Ronald Burns

School Shootings, the Media, and Public Fear: Ingredients for a Moral Panic

Recent shootings at schools around the country have resulted in widespread fear and panic among both students and parents, prompting a myriad of responses to make schools safer. Yet, empirical data suggest that despite the recent shootings, schools remain extremely safe places for children, and school violence is lower today than it was several years ago. The present research focuses on the construction of school shootings as a moral panic, with examinations of the roles played by the media, the public, and politicians in using isolated incidents (albeit heinous offenses) to support their interests. The interactions between these groups and the resultant punitive actions directed toward juveniles are discussed.

Determinants of Environmental Law Violation Fines Against Petroleum Refineries: Race, Ethnicity, Income, and Aggregation Effects

In this work we determine whether monetary penalties assessed against petroleum refineries for violation of the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and/or the Resource Conservation and/or Recovery Act differ depending upon the racial, ethnic, and income characteristics of communities surrounding the penalized refinery. Our sample consists of all monetary penalties assessed between April 2001 and April 2003 (n = 206). We find mixed evidence of inequality. The racial, ethnic, and income characteristics of census tracts surrounding the penalized refineries are not related to penalty amounts. However, refineries situated within the boundaries of Hispanic and low-income ZIP codes tend receive smaller penalties than refineries located in non-Hispanic and more affluent ZIP codes. These disparities do not appear to be result of factors such as previous enforcement and compliance history, case characteristics, company and facility characteristics, or the political/economic climate.

Predictors of the Police Use of Force The Application of a Continuum Perspective in Phoenix

There is a volume of research that has analyzed the police use of force— particularly the use of deadly force. Past research has been limited by em ploying only a dichotomous measurement of force. This paper explores predictors of the police use of force in Phoenix by analyzing 1,220 arrests. In addition, the paper employs the concept of a continuum of force. Lo gistic regression results show the strongest predictors of police use of force are length of time on the force, suspect race, chemical impairment, at tempt to flee and possession of a weapon. Relevant literature and research implications are discussed.

Slippery Business Race, Class, and Legal Determinants of Penalties Against Petroleum Refineries

This study examines whether petroleum refineries that violate environmental laws in Black, Hispanic, and low-income communities tend to receive smaller fines than those refineries in White and affluent communities. The sample consists of all petroleum refinery facilities fined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) between 1998 and 1999 for violating the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, and/or the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (N = 60). The mean penalty for noncompliance is much lower in Black than in White census tracts (

REPRESENTING GANGS IN THE NEWS: MEDIA CONSTRUCTIONS OF CRIMINAL GANGS

108,563 vs.

Criminalizing Attractions: Perceptions of Stalking and the Stalker

341,590) and in low-income than in high-income census tracts (

Police use of force: assessing the impact of time and space

259,784 vs.

Assessing Newspaper Coverage of Corporate Violence: The Dance Hall Fire in Qoteborg, Sweden

334,267). Multivariate analysis suggests that these disparities are not due to factors such as the seriousness of violation, the number of past violations, the facility inspection history, the facility production, or the EPA region in which the violating refinery is situated. It is concluded that the government does a poor job of providing equal protection to racially and economically diverse communities.

Examining Road Rage / Aggressive Driving Media Depiction and Prevention Suggestions

This research, based on a content analysis of 4,445 newspaper articles, examines the images that emerge from stories of criminal gangs and societys responses to them. Eight recurrent themes were identifed. It was discovered that articles devoted to the coverage of gang crimes were outnumbered by stories dealing with various community responses. Articles reporting the results of scientifc research on gangs constituted the smallest category. The results are discussed in light of their importance in the construction of social problems discourse and the maintenance of symbolic power and social control.This research, based on a content analysis of 4,445 newspaper articles, examines the images that emerge from stories of criminal gangs and societys responses to them. Eight recurrent themes were identifed. It was discovered that articles devoted to the coverage of gang crimes were outnumbered by stories dealing with various community responses. Articles reporting the results of scientifc research on gangs constituted the smallest category. The results are discussed in light of their importance in the construction of social problems discourse and the maintenance of symbolic power and social control.

Another fine mess: a preliminary examination of the use of fines by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the conceptualization of the predatory stalker came to the forefront of the criminal concerns imagined by the American public. With this growing public concern and the associated media coverage, legislation designed to enhance punishments against those who might stalk became a political asset and a significant plank for reelection campaigns. Adequate definition for the phenomena, however, has yet to be established, and idiosyncratic application of the law at the policing level remains a problem. This study works toward providing a better definition of the problem from the public’s perspective. Variables significant to the definition of the problem were identified and used in survey work to assess their importance in the individual’s interpretation of the stalking label. Several of these variables are significantly tied to the individual’s willingness to ascribe a stalking label to a given behavioral transaction.