Reevaluation of published research on racial bias in criminal sentencing, and data on execution rates (1930-67) and death sentencing rates (1967-78), contradict a hypothesis of overt discrimination against Black defendants. One possible explanation of relatively lenient sentencing of Black defendants is the devalued status of Black crime victims.…

Deals with charges of corruption, involving losses to the school system of $10 to $15 million from 1977 to 1979, that have tarnished the reputation of the Dallas Independent School District. (WD)

Examines the relationship between race and crime as reflected in the literature and evaluates explanations based upon these findings. Self-report research fails to demonstrate a relationship between race and crime. Amounts of Black involvement explained by selection bias based on racial characteristics, however, are not consistently supported by…

Criminal justice bureaucrats, including judges, prosecutors, public defenders, and probation officers were surveyed. Data indicate that both formal education and work experience underlie consensus as to seriousness of particular crimes. Furthermore, unlike the general public, criminal justice bureaucrats perceive crime seriousness in…

Describes a study in which prison inmates convicted of assault identified potential victims from videotapes. A lab analysis code was used to determine which nonverbal body movement categories differentiated victims and nonvictims. (JMF)

Of 109 delinquents interviewed at the Missouri Training School for Boys, nine admitted past use of phencyclidine, also called PCP or "angel dust." These nine were multiple-drug users and began using drugs earlier than the other subjects. Crimes committed under PCP influence and suicide attempts were also analyzed. (SJL)

Reports on the frequency and manner in which various crime and noncrime news topics were presented in selected newspapers and television newscasts in 1976. Examines news flow data to determine whether news output was inflexible, and whether crime news coverage distorted the amount of real-life crime. (PD)

Though hidden from view by being considered "non-existent", the meager evidence indicates that Hispanics have an unusually high arrest and incarceration rate. Hispanic background is rarely asked on the six major sources of criminal justice statistics--statistics of arrests, courts, prisoners, juvenile delinquency, crime victimization, and public…

The present study, using official records and self-reports of offense type, shows that indicators based on the former are less adequate for predictive and causal studies of recidivism than those based on the latter. Moreover, personal offenders are more likely to be recidivists than are property offenders. (Author)

A nearly equal partner with the school and the family in teaching, training, and preparing our youth to accept responsibility is the law enforcement sector. (Author)

Discusses potential obstacles involved when interviewing child victims of sexual abuse, including risks of false allegations and the interviewer's difficulty in maintaining true objectivity. Underlines importance of tailoring whole procedure to child's developmental level. Examines Statement Validity Analysis, advocating the need to approach this…

Studied the fears, beliefs, and behaviors of 139 college women about acquaintance and stranger rape. Women were more afraid of stranger rape and took more precautions against it but paradoxically believed that acquaintance rape was more common. Precautionary behaviors were best predicted by level of fear. Theoretical and educational implications…

Examined how sexual assault history and attributions of blame were related to measures of recovery from, and cognitive adaptation to, trauma in a convenience sample of sexual assault victims (N=155). Results indicate that attributions of blame were related to assumptions about self and world but were unrelated to self-rated recovery. (RJM)

Reviewed the records of 1,885 children under age 18 who were evaluated for sexual abuse. Results indicate that the child's gender, age, ethnicity, relationship to the perpetrator, and the duration of the abuse were associated with reports of penetration. Assaults by strangers or long-term abuse, tended to result in penetration. (RJM)