Vera Institute of Justice New Resources Feed

More Than the Sum of Its Parts: why Hawaii's Opportunity Probation with Enforcement (HOPE) program works

Vera_Institute — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 15:09:03 -0600

Hawaii’s Opportunity Probation with Enforcement (HOPE) is an innovative approach to community supervision that uses short, swift, and certain jail sentences as sanctions for violations. Vera’s Center on Sentencing and Corrections produced this policy brief to discuss HOPE and emphasize that programs hoping to duplicate its efforts should apply all of its key elements. (Hawaii First Circuit Judge Steven Alm started HOPE in 2004 and has written about this brief for Vera’s website as a guest blogger.)

Mary Byrne interview: Women and children during their prison nursery co-residence and in the reentry years.

mmehler — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 21:34:15 -0600

Informing justice policy through cost-benefit analysis: Interview with Steve Aos (Part 6)

mmehler — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 20:59:08 -0600

Informing justice policy through cost-benefit analysis: Interview with Steve Aos (Part 5)

mmehler — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 14:09:19 -0600

Informing justice policy through cost-benefit analysis: Interview with Steve Aos (Part 4)

mmehler — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 12:49:02 -0600

Informing justice policy through cost-benefit analysis: Interview with Steve Aos (Part 3)

mmehler — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 16:30:11 -0600

Informing justice policy through cost-benefit analysis: Interview with Steve Aos (Part 2)

mmehler — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 10:05:58 -0600

Informing justice policy through cost-benefit analysis: Interview with Steve Aos (Part 1)

mmehler — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 09:45:50 -0600

Cost-benefit & budget analysis: when analytic frameworks clash (Part 2)

mmehler — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 09:57:59 -0600

Cost-benefit & budget analysis: when analytic frameworks clash (Part 1)

jverdone — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 09:25:01 -0600

Cost-benefit methodology: applying a Washington model in New York

mmehler — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 12:55:44 -0600

Cost-benefit analysis and juvenile justice in New York

mmehler — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 12:47:33 -0600

Introducing Family Justice

mmehler — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 10:58:57 -0600

A podcast introducing Vera's Family Justice Program

Charting a new course: a blueprint for transforming juvenile justice in New York State

rayAdmin — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 15:29:02 -0600

More than 1,600 youth enter New York State’s institutional placement facilities (youth prisons) each year, at an estimated annualized cost of $210,000 per child. Yet many of these youth leave more angry, fearful, or violent than when they entered. In September 2008, Governor David A.

Addendum to widening the lens 2008

rayAdmin — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 15:01:03 -0600

The Vera Institute of Justice has learned that Widening the Lens 2008 reflects an undercount of detention admissions (secure and non-secure) for juvenile delinquency (JD) and persons in need of supervision (PINS) cases outside of New York City.

Rethinking educational neglect for teenagers: new strategies for New York State

rayAdmin — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 23:01:11 -0600

Under New York State law, a parent or guardian who does not ensure that his or her child attends school regularly can be found to have neglected the child. From 2004 to 2008, educational neglect allegations increased by 34 percent statewide. Most of these allegations involved children ages 13 to 17.

A multiagency collaborative effort to address parental language barriers and disproportionate minority contact

rayAdmin — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 11:29:02 -0600

When children have contact with law enforcement, particularly if they are arrested, they can end up deeper than necessary in the justice system if their parents face language barriers. This paper chronicles the efforts of a multiagency work group that included the Vera Institute of Justice and sought to help limited English proficient parents understand their role and participate if their child is involved in the justice system—regardless of the language they speak.

Cost-Benefit Analysis Unit podcast with Michael Jacobson

mmehler — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 15:28:41 -0500

The Vera Institute in New Orleans: reinventing justice

mmehler — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 15:08:57 -0500

Just 'Cause Vol. 16, No. 3

rayAdmin — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 19:29:01 -0500

National Standards Released to Reduce Rape in Prison by Nicole Lemon -- Planning to Prevent Sexual Violence in New Jersey by Abbi Leman -- From the Director: Crossing Boundaries to Help Victims -- Holder: A Smarter Criminal Justice System Within Reach by Michael Mehler -- Q&A with Jon Wool, Project Director, interview by Nicole Lemon -- News & Announcements -- Recent Events: Vera Receives New York Times Award

Promoting justice in the immigration system: legal access for unaccompanied children

rayAdmin — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 16:29:02 -0500

The Vera Institute of Justice has worked with the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) and nonprofit legal service providers to administer the Unaccompanied Children Pro Bono Pilot Project (UCPBP) since 2005. This innovative program provides legal information and pro bono legal representation to children who are facing deportation while in ORR custody. This summary highlights the UCPBP’s key components and accomplishments.

The fiscal crisis in corrections: rethinking policies and practices

mmehler — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 12:04:38 -0500

States across the United States are facing the worst fiscal crisis in years. All but two states are dealing with budget deficits, and spending is being cut across the board. Second only to Medicaid, corrections has become the fastest growing general fund expenditure in the United States. Considered off limits for many years, corrections budgets are now subject to these same cuts.

Attorney General Eric H. Holder, Jr. Justice Address at the Vera Institute of Justice

mmehler — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 16:39:50 -0500

Remarks as prepared for delivery by attorney general Eric Holder at the Vera Institute of Justice's Third Annual Justice Address

rayAdmin — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:29:03 -0500

Just 'Cause Vol. 16 No. 2

rayAdmin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:29:05 -0500

Guardianship Project Saved by Stimulus Act by Nicole Lemon -- New Projects Focus on Reform Opportunities in Jails and Prisons by Abbi Leman -- From Vera's Director: Surviving the Economic Downturn -- Summer Reading Suggestions from Vera Institute Staff -- Q&A with Michael Mehler, Webmaster, interviewed by Jill Pope -- Vera Institute Named Finalist for New York Times Nonprofit Excellence Award -- News and announcements -- Upcoming Event: Attorney General Eric Holder to Speak at Third Annual Justice Address

Policing in new immigrant communities

rayAdmin — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 18:29:02 -0500

The United States is becoming increasingly diverse as people emigrate from around the world seeking opportunities. The multicultural society this is generating presents new challenges for law enforcement. Recent immigrants can be both more vulnerable to crime and less likely to report it to law enforcement. Local police departments often feel blindsided by the rapidly growing pace of diversity in their communities and, therefore, have little comfort dealing with policing in this environment.

Policing in New Immigrant Communities

rayAdmin — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 12:29:02 -0500

Steve Aos Presentation: Using Evidence-based Public Policy to Reduce Incarceration, Crime, and Criminal Justice Costs

mmehler — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:36:25 -0500

Common Justice

mmehler — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 13:30:19 -0500

Webcast: Bridging the Language Divide: Promising Practices for Law Enforcement

mmehler — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 09:48:04 -0500

Prosecution and racial justice: using data to advance fairness in criminal prosecution

rayAdmin — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 15:29:02 -0500

Vera’s Prosecution and Racial Justice Program (PRJ) works with district attorneys and their staffs to collect and analyze data that can identify inappropriate racial disparities in prosecutorial decision making and guide corrective action when necessary. This report discusses PRJ’s methods and identifies lessons learned from its government partners in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin; Mecklenburg County (Charlotte), North Carolina; and San Diego County, California.

Bridging the language divide: promising practices for law enforcement

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:14:02 -0500

Law enforcement officers need to communicate with the people they serve to do their jobs safely and effectively. Yet due to changing demographics across the United States, police officers in many areas interact almost daily with people who do not speak or understand English well. To meet this challenge, a growing number of police agencies are developing programs to effectively communicate with diverse communities. The U.S.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 16 No. 1

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:14:02 -0500

Lessons to inform policy: foster children and clinical trials by Jill Pope -- Partner profile: Unexpected findings lead Multnomah County to change policy by Jill Pope -- From Vera's Director: Madoff scheme forces closure of JEHT Foundation -- New policing practices focus on language barriers by Abbi Leman -- Q&A with Siobhán Carney, Special Assistant to the President and Director, interviewed by Nicole Lemon -- News and announcements

The experiences of New York City foster children in HIV/AIDS clinical trials

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:14:02 -0500

In 2005, New York City’s Administration for Children’s Services asked the Vera Institute of Justice to conduct an independent review of the experiences of foster children who were enrolled in clinical trials for conditions related to HIV and AIDS beginning in the early 1980s. After interviewing people familiar with the trials, reviewing policy documents, and examining the child welfare files of 796 children, Vera staff identified 532 children who were enrolled in 88 clinical trials and observational research studies.

Making court the last resort: a new focus for supporting families in crisis

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:14:01 -0500

Parents who struggle to control chronically misbehaving youth sometimes turn to “status offender” systems for help. Until recently, status offender systems regularly referred these youth to juvenile court, where they were subject to the same punitive interventions as youth charged with criminal activity. Today, a new paradigm for status offender services is emerging: refer at-risk young people and their families to social service programs in their communities and use the juvenile justice system as a last resort.

Widening the lens 2008: a panoramic view of juvenile justice in New York State

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:14:02 -0500

New York State’s juvenile justice system is run by several agencies that each collect and report their own data. Until recently, this data had never been compiled or distributed to offer a comprehensive understanding of the system. To address this problem, CYJ and the New York State Task Force on Juvenile Justice Indicators published the state’s first-ever set of juvenile justice indicators in 2007.

New Ideas, Lasting Solutions

mmehler — Wed, 06 May 2009 07:13:44 -0500

The pursuit of safety: sex offender policy in the United States

rayAdmin — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 18:29:02 -0500

While high-profile sex crimes routinely grab headlines, the question of how well current sex offense laws are working rarely has been examined. This report provides an overview of sex offense policies, identifying key trends and examining what is known about the effectiveness of different approaches at meeting their aims.

Treatment and reentry practices for sex offenders: an overview of states

rayAdmin — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 18:29:02 -0500

This report provides an overview and analysis of existing treatment and reentry practices for sex offenders who are involved with the criminal justice system.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 15, No. 3

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:14:01 -0500

A new approach to violent crime in Brooklyn by Jill Pope -- Accessing Safety Initiative expands work into criminal justice system by Abbi Leman -- From Vera's Director: Bringing clarity to a clouded issue by Michael Jacobson -- City budget cuts force closure of Adolescent Reentry Initiative by Nicole Lemon -- Q&A with Ruth Parlin, Director of Information Management, interviewed by Nicole Lemon -- Researchers present at ABA’s World Justice Forum -- News and announcements

Developing indicators to measure the rule of law: a global approach

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:14:02 -0500

In recent years, performance indicators have emerged as a promising tool for tracking progress in key areas of governance, including the rule of law. With support from the American Bar Association’s World Justice Project, the Vera Institute of Justice partnered with three fellow Altus Global Alliance members to develop a set of 60 rule of law indicators—concrete measures designed to assess an abstract concept—and test them in four cities: Chandigarh, India; Lagos, Nigeria; Santiago, Chile; and New York City, U.S.

Assessing the effectiveness of intermediate sanctions in Multnomah County, Oregon

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:14:01 -0500

In the 1990s the Department of Community Justice (DCJ) in Multnomah County, Oregon, initiated a series of evidence-based reforms intended to shift resources and change its supervision approach. This study by the Vera Institute of Justice is one of a number of studies the DCJ has solicited to look at particular questions about its system. It provides an overview of the patterns and practices of adult probation and post-prison supervision, based on Vera’s quantitative and qualitative analysis of the use of intermediate sanctions in response to violations of probation conditions.

Legal Orientation Program: evaluation and performance and outcome measurement report, phase II

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:14:00 -0500

The Legal Orientation Program (LOP) seeks to educate detained persons in removal (deportation) proceedings so they can make more informed decisions, thus increasing efficiencies in the immigration court and detention processes.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 15, No. 2

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:14:00 -0500

International project develops rule of law indicators by Abbi Leman -- Partner profile: Milwaukee DA focuses on reducing racial disparities by Bree Nordenson -- From Vera's Director: Reform without evidence? by Michael Jacobson -- Bringing cost-benefit analysis to criminal justice planning by Patrick Kelly -- Q&A with Ernest Duncan, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer -- Standing room only at second annual justice address by Bree Nordenson -- News and announcements

Unaccompanied children in the United States: a literature review

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:14:00 -0500

This literature review, which examines articles by an assortment of scholars, advocates, and practicing attorneys, provides an overview of the published research on unaccompanied children in the Unitesd States within a legal and historical context. The report should be of interest to practitioners, researchers, and scholars whose work touches on immigration issues.

James B. Comey Justice Address at Vera Institute of Justice

mmehler — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 15:34:25 -0500

The family assessment program: trajectories and effects

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:14:00 -0500

Following up on a 2005 Vera report about FAP, Vera conducted an exploratory study for the Administration for Children's Services, interviewing 100 families who had approached FAP offices in the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens between March and September in 2006. Researchers interviewed 75 of those families again after three months. Our investigation suggests that FAP is helping families served. Many of the young people interviewed received prompt referrals to services and showed signs of improved mental health and better family relations three months after approaching FAP.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 15, No. 1

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:14:00 -0500

Ground-breaking New Orleans alliance commits to justice reforms by Patrick Kelly -- Vera helps to develop federal standards to reduce rape in prison by Abbi Leman -- From Vera's Director: The next crime-fighting agenda by Michael Jacobson -- Crim-Im: an emerging justice frontier by Patrick Kelly -- Q&A with Lucia Trimbur, Andrew W. Mellon Post-Doctoral Fellow on Race, Crime, and Justice -- Trustee Eric Lane discusses new book at Vera -- News and announcements

How to apply for asylum and withholding of removal (Arabic)

rayAdmin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:29:03 -0500

How to apply for asylum and withholding of removal (Simplified Chinese)

rayAdmin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:29:03 -0500

How to apply for asylum and withholding of removal (English)

rayAdmin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:29:03 -0500

How to apply for asylum and withholding of removal (French)

rayAdmin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:29:03 -0500

Legal Orientation Program factsheets (Arabic)

rayAdmin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:29:03 -0500

Legal Orientation Program factsheets (Simplified Chinese)

rayAdmin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:29:04 -0500

Legal Orientation Program factsheets (English)

rayAdmin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:29:04 -0500

Legal Orientation Program factsheets (French)

rayAdmin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:29:04 -0500

Legal Orientation Program factsheets (Vietnamese)

rayAdmin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:29:04 -0500

Legal Orientation Program legal rights presentation (Arabic)

rayAdmin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:29:04 -0500

Legal Orientation Program legal rights presentation (Chinese)

rayAdmin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:29:04 -0500

Legal Orientation Program legal rights presentation (French)

rayAdmin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:29:04 -0500

Legal Orientation Program legal rights presentation (Vietnamese)

rayAdmin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:29:05 -0500

Legal Orientation Program legal rights presentation (English)

rayAdmin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:29:05 -0500

Legal Orientation Program legal rights presentation (Korean)

rayAdmin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:29:05 -0500

Legal Orientation Program legal rights presentation (Portuguese)

rayAdmin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:29:05 -0500

Project Confirm first year report: July 1998 to June 1999

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:56 -0500

Project Confirm began citywide operations in June 1999, having operated on a pilot basis starting in July 1998. Created by the New York City child welfare and juvenile justice agencies through the Vera Institute of Justice, it is designed to address the issue of foster youth in the juvenile justice system. Project Confirm makes it possible for child welfare and juvenile justice staff to work together to avoid unnecessary detention and foster home placements.

Sustaining employment: factors associated with job retention among ex-offenders

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:58 -0500

In October 1999, at the request of Mindy Tarlow, Executive Director of the Center for Employment Opportunities, the Vera Institute of Justice examined a group of participants at the Center that the CEO had placed in jobs during 1996, 1997 and 1998 to identify the factors that correlate with their length of time employed. Factors included the relationship between participants' demographic characteristics such as race and age, their performance in the transitional work program, and the characteristics of the jobs they received. This report details the findings of that study.

Vera Institute of Justice spin-off tool kit

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:48 -0500

The Spin-off Tool Kit (2007) documents the process by which Vera projects are transformed into independent organizations. It is intended for Vera employees engaged in spinning off a demonstration project, for other organizations interested in launching a new nonprofit, and for anyone who wants to better understand the history of Vera's spin-offs and the spin-off process. The Tool Kit also contains a present day look at the 17 spin-offs Vera has created, as well as an article by Vera’s former director on how nonprofits can advance their mission through spinning off.

Language barriers and disproportionate minority contact in the juvenile justice system

rayAdmin — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:01:05 -0600

Without a parent’s active participation in a juvenile delinquency case, officials often believe they have little choice but to prosecute and detain a juvenile, both to address the child’s best interests and to preserve public safety. With a growing number of immigrants residing in the United States and a growing number of immigrant youth entering the juvenile justice system, there is an acute need to better understand the relationship between parents' ability to speak English and their ability to participate in the juvenile justice process on behalf of their child.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 14, No. 3

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:48 -0500

Vera opens office in Washington, DC by Patrick Kelly --- Connecticut youth moving out of adult system with Vera’s help by Patrick Kelly --- From Vera’s Director: Learning from civil rights icon by Michael Jacobson --- Esperanza/Hope to become independent by Patrick Kelly --- Q&A with Nancy Smith, Director of the Accessing Safety Initiative --- Vera’s new look --- News and announcements --- Upcoming event: New ideas, lasting solutions with Jamie Dimon (JPMC) and Lisa Kung (Southern Center for Human Rights)

Overcoming language barriers in the criminal justice system: can language assistance technology help?

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:48 -0500

In order to do their jobs safely and effectively, criminal justice personnel must be able to communicate with the people they serve. Yet, as a result of dramatic shifts in the demographics of immigration since the early 1990s, many criminal justice agencies are finding they are ill-equipped to communicate with growing numbers of people in their jurisdictions who do not speak English well. Criminal justice administrators are increasingly looking for creative and cost-effective ways to bridge this language gap.

Vera Institute of Justice brochure

rayAdmin — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 15:29:01 -0500

The Vera Institute of Justice combines expertise in research, demonstration projects, and technical assistance to help leaders in government and civil society improve the systems people rely on for justice and safety.

LOP Legal Resources: Audio CD Presentation Script - Korean

mmehler — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 15:56:42 -0500

Throughout 2007, Vera translated various Legal Orientation Program (LOP) materials into Arabic, French, Korean, Portuguese, Simplified Chinese/Mandarin, and Vietnamese. The following materials range from a legal rights presentation script, to a general guide on asylum, to brief fact sheets on topics such as voluntary departure, expedited removal, T-Visas, U-Visas, and more.

LOP Legal Resources: Audio CD Presentation Script - Portuguese

mmehler — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 15:58:55 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Audio CD Presentation Script - Vietnamese

mmehler — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 16:01:31 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Audio CD Presentation Script - English

mmehler — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 15:49:43 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Audio CD Presentation Script - French

mmehler — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 15:51:59 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Fact Sheet - Simplified Chinese/Mandarin

mmehler — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 15:40:39 -0500

This section includes various fact sheets describing a range of topics of interest to detained immigrants, including reducing your bond, voluntary departure, reinstatement of removal, expedited removal, the T-Visa; the U-Visa, protecting oneself from immigration fraud, and what to expect from one’s legal representative. These documents are available in English, Arabic, French, Simplified Chinese/Mandarin, and Vietnamese.

