Pub Date : 2023-07-01DOI: 10.1177/2153368720973442
Kelley J Sittner, Michelle L Estes
Juvenile arrest serves as a critical turning point in the life-course that disrupts the successful transition to adulthood and carries numerous consequences including diminished socioeconomic status. Despite their disproportionately high rates of contact with the criminal justice system (CJS), Indigenous people's experiences remain largely invisible in extant research. Further, colonization has left them in an extremely marginalized position in terms of social, economic, and political power, which is compounded by CJS involvement. In the current study, we apply propensity score matching to investigate whether being arrested in adolescence impacts early adult socioeconomic outcomes (i.e., education, employment, and income). Data come from the Healing Pathways project, a longitudinal, community-based participatory study of North American Indigenous young people that includes eight waves of data in adolescence and three waves in early adulthood. We find that being arrested at least once in adolescence is associated with significantly less education and income, and lower rates of full-time employment in young adulthood (mean age = 26.2 years). Criminal justice system involvement widens existing socioeconomic disparities, and remedying these consequences requires changes in how CJS policies are enacted as well as larger structural changes to address significant inequities in income, education, and employment for Indigenous people.
{"title":"Adult Outcomes of Justice Involved Indigenous Youth.","authors":"Kelley J Sittner, Michelle L Estes","doi":"10.1177/2153368720973442","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/2153368720973442","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Juvenile arrest serves as a critical turning point in the life-course that disrupts the successful transition to adulthood and carries numerous consequences including diminished socioeconomic status. Despite their disproportionately high rates of contact with the criminal justice system (CJS), Indigenous people's experiences remain largely invisible in extant research. Further, colonization has left them in an extremely marginalized position in terms of social, economic, and political power, which is compounded by CJS involvement. In the current study, we apply propensity score matching to investigate whether being arrested in adolescence impacts early adult socioeconomic outcomes (i.e., education, employment, and income). Data come from the Healing Pathways project, a longitudinal, community-based participatory study of North American Indigenous young people that includes eight waves of data in adolescence and three waves in early adulthood. We find that being arrested at least once in adolescence is associated with significantly less education and income, and lower rates of full-time employment in young adulthood (mean age = 26.2 years). Criminal justice system involvement widens existing socioeconomic disparities, and remedying these consequences requires changes in how CJS policies are enacted as well as larger structural changes to address significant inequities in income, education, and employment for Indigenous people.</p>","PeriodicalId":45275,"journal":{"name":"Race and Justice","volume":"13 3","pages":"279-302"},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2023-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1177/2153368720973442","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9732314","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-06-02DOI: 10.1177/21533687231178320
Carlene Y. Barnaby, R. Apel, Anthony A. Peguero
As the population of children of immigrants increases within the United States, the importance of ensuring the safety, while understanding and addressing adverse experiences with victimization and perpetration, of this segment of the youth population has become paramount. Segmented assimilation theory, which postulates that discrimination, prejudice, and adverse life experiences could place the children of immigrants on a path towards detrimental outcomes, guides this study. In this research, data is drawn from the Children of Immigrant Longitudinal Study to explore if prior detrimental experiences of the children of immigrants, such as discrimination and perceptions of racial/ethnic prejudice, are associated with more frequent reports of being victimized and getting into fights at school, as well as feeling unsafe. Findings suggest racial/ethnic distinctions and nuances regarding how discrimination and prejudice contribute to these school outcomes for the children of immigrants. The implications of these findings are discussed.
