Jennifer L. Huck

Truancy Programs: Are the Effects Too Easily Washed Away?

Truancy has been identified as a risk factor of criminal behavior but results are mixed as to the best means to reduce this school-based concern. The Truancy Prevention Initiative has been implemented in New Orleans post-Hurricane Katrina under the direction of the Recovery School District to reduce levels of truancy, increase graduation rates, and decrease youth crime. This article emphasizes the statutes and ordinances behind this initiative in order for it to be compared to current evidence-based literature to forecast its effectiveness. In addition, social disorganization and deterrence theories are used to analyze the foundational elements of the Truancy Prevention Initiative. The Truancy Prevention Initiative is a promising program that requires process and outcome evaluations to draw a stronger conclusion of its effectiveness.

Connecting Opportunity and Strain to Understand Deviant Behavior: A Test of General Strain Theory

ABSTRACT This study examined the connection of general strain theory to opportunity, as defined by one’s desire and ability to engage in criminal or deviant behavior. Over 1,000 undergraduate students completed the electronic survey with a response rate of 12.85%. Regression analyses showed removal of positive stimuli predicted deviant behavior in all models, but anger and other affective states were significant only in some models. Peer deviance, social bonds, and opportunity were important significant predictors. This study supports Agnew’s assertions that strain theory works in conjunction with social learning, social control, and, per this study, opportunity theories.

Jail Diversion and Recidivism A Case Study of a Municipal Court Diversion Program

Municipal Courts in the United States have jurisdiction over cases involving municipal ordinance violations such as loitering, trespassing, public drunkenness, and vandalism. When an individual violates a city ordinance, the typical punishment is a fine, even if the defendant is indigent. Failure to pay the fine on time results in a warrant and possible jail time. This study examined whether individuals who successfully completed a court diversion program for indigent defendants were less likely to reoffend than their counterparts who failed to complete the diversion program. Findings showed clients who successfully completed the diversion program were less likely to commit future city violations and state offenses. The results suggest court diversion programs might offer a promising alternative to jail for some indigent defendants and aid with lowering recidivism at least within the first few years of their initial offense.

The Creation of Sentencing Decisions: Judicial Situated Identities

Judicial sentencing decision research most often examines the legal, defendant, and judicial characteristics that predict incarceration and sentence length decisions. Often ignored are the social worlds of the courtroom and judge in how these relate to sentencing decision processes and outcomes. The general framework of symbolic interactionism, through the theories of expectation states and situated identity, provides a foundation to understand the social processes of sentencing. A self-report survey administered to Wisconsin Circuit Court judges (n = 74) gathered information about these social processes that might be used to predict sentencing patterns. The results strengthen the position that judges’ decisions are not outside of social pressures, and judges develop sentencing decisions that align with the viewpoints of others as well as interpretations of the legal code.