LOP Legal Resources: Fact Sheet - English

mmehler — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 15:43:19 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Fact Sheet - French

mmehler — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 15:45:20 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Fact Sheet - Vietnamese

mmehler — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 15:47:17 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Audio CD Presentation Script - Simplified Chinese/Mandarin

mmehler — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 15:16:23 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Audio Presentation - French - Part 2

mmehler — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 15:09:03 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Audio Presentation - French - Part 3

mmehler — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 15:12:09 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Fact Sheet - Arabic

mmehler — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 14:56:07 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: How to Apply for Asylum and Withholding of Removal - Simplified Chinese/Mandarin

mmehler — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 14:39:59 -0500

This booklet—originally prepared by the Florence Immigrant & Refugee Rights Project—is designed to help people who might qualify for asylum, withholding of removal, or protection under the Convention against Torture understand these forms of relief and immigration court processes. People who have been detained can use this information to prepare their cases, whether they are representing themselves pro se or they have an attorney or accredited representative. This booklet is available in English, Arabic, French, and Simplified Chinese/Mandarin.

LOP Legal Resources: How to Apply for Asylum and Withholding of Removal - English

mmehler — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 14:49:44 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: How to Apply for Asylum and Withholding of Removal - French

mmehler — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 14:52:35 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Audio Presentation - French - Part 1

mmehler — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 14:39:13 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Audio Presentation - Arabic - Part 2

mmehler — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 14:41:57 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Audio Presentation - Arabic - Part 3

mmehler — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 14:44:27 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Audio CD Presentation Script - Arabic

mmehler — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 14:29:42 -0500

Throughout 2007, Vera translated various Legal Orientation Program (LOP) materials into Arabic, French, Korean, Portuguese, Simplified Chinese/Mandarin, and Vietnamese.

LOP Legal Resources: How to Apply for Asylum and Withholding of Removal - Arabic

mmehler — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 14:35:49 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Audio Presentation - Arabic - Part 1

mmehler — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 14:22:41 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Audio Presentation - Vietnamese - Part 3

mmehler — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 11:40:16 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Audio Presentation - Simplified Chinese/Mandarin - Part 1

mmehler — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 11:24:13 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Audio Presentation - Simplified Chinese/Mandarin - Part 2

mmehler — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 11:26:16 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Audio Presentation - Simplified Chinese/Mandarin - Part 3

mmehler — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 11:29:30 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Audio Presentation - Vietnamese - Part 1

mmehler — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 11:34:21 -0500

LOP Legal Resources: Audio Presentation - Vietnamese - Part 2

mmehler — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 11:36:11 -0500

Translating justice: a Spanish glossary for New York City

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:59 -0500

The Vera Institute of Justice has developed a glossary in Spanish to serve as a resource for interpreters, translators, and bilingual staff at New York City's justice and public safety agencies, courts, and nonprofit organizations. We hope the use of these glossaries will improve limited English proficient New Yorkers' access to justice and will assist interpreters, translators, and bilingual staff in providing vital oral and written communication to the city's residents.

Translating justice: a traditional Chinese glossary for New York City

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:59 -0500

In 2007 Vera developed this translated glossary of criminal and juvenile justice terms to serve as a resource for interpreters, translators, and bilingual staff at New York City's justice and public safety agencies, courts, and nonprofit organizations.

"I would not have anywhere to go:" understanding Section 8 housing subsidy loss in New York City

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:00 -0500

In 2004, Vera partnered with the NYC Dept. of Housing Preservation and Development and two direct service agencies to learn more about the factors that place Section 8 Housing Choice Program voucher holders in the Bronx and Brooklyn at risk of losing their housing subsidy. Surveys covered a number of topics including demographics, economic resources, housing situation, household and family status, and understanding of and experiences with the Section 8 program. The survey data was subsequently analyzed to identify salient themes and trends.

Proposals for New Orleans' criminal justice system: best practices to advance public safety and justice

rayAdmin — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 15:01:02 -0600

Hurricane Katrina ravaged New Orleans, destroying not only the city’s infrastructure and the lives of many of its residents, but also its justice system. To identify practical steps New Orleans can take to make its criminal justice system more reliable, effective, and just, the Vera Institute of Justice interviewed key stakeholders—including justice system leaders, representatives of nonprofit research and advocacy groups, and several members of the city council—and reviewed data on how the system has been operating after flooding devastated the city.

Charles B. Rangel Justice Address Featuring Nicholas de B. Katzenbach (Part 2 of 2)

mmehler — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 15:16:06 -0500

Charles B. Rangel Justice Address Featuring Nicholas de B. Katzenbach (Part 1 of 2)

mmehler — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 15:27:46 -0500

Just 'Cause, Vol. 14, No. 2

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:54 -0500

Upcoming event: Vera’s second annual benefit event --- Vera assists Chinese policymakers in justice system reform by Patrick Kelly --- National Public Safety Project selects Vera as partner to support states by Patrick Kelly --- From the Director: A call for reasoned responses to sex offenses by Michael Jacobson --- News and announcements --- Colleagues pay tribute to Chief Program Officer leaving Vera after a decade of work (Nicholas Turner) --- Q&A with Neil Weiner, Director of Research --- Nicholas Katzenbach to give first annual Justice Address --- Suggestions to make your sum

Just 'Cause, Vol. 14, No. 1

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:51 -0500

Overcoming language barriers: solutions for law enforcement

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:51 -0500

In order to do their jobs effectively and safely, sworn and civilian law enforcement personnel must be able to communicate with the people they serve—including the growing number of immigrant communities that do not speak English well. There are cost-effective steps that agencies can take to overcome language barriers, and these steps can be tailored to meet each agency's unique needs and capacities.

Widening the lens: a panoramic view of juvenile justice in New York State

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:54 -0500

In 2005, the New York State Office of Children and Family Services established a task force to develop statewide juvenile justice indicators that could support local and state planning. This report from that task force, presenting the state’s first-ever set of multi-agency indicators, identifies and calculates key data in five central areas of the juvenile justice system, from arrest through disposition. Section I describes each of the five system areas, provides a synopsis of the indicators for each area, and highlights some initial observations revealed by 2004 data.

Adolescent Portable Therapy

mmehler — Thu, 21 May 2009 17:43:56 -0500

Guardianship Project

mmehler — Wed, 06 May 2009 06:47:29 -0500

Reconsidering incarceration: new directions for reducing crime

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:51 -0500

Little empirical study had been done to confirm or refute the effectiveness of incarceration in reducing crime rates when America began its historic reliance on prisons in the 1970s. Today, conversely, policymakers are faced with a large, complex, and sometimes contradictory body of research. This paper seeks to help officials make sense of this information and offers an up-to-date understanding of what works best. It also examines research on several of the other factors that might be developed as part of an expanded notion of public safety.

Clinical trials project: progress report 5

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:48 -0500

This report is the fifth in a series of quarterly progress reports describing the Vera Institute of Justice's review of issues related to the enrollment of foster children in clinical trials of HIV and AIDS treatments during the late 1980s and 1990s. It covers the quarter running from July 1, 2006, to September 30, 2006. The current report describes: 1. Progress in implementing the research design, 2. Additions to the list of files that the Administration for Children's Services has asked Vera to review, 3. Institutional Review Board review of child and caregiver interviews, 4.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 13, No. 2

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:43 -0500

Vera leads new national program for unaccompanied children by Robin Campbell -- National Prison Commission's report sparks national conversation by Jennifer Trone -- Celebrating Vera's past; looking to the future by Michael Jacobson -- Where's Vera? -- Q&A with Wayne McKenzie, Director of the Prosecution and Racial Justice Program -- Mellon Fellows create new speaker series addressing race and justice by Van Luu -- UPDATE: Esperanza saves millions -- News and announcements

Reducing sexual revictimization: technical report: a field test with an urban sample

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:54 -0500

Vera helped develop a brief training to help sexual assault survivors reduce the risk of further assault. The workshop was developed from material that showed promise in reducing victimization in a sample of college women. Using information gained from in-depth interviews with 33 sexual assault survivors of multiple sexual assaults in New York and Seattle, the material was adapted for urban women.

Reducing sexual revictimization: a field test with an urban sample

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:55 -0500

Summary report to the National Institute of Justice

Just 'Cause, Vol. 13, No. 1

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:43 -0500

International media cover Vera report on relations between law enforcement and Arab Americans after 9/11 by Van Luu -- Guardianship Project helps adults in its care live independently by Andrea Weitz -- From the Director: Major changes in criminal justice prompt change in how Vera works by Michael Jacobson -- Four new publications cap the Judicial Oversight Demonstration Initiative by Robin Campbell -- Q&A With Ivan Komaritsky, Altus Representative for Eastern Europe -- Outgoing chair honored -- News and announcements

Clinical trials project: progress report 4

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:48 -0500

This report is the fourth in a series of quarterly progress reports describing the Vera Institute of Justice's review of issues related to the enrollment of foster children in clinical trials of HIV and AIDS treatments during the late 1980s and 1990s. It covers the quarter running from April 1, 2006, to June 30, 2006. The current report describes: 1. Implementation of the research design, 2. Institutional Review Board review of key respondent interviews, 3. Activities of Vera's Advisory Board, 4. Outreach, and 5. Next steps.

Engaging respondents in civil restraining orders: a new approach to victim safety

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:22 -0500

More and more victims of intimate partner violence are turning to courts for civil orders for protection. These orders are often a first course of action for victims who want the violence to stop but who do not necessarily want to involve the police. Usually, these orders serve their function and the "respondent" ends the violent behavior. In some cases, however, respondents ignore court orders and may even become more violent.

Judicial review hearings: keeping courts on the case

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:25 -0500

Many communities have improved the way that they police and prosecute misdemeanor crimes related to intimate partner violence. Courts, too, have become more advanced in how they sentence those found guilty. Yet, critical challenges in responding to these crimes remain. These include ensuring that offenders meet conditions imposed on them, preventing future acts of violence, and making victims feel safer as a result of court actions.

Law enforcement and Arab American community relations after September 11, 2001: engagement in a time of uncertainty

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:26 -0500

Vera's two-year study of relations between Arab Americans and law enforcement in the United States following September 11, 2001 found, among other things, that Arab Americans fear the intrusion of federal policies and practices even more than individual acts of hate or violence, and that many local police are reluctant to enforce immigration law. The report identifies examples of partnerships and innovations that have successfully bridged gaps identified in the study.

Law enforcement and Arab American community relations after September 11, 2001: technical report

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:26 -0500

This technical report accompanies the summary report of Vera's two-year study of relations between Arab Americans and law enforcement in the United States following September 11, 2001. The study found, among other things, that Arab Americans fear the intrusion of federal policies and practices even more than individual acts of hate or violence, and that many local police are reluctant to enforce immigration law. The report identifies examples of partnerships and innovations that have successfully bridged gaps identified in the study.

Pretrial innovations: supporting safety and case integrity

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:27 -0500

The time between when an accused batterer is arrested and when the case is fully adjudicated can be especially dangerous for a victim of domestic violence. Most alleged offenders are released on bail, and many courts lack the ability to ensure that they meet the conditions of release. It is also a time when accused batterers are most likely to try to influence the outcome of the case, often using threats and sometimes violence. This publication examines several steps the Milwaukee County Courts took to ensure that pretrial orders are met and that the safety of the accuser is considered.

Prosecuting witness tampering, bail jumping, and battering from behind bars

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:27 -0500

Many victims awaiting a trial for domestic violence crimes fear that the system cannot protect them. Their fear is exacerbated when they continue to be threatened and harassed after an arrest has been made—especially when the defendant is being held without bail. Recognizing this dilemma and its impact on the system of justice, prosecutors in Milwaukee County began using jailhouse telephone recordings and other evidence to prosecute defendants who use threats of violence or intimidation to try to influence witness testimony and case outcomes.

Prosecuting witness tampering, bail jumping, and battering from behind bars

rayAdmin — Fri, 22 May 2009 12:29:02 -0500

Many victims awaiting a trial for domestic violence crimes fear that the system can not protect them. Their fear is exacerbated when they continue to be threatened and harassed after an arrest has been made—especially when the defendant is being held without bail. Recognizing this dilemma and its impact on the system of justice, prosecutors in Milwaukee County began using jailhouse telephone recordings and other evidence to prosecute defendants who use threats of violence or intimidation to try to influence witness testimony and case outcomes.

Confronting Confinement

rayAdmin — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 15:29:02 -0500

On June 8, 2006, the Commission released Confronting Confinement, a report on violence and abuse in U.S. jails and prisons, the broad impact of those problems on public safety and public health, and how correctional facilities nationwide can become safer and more effective.

Clinical trials project: progress report 3

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:48 -0500

This report is the third in a series of quarterly progress reports describing the Vera Institute of Justice's review of issues related to the enrollment of foster children in clinical trials of HIV and AIDS treatments during the late 1980s and 1990s. It covers the quarter running from January 1, 2006, to March 31, 2006. The current report describes: 1. Implementation of the document review; 2. Policies to prevent disclosure of confidential information; 3. Vera Advisory Board activity; 4. Institutional Review Board (IRB) developments; 5. Outreach activities; and 6. Next steps.

Good practices for federal panel attorney programs in the U.S. Courts of Appeals

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:23 -0500

Throughout the country, public defense systems are struggling to perform their constitutional mandate, let alone to provide high quality representation. Considerable efforts are being undertaken to study and improve the performance of public defender offices. Less attention has been paid, however, to assigned counsel systems. Even in the federal courts—where assigned counsel are held to relatively high expectations—there is room for improvement. The Administrative Office of the U.S.

Clinical trials project: progress report 2

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:47 -0500

This report is the second in a series of quarterly progress reports describing the Vera Institute of Justice's review of issues related to the enrollment of foster children in clinical trials of HIV and AIDS treatments during the late 1980s and 1990s. It covers the quarter running from October 1, 2005 to December 30, 2005. The current report describes: 1. Lessons learned from the planning process; 2. Development of a research protocol and IRB submission; 3. Advisory Board and IRB member recruitment; 4. Outreach activities; 5. Testimony at City Council hearing; and 6. Next steps.

A study of New York City's Family Assessment Program

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:17 -0500

Family Assessment Program; Placements

Childhood loss and behavioral problems: loosening the links

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:20 -0500

A growing body of evidence suggests that schools and other child-serving systems can help young people with behavioral problems by asking whether they have lost someone they love and responding constructively when answers suggest a child is grieving. Such actions could influence whether a child's behavioral problems spiral into ever wider levels of misbehavior or subside with appropriate help in confronting the challenges of their loss.

Smoothing the path from prison to home: a summary and roundtable discussion on the lessons of Project Greenlight

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:30 -0500

This report presents research findings about Project Greenlight, an ambitious prison-based reentry demonstration project that the Vera Institute of Justice conducted at the Queensboro Correctional Facility in Queens, New York, from February 2002 to February 2003. Drawing upon research literature and demonstrated best practices, Greenlight sought to reduce recidivism among soon-to-be-released men by working with corrections and parole staff to address a spectrum of reentry issues during the last 60 days in prison.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 12, No. 2

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:43 -0500

Vera to examine policy and practice on New York City foster children in clinical trials by Patrick Kelly -- New initiative addresses domestic violence and disability -- From the Director: Police accountability and oversight: a global trend? by Michael Jacobson -- Can perceptions of fairness affect outcomes for justice? by Robin Campbell -- Q & A with Nina Siulc, Senior Research Associate -- New projects at Vera -- News and announcements

Probation reform: is zero tolerance a viable option?

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:27 -0500

Can community supervision compete with incarceration as a means of crime control? Mark Kleiman, professor of policy studies at the UCLA School of Public Affairs and the author of "When Brute Force Fails: Strategic Thinking for Crime Control," believes it can.

Clinical trials project: progress report 1

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:47 -0500

This report is the first in a series of quarterly progress reports describing the Vera Institute of Justice's review of issues related to the enrollment of foster children in clinical trials of HIV and AIDS treatments during the late 1980s and 1990s. It covers the quarter running from July 1, 2005, to September 30, 2005. The current report describes: 1. Efforts to gain access to necessary information, 2. Outreach activities, 3. Preliminary planning to establish our methodology, 4. The recruitment of an independent advisory board, and 5. Next steps.

Understanding family homelessness in New York City: an in-depth study of families' experiences before and after shelter

rayAdmin — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:29:03 -0600

Families are accessing homeless shelters in record numbers in cities across the United States, and New York City is no exception. After a 10-year period of relative stability, the number of homeless families in New York City grew by 22 percent in 2001 and by another 35 percent in 2002. By 2003, there were more than 9,000 families living in the city's homeless shelters on any given night.

Building strong police-immigrant community relations: lessons from a New York City project

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:20 -0500

This guide describes the lessons learned as part of joint project of the NYPD and the Vera Institute of Justice, which sought to strengthen relations between police and new immigrant communities in the city. The lessons were derived from a series of police-community forums convened with members of the Arab-American community, African immigrant community, and emerging Latin-American communities.

Of fragmentation and ferment: the impact of state sentencing policies on incarceration rates, 1975-2002

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:51 -0500

Indeterminate sentencing; Truth in sentencing; Habitual offenders; Mandatory sentencing; Good-time sentence reductions

Supporting security, justice, and development: lessons for a new era

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:31 -0500

In developing countries, insecurity and poverty are increasingly linked, leading to a growing global interest in the allocation of transitional assistance and international aid assistance. An expanding focus of national and multinational assistance involves criminal justice reform in policing, victim's rights, and judicial systems—as part of both development assistance and post-conflict assistance.

Translating justice: a guide for New York City's justice and public safety agencies

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:35 -0500

In recent years, New York City has experienced unprecedented growth in the size and diversity of its immigrant population. As a result, a significant proportion of city residents have limited English proficiency or do not speak English at all. Finding ways to overcome language barriers is an emerging field, and New York City criminal and juvenile justice agencies have made great strides in addressing the needs of people with limited English proficiency.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 12, No. 1

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:42 -0500

Can federal intervention bring lasting improvement in local policing? The Pittsburgh consent decree

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:20 -0500

Federal oversight of local police

Beyond Blakely: implications of the Booker decision for state sentencing systems

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:47 -0500

Early this year, in an expected but nonetheless momentous decision, the Supreme Court held that the federal sentencing guidelines are unconstitutional. United States v. Booker closely follows a ruling from last summer, Blakely v. Washington, which threw out that state's guidelines and sent the criminal justice systems in perhaps half of the states into a state of unrest. The new decision provides some assistance to state policymakers and practitioners who had been hoping for clarity in the post-Blakely world.

Adolescent Portable Therapy: A Practical Guide for Service Providers

mmehler — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 13:37:58 -0500

Home-based treatment that combines family therapy and individual treatment to reduce adolescent drug use and address mental health problems and behavioral issues is now widely recognized as best practice. Vera's Adolescent Portable Therapy (APT) program weaves these elements into a coherent treatment model that can be practiced consistently. APT's treatment manual gives service providers and program planners a theoretical framework and procedures, techniques and case examples that will enable them to implement the APT model easily and effectively.

Changing the status quo for status offenders: New York State's efforts to support troubled teens

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:37 -0500

Over the past three years, child welfare and probation leaders in New York State have been transforming the state's status offender system to provide timely support to troubled teens and their families in their communities and rely less on courts, law enforcement, and detention. This Issue in Brief, produced by Vera's national Youth Justice Program, examines how this dramatic shift is helping get disobedient, but not delinquent, children back on track while yielding significant cost savings.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 11, No. 4

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:42 -0500

Charting justice reform in Chile: a comparison of the old and new systems of criminal procedure

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:49 -0500

Beginning in 2000, Chile launched an ambitious effort to remake its entire system of criminal justice. These reforms involve a new code of criminal procedure, new public institutions such as the National Prosecution Service and office of National Public Defender, as well as new people, new buildings, new views, and new practices.