{"title":"Investigating the Relationships Between Safety and Adverse Experiences for the Children of Immigrants","authors":"Carlene Y. Barnaby, R. Apel, Anthony A. Peguero","doi":"10.1177/21533687231178320","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21533687231178320","url":null,"abstract":"As the population of children of immigrants increases within the United States, the importance of ensuring the safety, while understanding and addressing adverse experiences with victimization and perpetration, of this segment of the youth population has become paramount. Segmented assimilation theory, which postulates that discrimination, prejudice, and adverse life experiences could place the children of immigrants on a path towards detrimental outcomes, guides this study. In this research, data is drawn from the Children of Immigrant Longitudinal Study to explore if prior detrimental experiences of the children of immigrants, such as discrimination and perceptions of racial/ethnic prejudice, are associated with more frequent reports of being victimized and getting into fights at school, as well as feeling unsafe. Findings suggest racial/ethnic distinctions and nuances regarding how discrimination and prejudice contribute to these school outcomes for the children of immigrants. The implications of these findings are discussed.","PeriodicalId":45275,"journal":{"name":"Race and Justice","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2023-06-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46645775","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-05-30DOI: 10.1177/21533687231178322
Mona Lynch, Emily V. Shaw
Building on research demonstrating significant differences in how Black and White Americans view law enforcement, this study assesses how those differential views shape potential jurors’ decision-making in the context of a federal drug conspiracy case in which the primary evidence against the defendant is provided by an FBI agent and an informant cooperating with the agent. A sample of 649 Black and White jury-eligible U.S. citizens were exposed to the case, in which a Black defendant is being tried, and where the informant-witness race (Black or White) was varied. Participants determined verdict, evaluated evidence, and completed additional measures. Results indicated that Black participants were significantly less likely to convict than White participants, especially in the White informant condition; rated the law enforcement witness as less credible, and viewed police more negatively across three composite measures. Exploratory analysis of how juror race and gender interacted indicates Black women largely drove racial differences in verdicts. Perceptions of police legitimacy mediated the relationship between juror race and verdict choice. We conclude that it is critical that citizens are not prevented from being seated on juries due to skepticism about police, given the risk of disproportionate exclusion of Black potential jurors. The legal processes relevant to juror excusals need to be reconsidered to ensure that views of police, rooted in actual experience or knowledge about the problems with fair and just policing, are not used to disproportionately exclude persons of color, or to seat juries overrepresented by people who blindly trust police.
{"title":"Downstream Effects of Frayed Relations: Juror Race, Judgment, and Perceptions of Police","authors":"Mona Lynch, Emily V. Shaw","doi":"10.1177/21533687231178322","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21533687231178322","url":null,"abstract":"Building on research demonstrating significant differences in how Black and White Americans view law enforcement, this study assesses how those differential views shape potential jurors’ decision-making in the context of a federal drug conspiracy case in which the primary evidence against the defendant is provided by an FBI agent and an informant cooperating with the agent. A sample of 649 Black and White jury-eligible U.S. citizens were exposed to the case, in which a Black defendant is being tried, and where the informant-witness race (Black or White) was varied. Participants determined verdict, evaluated evidence, and completed additional measures. Results indicated that Black participants were significantly less likely to convict than White participants, especially in the White informant condition; rated the law enforcement witness as less credible, and viewed police more negatively across three composite measures. Exploratory analysis of how juror race and gender interacted indicates Black women largely drove racial differences in verdicts. Perceptions of police legitimacy mediated the relationship between juror race and verdict choice. We conclude that it is critical that citizens are not prevented from being seated on juries due to skepticism about police, given the risk of disproportionate exclusion of Black potential jurors. The legal processes relevant to juror excusals need to be reconsidered to ensure that views of police, rooted in actual experience or knowledge about the problems with fair and just policing, are not used to disproportionately exclude persons of color, or to seat juries overrepresented by people who blindly trust police.","PeriodicalId":45275,"journal":{"name":"Race and Justice","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2023-05-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42892345","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-05-08DOI: 10.1177/21533687231174555
John A. Shjarback
Increasing minority representation in law enforcement has long been viewed as a means of improving police-citizen relations. Yet, little scholarly attention has examined whether racial/ethnic diversity translates into desired outcomes. These studies largely measure the racial/ethnic composition of the agency in general—not in positions of power where they are most likely to make an impact on department policy/practice (i.e., ‘active representation’). Using data from the 2016 Law Enforcement Management and Administrative Statistics (LEMAS) survey, the current study 1) provides an overview of Black and Hispanic representation in chief executive, mid-level management, and supervisory roles and 2) explores the impact that diversity in these positions has on racial/ethnic disparities in vehicle stops in Illinois and Missouri. Minority officers are more underrepresented in these positions of power compared to their composition in agencies in general, and higher levels of representation are not significantly associated with reductions in disparities in stops.
