). Some can become unpredictably violent or aggressive (Regoli, 2008, p. 394). All SES groups are affected by mental illness – The low SES is most affected by its consequences (Gaines, 2008, p. 266). The mentally ill make up a large part of the disenfranchised population (Gaines, 2008, p. 264). Society tends to deal with the mentally ill in the same group as “the homeless” (Gaines, 2008, p. 264).
The mentally ill are a significant problem for police agencies. A survey of a large police department in 2000 revealed that 89 percent of police officers had contact with a mentally ill person in the previous year. (Gaines, 2008, p. 266). Helping the person with mental illness is problematic due to the lack of training on recognizing and handling mentally disturbed citizens (Gaines, 2008, p. 266). A 1988 study found that police use informal dispositions such as calming them down or taking them home , in 12% of the cases it was discovered that police transported them to another jurisdiction and dumped them (Gaines, 2008, p. 267). This is illegal and unethical.
Inmates with mental illness are at increased risk of sexual victimization. America’s jails and prisons house more mentally ill individuals than all of the Nation’s psychiatric hospitals combined. As many as 16 percent of inmates in State prisons and jails, and 7 percent of Federal inmates, suffer from mental illness (Public Law 108-79-SEPT. 4, 2003, 2003).
Police agencies can build a relationship with this group of disenfranchised citizens by using a cautious and compassionate approach. With the knowledge that a mentally ill citizen can become victimized in prisons it is especially important to go the distance to help them receive attention from the right resources where they can receive proper treatment. Mentally ill citizens who receive treatment compared with mentally ill citizens who did not receive proper treatment reduced future arrest probity to 12 percent versus 45 percent (Siegel, Criminology, 2009, p. 141).
There is a growing understanding of this population that has led to the creation of Mental Health Courts. (Siegel, Courts and Criminal Justice in America, 2011, p. 158). Participation in this court is voluntary and is reserved for low level crime (Siegel, Courts and Criminal Justice in America, 2011, p. 158). These courts are intended to bring together the justice system and mental health agencies to get help for the mentally ill offender. Departmental education on identification of mental illness and education on proper techniques used to help the mentally ill police interactions would greatly improve the relationship with this disenfranchised population. When mental illness is identified or suspect police have a duty to see that the citizen receives avenues to resources where they can get treatment, not charges and jail or dismissive discretion.
Bibliography
Public Law 108-79-SEPT. 4, 2003. (2003, SEPT. 4). Retrieved September 20, 2011, from Public Law: http://www.justdetention.org/pdf/PREA.pdf
Bartollas, C. M. (2008). Juvenile Justice in America (6th ed.). (V. Anthony, Ed.) Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, U.S.A.: Pearson Education Inc.
Gaines, L. (2008). Policing in America (6 ed.). Newark, New Jersey, U.S.A.: Matthew Bender and Company.
Regoli, R. (2008). Exploring Criminal Justice. Sudbury, MA: Jonesand Bartlett.
Samaha, J. (2011). Criminal Law (10th ed.). (C. Meier, Ed.) Belmont, CA, U.S.A.: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.
Siegel, L. (2009). Criminology. In L. Siegel, Criminology (pp. 388-389). Belmont, CA, U.S.A.: Wadsworth.
Siegel, L. (2011). Courts and Criminal Justice in America. (V. Anthony, Ed.) Upper Saddle River, NJ, USA: Pearson Education, Inc.
The Mentally Ill Population carries certain characteristics that are common. Female offenders have more serious mental health symptoms (Siegel, Criminology, 2009, p. 139). Substance abuse is higher in the mentally ill population (Siegel, Criminology, 2009, p. 139). Stress can exacerbate an inmate’s disorder when they are confined (Regoli, 2008, p. 394). Some can become unpredictably violent or aggressive (Regoli, 2008, p. 394). All SES groups are affected by mental illness – The low SES is most affected by its consequences (Gaines, 2008, p. 266). The mentally ill make up a large part of the disenfranchised population (Gaines, 2008, p. 264). Society tends to deal with the mentally ill in the same group as “the homeless” (Gaines, 2008, p. 264).
The mentally ill are a significant problem for police agencies. A survey of a large police department in 2000 revealed that 89 percent of police officers had contact with a mentally ill person in the previous year. (Gaines, 2008, p. 266). Helping the person with mental illness is problematic due to the lack of training on recognizing and handling mentally disturbed citizens (Gaines, 2008, p. 266). A 1988 study found that police use informal dispositions such as calming them down or taking them home , in 12% of the cases it was discovered that police transported them to another jurisdiction and dumped them (Gaines, 2008, p. 267). This is illegal and unethical.
Inmates with mental illness are at increased risk of sexual victimization. America’s jails and prisons house more mentally ill individuals than all of the Nation’s psychiatric hospitals combined. As many as 16 percent of inmates in State prisons and jails, and 7 percent of Federal inmates, suffer from mental illness (Public Law 108-79-SEPT. 4, 2003, 2003).
Police agencies can build a relationship with this group of disenfranchised citizens by using a cautious and compassionate approach. With the knowledge that a mentally ill citizen can become victimized in prisons it is especially important to go the distance to help them receive attention from the right resources where they can receive proper treatment. Mentally ill citizens who receive treatment compared with mentally ill citizens who did not receive proper treatment reduced future arrest probity to 12 percent versus 45 percent (Siegel, Criminology, 2009, p. 141).
There is a growing understanding of this population that has led to the creation of Mental Health Courts. (Siegel, Courts and Criminal Justice in America, 2011, p. 158). Participation in this court is voluntary and is reserved for low level crime (Siegel, Courts and Criminal Justice in America, 2011, p. 158). These courts are intended to bring together the justice system and mental health agencies to get help for the mentally ill offender. Departmental education on identification of mental illness and education on proper techniques used to help the mentally ill police interactions would greatly improve the relationship with this disenfranchised population. When mental illness is identified or suspect police have a duty to see that the citizen receives avenues to resources where they can get treatment, not charges and jail or dismissive discretion.
Bibliography
Public Law 108-79-SEPT. 4, 2003. (2003, SEPT. 4). Retrieved September 20, 2011, from Public Law: http://www.justdetention.org/pdf/PREA.pdf
Bartollas, C. M. (2008). Juvenile Justice in America (6th ed.). (V. Anthony, Ed.) Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, U.S.A.: Pearson Education Inc.
Gaines, L. (2008). Policing in America (6 ed.). Newark, New Jersey, U.S.A.: Matthew Bender and Company.
Regoli, R. (2008). Exploring Criminal Justice. Sudbury, MA: Jonesand Bartlett.
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