Analizando la reforma a la justicia criminal en Chile: un estudio empírico entre el nuevo y el antiguo sistema penal

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:49 -0500

En diciembre de 2000, Chile inició un ambicioso proceso de reforma a su sistema de justicia criminal. Este proceso ha significado la instauración de un nuevo código de procedimiento penal, nuevas instituciones como la Ficalia Nacional y la Oficina del Defensor Público, asi como nuevos edificios, nuevos funcionarios, nuevas prácticas y perspectivas. En coordinación con la Fiscalía Nacional o Ministerio Público, El Instituto Vera realizó una descripción de estos cambios.

Aggravated sentencing: Blakely v. Washington -- legal considerations for state sentencing systems

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:17 -0500

Few Supreme Court decisions have engendered as much uncertainty in state and federal courts as Blakely v. Washington. This report, the second in a series on the practical implications of the ruling, examines the legal issues raised by Blakely and prior related decisions. The Court found that under the Sixth Amendment a judge cannot increase a criminal sentence based on facts not proved to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt (or admitted by the defendant). This report is intended as a primer for those charged with responding to Blakely.

Enhancing responses to domestic violence: promising practices from the Judicial Oversight Demonstration Initiative

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:23 -0500

When the criminal justice system intervenes in domestic violence cases, numerous public and private agencies become involved. To successfully ensure victim safety throughout the criminal justice intervention, each agency must understand its mission and role in relation to the others. This brochure highlights some of the key efforts that three federally-funded demonstration initiatives are making to improve their communities' ability to help keep victims safer by enhancing both offender and system accountability.

The front line: building programs that recognize families' roles in reentry

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:38 -0500

People leaving prison often turn to their families for assistance. These families become the "front line" of reentry, providing people coming home with critical emotional and material support. But criminal justice systems have only recently begun to engage families in the transition. This Issue in Brief examines the trend towards providing family-focused reentry programming in prison and in the community, highlights ways that jurisdictions can and are structuring such efforts, and addresses the challenges involved.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 11, No. 3

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:42 -0500

Hard data on hard times: an empirical analysis of maternal incarceration, foster care, and visitation

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:23 -0500

The rising incarceration rates among women have raised concerns in many quarters, including child welfare. This report shows, for the first time, how many children in foster care have mothers in jail or prison. While Vera researchers found that only a small percentage of the mothers of children in care are incarcerated for 30 days or more, the number of affected children is significant enough to justify programs that allow them to visit their mothers in jail or prison.

Improving responses to allegations of severe child abuse: results from the Instant Response Team program

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:25 -0500

Allegations of severe child abuse and neglect may require quick, coordinated responses by child welfare and law enforcement in order to reduce trauma to children and to arrest and prosecute perpetrators.

Supporting positive student behavior: a guide for school personnel

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:30 -0500

Affirm was launched in 2002 as a strategy for preventing school violence. The one-year demonstration project of the Vera Institute of Justice in partnership with the New York City Department of Education and the New York City Police Department (NYPD) sought to train and coach school-based law enforcement staff—known in New York City as school safety agents—in the theory and techniques of positive reinforcement.

Youth who chronically AWOL from foster care: why they run, where they go, and what can be done

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:37 -0500

Adolescents who leave foster care without permission may encounter dangerous situations and place burdens on many government agencies, including child welfare and police. Using data from New York City's Administration for Children's Services, Vera researchers interviewed adolescents with chronic AWOL histories as well as staff at foster care facilities. The report shows that most teens going AWOL from group care stay with friends and return to care voluntarily but that one-third are involved in high-risk situations such as drug use or physical violence.

Aggravated sentencing: Blakely v. Washington -- practical implications for state sentencing systems

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:47 -0500

This summer, the Supreme Court sent the criminal justice systems in perhaps half of the states, and the federal system, into a state of simmering unrest. Blakely v. Washington cast doubt on two decades of efforts to channel judicial discretion in sentencing by finding that the Sixth Amendment forbids a judge to increase a criminal sentence based on facts not found by a jury beyond a reasonable doubt, even when those sentences are well short of statutory maximums.

Foster children and education: how you can create a positive educational experience for the foster child

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:23 -0500

When it comes to succeeding in school, foster children face unique challenges and obstacles that have them lagging behind their peers. This kit, designed primarily for use by caseworkers and educators, lays out those challenges and offers some simple, inexpensive lessons and tools that can enhance the educational experience of children in foster care. The lessons — including how to facilitate school registration and how to increase adult attendance at parent/teacher conferences — can be adapted for use in any community.

Public-private partnerships for police reform

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:28 -0500

A growing number of police jurisdictions see the private business community as a dynamic source of external support for police reform. Yet, partnerships with private businesses, if poorly structured, can erode the professionalism and legitimacy of police organizations. In 2003, Vera and the Ford Foundation gathered an international group of police and private sector representatives in Nanyuki, Kenya, to explore the motives that may lead police and business leaders to expand their range of collaborations, as well as the early results from such partnerships.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 11, No. 2

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:42 -0500

A short history of Vera's work on the judicial process

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:50 -0500

Since its founding in 1961, the Vera Institute of Justice has designed innovations that allow courts to work more efficiently while paying greater attention to individual victims, witnesses, jurors, and defendants. Through research and demonstration projects, Vera has helped judges, prosecutors, defenders, and administrators improve the adjudication of cases from before their first hearings through their final dispositions. This brief history chronicles Vera's work in this area while highlighting key findings and results. It also includes a timeline of Vera projects and a bibliography.

Changing fortunes or changing attitudes? Sentencing and corrections reforms in 2003

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:20 -0500

Departures from the nearly sacrosanct tough-on-crime corrections policies of previous decades continue as states grapple with ongoing budget shortfalls. Some evidence suggests, however, that a growing acceptance of alternative corrections policies may be more influential in the shifts than generally recognized. This Issue in Brief surveys the most recent changes to sentencing and corrections policies and identifies the range of reforms being implemented.

Reducing gun violence: an overview of New York City's strategies

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:28 -0500

This paper is designed for law enforcement and public safety agencies in the United States and worldwide that are looking for effective strategies to reduce gun violence and gun trafficking, which are growing problems worldwide. In the United States, despite a historic drop in crime since 1994, there has been a slight increase in gun crimes nationally in last few years. In contrast to the recent national trends, gun violence has decreased in New York City, a leader in reducing crime.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 11, No. 1

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:42 -0500

Police and Vera reach out to New York's immigrants by Robin Campbell -- From the Director: What Dullah Omar taught us by Christopher Stone -- City, CEO, Greenlight linking people to jobs after Rikers by Brenner Brown -- Focus on: New Director of Development Anna Kornilakis, interviewed by Janet Mandelstam -- Global guide shows how to measure advances in justice by Brenner Brown -- News and announcements

Democratic Policing Exchange, March 2004

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:49 -0500

Democratic Policing Exchange, a semi-annual newsletter on public safety and police accountability, is produced by the Vera Institute of Justice for the Ford Foundation. Contents: Researchers gather in New Delhi to chart a future course for research on community policing by Jennifer Trone -- Rio hosts global meeting on women and policing by Francis James -- For the police, a good first impression could be crucial by Jennifer Trone -- Upcoming meetings and conferences -- Recent publications -- Active policing-related Ford Grants

Patterns of criminal conviction and incarceration among mothers of children in foster care in New York City

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:27 -0500

Maternal incarceration may affect the number of children entering foster care and the length of time they spend in care. In collaboration with the New York City Administration for Children's Services, Vera researchers examined the patterns of arrest and incarceration of mothers of children in foster care by matching child welfare and criminal justice records, focusing on children who entered foster care in 1991 and 1996.

Preventing homelessness among people leaving prison

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:37 -0500

The third Issue in Brief from the State Sentencing and Corrections Program reviews the latest research on homelessness among people recently released from prisons and states' policy responses to the issue.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 10, No. 5

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:41 -0500

Esperanza Clients Draft Blueprints for the Future by Brenner Brown -- From the Director: Testing Police Reform by Christopher Stone -- Affirm Curriculum Now Part of School Safety Agent Training by Robin Campbell -- Focus On: Francis J. James and Chitra Bhanu, International Department interviewed by Janet Mandelstam -- Khalil Muhammad is Fourth Mellon Fellow by Brenner Brown -- Beverly Jones is New Rockefeller Brothers Fund Fellow by Van Luu -- News and Announcements

Measuring progress toward safety and justice: a global guide to the design of performance indicators across the justice sector

rayAdmin — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 16:29:02 -0500

Produced by a team of researchers at the Vera Institute, this guide to the design of performance indicators is written for government officials and program managers around the world who want to improve the delivery of safety, security, and access to justice. In plain language, the Guide describes how to develop practical and effective indicators in both data-poor and data-rich environments, starting with the desired outcome.

Reinforcing positive student behavior to improve school safety: an evaluation of Affirm

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:29 -0500

Can police personnel in schools be effectively trained to engage with students in positive ways to encourage and reinforce good behavior even as they continue enforcing discipline codes and criminal laws? To find out, Vera researchers evaluated Affirm, a training program delivered to 644 police personnel assigned to New York City public schools and another 84 school personnel from April 2002 to June 2003.

The challenges of replacing prison with drug treatment: implementation of New York State's Extended Willard program

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:32 -0500

Extended Willard is a New York State entry in the growing number of programs that emphasize treatment rather than long prison sentences for nonviolent substance-abusing offenders. This report on the implementation of the three-phase, 15-month Extended Willard pilot program evaluates enrollment, completion rates for participants, and the way that criminal justice agencies and non-governmental treatment providers work together to run the program. Results show that creation of new sentencing options may not be sufficient to change sentencing practices.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 10, No. 4

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:41 -0500

Research Department alumni take varied career paths by Robin Campbell -- From the Director: Working inside the grid by Christopher Stone -- For the police, a good first impression could be crucial by Jennifer Trone -- Focus on: Senior Research Analyst Don Stemen, interviewed by Brenner Brown -- Public defenders need public support in U.S. and South Africa by Robin Campbell -- News and announcements

A short history of Vera's work on sentencing and corrections

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:50 -0500

Since its founding in 1961, Vera has mounted a wide range of research, demonstration, and technical assistance projects in the area of sentencing and corrections. Vera's strategy for spurring innovation has been to advance each of the purposes criminal sentences serve, often simultaneously, resisting temptation to privilege any one purpose or constituency.

Portland Police Bureau: officer-involved shootings and in-custody deaths

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:03 -0500

This PARC report is a review of the 32 officer-involved shootings and two in-custody deaths that occurred in the city of Portland between 1997-2000. The purpose of the review was to identify issues relating to policy and quality of investigations that the Portland Police Bureau needs to address.

Common ground and crosscutting themes on funding public security initatives in Latin America

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:21 -0500

Crime and the quality of policing have become matters of profound and immediate importance to international foundations working to build democratic capacity in developing countries. In September 2002, the Ford Foundation, the Centro de Estudios Legales y Sociales / CELS (Center for Legal and Social Studies), and Vera organized a meeting of donor organizations engaged in Latin America to begin a collective discussion of public security and police reform initiatives in the region.

Dollars and sentences: legislators' views on prisons, punishment, and the budget crisis

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:22 -0500

In spring 2003, state legislatures faced with the worst budget crises in a generation scrambled for ways to cut corrections spending without jeopardizing public safety and confidence. In cooperation with the National Conference of State Legislatures, Vera's State Sentencing and Corrections Program brought together a diverse, bipartisan group of state representatives and senators with experience and interest in corrections and sentencing policy to talk about the impact of the budget crisis on criminal justice policies.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 10, No. 3

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:41 -0500

Bringing clinical supervision into the field by Evan Elkin -- From the Director: The future of prosecution by Christopher Stone -- Researchers work to curb repeat sexual assault by Marni Finkelstein -- Focus on: Senior Planner Marcy Viboch, interviewed by Brenner Brown -- Budget crunch reshaping corrections by Robin Campbell -- News and announcements

Improving public defense systems: good practices for federal panel attorney programs

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:24 -0500

How can courts better meet the requirements of Gideon v. Wainright, the Supreme Court decision that guaranteed criminal defendants a right to representation regardless of their ability to pay? As part of its strategic planning process, the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts asked Vera to identify and discuss good practices for selecting, managing, appointing, and compensating private counsel, or "panel attorneys," in federal courts.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 10, No. 2

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:41 -0500

Greenlight, in transition, sharing lessons about reentry by Robin Campbell -- From the director: What works to reduce crime? by Christopher Stone -- La Bodega wins Innovations in American Government Award by Leah Edmunds -- Focus on: Center for Justice Assistance Director Melanie Peyser, interviewed by Jennifer Trone -- Mellon Fellow Geoff Ward reflects on his time at Vera by Leah Edmunds -- News and announcements

Just 'Cause, Vol. 10, No. 1

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:41 -0500

New project offers hope for youth and their families by Brenner Brown -- From the Director: Peace and justice by Christopher Stone -- Effective plea and sentence bargaining in South Africa by Francis James -- Focus on: Senior Planner Jon Wool interviewed by Robin Campbell -- Sally Hillsman and Orlando Rodriguez join Vera Board by Leah Edmunds -- News and announcements

Democratic Policing Exchange, April 2003

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:49 -0500

Democratic Policing Exchange, a semi-annual newsletter on public safety and police accountability, is produced by the Vera Institute of Justice for the Ford Foundation.

Empirical strategies to strengthen policy environments in the justice sector

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:22 -0500

In this paper, Vera Director Chris Stone explores how testing potential solutions to problems of injustice and objectively evaluating the results of those experiments can strengthen the complex and shifting environment in which public policy is created. In his view, real-world experiments not only promise to solve particular problems, they create an appetite among government leaders at all levels for an objective and grounded approach to reform that actually makes the policy environment more legitimate and effective.

Implementing a school safety project: an evaluation of the I.S. 275 Brownsville Youth for Peace School Safety Project

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:24 -0500

In 1999, students, teachers, and staff at Intermediate School 275 in Brooklyn, New York, created the Brownsville Youth for Peace safety project with a $120,000 federal grant. In this publication, Vera researchers report on how the school implemented the project and the challenges it faced, which are common among schools that have implemented safety projects.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 9, No. 6

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:40 -0500

Promoting a safe return for ex-offenders and their families by Leah Edmunds -- From the director: Why police reform now? by Christopher Stone -- Vera helps Punjab police shape reform by Jill Pope -- Focus on: Senior Research Associate Rob Davis, interviewed by Janet Mandelstam -- Web site sees growth in content and visitors by John McCrory -- News and announcements

Summaries of reports prepared by the Vera Institute of Justice in partnership with NYC Administration for Children’s Services

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:52 -0500

ACS; Safe and Smart; Adolescent Pathways; PINS; Incarcerated mothers

Justice and safety for all: promoting dialogue between public defenders and victim advocates

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:25 -0500

The lawyers who defend individuals charged with domestic violence and the advocates who work just as passionately for the rights and needs of victims tend to fall into opposing camps. Misunderstanding, suspicion, and occasionally open hostility exist between these professionals. Yet because defenders and advocates often serve the same families, improving their relationship is part of providing just and safe resolutions in domestic violence cases.

Respite care: a promising reponse to status offenders at risk of court-ordered placements

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:50 -0500

What happens when a teenager routinely skips school, runs away, or engages in other destructive behaviors? Most states have a system in place to assess and refer these "status offenders" and their parents to agencies in the community that can be of help. But by that time, some parents have hit their breaking point and just want the teen out of the house and in a safe and controlled environment.

Good practices for federal panel attorney programs: a preliminary study of plans and practices

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:57 -0500

This report, prepared for the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, is based upon an analysis conducted by Vera researchers of the written panel plans of all 94 districts, as well as discussions with judges, defenders, panel attorney representatives, and court administrators. It identifies good practices in areas such as the selection of attorneys to the panel, their appointment in individual cases, panel administration, and compensation. It also identifies notable state court practices.

Approaches to truancy prevention

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:18 -0500

Interagency collaboration; Model programs; Prevention; Intervention; Court diversion

Just 'Cause, Vol. 9, No. 5

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:40 -0500

South Africans Gather Ideas for New Juvenile Justice System by Robin Campbell -- From the Director: Reducing Violence Against Women by Christopher Stone -- João H. Costa Vargas is Third Mellon Fellow by Leah Edmunds -- Kevin Keenan is New Legal Department Fellow by Brenner Brown -- Focus On: Senior Research Associate Joel Miller interviewed by Jill Pope -- Funders of Policing Reform Gather at Argentine Conference by Francis James -- News and Announcements

Democratic Policing Exchange, October 2002

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:48 -0500

How can citizen surveys, computerized crime mapping, and civilian oversight mechanisms positively influence policing? These topics, which were the focus of the first three global meetings on policing in democratic societies, are featured in this new newsletter. Democratic Policing Exchange, a semi-annual newsletter on public safety and police accountability, is produced by the Vera Institute of Justice for the Ford Foundation.

Building public confidence in police through civilian oversight

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:19 -0500

International cooperation; Oversight mechanisms; Democratic policing

Civilian oversight of policing: lessons from the literature

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:21 -0500

This paper reviews the English language literature on the civilian oversight of police. It was prepared for the third global meeting on Policing in Democratic Societies, which took place in Los Angeles in May 2002.

Civilian oversight of the police in democratic societies

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:21 -0500

In democratic societies, the police are accountable for many things and to many different people. Most prominently, police are accountable for the effectiveness with which they deal with crime and disorder, as well as for the legality, professionalism, and respect with which they treat people. While authoritarian police are accountable only to their superiors, democratic police are accountable to a multiplicity of bodies.

The Network Program of Episcopal Social Services: a process evaluation

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:33 -0500

The Network Program of the private nonprofit Episcopal Social Services provides therapeutic community services within New York State correctional and work-release facilities. This study examines how the program successfully integrated itself into the corrections environment by taking steps to gain buy-in from prison officials and staff. It also uncovers differences between the prison and work-release portions of the program.

Turning necessity into virtue: Pittsburgh's experience with a federal consent decree

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:35 -0500

In 1997, the Justice Department for the first time used its power to sue a city over a “pattern or practice” of policing that violated federal law or the U.S. Constitution. The department entered into a five-year consent degree with the city of Pittsburgh that police officials and civil rights groups generally view as a success in terms of increasing police accountability and improving officer training.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 9, No. 4

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:40 -0500

APT treats the problems underlying teenage substance abuse by Jennifer Trone -- From the director: justice and hope by Christopher Stone -- Summer interns explore justice, expand horizons by Michelle M. Beck -- Focus on: State Sentencing and Corrections Director Dan Wilhelm, interviewed by Robin Campbell -- Tim Ross becomes Research Director by Leah Edmunds -- News and announcements

Prolonged pretrial detention in Haiti

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:26 -0500

There are now twice as many inmates in Haiti's prisons than in 1995, and nearly eighty percent of them have not even been charged. With support from the Open Society Insitute and the United Nations Development Program, Vera assembled a team of researchers to revisit Haiti's often-studied but never-solved problem of prolonged pretrial detention and the related issue of poor prison conditions.