{"title":"Racial/Ethnic Diversity in Positions of Power in U.S. Law Enforcement: An Examination of Active Representation and Disparities in Vehicle Stops","authors":"John A. Shjarback","doi":"10.1177/21533687231174555","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21533687231174555","url":null,"abstract":"Increasing minority representation in law enforcement has long been viewed as a means of improving police-citizen relations. Yet, little scholarly attention has examined whether racial/ethnic diversity translates into desired outcomes. These studies largely measure the racial/ethnic composition of the agency in general—not in positions of power where they are most likely to make an impact on department policy/practice (i.e., ‘active representation’). Using data from the 2016 Law Enforcement Management and Administrative Statistics (LEMAS) survey, the current study 1) provides an overview of Black and Hispanic representation in chief executive, mid-level management, and supervisory roles and 2) explores the impact that diversity in these positions has on racial/ethnic disparities in vehicle stops in Illinois and Missouri. Minority officers are more underrepresented in these positions of power compared to their composition in agencies in general, and higher levels of representation are not significantly associated with reductions in disparities in stops.","PeriodicalId":45275,"journal":{"name":"Race and Justice","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2023-05-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43892459","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-04-26DOI: 10.1177/21533687231167607
James D. Kelsay, Ian A. Silver, Leah C. Butler
Recent police-involved deaths of Black civilians have sparked public outcry and demand for police reforms. However, many departmental policies intended to reduce the lethal use-of-force by police officers lack empirical support for their effectiveness. To address this shortcoming, a Bayesian random intercept model is used to forecast the effects of eight departmental policies on the number of police-involved civilian deaths across 66 police departments. Results suggest that although several policies are associated with a reduction in officer-involved deaths of civilians in some police departments, they are unlikely to eliminate officer-involved deaths completely. Specifically, we observed that introducing additional departmental policies would only reduce the number of officer-involved deaths by approximately 5 to 10. Moreover, variation in the baseline number of officer-involved deaths and the effectiveness of these policies existed between the 66 police departments. The results suggest that de-escalation training, ban on chokeholds, comprehensive reporting, restrictions on foot pursuit, restrictions on vehicle pursuit, community surveys, and problem-oriented policies could reduce the number of officer-involved civilian deaths. Nevertheless, variation in the number of police-involved deaths of civilians and differential effects of policies across agencies suggests a more tailored solution, and additional research is needed to address this crisis.
{"title":"Reducing Officer-Involved Deaths of Civilians in Urban Areas: Forecasting the Effects of Departmental Policies","authors":"James D. Kelsay, Ian A. Silver, Leah C. Butler","doi":"10.1177/21533687231167607","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21533687231167607","url":null,"abstract":"Recent police-involved deaths of Black civilians have sparked public outcry and demand for police reforms. However, many departmental policies intended to reduce the lethal use-of-force by police officers lack empirical support for their effectiveness. To address this shortcoming, a Bayesian random intercept model is used to forecast the effects of eight departmental policies on the number of police-involved civilian deaths across 66 police departments. Results suggest that although several policies are associated with a reduction in officer-involved deaths of civilians in some police departments, they are unlikely to eliminate officer-involved deaths completely. Specifically, we observed that introducing additional departmental policies would only reduce the number of officer-involved deaths by approximately 5 to 10. Moreover, variation in the baseline number of officer-involved deaths and the effectiveness of these policies existed between the 66 police departments. The results suggest that de-escalation training, ban on chokeholds, comprehensive reporting, restrictions on foot pursuit, restrictions on vehicle pursuit, community surveys, and problem-oriented policies could reduce the number of officer-involved civilian deaths. Nevertheless, variation in the number of police-involved deaths of civilians and differential effects of policies across agencies suggests a more tailored solution, and additional research is needed to address this crisis.","PeriodicalId":45275,"journal":{"name":"Race and Justice","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2023-04-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41802410","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-04-25DOI: 10.1177/21533687221117279
