Howard Journal of Crime and Justice最新文献

The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic required police officers in England and Wales to enforce new public health restrictions (e.g., stay-at-home directives, social distancing requirements and mask mandates), as well as navigate the risk that COVID-19 posed to their own health and safety during interactions with the public. From a practical standpoint, these factors changed the nature of the policing task significantly, with previously routine police decision-making (e.g., whether or not to carry out stops, searches, arrests and/or detentions) necessarily responding not only to traditional concerns around suspicion and evidence but also directly to these novel legal and organisational challenges. Findings from interviews carried out in 2020 and 2022 with 18 police officers from 11 different forces in England and Wales suggest that well-established predictors of arrest decisions (e.g., offence severity, evidence and/or the pursuit of culturally orientated objectives) were disrupted due to broader considerations, uniquely related to the COVID-19 pandemic. This article uses Keith Hawkins’ (2002) conceptual framework of criminal justice decision-making—surround, field and frame—as an explanatory device to help us understand arrest and non-arrest decisions of street-level police officers during this period, despite the existence of sufficient evidence to support such action.

This paper aims to explore how staff members in women's prisons understand their role in relation to the food practices. Given the budgetary restrictions, staff shortages and overall concerns around the quality of food in prison, there is a critical gap in engaging with these staff perspectives which urgently needs addressing. Drawing on a qualitative study conducted in four women's prisons in England, this paper will explore the food practices in prison from a range of staff (n = 10). The paper focuses on the following themes: (i) understanding the different ways in which staff navigate structural issues in serving food practices; (ii) examining how staff manage the expectations of women in prison around food; (iii) analysing how they link food practices to notion of normality; and (iv) exploring the ways in which staff navigate the debates on whether food should be seen as a form of punishment or rehabilitation.

Probation staff attrition in England and Wales has been a cause for concern, yet there is limited research exploring why probation staff choose to leave. Utilising Walker, Annison and Beckett's ‘workplace harm’, and Robinson's ‘post-traumatic organisation’, this research addresses this gap through a survey (n = 47) and interviews (n = 4) with staff who have left the service. Themes identified were (1) identity and values, (2) emotional impact of the job and (3) organisational climate. The possibility of a return to the service is also explored, as well as implications for the organisation and retention of staff.

This study explored how courtroom design and jurors' ideological attitudes influence guilt perceptions and sentencing. It hypothesized that defendants in secure docks would be perceived as more likely guilty and receive harsher sentences than those at the bar table, with stronger ideological attitudes increasing guilt likelihood. In a between-subjects design, 556 participants reviewed courtroom sketches and case summaries, then rated guilt and sentencing. Defendants in secure docks were more often seen as guilty, and ideological attitudes partially influenced assessments. The findings highlight the need for interventions to reduce bias in legal proceedings and inform policy on courtroom design.

This article explores a pivotal moment where active community engagement plays a crucial role in the criminal process. It argues for the consistent representation of the community by prosecutors, emphasising their role in holding fellow citizens accountable or deciding not to prosecute based on various discretion criteria. This necessitates that prosecutors engage in discussions with the community on specific issues. Drawing on a deliberative democracy approach, the article aims to demonstrate the importance of public participation in the criminal process and to reshape the role of prosecutors.

Osgood et al. (1996) established a reformulated theory to better explain patterns of situational offending, coined the routine activity theory of general deviance or more commonly known as unstructured socialising with peers (USWP). The present study seeks to explore whether the association between USWP and delinquency/substance use may influence one another over time in a reciprocal manner. Results showed that although not happening instantly, property delinquency and USWP form a reciprocal relationship, Similar findings were reported for substance use. Violent delinquency, however, influences USWP but not in a reciprocal manner. The study concludes with theoretical implications, limitations and directions for future research.