Respite care: an alternative to foster care for status offenders in New York City

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:29 -0500

Most adolescents who skip school, run away, or rebel in other ways do not need to be placed in foster care. Across the country, however, parents desperate to control children who engage in what the justice system calls "status offenses" are turning to government as a last resort. Their children might spend months in a foster care group home, but these families are unlikely to receive the help they need. This publication explores the problem nationally and in New York and outlines a potential alternative—respite care.

What keeps children in foster care from succeeding in schools? Views of early adolescents and the adults in their lives

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:36 -0500

As a group, children in foster care struggle academically. Researchers interviewed 25 foster children and 54 of the adults in their lives to better understand how being in foster care affects a child's education, and how adults can help them succeed in school. Foster children faced unique roadblocks, among them concerns about their biological parents and siblings that distract from school, and court appearances and doctors' appointments that cause frequent absences.

La detention preventive prolongee en Haiti

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:49 -0500

Il y a présentement deux fois plus de détenus dans des prisons de Haïti qu'en 1995 dont environ 80% attendent d'être jugés. Avec l'appui de la Open Society Institute et le Programme des Nations Unies pour le développement (PNUD), Vera a rassemblé une équipe de chercheurs afin de revoir le problème souvent étudié mais jamais résolu de la détention préventive prolongée et les problèmes des mauvaises conditions des prisons.

Second report of the monitor [of the town of Walkill (N.Y.) police department]

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:56 -0500

The second report of Dean Esserman (the monitor) and the Police Assessment Resource Center (PARC) on implementation of the consent decree agreed to by the Town of Wallkill and the New York State Attorney General concerning the functioning of the Wallkill Police Department.

Is the budget crisis changing the way we look at sentencing and incarceration?

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:37 -0500

This Issue in Brief from the State Sentencing and Corrections Program reviews states' recent approaches to reducing the fiscal impacts of incarceration.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 9, No. 3

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:40 -0500

Affirm Promotes Positive Reinforcement in City Schools by Robin Campbell -- From the Director: A New Era in Policing by Christopher Stone -- New Justice Alliance Connects Reformers Around the World by Jennifer Trone -- Focus On: General Counsel Karen Goldstein interviewed by Leah Edmunds -- What's in a Name? For Vera Projects, it's Inspiration or Deliberation by Robin Campbell -- News and Announcements

Balancing punishment and treatment: alternatives to incarceration in New York City

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:19 -0500

Felony offenders

Families as a resource in recovery from drug abuse: an evaluation of La Bodega de la Familia

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:23 -0500

This report evaluates La Bodega de la Familia (The Family Grocery), a program in New York City that works with the families of drug users who are under justice system supervision, with the goal of promoting the users' recovery. Researchers compared outcomes for Bodega participants with outcomes for a comparison group of drug users and family members, and conducted in-depth interviews with a subsample of both groups.

Issues of consistency in the federal death penalty: a roundtable discussion on the role of the U.S. Attorney

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:25 -0500

U.S. Attorneys are the first line of decision makers in the process that identifies which cases may be subject to the federal death penalty. A Justice Department survey released in 2000 showed that since the mid-1990s, when the number federal death penalty-eligible crimes was greatly expanded, a disproportionate number of defendants considered for the sanction were minorities. The Vera Institute of Justice convened a roundtable of former U.S. Attorneys who served during the study period to discuss what role, if any, their decision making process played in the imbalance.

Pardons and amnesties in Russia: clarifying the differences

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:27 -0500

A new system of pardons being implemented in Russia may not result in large numbers of prisoners being released. Mounting concern about crime and delinquency, the lack of funds for probation services, and greater public scrutiny of the pardon process are likely to make the newly created Regional Pardon Commissions move cautiously.

Racial profiling

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:28 -0500

This paper from the Police Assessment Resource Center (PARC) discusses the disparate impact of our criminal justice system on racial and ethnic minorities and suggests some new ways to analyze the troublesome issue.

Supervised treatment in the criminal court: a process evaluation of the Manhattan Misdemeanor Drug Court

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:30 -0500

The Manhattan Misdemeanor Treatment Court is the only one of five treatment courts in New York City to solely target misdemeanor offenders. Based on a review of court documents and interviews with judges, attorneys, treatment providers, and offenders, this report concludes that the court successfully implemented a collaborative approach to screen, assess, and monitor people in treatment. But more than three-quarters of its participants said cocaine or heroin was their drug of choice, suggesting that severity of addiction is not correlated with severity of offending among this group.

A study of the PINS system in New York City: results and implications

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:17 -0500

Persons in need of supervision (PINS); Group homes; Petitions

Dreams, gangs, and guns: the interplay between adolescent violence and immigration in a New York City neighborhood

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:22 -0500

To prevent violence among adolescents, we must understand its causes. This report draws on five years of field work in an immigrant community in New York City to describe how the generation gap separating immigrant adolescents from their parents, made wider by immigration, leads these children to rely on violent peer groups for protection. Previous research has tried to explain adolescent violence among immigrants in terms of cultural alienation, but this research suggests that much violence among immigrant adolescents is a pragmatic response to neighborhood conditions.

Sueños, bandas y pistolas: la interacción entre la violencia adolescente y la inmigración en un vecindario de Nueva York

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:30 -0500

Para prevenir la violencia entre los adolescentes, debemos entender sus causas. Este informe se basa en un trabajo de campo realizado durante cinco años en una comunidad inmigrante de la ciudad de Nueva York con la intención de describir cómo el salto generacional que separa a los adolescente de sus padres, ampliado por la inmigración, lleva a estos adolescentes a confiar en grupos violentos de compañeros para su protección.

Working together to improve school safety: an evaluation of the Park West Problem-Solving Collaborative Initiative

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:36 -0500

In light of growing concerns about school safety at the local and national level and particularly at Manhattan's troubled Park West High School, The Citizens Committee for New York City, the New York City Police Department Division of School Safety, and the city's Board of Education created the Park West Problem Solving Collaborative Initiative. The project brought together students, teachers, parents, and school safety agents to design and implement their own school safety projects.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 9, No. 2

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:40 -0500

New national program focuses on justice for youth by Jennifer Trone -- From the director: Two theories of legal reform by Christopher Stone -- Vera alum reflects by Marcy Ross -- Vera Welcomes Russell Pomeranz as COO/CFO by Leah Edmunds -- Focus on: Ford Foundation Program Officer Elizabeth Leeds interviewed by Jill Pope -- Crime mapping goes global at Brazil conference by John Markovic -- News and announcements

Crime mapping and the policing of democratic societies

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:22 -0500

In democratic societies, police are ultimately accountable to the citizens, usually through interaction with public-interest groups or through the media. Yet, police also must answer directly to an internal command structure and to governing officials. These multiple sources of accountability sometimes create differing expectations. Computerized crime mapping, when thoughtfully implemented, can help police balance these interests. It is a versatile tool that can simultaneously enhance police accountability to the public, foster organizational efficiency and promote public safety.

Democratic Policing Exchange, May 2002

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:03 -0500

Mini-version of DPE containing active policing-related Ford grants, recent publications, and upcoming meetings and conferences

Prosecution task force on car-hijacking: final evaluation report

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:28 -0500

When a wave of violent car-hijackings in South Africa made headlines around the world several years ago, the nation's justice system was unable to adequately handle this new category of crime. Cases took seven to nine months to finalize, and the conviction rate in Johannesburg was under 10 percent. Then, in March 1999, the National Directorate of Public Prosecutions created the Prosecution Task Force on Car-Hijacking in collaboration with Vera's South African Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA).

Just 'Cause, Vol. 9, No. 1

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:39 -0500

The administration of justice under emergency conditions -- From the director: Another school shooting by Christopher Stone -- Safe and Smart winds down, advances program goals by Leah Edmunds -- Vera rolls out flexible software for demonstration projects by Jill Pope -- Focus on: International Programs Analyst Emma Phillips, interviewed by Leah Edmunds -- News and announcements

Effects of state victim rights legislation on local criminal justice systems

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:55 -0500

All fifty states, as well as the federal government, now have victim rights legislation prescribing how victims should be treated. In many cases, rights to information about court events, bail release decisions, compensation, and restitution are standard. In spite of great strades that have been made in law, research studies indicate that many victims do not find their new rights honored in practice. Our research investigated these concerns.

The administration of justice under emergency conditions: lessons following the attack on the World Trade Center

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:31 -0500

In the first hours and days after the terrorist attack on September 11, the courts in lower Manhattan were inaccessible; prosecutors and defense lawyers lost access to phones, files, and computers; and police officers were not available to testify at hearings and trials. How did the justice system cope under these conditions? With clear direction from New York State's chief judge, the courts were determined to reopen and to conduct business as usual at the earliest possible date.

First report of the monitor [of the town of Wallkill (N.Y.) police department]

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:56 -0500

The first report of Dean Esserman (the Monitor) and the Police Assessment Resource Center (PARC) on implementation of the Consent Decree agreed to by the Town of Wallkill and the New York State Attorney General concerning the functioning of the Wallkill Police Department.

How children's foster care experiences affect their education

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:24 -0500

Using a combined database of school and child welfare records for more than 16,000 foster children, researchers considered the impact of such factors as length of stay in care, type of foster home, history of running away, and reason for entering foster care on children's educational experiences. Foster care had a strong effect on children's attendance and school transfers but only minor effects on their reading and math test scores.

Reducing the foster care bias in juvenile detention decisions: the impact of Project Confirm

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:28 -0500

Children in foster care who are arrested for delinquent acts are more likely than other children to be sent to juvenile detention to await their trials, even when they are charged with the same type of crime as their nonfoster peers. The results can be damaging for the children and expensive for taxpayers. For the first time anywhere, this report quantifies the foster care bias in detention decisions and shows that a relatively simple intervention can eliminate it for juveniles facing low-level offenses and with no prior records.

The experiences of early adolescents in foster care in New York City: analysis of the 1994 cohort

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:32 -0500

Adolescents account for almost half of New York City's foster kids, yet relatively little is known about their experiences in foster care. Adolescents present a different set of challenges than younger children, for whom adoption or reunification are standard options. Using data from the Administration for Children's Services, this report describes the experiences of more than 2,000 adolescents who entered foster care for the first time in New York City in 1994.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 8, No. 6

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:39 -0500

U.S. Attorneys debate federal death penalty by Robin Campbell -- From the director: Justice in New York City by Christopher Stone -- Vera's analysis of the PINS system by Jill Pope -- Vera hosts and mentors international staff by Patricia Diez -- Focus on: Linda Romney, Facilities Director, interviewed by Jill Pope -- Project Confirm becomes part of ACS by Robin Campbell -- News and announcements

A short history of Vera's work on institutions for youth

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:50 -0500

Vera's work with young people — from our early research on violent delinquents to our latest demonstration projects focusing on kids in foster care — has given us valuable knowledge about juveniles themselves, and about the systems that serve them. This brief history chronicles Vera's work in this area while highlighting key findings and results. It also includes a timeline of Vera projects and a bibliography.

Prosecution task force on car-hijacking: final evaluation report

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:56 -0500

This report releases the findings and evaluation on the Prosecution Task Force on Car-Hijacking from March 1999 until September 2000. The Task Force was designed to ensure speedier resolution of cases, more effective investigations and prosecutions, and better services for victims.

Bolder management for public defense: leadership in three dimensions

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:57 -0500

The boldest managers of public defense organizations are getting out from behind their desks and expanding their work environments. Understanding the potential of embracing a bolder form of leadership, these defense leaders have moved into new dimensions of public defense.

Changing the PINS system in New York: a study of the implications of raising the age limit for persons in need of supervision

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:20 -0500

Persons in need of supervision (PINS); Age limits; Petitions

Reinforcing positive student behavior to prevent school violence: enhancing the role of school safety agents

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:29 -0500

In 1998, when New York City transferred responsibility for its 3,500 school safety officers from the Board of Education to the police department, it was part of a nationwide trend. The U.S. Department of Justice, through its office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), was encouraging officials across the country to place law enforcement personnel inside schools in order to improve student safety. Police and school officials in New York believed they could work together to refine the school safety agents' role and effectiveness.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 8, No. 5

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:39 -0500

From the director: Fresh passion for justice by Christopher Stone -- Melanie Peyser is new CJA Director by Dan Currie -- BJA launches second rape care centre by Kelly Ramundo -- Focus on: PARC Director Merrick Bobb, interviewed by Kelly Ramundo -- Vera welcomes second Mellon Fellow by Kelly Ramundo -- News and announcements

Access to justice for immigrants who are victimized: the perspectives of police and prosecutors

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:05 -0500

Employing survey methodology, this research describes the barriers that immigrants encounter in accessing justice, as they emerged from the responses of police chiefs and prosecutors. Criminal justice officials believe that failure to report crimes and to cooperate in their prosecution is a significant problem, especially for domestic violence offenses.

Results from an elder abuse prevention experiment in New York City

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:01 -0500

A significant amount of research has been conducted on ways to reduce abuse against women and children, but very little research has been done on the domestic abuse of elderly persons. The lack of a good understanding of elder abuse and its consequences is worrisome. Virtually all state agencies charged with addressing the problem of elder abuse reported increases in their caseloads over the past decade.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 8, No. 4

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:39 -0500

Vera co-hosts international police accountability conferences by Emma Phillips -- From the director: Rehabilitation redux by Christopher Stone -- A hummingbird's view of justice reform in Chile by Joe Hirsch -- Focus on: NAP Senior Program Associate Tina Chiu, interviewed by Jane Grabias -- Vera to launch redesigned web site next month by John McCrory -- News and announcements

A short history of Vera's work on crime and victimization

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:50 -0500

Over the years, Vera has mounted a wide range of research, demonstration, and technical assistance projects in the area of crime and victimization. Each of these projects furthers one or more of three broad commitments: to trace the origins, incidence, and nature of crime; to make victims' concerns central to the judicial process; and to develop analytic tools that help government accomplish more with each response. This brief history chronicles Vera's work in this area while highlighting key findings and results. It also includes a timeline of Vera projects and a bibliography.

A short history of Vera’s work on policing

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:52 -0500

For nearly forty years, Vera has helped police departments, nonprofit organizations, and governments around the world develop and test innovations that reduce crime and promote efficient policing while minimizing intrusions on people’s liberty. This work emphasizes accountability as the most important tool for improving police services. Accountability helps to reduce crime, builds stronger relationships between law enforcement and the communities officers serve, and encourages collaboration between the many groups interested in public safety.

A system in transition: an analysis of New York City's foster care system at the year 2000

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:17 -0500

Placements

A defender's guide to leadership training

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:36 -0500

A defender's guide to leadership training is the fourth and final booklet in the National Defender Leadership Project's Ultimate Advocacy series. The first three introduced strategic management, reflective practice, and asset-based management, strategies that can help defender leaders solve problems, strengthen relationships, and build support for their agencies, as well as the cause of indigent defense.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 8, No. 4

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:43 -0500

Vera Co-Hosts International Police Accountability Conferences by Emma Phillips -- From the Director: Rehabilitation Redux by Christopher Stone -- A Hummingbird’s View of Justice Reform in Chile by Joe Hirsch -- Focus On: NAP Senior Program Associate Tina Chiu interviewed by Jane Grabias -- Vera to Launch Redesigned Web Site by John McGrory -- News and Announcements

Just 'Cause, Vol. 8, No. 3

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:39 -0500

Ending Violence in South Africa, Piece by Piece by Jane Grabias -- From the Director: Ex-offenders as Responsible Fathers by Christopher Stone -- Janet Mandelstam to Lead Communications Department by Jane Grabias -- NDLP Transfers Lessons to Next Generation by Melissa M. Beck -- Focus On: Evan Elkin, Clinical Director of PAT interviewed by David Ries -- Conference Center Honors the Spirit of Innovation by Dan Currie -- News and Announcements

Treatment alternatives in the criminal court: a process evaluation of the Bronx County Drug Court

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:35 -0500

Describes findings from an eighteen-month evaluation of Bronx County's first drug court. The process evaluation describes the court's planning process and operations, as well as preliminary rates of retention.

A model for school safety planning: assessing the accomplishments of two Brooklyn neighborhoods in the first year

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:17 -0500

Safe corridors; Incident reporting; Communitywide planning; Interagency collaboration

Classifying inmates for strategic programming

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:21 -0500

In an effort to improve its methods of selecting jail inmates appropriate for drug treatment, the New York City Department of Corrections (DOC) asked Vera to design and test models that could predict length of stay. This presents the result of that work.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 8, No. 2

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:38 -0500

Vera co-hosts judicial institute on domestic violence by Jennifer Coughlin -- From the director: Ending bias against foster children by Christopher Stone -- Increasing the impact and value of Vera's research by Jane Grabias and Rachel Porter -- Vera welcomes new trustees by Dan Currie -- Focus on: Senior Researcher Jon Sorensen, interviewed by Emily Futransky -- Making programs flexible, nonsequential, and even portable by Jane Grabias -- News and announcements

Serving incarcerated and ex-offender fathers and their families: a review of the field

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:30 -0500

This publication is a review of materials developed and disseminated by programs serving prisoners or low income fathers and their families.

Final report of the National Defender Leadership Project

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:58 -0500

The final report on the initial set of grants for the National Defender Leadership Project (NDLP) details the project's aims, activities and accomplishments during the first four years. NDLP was a response to a persistent problem: public defenders' absence when criminal justice policy was being set. Judges, police chiefs, prosecutors and sheriffs were used to collaborating. Defenders were often unsure how to make their perspectives known and suffered accordingly.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 8, No. 1

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:38 -0500

Vera and New York State test pre-release project by Marta Nelson -- From the director: Victim rights in practice by Christopher Stone -- Vera convenes researchers to advance study of racial profiling by Jane Grabias -- Brief perspectives on issues that matter by Nicholas Turner -- Focus on: Anne Fuller, International Programs Department, interviewed by Joe Hirsch -- Vera hires new general counsel by Dan Currie -- News and announcements

The community and the police in a large city

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:57 -0500

This report is translated from Russian. The materials presented in the report are the result of the third stage of the study "The Public and the Police in a Large City, started in 1999 by the center for the Study of Deviant Behavior. The special feature of this third phase is the opportunity to make a comparative analysis of the results of the three annual surveys of the population in St. Petersburg (1999,2000,2001), and also surveys of the population in Volgograd (a large city) and Borovichi (a small town) in 2001.

Adolescent Portable Therapy (APT) for the juvenile justice system

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:00 -0500

The Vera Institute of Justice and the New York City Department of Juvenile Justice have developed a model of portable drug treatment designed to begin treating the most serious drug abusers as soon as they enter detention and provide care without interruption. By identifying heavy users and giving detention authorities a new treatment option, Vera hopes to overcome obstacles to starting treatment at the earliest possible moment.