T. Hoang, H. Neville, Abisola Smith, M. Valgoi, Michael D Schlosser, S. Cha-Jua
Studies suggest shorter term racial diversity education is ineffective in changing police officers’ attitudes and behaviors, partly due to strong emotional reactions and resistance to this type of content ( Schlosser, 2013 ; Zimny, 2015 ). In this investigation, we explored across two studies whether police recruits’ racial beliefs were related to their level of cognitive engagement in a racial literacy education program. Consistent with the research hypothesis, findings from Study 1 with 81 mostly White male police recruits suggested that recruits with higher color-blind racial beliefs (i.e., greater denial or minimization of institutional racism) as assessed in the first two weeks of the academy were less cognitively engaged in 10 hours of racial literacy education that they received in the training academy. In Study 2, we replicated and extended the results with a separate sample of 74 police recruits. In addition to completing a measure of color-blind racial beliefs at the beginning of their training, participants completed evaluations after each of the three education sessions offered over the course of the police academy. Findings indicated that the recruits’ level of color-blind racial beliefs at the beginning of police academy was associated with lower cognitive engagement in the education sessions. Limitations of the findings are discussed as well as the implications for future evaluation and racism education programming efforts.
{"title":"Police Recruits’ Cognitive Engagement in a Racial Literacy Education Program: Does Racial Ideology Matter?","authors":"T. Hoang, H. Neville, Abisola Smith, M. Valgoi, Michael D Schlosser, S. Cha-Jua","doi":"10.1177/21533687221117279","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21533687221117279","url":null,"abstract":"Studies suggest shorter term racial diversity education is ineffective in changing police officers’ attitudes and behaviors, partly due to strong emotional reactions and resistance to this type of content ( Schlosser, 2013 ; Zimny, 2015 ). In this investigation, we explored across two studies whether police recruits’ racial beliefs were related to their level of cognitive engagement in a racial literacy education program. Consistent with the research hypothesis, findings from Study 1 with 81 mostly White male police recruits suggested that recruits with higher color-blind racial beliefs (i.e., greater denial or minimization of institutional racism) as assessed in the first two weeks of the academy were less cognitively engaged in 10 hours of racial literacy education that they received in the training academy. In Study 2, we replicated and extended the results with a separate sample of 74 police recruits. In addition to completing a measure of color-blind racial beliefs at the beginning of their training, participants completed evaluations after each of the three education sessions offered over the course of the police academy. Findings indicated that the recruits’ level of color-blind racial beliefs at the beginning of police academy was associated with lower cognitive engagement in the education sessions. Limitations of the findings are discussed as well as the implications for future evaluation and racism education programming efforts.","PeriodicalId":45275,"journal":{"name":"Race and Justice","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2023-04-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46379029","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-03-14DOI: 10.1177/21533687231161770
Omeed S. Ilchi, Shamma J. Hickling, James Frank
Despite increased public attention on police killings of citizens and police accountability in recent years, few studies have specifically examined the support for convicting and incarcerating a specific police officer who was accused of wrongfully killing a citizen. The current study examines the attitudes of undergraduate students at a large Midwestern university about a case involving a white police officer who worked for the university police department and recently shot and killed an unarmed Black citizen during a traffic stop. Specifically, it examines support for convicting and incarcerating this officer, who was charged but ultimately went unpunished, and the factors that are related to support for, opposition to, or neutrality towards holding the officer criminally responsible. The findings indicate that respondents who perceive police officers as soldiers in a war on crime and hold symbolically racist attitudes were more likely to oppose or be neutral about the officer being held responsible. White respondents, while not more likely to oppose the conviction and incarceration of the officer, were more likely to be neutral toward the outcome of the case, indicating that white indifference might be a major barrier to holding police officers accountable for their improper use of deadly force.
