Justice major Kimberly Del Frate presents at Western Society of Criminology Conference

Kimberly Del Frate, Justice major and a member of the University Honors College, made a presentation at the recent Western Society of Criminology Conference (WSC) on "The Arizona Issue: Racial Profiling and Civil Rights in Immigration Law Enforcement." The conference was held February 6-8 in Honolulu.

The presentation is based on her honors thesis.  Dr. Cory R. Lepage is her thesis advisor, and Prof. Jason Brandeis, J.D., is her thesis reader.  Her paper examines the questions in constitutionality  and civil rights concerns that arise with enforcement of Arizona's SB 1070 - Support Our Law Enforcement and Safe Neighborhoods Act - also known as the "Show Your Papers" law. A major focus of her work is whether or not implementation of the SB1070 constitutes racial profiling by law enforcement.

The Western Society of Criminology is a regional professional society devoted to the scientific study of crime. The society attracts scholars, students, government officials, and practitioners from both the public and private sectors from around the world.

Funding for Kimberly's conference participation and presentation was from the UAA Justice Center and a competitive UAA Honors College Discovery Grant.

Justice faculty present at Western Society of Criminology Conference

 Dr. Sharon Chamard; Prof. Jason Brandeis, J.D.; and Dr. Troy Payne, Justice faculty,
 recently presented on the following topics at the Western Society of Criminology Conference (WSC) in Honolulu, February 6 - 8:

Lto r: Dr. Payne  and Dr. Chamard at their presentation.

• "Super Controllers in Context: Fees for Excess Police Services Ordinance in Anchorage" - Dr. Chamard and Dr. Payne

• "The Impact of Shifting State and Federal Marijuana Policies on Alaska's Unique Recreational Marijuana Laws" - Prof. Brandeis

• "Policing and Place: Managing Locations, Controllers and Police Presence" - Dr. Payne, Panel Chair

The Western Society of Criminology is a regional professional society devoted to the scientific study of crime. The society attracts scholars, students, government officials, and practitioners from both the public and private sectors from around the world.

Prof. Brandeis teaches courses on American government, constitutional law and civil liberties, and is a frequent speaker on constitutional law and other legal issues. Prof. Brandeis also maintains a private law practice through which, subsequent to the date of this conference, he provided legal representation in administrative agency proceedings for the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol in Alaska. 

Dr. Chamard and Dr. Payne to present at Western Society of Criminology Conference

Dr. Sharon Chamard and Dr. Troy Payne, Justice Center faculty, will present at the 2012 Western Society of Criminology (WSC) Annual Conference in Newport Beach in February.  Both researchers are on the panel highlighting "Criminological Analyses of Ownership, Collective Efficacy, Public Awareness, and Temperature."

Dr. Chamard will speak on "Growth in the Mat-Su: Effects of Collective Efficacy, Social Ties, Fear of Crime and Self-Protection."  Dr. Payne will discuss "Exploring Non-Geographic Concentration of Crime: The Importance of Ownership."

The WSC is a regional professional society devoted to the scientific study of crime. The society attracts scholars, students, government officials, and practitioners from both the public and private sectors from around the world.

Dr. Myrstol publishes article on school resource officers in Western Criminology Review

Dr. Brad Myrstol, Justice faculty, has recently published, "Public Perceptions of School Resource Officer (SRO) Programs," in  volume 12, number 3 of  Western Criminology Review,  the peer-reviewed journal of the Western Society of Criminology.

About the article:
Prior research examining people’s perceptions of SRO programs has focused on the views of
four stakeholder groups: school administrators, teachers, parents, and students. Notably, however,
no prior studies have assessed the views of the general public, and few have utilized multivariate
analyses in order to identify the factors that shape perceptions of SRO initiatives. Using
community survey data collected in Anchorage, Alaska this study explores the general public’s
awareness of, perceived need for, and belief in the effectiveness of SRO programs, and
systematically examines factors that predict public support for them within a multivariate
framework. Results show that public support for SRO programs is multidimensional and “fuzzy.”
Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Drs. Rosay & Myrstol present at Western Society of Criminology Conference

Dr. André Rosay, Justice Center Director, and Dr. Brad Myrstol, Justice faculty, will be presenting at the 2011 Western Society of Criminology Annual Conference, February 3-5 in Vancouver.

Dr. Rosay and co-presenter Dr. Adrienne Freng of the University of Wyoming and a former Justice Center Visiting Faculty, will discuss their paper, "Girls and Boys: Separate or Equal? An Examination of Delinquency Trajectories," as part of a panel on "Gender Specific Pathways in Adolescence."

Dr. Myrstol will present his paper, "Predicting Public Support for School Resource Officers," as part of a panel on "Force and Victimization: Agents, Partners, Suspects & Detainees."

Dr. Myrstol presents at Western Society of Criminology Conference

Dr. Brad Myrstol, Justice Center faculty, presented "School Resource Officers: Public Perspectives and Perceptions" at the 2010 Western Society of Criminology Conference in Honolulu on February 5. This Powerpoint slide presentation presents an overview of school resource officer (SRO) programs, which place police officers in schools, and provides results of a preliminary analysis of perceptions of the SRO program in Anchorage School District. Currently 16 officers plus two supervisors of Anchorage Police Department are assigned to the Anchorage SRO program, which was established in 2003.