Arrested development: substance abuse and mental illness among juveniles detained in New York City

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:18 -0500

Global Appraisal of Individual Needs (GAIN); Substance dependence; Conduct disorders; Trauma

The nuts and bolts of implementing school safety programs

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:33 -0500

Helps teachers, principals, and school administrators identify effective and appropriate school safety programs. The manual identifies programs from around the country and describes the resources needed to implement each program.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 7, No. 6

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:44 -0500

Project in Russia seeks to reduce overcrowding in cetention by Todd Foglesong -- From the director: Vengeance in sentencing by Christopher Stone -- New fellowship supports research exploring issues of race by Jill Pope -- Focus on: Visiting Scholars Luiz and Barbara Soares, interviewed by Sarah Dadush -- Crime-mapping system goes on-line by Dan Currie -- Vera welcomes first Director of International Programs by Jane Grabias -- News and announcements -- Safe and Smart treats children to summer fun by Jane Grabias

Arrest and incarceration among mothers of foster children

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:53 -0500

The Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) requested that researchers from the Vera Institute of Justice examine patterns of arrest, incarceration, and foster care placement among mothers of foster children in New York City. The research drew on a match of records from ACS; New York State’s Office of Children and Family Services, Department of Corrections, and Division of Criminal Justice Services; and the New York City Department of Correction.

Joint Committee on School Safety: first annual report

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:05 -0500

In the past, the Board of Education has relied primarily upon its Division of School Safety to maintain order in schools. Security issues, however, continue to become more complex and challenging. Acting in a spirit of mutual cooperation to strengthen their efforts to safeguard children and enhance safety and security, the Chancellor, the Board of Education and the City entered into an agreement on September 17, 1998 to implement a joint program between the Board of Education and the New York City Police Department (NYPD).

Why planning for release matters

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:38 -0500

This Issue in Brief from the State Sentencing and Corrections Program describes the strategies employed by some corrections officials that could be modified to work in other jurisdictions. This reports ends with specific suggestions for planning pre-release services, including considerations of cost.

Short history of Vera's work on youth safety and justice

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:01 -0500

A short history of Vera's work on youth safety and justice.

Five years of jury reform: what jurors are saying

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:23 -0500

Five Years of Jury Reform: What Jurors Are Saying discusses substantive jury reforms and jurors’ evaluations of the reforms during the Citizens Jury Project’s five-year demonstration phase. Since April 2000, the Fund for Modern Courts has operated the project.

Implementing a drug court in Queens County: a process evaluation

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:24 -0500

The report is the first of three studies assessing the implementation of drug courts in New York City.

Testing community supervision for the INS: an evaluation of the Appearance Assistance Program

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:31 -0500

In 1996, the Immigration and Naturalization Service asked Vera to establish a supervised release project for people in removal proceedings in New York City. The INS goal was the explore supervision and evaluate its effect on people's rates of appearance in court and compliance with court ruling compared to other alternatives to detention already used by the agency, such as bond, parole, and release on recognizance.

The public accountability of private police: lessons from New York, Johannesburg, and Mexico City

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:34 -0500

This paper looks at how private police are actually held accountable through a set of three case studies drawn from different countries. The literature on private policing is remarkably uninformed by empirical data, although a few works have investigated the scope of private policing through interviews with people working in the industry. It is our hope that the case studies will help to fill this gap in the literature.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 7, No. 5

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:44 -0500

Portable drug treatment for teens in juvenile detention by Jean Callahan -- From the director: National politics in everyday life by Christopher Stone -- Broadening the view of school safety by Jane Grabias -- Focus on: Field Coordinator David Ries, interviewed by Dan Currie -- ARTC creates network of health and human services by Jane Grabias -- News and announcements -- New director takes the helm at South African BJA -- La Bodega celebrates Latino heritage of Lower East Side by Jill Pope

Democratic Policing Exchange, Spring/Summer 2000

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:03 -0500

Democratic Policing Exchange, a semi-annual newsletter on public safety and police accountability, is produced by the Vera Institute of Justice for the Ford Foundation. Contents: Center for Constitutional Rights pushes for changes in policing by Jill Pope -- NGOs use police reform to curb violence against women by Sarah Dadush -- Helping communities in Nairobi take the lead by Heather Ward -- Policing news and trends -- Active policing-related grants by the Ford Foundation,

School violence: the bi-directional flow between neighborhood and school

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:29 -0500

In this paper the author explores the interrelationship between school and neighborhood violence through ethnographic data collected over two years in a New York City middle school. The author presents a bi-directional flow of adolescent conflict by analyzing incidents taking place outside the school that initially originated in the school setting and other incidents of conflict occurring in school that initiated in the surrounding neighborhood. The research shows the effect of school and neighborhood structures on adolescent violence, concluding that school violence is clearly contextual.

The use of citizen surveys as a tool for police reform

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:34 -0500

Citizen surveys, long used by researchers to test hypotheses about police-citizen interactions, have recently be deployed as a tool for promoting police reform. This paper examines the citizen survey's potential role in creating more accountable and effective police forces, drawing on examples from Chicago, Illinois; Queens, New York; and St. Petersburg, Russia. The study provided the framework for an international meeting on the use of citizen surveys as a tool for police reform, one of a series of meetings on democratic policing hosted by Vera and supported by the Ford Foundation.

Moving forward: the role of legal counsel in New York City immigration courts

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:59 -0500

The report focuses on comparative rates of representation, search for legal counsel by noncitizens, and the effects of representation (or lack thereof) on Immigration Court proceedings and outcomes. We conducted interviews and observations and obtained information on rates of representation and case outcomes for New York City. We also obtained data for other jurisdictions to see if the experience in New York City was unique or representative of the country as a whole.

Alternative-to-incarceration programs for felony offenders: progress report and preliminary findings from a recidivism analysis

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:18 -0500

Treatment needs; Central Court Screening Service; Program completion

Just 'Cause, Vol. 7, No. 4

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:44 -0500

BJA confronts rape in South Africa by Michelle India Baird -- From the director: Building respectful workplaces by Christopher Stone -- Citizens Jury Project spins off to join the Fund for Modern Courts by Jane Grabias -- Focus on: Senior Researcher Rob Davis, interviewed by Jane Grabias -- Neighborhood Youth & Family Services keeps families together by Jane Grabias -- News and announcements -- Vera welcomes Marsha Hahn as CFO/COO -- Vera moves into new office

Introducing innovations at police roll calls: lessons from four Vera projects

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:05 -0500

This paper reviews the experiences of four Vera projects that have asked police officers to change their routines in some way. Each has used police roll call meetings to provide background information to police or to train officers in new procedures necessary to the implementation of the demonstration. Based on the experiences of project staff, the paper draws lessons that may be relevant to future efforts to engage police.

The Appearance Assistance Program: an alternative to detention for noncitizens in U.S. immigration removal proceedings

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:32 -0500

In this speech, Appearance Assistance Program (AAP) director Oren Root places the AAP in the context of U.S. immigration enforcement policy and discusses the AAP's success as an alternative to detention for noncitizens in removal proceedings.

A defender's guide to asset-based management

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:36 -0500

A defender's guide to asset-based management is the third booklet in the National Defender Leadership Project's Ultimate Advocacy series.

Do drug courts save jail and prison bed space?

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:37 -0500

The first Issue in Brief from the State Sentencing and Corrections Program reviews the latest research on drug courts and bed space, and offers practical advice on how to conserve correctional resources in the short term and over time.

Supervised release as an alternative to detention in removal proceedings: some promising results of a demonstration project

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:59 -0500

This essay discuses supervised release as an alternative to detention in removal proceedings for illegal immigrants. The INS asked Vera to test such an approach in New York City beginning in February 1997. In August 1998, the INS extended the experiment to include people who arrive at Kennedy Airport, seek asylum, and have a credible fear of persecution in their own countries.

Prosecution task force on car-hijacking: a project of the South African National Director of Public Prosecutions

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:27 -0500

In March 1999, South Africa's National Prosecuting Authority launched the Prosecution Task Force on Car-Hijacking, with the support of the Bureau of Justice Assistance. Based at the Johannesburg Magistrates court, and under the direction of Andre de Vries, the Task Force now handles all car-hijacking cases in Johannesburg, excluding Soweto. This paper provides an evaluation of the Prosecution Task Force, one year after its inception.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 7, No. 3

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:44 -0500

AAP proves community supervision is effective by Oren Root -- From the director: investing in school safety by Christopher Stone -- Vera works with police officials in India by Hema Sareen -- Public defenders step into the spotlight by Kirsten Levingston -- Focus on: Senior Planner Jean Callahan interviewed by Catherine Berryman -- Thirty years later, Project Renewal still helps people find independence by Jill Pope -- New publications fund supports researchers by Jesse Souweine -- News and Announcements

A rape investigation in the Western Cape: a study of the treatment of rape victims at three police stations

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:17 -0500

Rape victims; Police investigations; Police procedures

Just 'Cause, Vol. 7, No. 2

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:45 -0500

Diversion program fills niche in New York by Doug Young and Robin Shacket -- From the director: Prosecuting police misconduct by Christopher Stone -- Vera studies prison-based parenting programs by Suzanne Menghraj -- Exploring violence among immigrant youth by Jill Pope -- Focus on: Safe and Smart’s Elizabeth Mayer and Carol Campbell, interviewed by Jane Grabias -- SSC links its associates through the web by Tina Chiu -- News and announcements

New York Family Court: court user perspectives

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:26 -0500

A report on the first-ever systematic survey of users of New York County Family Court. The report is based on interviews with more than 600 Family Court users in a seven-month period.

A defender's guide to reflective practice

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:35 -0500

A defender's guide to reflective practice, the second booklet in the National Defender Leadership Project's Ultimate Advocacy series, outlines a structured process that defender leaders can use to think about, and learn from, their experiences. It explains how reflective practice strengthens relationships (with the public and with other members of the criminal justice system), prevents misunderstandings, and helps defenders anticipate — and meet — leadership challenges.

Understanding adolescent violence: an ethnographic approach

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:36 -0500

In 1995, against a backdrop of mounting concern about violent teenagers, Vera launched a major ethnographic study of adolescent violence. Rather than focusing on the most extreme events or the broad trends reflected in official statistics, the Vera study sought to examine in depth the ordinary, daily lives of adolescents and the ways they encounter and deal with violence. This paper highlights some key findings that emerged.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 7, No. 1

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:45 -0500

Ex-offenders describe challenges of life after prison by Charlotte Allen -- From the director: Questions of justice by Christopher Stone -- Life after Vera by Dan Currie -- Confirm breaks the cycle of detention and replacement by Jane Grabias -- Focus on: Senior Research Associate Tim Ross, interviewed by Bari Lehrman -- Vera’s IRB safeguards people’s rights by Rachel Porter -- News and announcements

New York family court: court user perspectives

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:57 -0500

This report examines data from the first-ever systematic survey of Family Court users: both professional users (such as lawyers and caseworkers) and nonprofessional users (family members, teachers, and neighbors of the children and adults who depend on the court)

Democratic policing: a framework for action

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:00 -0500

Democratic policing; Police reform; International policing

Integrating family-focused interventions into the criminal justice system

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:25 -0500

This paper describes La Bodega de la Familia's innovative new treatment methodology, family case management. It concludes with suggestions for promising areas within the criminal justice system where this approach could be applied and training could be useful.

A defender's guide to strategic management

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:35 -0500

Ultimate Advocacy: A Defender's Guide to Strategic Management presents a framework defenders can use to tackle an array of management issues. It offers guidance on describing the benefits defender agencies provide to the public, identifying and securing support from the many parties with a stake in effective indigent defense, and finding resources to help defenders accomplish their mission.

Democratic Policing Exchange, Fall/Winter 1999

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:04 -0500

Democratic Policing Exchange, a semi-annual newsletter on public safety and police accountability, is produced by the Vera Institute of Justice for the Ford Foundation. Contents: A South African NGO targets police abuses by Michelle India Baird and Lindiwe Mtunzi --Promoting police reform through training: a look at some recent grants by the Ford Foundation" by Jane Grabias -- Supporting reform-minded police and prosectors in Russia by Heather Ward -- Policing news and trends -- Active policing-related grants by the Ford Foundation

Ten rules for making school safe harbors for learning

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:31 -0500

Ten Rules For Making Schools Safe Harbors for Learning is a speech that Vera's director Chris Stone delivered to the Annual Institute for Governors' Education Policy Advisors in October 1999. The speech, which draws primarily on Vera's past work with violence among adolescents and research on school safety programs in school systems nationwide, presents ten basic rules common to effective school safety programs.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 6, No. 5

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:45 -0500

BJA’s task force speeds prosecution of car hijackers by Michelle India Baird -- From the director: A dedicated life [Clayton Williams] by Christopher Stone -- Vera surveys school safety initiatives by Melorra Sochet -- Promoting innovations in government by Sarah Dadush -- Focus on: La Bodega’s Gloria Fontanez and Mary Harrington, interviewed by Jane Grabias -- Vera broadens its work on domestic violence -- News and announcements

The first month out: post-incarceration experiences in New York City

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:33 -0500

In 1999, researchers at the Vera Institute followed a group of 49 people who had just left a New York State prison or New York City jail to discover exactly what happens to them in the first month after release. Their stories reveal patterns of success and failure in the effort to find a place to live and land a job, to comply and feel satisfied with parole supervision, to reunite with family, to stay away from alcohol and drugs, and to avoid a return to crime. This study reveals why and how the initial re-entry period is so difficult for people.

Approaches to school safety in America's largest cities

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:18 -0500

Model programs; Innovations; Interagency collaboration; Incident reporting

Just 'Cause, Vol. 6, No. 4

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:45 -0500

Vera and Justice Department team up to improve sentencing by Nicholas Turner -- From the director: Facing deportation by Christopher Stone -- Life after Vera by Dan Currie -- Deconstructing justice by Jesse Souweine -- Focus on: Senior Planner Marta Nelson, interviewed by Charlotte Allen -- NDLP takes its show on the road by Dara Orenstein -- News and announcements

Alternative to incarceration programs for felony offenders in New York City

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:01 -0500

This is the second interim report being issued by the Vera Institute of Justice on New York City's alternative-to-incarceration (ATI) programs serving felony offenders. This report expands on findings from last year's reports.

Democratic Policing Exchange, Spring/Summer 1999

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:03 -0500

Democratic Policing Exchange, a semi-annual newsletter on public safety and police accountability, is produced by the Vera Institute of Justice for the Ford Foundation. Contents: A regional push for police reform in Central and Eastern Europe by Miriam Auckerman -- Bridging human rights and effective policing in Argentina by Heather Ward -- News and trends -- Recent grants in policing

Politics, public service, and professionalism: conflicting themes in the invention and evaluation of community prosecution

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:51 -0500

Community prosecution

When victims have a right to know: automating notification with VINE®

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:36 -0500

This report examines a handful of jurisdictions using a commercial system called VINE®, which stands for Victim Information and Notification Everyday. The VINE Company set up the first automated victim notification system four years ago in Jefferson County, Kentucky. It grew out of a murder that occurred a year earlier. A man accused of raping and kidnapping his ex-girlfriend posted bond, was released from a Louisville jail, and one week later, shot her to death. Manual notification procedures failed, and she had no warning of his release.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 6, No. 3

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:45 -0500

Jury project turns its lens on family courts by Julia Vitullo-Martin -- From the director: Violence prevention by Christopher Stone -- La Bodega addresses intersection of substance abuse and domestic violence by Jane Grabias -- Vera reports on new technologies for victims by Jennifer Trone -- Focus on: Safe and Smart Director Jennifer Crumpley, interviewed by Jane Grabias -- Victims’ rights database available by Perry Deess -- Survey of fatherhood programs by Suzanne Menghraj -- News and announcements

A collaborative evaluation of Pennsylvania's program for drug-involved parole violators

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:18 -0500

Residential Substance Abuse Treatment initiative; Halfway houses; Technical parole violations; Program completion

Just ’Cause, Vol. 6, No. 2

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:16 -0500

Police can fight crime while reducing complaints by Rob Davis -- From the director: Institutional racism by Christopher Stone -- Life After Vera: Bob Lonergan, Sally Hillsman, and Vaughn Jackson by Jane Grabias and Aaron Bloom -- Vera launches campaign for justice by Jesse Souweine -- Focus on: Librarian Cybele Merrick, interviewed by Catherine Stayton -- Vera hosts roundtable on legal counsel in immigration court by Felinda Mottino and Alison Ball -- New national assistance on sentencing and corrections by Jennifer Trone -- News and announcements

Respectful and effective policing: two examples in the South Bronx

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:29 -0500

This study examines two Bronx police precincts where commanders, counter to trends in most of New York City, have reduced civilian complaints about police conduct, even as their precincts shared the city's success in reducing crime.

Policiamento eficiente e com respeito: dois exemplos no South Bronx

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:50 -0500

This document is a Portuguese translation of "Respectful and Effective Policing," a study that examines two Bronx police precincts where commanders, counter to trends in most of New York City, have reduced civilian complaints about police conduct, even as their precincts shared the city's success in reducing crime.

Process and impact assessment of the pre-trial services demonstration project

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:58 -0500

An assessment of the pre-trial services project which aims to improve the integrity of the pre-trial process in South Africa, preventing dangerous, repeat offenders from being inappropriately released on bail while maximizing the release on warning or affordable bail of accused persons who do not pose a threat.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 6, No. 1

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:46 -0500

Foster care project goes full scale by Molly Armstrong -- From the director: An afterschool killing by Christopher Stone -- How do police view La Bodega? by Douglas Young -- Book praises Vera's program development by Nancy Vorsanger -- Focus on: Researcher Perry Deess, interviewed by Nancy Vorsanger -- Preparing for the Year 2000 by André Schklowsky -- Domestic violence experts discuss mediation by Nancy Cline -- News and announcements

Experience with and attitudes toward the police in immigrant communities

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:02 -0500

We propose to conduct an investigation into the extent to which awarness of community policing is penetrating immigrant communities. From a multi-ethnic neighborhood in Queens, New York with a high proportion of foreign born residents, we will survey representitive samples from nationalities. The groups will include two Asian, two Latino, and two European nationalities. Respondents will be asked about awareness of community policing, about the sources of their information, about perceptions of the police, and about crime reporting.

Mediation and domestic violence

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:52 -0500

On January 13, 1999, about 30 experts in different fields gathered to discuss a controversial subject, mediating between individuals who have a history of domestic violence as victim and abuser. The daylong meeting was organized by the Vera Institute of Justice in cooperation with the Violence Against Women Grants Office and the Violence Against Women Office and was facilitated by Vera’s director, Christopher Stone.

Vera Institute of Justice year 2000 report

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:58 -0500

Describes Vera's demonstration projects as of 2000: the Citizens Jury Project, the Appearance Assistance Program, La Bodega de la Familia, Project Confirm, and Safe and Smart. Discusses the agendas of Vera's research, planning, and technical assistance departments. Also describes Vera's involvement with the South African Bureau of Justice Assistance. Attached at the end are included details on the Campaign for Justice and the Consolidated Statement of Vera's Financial Position for 1997 and 1998.