{"title":"Citizen Willingness to Hold a Police Officer Criminally Responsible for the Use of Deadly Force: Examining the Correlates of Finding Guilt","authors":"Omeed S. Ilchi, Shamma J. Hickling, James Frank","doi":"10.1177/21533687231161770","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21533687231161770","url":null,"abstract":"Despite increased public attention on police killings of citizens and police accountability in recent years, few studies have specifically examined the support for convicting and incarcerating a specific police officer who was accused of wrongfully killing a citizen. The current study examines the attitudes of undergraduate students at a large Midwestern university about a case involving a white police officer who worked for the university police department and recently shot and killed an unarmed Black citizen during a traffic stop. Specifically, it examines support for convicting and incarcerating this officer, who was charged but ultimately went unpunished, and the factors that are related to support for, opposition to, or neutrality towards holding the officer criminally responsible. The findings indicate that respondents who perceive police officers as soldiers in a war on crime and hold symbolically racist attitudes were more likely to oppose or be neutral about the officer being held responsible. White respondents, while not more likely to oppose the conviction and incarceration of the officer, were more likely to be neutral toward the outcome of the case, indicating that white indifference might be a major barrier to holding police officers accountable for their improper use of deadly force.","PeriodicalId":45275,"journal":{"name":"Race and Justice","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2023-03-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44879455","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-02-10DOI: 10.1177/21533687231155196
T. McNulty, Paul E. Bellair, ManKit (Karlo) Lei
Research seeking to test racial invariance in neighborhood violence emphasizes concentrated disadvantage despite the problem of “restricted distributions.” We investigate whether spatial polarization of disadvantage and affluence accounts for racial differences when there are few extremely poor, white neighborhoods for comparison. Drawing on data for Atlanta, GA neighborhoods (N = 314), the analysis evaluates the racial invariance thesis by assessing (1) whether racial/ethnic differences in neighborhood violence are better explained by the index of concentration at the extremes (ICE) than alternative socioeconomic measures, and (2) whether it exerts expected effects on violent crime in white, black, and mixed-race neighborhoods. Findings reveal that heightened violence in black and mixed-race neighborhoods (relative to white) is fully explained by the ICE index, but not by concentrated disadvantage or within-neighborhood inequality (GINI). Theoretically expected effects of the ICE index on violent crime across white, black, and mixed-race neighborhoods are also evident.
{"title":"The Neglected Role of Concentration at the Extremes in Tests of the Racial Invariance Thesis","authors":"T. McNulty, Paul E. Bellair, ManKit (Karlo) Lei","doi":"10.1177/21533687231155196","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21533687231155196","url":null,"abstract":"Research seeking to test racial invariance in neighborhood violence emphasizes concentrated disadvantage despite the problem of “restricted distributions.” We investigate whether spatial polarization of disadvantage and affluence accounts for racial differences when there are few extremely poor, white neighborhoods for comparison. Drawing on data for Atlanta, GA neighborhoods (N = 314), the analysis evaluates the racial invariance thesis by assessing (1) whether racial/ethnic differences in neighborhood violence are better explained by the index of concentration at the extremes (ICE) than alternative socioeconomic measures, and (2) whether it exerts expected effects on violent crime in white, black, and mixed-race neighborhoods. Findings reveal that heightened violence in black and mixed-race neighborhoods (relative to white) is fully explained by the ICE index, but not by concentrated disadvantage or within-neighborhood inequality (GINI). Theoretically expected effects of the ICE index on violent crime across white, black, and mixed-race neighborhoods are also evident.","PeriodicalId":45275,"journal":{"name":"Race and Justice","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2023-02-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49150581","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-02-07DOI: 10.1177/21533687231153993
S. O'Connell, Ayobami Laniyonu
In Canada, all federally incarcerated individuals are required to complete a number of actuarial risk assessments upon entering prison which influence the security level in which they are housed, opportunities to participate in rehabilitative services while incarcerated, and prospects for parole. While proponents of actuarial risk assessments—which make algorithmic decisions based on objective inputs—argue that such tools can reduce the influence of racial and gender bias in carceral decision making, others argue that they may perpetuate or exacerbate racial and gender inequality. The extent to which racial and gender disparities exist in the outcomes of the actuarial risk assessments used in federal Canadian prisons is largely unknown. Using newly available data, we characterize racial and gender disparities in the outcomes of actuarial risk assessments used in Canadian prisons and their relationship to outcomes. We find significant racial differences in risk assessment scores that leave Black and Indigenous Canadians worse off than their white counterparts, important differences for all racial groups in the treatment of women, and evidence suggestive of racial bias in parole and housing decisions.