Adolescent violence, state processes, and the local context of moral panic

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:01 -0500

The authors argue that recent societal reactions to youth violence can be characterized as a moral panic. They argue that the current moral panic over youth violence both arises from and has been contributing to a restructuring of the role of the state. This takes the form of reductions in public investment in social welfare and education and a concomitant transfer of resources to a more repressive apparatus of social control through policing and incarceration.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 5, No. 6

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:46 -0500

Research helps ACS improve family conferences by Dylan Conger -- From the director: Lessons from a budget feud by Christopher Stone -- La Bodega compiles cookbook by Amy Gong -- INS Commissioner visits AAP by Jennifer Trone -- Focus on: Special Counsel Nick Turner, interviewed by Nancy Vorsanger -- Vindicating the victims of police brutality by Alexis Agathocleous -- News and announcements

Democratic Policing Exchange, Fall/Winter 1998

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:04 -0500

Democratic Policing Exchange, a semi-annual newsletter on public safety and police accountability, is produced by the Vera Institute of Justice for the Ford Foundation. Contents: Rio NGO helps police and citizens overcome mistrust by Heather Ward -- Prosecuting police: Russians and Americans exchange ideas at a St. Petersburg Training Seminar by Miriam Auckerman -- Policing news and trends --Current policing-related grants by the Ford Foundation

Accused, their charges, and bail decisions in three South African magistrates courts

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:58 -0500

We are now measuring the impact of pre-trial services on bail decisions, witness and accused appearance rates, and the profile of the awaiting trial population. The South African Bureau of Justice Assistance has collected "baseline data" about bail decisions and accused appearance rates. This was the first-ever scientific survey of bail decisions in South Africa.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 5, No. 5

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:46 -0500

Vera improves system for reporting crime in schools by Elisabeth Stock -- From the director: Crime and justice in our schools by Christopher Stone -- AAP begins screening asylum seekers at Queens detention facility by Hema Sareen -- Assessing victims’ rights from two perspectives by Jennifer Trone -- Focus on: Internal Business Advisor Ann Godzwon, interviewed by Marjorie Singer -- Vera helps convene Russian-U.S. meeting on prosecuting police by Miriam Aukerman -- News and announcements

The Appearance Assistance Program: attaining compliance with immigration laws through community supervision

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:32 -0500

This booklet describes the Appearance Assistance Program, highlighting innovative strategies designed to increase compliance.

The effects of exposure to violence on early adolescent development: a lifespace approach

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:17 -0500

Working Paper

Just 'Cause, Vol. 5, No. 4

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:46 -0500

Mapping crime across New York State by Heather Ward -- From the director: Crime and justice by Christopher Stone -- Restoring faith in South Africa’s prosecutors by Michelle India Baird -- A look at police practices around the world by Nancy Vorsanger -- Focus on: Appearance Assistance Program’s Jo Lyness, interviewed by Ann Marie Mullen -- Public defenders learn to lead by Kirsten Levingston -- News and announcements

Community service for repeat misdemeanor offenders in New York City

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:21 -0500

A study of the Community Service Sentencing Project (CSSP), the city's largest alternative-to-incarceration (ATI) program.

A plan for evaluating the displacement effects of alternative-to-incarceration programs in New York City

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:52 -0500

The previous work on diversion and displacement focused on ATI placements and used information about the past to make inferences about the present or predictions about the future. Our research will use an alternative approach. By comparing the sentences of groups entering the system at the same time, we will analyze the displacement effect of the City’s ATI system as a whole. This will include the City’s targeting of individuals likely to receive the intended jail or prison terms, review of their cases, placement of some into ATIs and the provision of services to them.

Community alternatives for felony offenders: a preliminary assessment

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:02 -0500

This is Vera's first report on the felony alternatives to incarceration (ATIs). Issued while research was ongoing, the report provides descriptions of the programs and the court processes by which offenders are assigned to them. The descriptions are based on interviews with ATI program managers, judges, prosecutors, defense attorneys and other system actors.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 5, No. 3

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:46 -0500

Violence study underscores need to support kids by Mercer Sullivan -- From the director: A paradigm shifts by Christopher Stone -- Focus on: Caseworker Linda Catanzaro, interviewed by Fernando Tinio -- Community supervision convinces immigrants to attend court hearings by Eileen Sullivan -- News and announcements

Adolescent pathways: exploring the intersections between child welfare and juvenile justice, PINS, and mental health

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:18 -0500

ACS; Placements; Residential treatment

Teaching brain power, not gun power: low intensity, low-cost programs for juvenile weapons offenders

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:31 -0500

A practical guide to planning programs for less serious juvenile weapons offenders.

Beyond blame and panic: institutional strategies for preventing and controlling adolescent violence

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:19 -0500

Community supervision; Chronic juvenile offenders; Resource coordination

Just 'Cause, Vol. 5, No. 2

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:47 -0500

Special ed students find path to mainstream by Jennifer Trone -- From the director: Justice and families by Christopher Stone -- La Bodega de la Familia inspires White House drug czar by Jennifer Trone -- Looking back over three years of taking complaints by Julia Vitullo-Martin -- Vera begins largest-ever evaluation of city ATIs by Gail Caputo -- Offenders pay back community with labor by Gail Caputo -- Some misguided responses to sex offenders by Nora Demleitner -- Ford Foundation staff and policing experts meet by Alexis Agathocleous -- News and announcements

Prosecuting police misconduct: reflections on the role of the U.S. civil rights movement

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:27 -0500

In June 1998, five former Assistant Attorneys General for Civil Rights, two veteran Civil Rights Division attorneys, and Division Chief Bill Lann Lee gathered at the Vera Institute of Justice to discuss the federal government's efforts to prosecute police misconduct over the past four decades. Prosecuting Police Misconduct: Reflections on the Role of the U.S. Civil Rights Division draws principally on that meeting.

Workshop on police in democratic societies: advancing public safety and accountability

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:59 -0500

This large booklet was created for a 1998 workshop. The files are arranged in the original order of the workbook, starting with the complete (374 page) workbook. The booklet contains the essay "Democratic Policing: a Framework for Action" by Chris Stone and Heather Ward. In addition, country overviews of South Africa, Uganda, Hungary, Poland, Russia, the United States, Brazil, Chile, Argentina and India are included.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 5, No. 1

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:47 -0500

Vera trains public defenders to lead by Kirsten Levingston -- From the director: Extending Vera's reach by Christopher Stone -- Using technology to reduce domestic violence by Jennifer Trone -- A brief history of Vera's technical assistance by Amy Gong -- Focus on: John Jeffries, interviewed by Meryl Schwartz -- Local and national advisors help guide La Bodega by Jesse Souweine -- News and announcements

Just 'Cause, Vol. 4, No. 6

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:47 -0500

Vera explores policing in democratic societies by Heather Ward -- From the director: Police accountability by Christopher Stone -- Keys to reducing police misconduct -- Vera welcomes new board members -- Focus on: Rockefeller Brothers Fund Fellow Lisa Kung, interviewed by Susan Rai -- Eileen Sullivan joins Vera as research director -- Vera's home page gets a facelift and more -- News and announcements

Pollsmoor awaiting trial population profile and a study of first appearance decisions in Mitchells Plain Magistrates Court

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:57 -0500

The preliminary results of the PTS (Pre-Trial Services) demonstration of the Bureau of Justice Assistance in South Africa aims to address the lack of reliable statistics relating to the criminal justice system in South Africa.

Just 'Cause, Vol. 4, No. 5

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:47 -0500

South Africa’s first pretrial services office opens by Michelle India Baird -- From the Director: Pretrial detention revisited by Christopher Stone -- When foster care and delinquency overlap by Molly Armstrong -- Testing community supervision in the immigration system by David Mizner -- Focus on: South African Project Planner Lungisa Dyosi, interviewed by David Mizner -- The spin-offs: CJA by Alexis Agathocleous -- News and announcements

Police in democratic societies: accountability and public safety working group meeting

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:55 -0500

This is a transcript of a Vera Working Group Meeting dated September 15, 1997.

Family court improvement study

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:53 -0500

In 1993, as part of a federal initiative to encourage states to establish or expand family preservation and community-based support services, Congress created the Court Improvement Program. The Program provides funding over four years for state courts to assess foster care and adoption laws and improve court practice.

Retaining offenders in mandatory drug treatment programs: the role of perceived legal pressure

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:54 -0500

Identifying specific mandatory treatment programs and practices that maximize the benefits of legal pressure is important to the long-term viability of justice-driven drug treatment programs. This paper presents results from a research study that tested whether participants of a specialized treatment diversion program that features uniquely coercive elements showed greater retention in treatment than similar offenders mandated to treatment from more conventional sources, such as courts and probation agencies.

Public defenders in the neighborhood: a Harlem law office stresses teamwork, early investigation

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:55 -0500

In 1990, the Vera Institute of Justice opened an agency in Harlem that bases public defenders in a community. Known as the Neighborhood Defender Service, it takes cases only from the surrounding vicinity because it believes staff can acquire a deeper knowledge of clients and their problems that way than is possible in traditional public defender agencies. N.D.S. also offers clients help with personal and family problems that lead to legal trouble.

Retaining offenders in mandatory drug treatment programs: the role of perceived legal pressure

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:02 -0500

Developing and testing improved methods of studying the effects of legal pressure and drug treatment were central objectives of the research described in this report.

Teaching brain power, not gun power

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:14:01 -0500

Bridging drug treatment and criminal justice

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:19 -0500

Residential drug treatment; DTAP; Interagency collaboration; Treatment diversion

Diverting drug offenders to treatment: implementation in year four of DTAP expansion

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:53 -0500

Residential drug treatment; Nonviolent offenders; Retention; Completion; Recidivism

INS/NIJ/Vera Initiative: Appearance Assistance Program: final planning report

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:30 -0500

This is the 1996 final planning report on the INS/NIJ/Vera Initiative on improving compliance with the INS adjudicatory process. The report has two main parts - a description of the research design for the Appearance Assistance Program and an examination of the practicality of reconfiguring supervised release as home detention for certain lawful permanent residents in removal proceedings.

Home detention for immigration detainees: would it be useful, legal and effective?

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:00 -0500

This report provides a description of how home detention programs typically operate, it discusses the uses of home detention programs in the criminal justice system, and it analyzes the potential for the application of a home detention scheme in the immigration system. The report also considers the legal framework necessary to implement a home detention program for criminal aliens and discusses the most logical application of a home detention program to assist the INS to alleviate its detention pressures.

The Maricopa County FARE probation experiment: an effort to introduce a means-based monetary sanction as a targeted felony-level intermediate sanction

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:02 -0500

The unintended consequences of incarceration: papers from a conference organized by Vera

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:34 -0500

Commissioned by Vera in conjunction with a residential conference held at Arden House in Harriman, New York, these papers explore how increasing rates of incarceration may affect crime rates, the children of inmates, juvenile delinquency, and communities.

Vera Institute of Justice thirty-five year report

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:58 -0500

Describes Vera's demonstration projects as of 1996: the Citizens Jury Project, the Appearance Assistance Program, La Bodega de la Familia, the Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem, and Job Path. Discusses Vera's research and planning: the initiatives to ensure justice for children, explore new drug treatment options, and develop alternatives to eviction from public housing in narcotics cases. Includes a description of Vera's method and a history of the Institute's previous efforts to encourage just practices in public services.

Neighborhood Defender Service: proposal to provide indigent defense representation

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:05 -0500

This is the proposal of the Neighborhood Defender Service to provide indigent defense representation. The proposal envisions a mode of representation that both meets government's desire to modify and improve the services currently available and builds on the lessons learned from the city's investment in creating, through NDS, a more effective model of indigent defense representation.

Bail bond supervision in three counties: report on intensive pretrial supervision in Nassau, Bronx, and Essex Counties

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:19 -0500

Intensive supervision; Model programs; Community supervision; Jail overcrowding

Making a match: finding the right neighborhood for a family drug crisis center

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:01 -0500

This report describes how Vera selected a site for its Neighborhood Family Drug Crisis Center. The objective are to respond to indigent families with drug-addicted relatives, to increase the effectiveness of existing non-residential and post-residential treatment programs for neighborhood residents who are involved with the criminal justice system, and to make better use of the extensive resources now devoted to impoverished substance abusers by the criminal justice and health care systems.

Manhattan criminal arraignment study: final report

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:31 -0500

This report describes the encouraging results of a joint effort initiated in August 1994 by the Criminal Justice Coordinator, the Legal Aid Society, and court administrators to increase Legal Aid's share of cases at arraignment. Vera monitored the arraignment process in person and electronically through March 12, 1995. Includes proportion of felony and misdemeanor cases handled, defense ready time, and rate of guilty pleas entered at arraignment during the study period. Contains a brief history of indigent defense services in New York City.

The New York City Community Service Sentencing Program (fifth interim report)

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:39 -0500

This 1985 Vera report is the fifth interim report on the impact of the New York City Community Service Sentencing Program, which was intended to enforce a sentence of supervised, unpaid community service as an alternative to short jail terms given primarily because no enforceable alternative punishment is available.

Ready, willing and able: lessons about moving employable applicants for home relief

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:59 -0500

How to use structured fines (day fines) as an intermediate sanction: an implementation manual

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:24 -0500

Published by the Vera Institute of Justice and the U.S. Bureau of Justice Assistance. Describes, in detail, how to plan and implement a day-fine system.

Portfolio of demonstration projects, research, and technical assistance: semi-annual report (January 1995)

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:11 -0500

This portfolio details Vera's work in the last six months of 1994. During this period Vera build a crime mapping tool for the NYPD, began examinining the impact of the nation's extraordinarily high level of incarceration on the communities from which the prisoners come from and return to, and launched a New York County project analyzing new ways that lawyers are assigned to represent indigent defendants in criminal cases.

Structured fines: day fines as fair and collectable punishment in American courts

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:40 -0500

This 1995 booklet draws on Vera's experience to describe how a day-fine system works in practice, what benefits it can be expected to yield, and how it should be planned. The booklet also includes a bibliography and list of people who can answer questions and provide planning and implementation assistance.

Portfolio of demonstration projects, research, and technical assistance (January-June 1994)

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:11 -0500

This report details Vera's activites from January through June 1994. Subjects discussed include The Neighborhood Work and Vocational Development projects, Job Path, The Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem, Bail Bond Supervision Projects, The Delta Project, Project Development and Exploratory Research, Community Policing, Sentencing Reform and Courts and the Advisory System.

Innovative neighborhood-oriented policing: descriptions of programs in eight cities

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:25 -0500

This 1994 report by Vera presents detailed descriptions of the eight city programs funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance's Innovative Neighborhood Oriented Policing (INOP) programs, which were intended to help develop community policing programs with the goal of reducing the demand for drugs through drug enforcement, interagency cooperation, referral to treatment and community-based prevention initiatives. The eight INOP sites were Tempe, AZ; Norfolk, VA; New York, NY; Hayward, CA; Portland, OR; Prince George's County, MD; Houston, TX; and Louisville, KY.

Issues in community policing: problems in the implementation of eight innovative neighborhood-oriented policing programs

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:25 -0500

This 1994 report presents the results of Vera's analysis of data collected on implementation issues and program outcomes for the eight-city Innovative Neighborhood Oriented Policing (INOP) Program sponsored by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. The program was intended to help develop community policing programs with the goal of reducing the demand for drugs through drug enforcement, interagency cooperation, referral to treatment and community-based prevention initiatives.

The Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem: 1993 annual report

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:36 -0500

Portfolio of demonstration projects, research, and technical assistance: semi-annual report

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:13 -0500

A portfolio of Vera's demonstration projects, research and technical assistance as of December 1993.

The Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem: research results from the first two years

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:36 -0500

The day fine system: a tool for improving the use of economic sanctions

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:32 -0500

This brief describes Vera's national demonstration of how to tailor a traditional noncustodial penalty -- the criminal fine -- to the sentencing needs of busy urban courts.

The day fine system: a tool for improving the use of economic sanctions

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:44 -0500

This 1993 article discusses Vera's research on the use of day fines as an alternative to incarceration.

The Staten Island day fines project: research in brief

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:34 -0500

A brief overview of a pilot program in Staten Island, New York that implemented a new sanction in criminal court — day-fines, so called because the fine amount is tied to an individual offender's daily earnings and ability to pay the penalty, rather than based on a particular crime regardless of the offender's means.

Community policing: the CPOP in New York

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:02 -0500

Members of the Vera Institute's Research Department spent a year in an exploratory study of the pilot project in the 72nd Precinct. The department's decision to expand the program to other precincts was made long before this study was completed; nevertheless, the experience and insights gained in studying the pilot enabled Vera research staff to design research asking the following questions among others: Can regular police implement all four dimensions of the CPO role? How do they react to the role in terms of their job satisfaction and their image of themselves as police officers?

The Vera Institute atlas of crime and justice in New York City

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:13 -0500

Originally conceived as a digest of information about crime and criminal justice in New York City, the Atlas developed into a collection of maps and supplementary charts that provide an unprecedented quantity of information about crime and justice in their social context at a neighborhood level in New York City.

School safety, justice, and the educational environment: materials for school-based planning

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:21 -0500

This booklet is a collection of statements on the subject of school violence and school safety by public officials, teachers, students, parents, cops, administrators, and researchers. Each states an opinion on questions all New Yorkers desperately want answered: Where does the violence in our schools come from? How should we deal with it when we see it? How can we make schools safer and prevent the violence before it happens?

The Staten Island day-fines project

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:44 -0500

This 1993 report gives an overview of Vera's Staten Island Day-Fine Project. The project was designed to broaden the usefulness of the fine as a criminal sanction by introducing a simple method to allow for equitable consideration of an offenders means - as well as of the seriousness of his or her offense - in determining the amount of a fine. The day-fine system (so named because it takes into account an offender's daily income in setting the fine amount) helps to make punishment more equivalent across offenders of differing income levels.

Portfolio of demonstration projects, research, and technical assistance (July-December 1992)

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:14 -0500

This portfolio contains descriptions of the projects that Vera operated during the last six months of 1992. The descriptions here are necessarily brief, but each is intended to convey the overall ambition of the project as well as its specific accomplishments during the six-month period.

The Delta Program: a program plan for a day drug treatment program for Bronx drug felony offenders

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:46 -0500

This 1992 report outlines Vera's Delta Program, a day treatment program for incarceration-bound drug-abusing offenders designed to specifically target offenders not reached by existing New York City Alternatives to Incarceration (ATI) programs.

The neighborhood effects of street-level drug enforcement: tactical narcotics teams in New York

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:16 -0500

Research on the effort and impact of the Tactical Narcotics Teams (TNT) in Brooklyn. Sparked by the burgeoning curbside crack cocaine markets, TNT's objectives were to disrupt drug markets on the streets with buy-and-bust intervention and then to restore a community's capacity to preserve order and quality of life after TNT moved on to the next target area.

Monitoring data: Bridgeport Day Fine Project

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:04 -0500

This workbook from the Bridgeport Day Fine Project contains monitoring data for cases sentenced to day fines between May 19-June 30, 1992.

Report of the work of the Vera Institute of Justice for the New York City Police Department through April 1992

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:15 -0500

This 1992 report details work performed by Vera pursuant to a contract with the New York City Police Department during the period January 1, 1991 through April 1992. It also provides a brief history of Vera, covering the rationale and circumstances of Vera's creation, its mission and its methods.

Jail Population Management Consultancy: summary

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:47 -0500

This 1992 report details the Jail Population Management Consultancy (JPMC), which was created to help New York City policy-makers build an appropriate inventory of alternative programs, and make the best use of these programs to reduce jail use.

Moving up the day of reckoning: strategies for attacking the "cracked trials" problem

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:50 -0500

This 1992 article discusses various strategies for correcting the "cracked trials" problem in British Crown Courts. "The term 'cracked trial' refers to the following phenomenon: in a criminal case committed to the Crown Court, a defendant may indicate at committal stage or shortly thereafter that he is pleading 'not guilty.' He may persist in this plea until the day scheduled for trial when, suddenly, he changes his mind and pleads guilty." This can cause numerous difficulties and delays in the criminal justice system.

Justice informed: the pre-sentence report pilot trials in the Crown Court

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:49 -0500

This is a 1992 report on a series of pilot projects coordinated by Vera in five trial courts in England. The projects tested the practicality of requiring presentence investigation reports in most felonies.

The Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem: 1991 annual report

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:36 -0500

This is the 1991 annual report of the Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem (NDS), founded by Vera to provide neighborhood-based, team-based, client-oriented direct legal representation to indigent clients in Harlem.

The use of fines as an intermediate sanction

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:44 -0500

Despite more than a decade of unprecedented jail and prison building in the U.S., few inroads have been made in improving the conditions in correctional institutions. Although prison expansion has been accompanied by an explosion of experimental alternative sanctions -- community service orders, house arrest, electronic monitoring, intensive probabtion, boot camps and more -- the intermediate penalties movement has yet to engage in any signficant way the problems raised by our broad use of imprisonment.

Ineligible pool analysis

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:47 -0500

This 1992 analytic memorandum to New York City's Jail Population Management Project Advisory Committee (JPMC) presents information about inmates admitted to the city's Department of Correction (DOC) who are not eligible for any existing alternative sentencing program due to the characteristics of their prior criminal records and of the cases being brought against them. The memorandum offers some suggestions about steps the city can take to displace from jail at least some of those currently ineligible for any alternative program.

Models for predicting incarceration - felony cases

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:47 -0500

This 1992 analytical memorandum to New York City's Jail Population Management Project Advisory Committee (JPMC) describes the construction and content of models that predict both pretrial detention and custodial sentences in cases arraigned on felony charges and examines what predicts incarceration in these cases.

Eligible pool analysis

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:47 -0500

This analytic memorandum to the New York City Jail Population Advisory Committee addresses two questions: How many inmates in the daily population of the New York City Department of Correction (DOC) are eligible for the various city-funded alternative programs? And, given the sizes of these "eligible pools," how much room is there for program expansion?

Jail Use Analysis - memo to Jail Population Management Project, Office of the Deputy Mayor for Public Safety

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:47 -0500

This 1991 analytic memorandum was prepared by Vera for the Jail Population Management Project. It presents the pattern of demand for jail resources, coming from various categories of inmates in the custody of New York City's Department of Correction (DOC). Attached is an addendum with: admits, the jail days they use, cumulative distributions by type of admit, court of final disposition and type of disposition.

Developing and implementing a community-based defense service: pilot operations of the Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:23 -0500

A preliminary report on research in progress submitted to the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services and New York City's Deputy Mayor for Public Safety.

Innovative neighborhood oriented policing projects in eight cities: an interim report

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:23 -0500

This 1991 Vera report examines the implementation of the Bureau of Justice Assistance's Innovative Neighborhood Oriented Policing (INOP) program in eight cities: Hayward, CA; Houston, TX; Louisville, KY; New York, NY; Norfolk, VA; Portland, OR; Prince George's County, MD; and Tempe, AZ. Among the few components these programs have in common are a police enforcement component, a focus on neighborhoods, and an emphasis on drug demand reduction.

Report of the Work of the Vera Institute of Justice for the New York City Police Department through December 1991

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:10 -0500

This report documents Vera's background, its history of work with the NYPD, and the Model Precinct project.

Status report to the Ford Foundation regarding its grant to Vera for planning, communications, and technical assistance

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:13 -0500

This status report summarizes the work of the Vera Institute of Justice through July 1991. The report is presented in chapters that group a diverse program development portfolio under general substantive headings. Each chapter begins with a historical summary of Vera's past work in that area, and then describes in more detail the work performed during the current period.

Early assistance of counsel: quarterly report for April through June, 1991

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:34 -0500

This is the April-June 1991 quarterly report for the Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem (NDS). NDS provides community-based, team-based, client-centered legal representation to defendants.

Vera Institute of Justice research, planning, and technical assistance: interim report January-June 1991

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:09 -0500

Over the past twenty-four years, Vera has provided research, planning and technical asistance to the City of New York and its criminal justice agencies under this contract and its predecessors. This assistance has included the appraisal of ongoing programs, the conduct of basic research for analyzing needs and the design, testing and implementation of projects and procedures that improve public safety and the administration of criminal justice in New York City.

Alcohol, drugs and crime: Vera's final report on New York State's interagency initiative

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:23 -0500

This this is the June 1991 final report detailing New York State's four year Interagency Initiative. In 1986, Vera was asked by the New York State Legislature to help implement and evaluate a policy initiative to develop innovative, effective treatment for State inmates and parolees with histories of drug and alcohol addiction. Focusing on continuity of care from prison to the community, the legislation led to the creation of a prison-based pilot program that offered inmates a short-term intensive treatment experience emphasizing preparation for a drug-free transition to the community.

Intake: the first 500 cases: report for December 1990 through March 1991

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:34 -0500

This is the December 1990 - March 1991 report of the Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem (NDS). NDS provides community-based, team-based, client-centered legal representation to defendants.

Assessing the community effects of Tactical Narcotics Teams

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:24 -0500

This is an overview of a research project begun in November 1990 to assess the effectiveness of Tactical Narcotics Teams (TNT) in New York City. The research included community resident interviews, analysis of TNT operations, ethnographic study of local drug sellers and consumers, and panel interviews with community residents and leaders.

The Staten Island day fines experiment

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:34 -0500

In August 1988, judges in Criminal Court of Richmond County, which comprises the New York City borough of Staten Island, began the first systematic use of day fines in American courts. Initially developed in Scandinavia in the 1920s and 30s, and then introduced to West Germany in the late 1960s and early 1970s as a substitute for short terms of incarceration, the day-fine involves a simple two-step process in setting fine amounts that embraces the principles of proportionality and equity that are traditional in both European and American sentencing jurisprudence.

Drug treatment and alternatives to incarceration

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:45 -0500

With unmanageable numbers of drug abusers facing criminal charges in our courts, we are increasingly inclined to send many addicts to treatment rather than jail. The practical and conceptual issues raised by such a policy are complex and require much discussion.

CPOP: the research: an evaluative study of the New York City Community Patrol Officer Program

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:23 -0500

This is a comprehensive 1991 Vera report of detailed empirical research regarding New York City's attempt to put community policing concepts into practice at a beat level through the Community Patrol Officer Program (CPOP). The report takes a mostly positive view of CPOP and concludes that while shortcomings should be expected, CPOP represents a reasonably successful effort to move the New York City Police Department in a desirable direction and that the failings can and should be corrected with time, patience and renewed effort.

Alternatives to incarceration: a bibliographic essay

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:45 -0500

This 1990 CASES Briefing Paper 1) introduces some of the issues and concerns involving alternative sentencing; 2) reviews some alternative programs which currently exist, both established and experimental, to see how they are or can be integrated into the present system; 3) explores what role the Center for Alternative Sentencing and Employment Services (CASES) plays in this effort. The paper draws extensively from the articles monographs and books listed in the End Notes (Section F of the Bibliography).

Victim Services Agency: future directions

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:24 -0500

This 1989 report details the policies, activities, difficulties and future plans of the Victim Services Agency, a New York City agency created to help victims of crime get the services they require both in the criminal justice system and in rehabilitative therapy.

Staten Island Economics Sanctions Project: preliminary data report: day fine pilot project

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:40 -0500

This is Vera's 1989 review of the first year of the Staten Island Day-Fine Experiment. Review of the preliminary data gives evidence that introduction of the day-fine system resulted in a more just use of fines in sentencing criminal offenders -- it indicated that, if collection rate remained stable, the amount of City general fund revenues derived from fines would significantly increase under the new system.

The processing of complaints against police in New York City: the perceptions and attitudes of line officers

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:25 -0500

This is the third report on Vera's study of the processing of complaints against police in New York City and details the perceptions and attitudes of police officers about the Civilian Complaint Review Board. It was designed to explain officers' views of the legitimacy and fairness of the Police Department's review mechanism.

Processing complaints against police in New York City: the complainant's perspective

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:53 -0500

Reports on Vera's research in to issues of the fairness and consistency of the complaint-review process of New York City's Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB), and focuses on results of a survey of complainants concerning their perceptions and satisfaction with the CCRB process.

Preliminary data report: day-fine pilot project

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:41 -0500

This 1988 review of the data for the first three months of the Staten Island day-fine experiment concludes that introduction of the day-fine system increased use of fines in sentencing criminal offenders and that resulting city revenue would increase under the new system.

CPOP: community policing in practice

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:23 -0500

This 1988 publication is a laudatory report on the NYPD's Community Patrol Officer Program (CPOP), and seems directed towards a lay audience. It contains many anecdotes recounting the experiences of individual community patrol officers from the program. These anecdotes emphasize the positive impact the CPOP has on the precincts where it is implemented and on improvement in police-community relations.

Testimony of Mercer L. Sullivan before the House Select Committee on Children, Youth and Family

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:20 -0500

This 1988 testimony discusses a study from the early 1980s in which Vera identified and built rapport with criminally involved young males in three ethnically distinct low-income neighborhoods of Brooklyn and developed profiles of their involvements with crime and drugs as they aged from their early teens to their early twenties.

Tailoring criminal fines to the financial means of the offender

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:43 -0500

This 1988 article discusses the application of a European "day-fine" system to the American criminal justice system. Published in Judicature, it focuses on the perspective of judges.

Final narrative report of activities undertaken by the Vera Institute of Justice pursuant to Ford Foundation's grant #660-0329-G

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:15 -0500

This report describes the initial defining work by which Vera became known to the Ford Foundation and outlines the rationale for creating, through general support grants, an organization with the particular mission and methods of the Vera Institute of Justice.

Narrative report: the Vera Institute of Justice technical assistance to other jurisdictions and communications program

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:16 -0500

This report gives a history of Vera and describes what Vera did to enhance its capacity to serve the field beyond New York's borders from July 1, 1987 through June 30, 1988. The report traces, in each substantive area of Vera's work in crime control and criminal justice, the spread of its innovations across the country.

Young fathers and child support

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:57 -0500

This 1988 paper discusses the difficulties attending efforts to secure officially-mandated child support payments from young fathers.

El Instituto Vera de Justica

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:15 -0500

Bail information for the Crown Prosecution Service: volume one of the final report on the probation initiative

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:48 -0500

This is the first volume of a 1988 final report on a project in which Vera assisted the Association of Chief Officers of Probation (ACOP) over a two-year period in the design implementation and monitoring of a series of small pilot schemes which were organized to develop the work of the British Probation Services with the newly-formed Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

Das VERA Institute of Justice, New York: Neue, praxisorientierte Strategien der Kriminalpolitik

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:19 -0500

Processing complaints against police: the Civilian Complaint Review Board

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:25 -0500

This 1988 report discusses New York City's Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB), an agency established in 1966 to receive, investigate and hear complaints filed by civilians against police officers and to recommend disciplinary action to the police commissioner where appropriate. The CCRB is controversial due to its structure being revised to be composed of police department personnel only, rather than its initial setup as a joint civilian-police board.

Structuring criminal fines: making an "intermediate penalty" more useful and equitable

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:43 -0500

This 1988 article details Vera's Staten Island day fines experiment, an attempt to implement a European-style day fines system in Staten Island, New York.

Improving the use and administration of criminal fines: a report of the Richmond County Criminal Court Day-Fine Planning Project

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:40 -0500

This 1986 report describes the initial planning of the Staten Island Day Fines Experiment. The planning group sought to make monetary penalties, particularly fines, more useable as a criminal sanction. The key to this reform effort is the careful design of an operational plan to permit American courts to replace fixed fines with means-based fines.

Fines as criminal sanctions

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:41 -0500

This 1987 NIT Research in Brief outlines the pros and cons of using criminal sanctions as an alternative to incarceration.

Criminal fines as an alternative sanction

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:40 -0500

This 1987 essay discusses the use of fines as an alternative sanction in criminal courts.

Probation Service work on bail with the Crown Prosecution Service

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:49 -0500

This is a 1987 interim report on the "Diversion from Custody and Prosecution" Probation Initiative, a project in which Vera assisted the Association of Chief Officers of Probation over a two-year period in the design implementation and monitoring of a series of small pilot schemes organized to develop the work of the British Probation Services with the newly-formed Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

Employability assessment training curriculum prepared for the NYS Division of Parole

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:09 -0500

In 1987 The New York State Division of Parole engaged Vera to work with the DOP in developing a larger supply of short-term jobs for parolees returning to New York City and to enhance the capacity of line parolees to make referrals to appropriate support service and job placement programs.

Twenty-five year report from the Vera Institute of Justice: 1961-1986

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:09 -0500

Status of the Vera Institute's research on the Community Patrol Officer Program (CPOP)

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:22 -0500

This 1985 interim report discusses, evaluates, and explores the impetus behind the New York City Police Department's Community Patrol Officer Program (CPOP). It is the first of two interim reports from an independent evaluative study of the CPOP that Vera's research department began in 1984.

New York City Speedy Disposition Program: incentives and prosecutorial initiatives in reducing court delay and jail overcrowding

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:31 -0500

Does not include report #1438: Speedy Disposition Program Evaluation. Program Impact Data: Post-Program Follow-Up Year (1986). Tables

Coordinating the administration of criminal justice: the interdependance project in Avon and Somerset

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:48 -0500

This 1986 report discusses the Avon and Somerset Intedependance Project, which was begun in 1983. The report focuses on practical implications of using agency "interdependence" as a concept to frame systemic thinking about the criminal justice system. At its core, this concept is that the responsibility for processing criminal cases is divided among several agencies, none of which has independent or exclusive control over more than a small part of the entire process.

Report on work in crime control and the administration of justice

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:08 -0500

October 1986 report of progress on technical assistance, research and program development tasks undertaken and completed during the first year of a two-year contract between the Vera Institute of Justice and the New York City Police Department and the Mayor's Office of the Criminal Justice Coordinator.

Planning, research and technical assistance on, and implementation and enforcement of, fines, probation, etc.

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:43 -0500

The general enthusiasm for "alternatives to incarceration" persists in an uneasy co-existence with hardening views on penal policy and growing fascination with incapacitation as a desirable organizing principle for sentencing policy. Over the last decade, as the jails in New York City and other major cities have become more overcrowded and the public purse has been put under increasing strain by the capital and operating costs of increasing the capacity to imprison, New York's search for real alternatives has intensified.

Ethnographic research on young fathers and parenting: implications for public policy

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:58 -0500

Prepared for the conference on young unwed fathers held Oct. 1-3, 1986, at Catholic University.

The fixed tour experiment in the 115th Precinct: its effects on police officer stress, community perceptions, and precinct mgmt

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:33 -0500

This publication is the Executive Summary of a study of a fixed (steady) tour system, instituted in the 115th police precinct in Queens, New York, designed to reduce stress by assigning patrol officers to steady, rather than rotating, tours. Also, the effects of the simultaneous deployment of a "platoon commander" for precinct management, as well as the community's perceptions of these changes.

Criminal careers of juveniles in New York City

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:20 -0500

This report offers a prospective analysis of the subsequent arrest-based criminal careers of a cohort of 14- and 15-year-olds arrested and sent to probation intake in New York City during 1977-1978. Five career types were established, ranging from one compose of those with no arrests after one year to persons arrested on felony charges two or more times per year for at least two consecutive years.

A controlled study of detoxification: alternatives for homeless alcoholics

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:54 -0500

An extensive 1986 Vera report analyzing the history of, current research into and alternatives for the treatment of homeless alcoholics. Details of this report also include medical, legal, and societal factors.

The Community Patrol Officer Program: community-oriented policing in the New York City Police Department: progress report no. 2

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:22 -0500

Vera's second interim progress report on the Community Patrol Officer Program (CPOP) from May 1986 details the expansion of the Program from a single (72nd) precinct experiment to 21 of the City's 75 precincts. The report assesses the strengths and weaknesses of the CPOP concept and of its institutionalization.

The enforcement of fines as criminal sanctions: the English experience and its relevance to American practice

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:40 -0500

This 1986 Vera report presents findings from a study of four English magistrates' courts with respect to strategies for setting and enforcing criminal fine sentences. The principle source of empirical data for the study are samples of cases from three urban and one town magistrates' courts that target offenders convicted of non-trivial offenses who were at risk of being sentenced to a term of incarceration and who, because of their poverty, were at risk of non-payment if fined as an alternative sentence.

The Vera Institute of Justice: brief statement of mission and method

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:14 -0500

Fines in sentencing: an empirical study of fine use, collection and enforcement in New York City courts

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:41 -0500

1981, revised 1986

A controlled study of detoxification alternatives for homeless alcoholics

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:51 -0500

This 1986 research report discusses detoxification alternatives for homeless alcoholics. With regard to safety, the research was designed to address such questions as: 1) is non-medical detoxification treatment more likely than medical treatment to be associated with sever withdrawal symptomatology? 2) Is either of these modalities more likely to be subjectively viewed by its clients as making the detoxification easier and less stressful?

Becoming delinquent: adolescent behavior in two high risk communities

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:20 -0500

This 1985 federal assistance proposal proposes to first expand and then test an integrated social model of delinquency, incorporating individual differences (IQ, personality) and macro-level community characteristics with criminal justice actions and social psychological factors (inadequate socialization as measured by parent management, strain, weak conventional bonding, deliquent peers).

Report on work in crime control and the administration of justice

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:08 -0500

Report of progress on technical assistance, research and program development tasks undertaken and completed during the two-year contract between the Vera Institute of Justice and the New York City Police Department and the Office of the Coordinator for Criminal Justice.

Methodology, data documentation, and user's guide for the employment and crime project's survey of Brooklyn arrested persons

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:20 -0500

This 1985 report documents the micro-level labor market and crime data collected by Vera's Employment and Crime Project. The data includes information on labor market participation, arrests, periods of incarceration and a few demographic characteristics of a sample of 902 males predominantly arrested for felony offenses in Brooklyn, New York during July and August, 1979. The first section gives a very general overview of the study design, defines some terms relating to the data, and discusses the degree to which the sample represents the population from which it derives.

Prediction of criminal careers from family court records in New York City

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:22 -0500

"Working Paper No. 1"

The revolving door revisited: public inebriates' use of medical and nonmedical detoxification services in New York City

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:52 -0500

This 1985 interim report discusses a two-year Vera study comparing non-medical (or social setting) detoxification programs to more traditional medical detoxification studies.

Employment and crime: a survey of Brooklyn arrested persons

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:19 -0500

This 1985 report describes results from a survey of a sample (n=901) of Brooklyn males sixteen and older who were arrested in the summer of 1979. The survey covered the sample's employment experiences in detail over a two-year retrospective time span, and it included a few items of educational and personal background. Interviews were conducted in pre-arraignment holding pens.

Teen fathers in the inner city: an exploratory ethnographic study

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:57 -0500

A report to the Ford Foundation Urban Poverty Program, Prudence Brown, Program Officer

Current policy directions for the control of criminal violence

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:10 -0500

Appears in Mental Health and Violence, Eugene Aronowitz and Robert Sussman (editors) Westchester County Department of Community Mental Health, 1985

Advance disclosure of the prosecution case: an evaluation of two pilot schemes

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:51 -0500

This 1985 Vera London report evaluates two pilot projects that implemented section 48 of the Criminal Justice Act of 1977, which concerns advance disclosure of the prosecution case to the defense in criminal cases. In 1983-84, Vera collaborated with the Inner London Probation and After-care Service (ILPAS) to develop two pilot projects - an East London project provided disclosure of the statements of prosecution witnesses, and a Northumbria project focused on disclosure of a summary of the prosecution case.