{"title":"Race, Gender, and Risk Assessments in Canadian Federal Prison","authors":"S. O'Connell, Ayobami Laniyonu","doi":"10.1177/21533687231153993","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21533687231153993","url":null,"abstract":"In Canada, all federally incarcerated individuals are required to complete a number of actuarial risk assessments upon entering prison which influence the security level in which they are housed, opportunities to participate in rehabilitative services while incarcerated, and prospects for parole. While proponents of actuarial risk assessments—which make algorithmic decisions based on objective inputs—argue that such tools can reduce the influence of racial and gender bias in carceral decision making, others argue that they may perpetuate or exacerbate racial and gender inequality. The extent to which racial and gender disparities exist in the outcomes of the actuarial risk assessments used in federal Canadian prisons is largely unknown. Using newly available data, we characterize racial and gender disparities in the outcomes of actuarial risk assessments used in Canadian prisons and their relationship to outcomes. We find significant racial differences in risk assessment scores that leave Black and Indigenous Canadians worse off than their white counterparts, important differences for all racial groups in the treatment of women, and evidence suggestive of racial bias in parole and housing decisions.","PeriodicalId":45275,"journal":{"name":"Race and Justice","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2023-02-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45383693","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-01-19DOI: 10.1177/21533687231151699
P. Kennedy, Mari B. Pierce
Women comprise a minority of the prison population, representing 10.6% of the prison population in Ireland in 2020. An issue of pressing concern is the over-representation of minority ethnic women among female prisoners. In Ireland, Irish Traveller women are 22 times more likely to be imprisoned than non-Traveller women. Their risk of imprisonment is greater than Traveller men who are over-represented among male prisoners. Traveller women in contact with the criminal justice system are likely to have experienced extreme deprivation, social exclusion, and current and historical/intergenerational discrimination. This article draws on evidence from published literature and a qualitative study undertaken by the authors to examine the vulnerabilities of Traveller women in prison in Ireland and the multiple and complex reasons for their over-representation in prison. To improve the situation of Traveller women in prison, the UN Bangkok Rules can be used to guide the development of relevant legislation, procedures, policy, and action plans. Traveller women in prison must not be overlooked in the implementation of the Public Sector Equality and Human Rights Duty, which places a legal obligation in Ireland on prison authorities to promote equality, prevent discrimination, and protect the human rights of all affected by their policies and plans.
{"title":"Minority Women Incarcerated: The Vulnerabilities of Traveller Women in the Irish Criminal Justice System","authors":"P. Kennedy, Mari B. Pierce","doi":"10.1177/21533687231151699","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21533687231151699","url":null,"abstract":"Women comprise a minority of the prison population, representing 10.6% of the prison population in Ireland in 2020. An issue of pressing concern is the over-representation of minority ethnic women among female prisoners. In Ireland, Irish Traveller women are 22 times more likely to be imprisoned than non-Traveller women. Their risk of imprisonment is greater than Traveller men who are over-represented among male prisoners. Traveller women in contact with the criminal justice system are likely to have experienced extreme deprivation, social exclusion, and current and historical/intergenerational discrimination. This article draws on evidence from published literature and a qualitative study undertaken by the authors to examine the vulnerabilities of Traveller women in prison in Ireland and the multiple and complex reasons for their over-representation in prison. To improve the situation of Traveller women in prison, the UN Bangkok Rules can be used to guide the development of relevant legislation, procedures, policy, and action plans. Traveller women in prison must not be overlooked in the implementation of the Public Sector Equality and Human Rights Duty, which places a legal obligation in Ireland on prison authorities to promote equality, prevent discrimination, and protect the human rights of all affected by their policies and plans.","PeriodicalId":45275,"journal":{"name":"Race and Justice","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.1,"publicationDate":"2023-01-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42021134","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}