The Community Patrol Officer Program: a pilot program in community oriented policing in the 72nd precinct: progress report

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:22 -0500

This is a 1984 interim report by Vera on the first five months of the NYPD's Community Patrol Officer Program. The NYPD ran a demonstration project in the 72nd precinct in Kings County in which nine patrol beats were established. Vera's research department conducted a careful evaluation of its operation, its effects on the community, and its efficacy addressing the major crime and quality-of-life problems in each beat.

Employment and crime: a summary report

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:19 -0500

Executive Summary from January 1985

Fines in sentencing: a study of the use of the fine as a criminal sanction

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:41 -0500

This 1984 report presents findings from an exploratory study of law and practice with respect to the use of fines as a sanction for criminal offenses. The principal sources of empirical data are a national phone survey of administrators in 126 trial courts in 21 states; site visits for interviews and observation to 38 courts in seven states; and examination of a sample of case records in New York City's five limited and five general jurisdiction trial courts.

Interim status report (withouth attachments) submitted for Board of Estimate review

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:15 -0500

Report of technical assistance and program development tasks undertaken and completed during the first year of the two-year contract between the New York City Police Department and the Mayor's Coordinator for Criminal Justice.

Youth crime and employment patterns in three Brooklyn neighborhoods

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:30 -0500

This 1984 report presents the findings of the Employment and Crime Project's ethnographic studies on the relationships between work and crime involvements among a sample of "high-risk" youths in three different neighborhoods of Brooklyn, New York. The study was intended to address the gaps in information regarding the relationship between employment and crime. Very little data on the relationship existed, and what there was produced conflicting or ambiguous findings.

Interdependence of the criminal justice system: a report on feasability

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:48 -0500

This is a 1984 introductory report on the Interdependence Project. The project focused on practical implications of using agency "interdependence" as a concept to frame systemic thinking about the criminal justice system. At its core, this concept is that the responsibility for processing criminal cases is divided among several agencies, none of which has independent or exclusive control over more than a small part of the entire process.

The New York City Community Service Sentencing Program (fourth interim report)

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:39 -0500

This is Vera's 1984 interim program report on the impact of the New York City Community Service Sentencing Program, which was intended to enforce a sentence of supervised, unpaid community service as an alternative to short jail terms given primarily because no enforceable alternative punishment is available.

Order maintenance

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:24 -0500

This is a draft of an essay (c.1984) included in the Vera reports on the police's role in maintaining order. It discusses the history and current practice of order maintenance and discusses ways that order maintenance can be improved going forward.

Implementing section 48: advance disclosure of the prosecution case options and issues

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:51 -0500

This December 1983 Vera London report discusses the principal options for implementing section 48 of the Criminal Justice Act 1977, which concerns advance disclosure of the prosecution case to the defense. In 1983-84, Vera collaborated with the Inner London Probation and After-care Service (ILPAS) to develop two pilot projects - a London-based project provided disclosure of the statements of prosecution witnesses, and a Northumbria project focused on disclosure of a summary of the prosecution case.

Status report to Board of Estimate Review

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:12 -0500

October 1983 report of technical assistance and program development tasks undertaken and completed under the two-year contract between the New York City Police Department and the Mayor's Coordinator for Criminal Justice.

Alternative youth employment strategies project: an evaluation

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:18 -0500

This report summarizes Vera's final report on the Alternative Youth Employment Strategies project, which was intended to improve job prospects and career preparation for low-income youths 14-21 year old. The program models include experience of program implementation and logic and structure of the experimental design. Also, there are many useful details regarding the analyses conducted, relatonships between employment outcomes and non-program variables, and obstacles to effective program implementation that cannot be presented in a summary.

Alternative youth employment strategies project: final report

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:21 -0500

This report describes the objectives and operations of the Alternative Youth Employment Strategies Project. In addition, the report includes the design employed, the participant population, and the outcome of the program. There is also an assessment of multi-site demonstration employment programs for 16- to 21-year-olds who were out of school, unemployed, and at high risk for crime. The demonstrations were mounted in New York City, Miami, and Albuquerque.

Police patrol tactics: a review of recent experiments and research

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:26 -0500

This 1983 report is an overview of theories and research related to police patrol tactics. Subjects discussed include preventive, aggressive and structured patrol tactics and patrol efforts to provide community-oriented policing.

Research at the Victim Services Agency: available reports

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:30 -0500

This 1983 report provides abstracts for 15 Vera reports related to victims services projects.

The New York City Community Service Sentencing Program (third interim report)

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:39 -0500

This 1983 Vera report is the fifth interim report on the impact of the New York City Community Service Sentencing Program, which was intended to enforce a sentence of supervised, unpaid community service as an alternative to short jail terms given primarily because no enforceable alternative punishment is available. Highlights of the impact analysis are: 1) of the property misdemeanor recidivists sentenced to the project, many would have drawn jail sentences without the project, and thus the program significantly reduced the demand for jail cells.

Fostering independence in developmentally disabled adults: supported work as a rehabilitative mechanism

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:52 -0500

Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Orthopsychiatric Association Meetings, Boston, Massachusetts, April 1983

Robbery case enhancement and felony augmentation: a review of program organization and operation

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:27 -0500

This 1983 Vera report summarizes the Felony Case Preparation Project (FCPP) and Felony Augmentation Program (FAP), two pilot projects conducted by the NYPD between 1979-1981. The FCPP required that felony arrests made in three Bronx districts be delivered to the precinct detective units for follow-up investigation by a detective, the resulting report being delivered to the District Attorney. The FAP focused on the arrest (in Manhattan) of individuals deemed to be career criminals, subjecting these to detective case-building efforts.

Protection of children in foster family care: a guide for social workers

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:37 -0500

This 1983 guide was prepared as part of Vera's Foster Care Child Protection Project. It is addressed primarily to foster care social workers, is designed for use as a text for training them, and serves as a reference source for all practicioners. Part One describes the nature of foster child maltreatment and practices that place foster children at risk of maltreatment.

Report on development of a pilot scheme for advance disclosure of the prosecution case in the Metropolitan Police District

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:50 -0500

This c.1983 report details a London pilot project run by the Metropolitan Police Service to examine the practicalities and costs of various methods of providing advance disclosure of prosecution cases in magistrates' courts proceedings and for assessing their effects on elections for jury trial, rates of guilty pleas, waiting times and related issues.

Disclosure by summary: first year report of the pilot scheme in Newcastle

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:51 -0500

This c.1983 report details a pilot scheme based in the Newcastle Division of the Northumbria Police. It examined the practicalities and costs of various methods of providing advance disclosure of prosecution and for assessing their affects on elections for jury trial, rates of guilty pleas, waiting times and related issues. It provides for disclosure to a defence solicitor, upon request, of a written summary of the evidence against the defendant, together with information about the defendant's prior convictions and a copy of any voluntary statement made by him to the police.

Disclosure in magistrates' courts: a preliminary assessment of alternative approaches.

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:51 -0500

This is an 1983 report on alternative practices of providing prosecution disclosure focuses on two pilot projects - an East London project providing disclosure of the statements of prosecution witnesses, and a Northumbria project focusing on disclosure of a summary of the prosecution case.

Project Job Site: final report to the New York Community Trust

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:52 -0500

This 1983 report reviews the activities, problems and achievements of a one-year "demonstration phase" of Vera's Job Site project. Begun in 1978, this program adapted Vera's "supported work" concept to adults with borderline mental retardation and other developmental disabilities. Vera originally developed the paradigm of supported work when it sought to create transitional employment opportunities to help ex-offenders and ex-addicts become acculturated to the world of work and acquire marketable skills.

The Robbery Case Enhancement Program

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:27 -0500

This 1982 Vera study reviews the disposition of robbery arrests made in the 22 Precincts designated as Robbery Case Enhancement Precincts during the first seven months of the program (January 12-July 31, 1982). It compares the police, district attorney and criminal court disposition of arrests which were subjected to the enhancement process with the disposition of arrests made in the same precincts during the same period but which were not enhanced because they were waived, missed, or were Comparison Group arrests.

Calls for service: recent research on measuring and managing the demand

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:12:20 -0500

Response time; Police patrols; Dispatching

The work of the Association de Politique Criminelle Appliquée et de Réinsertion Sociale Tribunal de Grande Instance de Paris

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:06 -0500

The Association de Politiaue Criminelle Appliquée de Réinsertion Sociaie (A-P.C.A.R.S.) in the Tribunal de Grande Instance de Paris, was created in 1980, the product of several years of preparatory work by the German Marshall Fund and the Vera Institute of Justice. The prime purpose of A.P.C.A.R.S. is to provide information to judges in criminal cases that will help inform their detention/release decisions. A.P.C.A.R.S.

Apartment Hotel Project

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:52 -0500

1982 Status report: program development activities of the Vera Institute of Justice

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:04 -0500

This 1982 status report details the program development activities of the Vera Institute of Justice. Topics include crime control, juvenile justice, employing the "unemployable", caring for the very young and very old, housing the homeless, and basic and evaluative research.

Foster Care Child Protection Project: pilot training program on preventing foster child maltreatment

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:37 -0500

This is a preliminary evaluation report by Vera on the Foster Care Child Protection Study. It was tested in three voluntary foster care agencies in March 1982. Two courses of training sessions for staff were given by participants in Vera's pilot train-the-trainers program. This report details and provides material from those training sessions.

Labor market segmentation, human capital, and the economics of crime

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:20 -0500

The research reported in this 1982 disertation analyzes the relationships between human capital, labor market structure, and crime. It tests the relative explanatory power of neo-classical choice theory and labor market segmentation theory on the determinants of labor market outcomes, criminal behavior, and their interaction. The author concludes that the criminal choice decision is a highly complex and multiattributed one, and that the predictions of economic theory do not adequately capture the multiplicity of factors involved in crime.

Alternative forms of punishment and supervision for convicted offenders

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:44 -0500

This 1982 article argues that the criminal justice system has no credible capacity to punish or incapacitate offenders except by imprisoning them, and that a substantial amount of jailing results not from judicial preference for imprisonment, but from the perception of judges and prosecutors that incarceration is the only way to insure that the offender will not continue to be a threat to society. The essay recommends a conservative approach to developing the relatively new alternative sentencing field.

Citizen's attitude survey

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:18 -0500

This survey, given to citizens in Houston and Newark (see question 1) asks respondents to give an assessment of their neighborhood and community, their sense of police-community relations, any changes since July of 1982 (see questions 5 & 7) and information about themselves.

Felony Case Preparation Project: executive summary and introduction

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:27 -0500

This is a c.1982 interim research report by Vera on an effort by the New York City Police Department to address a perceived shortfall in the indictment, conviction, and incarceration rates in felony arrest cases. In this experiment, in collaboration with the Bronx District Attorney's Office, immediate post-arrest investigations of felony arrests were intended to change the dispositional patterns in targeted experimental precincts and, from a law enforcement perspective, improve them.

Fines in sentencing: working paper #1: report on American state statutes relating to fines in criminal cases

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:41 -0500

This 1982 Vera report reviewed the statutes of all American states and the District of Columbia for content relevant to the Fines in Sentencing Project. Between late October and late December 1980, statutory information was gathered on forty-six states. Remaining states and all 190 legislative session laws were reviewed early in 1981, bringing all information current through 1980.

Fines in sentencing: working paper #2: report on model codes relating to fines in criminal cases

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:42 -0500

For this report, model criminal codes containing sentencing provisions were reviewed in connection with research on fine penalties in criminal law. These codes, which serve as models for legislators who are drafting criminal laws and statutes, have indeed influenced lawmakers, as demonstrated by the number of states that have adopted into their statutes the actual language of provisions in the model codes.

Fines in sentencing: working paper #3: federal statutory law relating to fines in criminal cases

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:42 -0500

As part of Vera's Fines in Sentencing Project, this 1982 paper examines the federal statutory law relating to fines in criminal cases.

Fines in sentencing: working paper #4

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:42 -0500

This 1982 Fines in Sentencing paper by Vera discusses the problems faced in trying to enforce fines when an offender defaults on the fine.

Fines in sentencing: working paper #5: review of United States Fines Literature

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:42 -0500

This 1982 Vera report reviews the limited American literature published to date concerning fines. The major topics reviewed are: fines history, sentencing goals, volume of fine use, types of cases, white-collar crime, fine amounts, deferred and installment payments, preventing and handling default, alternatives for indigents, and a few administrative issues.

Fines in sentencing: working paper #7: a report on an empirical study of fine use, collection and enforcement in NYC courts

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:42 -0500

The structure of this 1982 Fines in Sentencing working paper reflects the New York City Criminal Court system. Part I treats Criminal Court arrests at length because fines are commonly used and there are serious indigency and enforcement problems. Part II describes fine use in the Supreme Court Criminal Terms. Part III deals with summonses, which are for violations and other noncriminal offenses.

Fines in sentencing: working paper #8: report on visits to selected state and local courts

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:43 -0500

This 1982 report details visits made by Vera staff members to state and local courts in Georgia, Delaware, Wisconsin and Arizona as part of the Fines and Sentencing Project.

Fines in sentencing: working paper #9: U.S. district court fine imposition and collection practices

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:43 -0500

Three U.S. District Courts were visited in connection with the 1982 Fines in Sentencing Project. Judges, U.S. Probation Officers and U.S. Attorneys were interviewed. In addition, statistics and other source materials were obtained from the Department of Justice concerning fine imposition and collection practices, and telephone interviews were conducted with the Chief of the "Criminal Collection Unit" of the Justice Department and with personnel in two additional District Courts.

Report of the working group on magistrates' courts

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:49 -0500

This 1982 British Home Office Report analyzes the functioning of magistrates' courts in the United Kingdom and offers suggestions on improving it. The report has for main parts: 1) a description of magistrates' courts current functioning; 2) suggestions for improving waiting times; 3) suggestions for improving fine enforcement; and 4) improving the working of the system.

Unemployment and crime: mediating structures and direct impacts

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:21 -0500

Not for quotation or citation

Employment and crime: a review of theories and research

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:17 -0500

This is a review and analysis of the literature on the relationships between employment and crime from several different disciplines: economics, sociology, anthropology and the recent body of manpower program evaluations for criminal justice populations. The review of economic literature focuses on two competing explanations of employment and crime relationships : the economic model of crime developed by neoclassical economists and the more structural approach of segmented labor market theorists.

Statement of Michael Smith before the Subcommittee on Crime of the House Commitee of the Judiciary and Employment Opportunities

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:21 -0500

This 1981 statement explores the question of whether employment is an antidote for crime, discusses the complexity of the issue, and the varying effectiveness of different employment strategies in discouraging criminal behavior.

Relationship between youth crime and employment: an assessment of impact

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:22 -0500

This 1981 report examines the significance of unemployment to youth crime and assesses the major issues, problems, and needs of youth with regard to employment and societal efforts to deal with escalating rates of both youth crime and youth unemployment.

Diversion of felony arrests: an experiment in pretrial intervention: evaluation of the Court Employment Project: Summary Report

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:28 -0500

1414 Could be the same as Vera report #1466 (except this is published by NIJ)

Felony case preparation: quality counts: interim report: Vera's evaluation of the NYPD's Felony Case Preparation Project

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:36 -0500

This is a 1981 interim report by Vera on the New York City Police Department's Felony Case Preparation Project (in collaboration with the Bronx District Attorney), in which the immediate post-arrest investigation of felony arrests changed the dispositional patterns in the experimental districts and, from a law enforcement perspective, improved them.

The New York Community Sentencing Project: development of the Bronx pilot project

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:39 -0500

This 1981 Vera report summarizes the Bronx Sentencing Project (the pilot project), examines its objectives and operations, and considers the way forward for alternative sentencing such as community service. Subject discussed include: developing eligibility criteria and intake procedures; waiting for the jail-bound cases; providing suitable tasks for community service participants; coming to grips with participants' needs (support services); and supervision and enforcement as the basis for credibility in an alternative sentence.

Community service sentencing projects: Bronx, Brooklyn: quarterly statistical report: January 1-May 8, 1981

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:40 -0500

This Vera report briefly describes the operation of the Bronx and Brooklyn Community Service Sentencing Projects during the first quarter of 1981. These projects were intended to enforce sentences of supervised, unpaid community service as an alternative to short jail terms given primarily because no enforceable alternative punishment is available.

Vera Institute: balancing the scales of justice

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:14 -0500

An article in Foundation News giving an overview of the Vera Institute of Justice as of April 1981.

First time users of women's shelter services: a preliminary analysis

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:52 -0500

Family Court disposition study: executive summary

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:35 -0500

This 1972 Vera report describes how New York City's Family Courts handle delinquency and status offense cases.

Easyride: management information system

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:55 -0500

This 1981 report details the Management Information System for Vera's Easyride demonstration project. In order to address problems associated with growth, Easyride decided to automate internal operations through the development and installation of a computer software package capable of assisting registration, reservation, scheduling, billing, trip delivery and reporting. Easyride was "a transportation service for the elderly and people with physical disabilities.

Foster home child protection: a Special Services for Children study

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:37 -0500

This 1981 Vera report presents the results of a study of the problem of abuse and maltreatment of New York City children placed in foster homes. The principal data collection effort for this study was a record survey of substantiated abuse and maltreatment cases that were investigated in 1979. This survey was supplemented by an interview survey of a randomly selected sample of foster parents, foster children, and caseworkers in three agencies. The cases surveyed present a diverse range of child mistreatment.

Employment and crime: a review of theories and research

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:04 -0500

This is a review and analysis of the literature on the relationships between employment and crime from several different disciplines: economics, sociology, anthropology, and the recent body of manpower program evaluations for criminal justice populations. The review of economic literature focuses on two competing explanations of employment and crime relationships: the economic model of crime developed by neoclassical economists, and the more structural approach of segmented labor market theorists.

Mediation and arbitration as alternatives to prosecution in felony arrest cases

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:17 -0500

This is an evaluation of the first year's operation of the Brooklyn Dispute Resolution Center. The work of the Center resulted from joint efforts by the Institute for Mediation and Conflict Resolution (IMCR) and the Victim/Witness Assistance Project (V/WAP) of the Vera Institute of Justice. The report attempts to convey, in some detail, results of the first controlled research on mediation as an alternative to prosecution.

Felony arrests: their prosecution and disposition in New York City's courts

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:18 -0500

Revised edition

Travel patterns among the elderly

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:52 -0500

Status report: program development activities of the Vera Institute of Justice

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:14 -0500

This report summarizes the programs and activities of the Vera Institute of Justice as of October 1980.

Administering restitution payments in Brooklyn and Bronx criminal courts: report on the activities of the Victim Services Agency

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:29 -0500

This 1980 report evaluates the Victim Services Agency's restitution programs in Brooklyn and Bronx Criminal Courts, which manages cases in which judges order defendants to pay restitution to victims. In both boroughs the programs appeared to have gradually increased the frequency with which court officials order restitution.

Foster home child protection study

rayAdmin — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:13:37 -0500

This 1980 Vera report presents the results of research on the problem of abuse and maltreatment of New York City children placed in foster homes. In an effort to better understand this problem, Special Services for Children in the New York City Department of Social Services commissioned Vera to conduct an action-research project - the Foster Home Child Protection Study. The principal data collection effort for this study was a record survey of substantiated abuse and maltreatment cass concerning New York City children placed in foster homes that were invesigated in 1979.