By Robin Joy

From 2015-2019 Black people in Vermont were more likely to experience violent crime than White people in Vermont. This paper explores the circumstances and the criminal justice system response to violent crime against Black individuals. To do so, we use two data sources: the National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS) and the Vermont Court Adjudication Database maintained by the Crime Research Group (CRG). This paper focuses on the experience of Black victims1 and mentions White victims only when there is a divergence in patterns or responses that highlight specific policy needs to reduce Black victimization. For example, efforts to reduce violence against women will have lesser impact on Black victimization. This is because Black men make up the majority of Black victims of violence. White women make up the majority of victims of White victims of violence. This will be discussed more fully below. It is mentioned here to frame the readers’ attention as to when White victimization is referenced and when focusing policy discussions on Black experiences will benefit all Vermonters.   

Montpelier: Crime Research Group, 2022/ 12p.

By Sam Worrall  

  Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities face additional barriers throughout the criminal justice system (CJS); inequalities in mental health and diagnosed conditions, lack of appropriate educational opportunities and no knowledge of systems, among other factors. This report is designed to offer insight into the experiences of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities relating to all stages of the criminal justice system, to help improve knowledge and understanding of how to approach policy and practice for people from these communities. The report draws on primary data collection from surveys, focus groups, and individual interviews. The insight and voices of members of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities provide the key evidence for policy makers, service providers and commissioners working across the criminal justice system, to ensure that the guidance authentically reflects experiences and needs. We found: • Alternatives to custody were not considered for the majority of cases related to Gypsy, Roma and Traveller individuals. • Lack of support throughout the custodial journey for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller people and their families. • Lack of accessible and culturally appropriate support provided for mental health needs. • Prison and probation/parole staff did not have the cultural competency required to work with Gypsy, Roma and Traveller individuals. • Lack of resources and staff capacity for delivering equalities requirements for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller prisoners. • Prisoners did not have easy access to culturally appropriate education and/or practical courses and workshops to support them in prison. • Lack of consistency across the prison estate for regular Gypsy, Roma and Traveller forums or meet ups. • Lack of awareness and information about Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities and significant calendar events around prisons. • Lack of consistency across the prison estate, in managing Gypsy, Roma and Traveller prisoner needs. The Ministry of Justice must prioritise its Gypsy, Roma, Traveller Strategy to ensure a level playing field across prisons.

Recommendations • Offer effective alternatives to remand for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller offenders. Instead of holding an individual on remand, the prison system should offer programmes to support diversion, improve mental health, and offer meaningful community service. • Provide effective signposting for individuals at every stage of the criminal justice pathway. From the point of being accused of a crime, through custodial sentence and including post-custody (after prison). Ensure individuals are put in contact with Gypsy, Roma and Traveller-friendly legal support and other organisations who offer support throughout the CJS. Ensure police stations and courts are signposting to trusted organisations. • Offer programmes of support to Gypsy, Roma and Traveller prisoners to support future diversion, and improve mental health. • Ensure individuals receive mental health support at all stages. Develop a consistent model across the criminal justice system, especially in the prison estate, such as pastoral support, and/or a programme of community mentor listeners. Remove barriers that prevent individuals from accessing this support by, for example, allowing pastoral care to be available to those on basic mental health support. • Co-produce accessible resources such as videos for young Gypsy, Roma and Traveller people and their families. • Develop cultural competency training for staff including probation/parole staff across CJS. Explore co-produced options such as Q&A sessions with community members and display boards raising awareness. • Provide specific resources for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities to be available in forums and libraries. • Ensure funding is targeted to increase Equalities teams and ensure those in post are committed to equality across all communities. • Provide culturally appropriate education and additional practical courses for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller prisoners. Offer educational workshops and programmes such as those run by the Shannon Trust, ensuring extra support is in place to encourage young people to enrol. • Hold regular Gypsy, Roma and Traveller forums in prison. Celebrate key community events, create safe spaces, and encourage prisoner interaction and other activities. Raise awareness of the communities to non-community prisoners and prison staff. Co-produce the events programme with community prisoners. • Include regular evaluation and monitoring of all of the above as part of the delivery of the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller strategy for the criminal justice system 

Brighton, East Sussex, UK: Friends, Families and Travellers (FFT), 2025. 57p.

By Jennifer A. Tallon, Sruthi Naraharisetti, Viet Nguyen, Lisa Bailey Vavonese, and Michael Mrozinski

Recognizing the “obvious truth” that defendants cannot be assured a fair trial without representation, the Supreme Court has held that the right to counsel guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment requires states to provide a lawyer if a defendant cannot afford one. However, in 42 states and the District of Columbia, individuals experiencing poverty are charged a fee for invoking their Sixth Amendment right to counsel (hereafter referred to as “defender fees”). While defender fees are a marginal contributor to legal system fines and fees imposed on individuals, these fees are unique amongst the larger universe of fines and fees insofar as they essentially impose a fee for a Constitutional guarantee. Although there is a growing body of research on the use and impact of legal system fines and fees broadly defined, specific attention to defender fees remains underexplored within this literature. Policymakers and practitioners can help to ensure quality representation through an evidence-based approach to the problems and potential solutions associated with defender fees. To fill this research gap and start building the necessary evidence base, the Center for Justice Innovation (Center) partnered with the National Legal Aid & Defender Association (NLADA) to conduct two national surveys to document the uses and perceptions of defender fees among (1) public defense attorneys and (2) public defense and court leadership. What follows is a summary of those findings and a discussion of potential policy and practice considerations. Findings suggest that public defense attorneys are receptive to exploring policy and practice solutions to mitigate the impact of defender fees. • Most public defense attorneys surveyed for this study opposed the use of defender fees, the most common reason being the collateral consequences experienced by clients. Public defense leaders who responded to our survey5 were more supportive, seeing the benefit of fees in offsetting the costs of the public defense system. • Contrary to prior research, few attorneys in our study reported defender fees negatively impacting the attorney-client relationship. Still, some had witnessed clients waive their right to counsel because they could not pay an upfront defender fee. • We also asked attorneys to describe how statutes on defender fees apply in practice, and there was considerable variability, suggesting the need for greater standardization in terms of equipping attorneys with the skills to advocate against the fees and for judges to consistently apply procedural safeguards like ability to pay determinations. • Finally, a secondary survey of public defense and court leaders illustrated jurisdictions’ difficulties tracking data, specifically estimating outstanding debt or the revenue associated with defender fees.

New York: New York Center for Justice Innovation, 2025. 25p.

By: Mike Molan

As a source of reference materials this is not a book designed to be read from beginning to end in a linear fashion. Most readers will dip into the chapters that follow in search of material relating to a specific aspect of the substantive criminal law. The substantive criminal law does not, however, exist in a vacuum. It is hard to have an effective understanding of the doctrinal aspects of criminal law without also having a grasp of the operational context. The materials that follow in this first chapter, therefore, provide a brief overview of the sources of criminal law, the approach taken by the courts in applying criminal statutes, the procedural options open to the prosecuting authorities, and the appeals processes that give rise to many of the precedents forming the backbone of the substantive law. The materials also illustrate the impact of the Human Rights Act 1998 on the operation of domestic substantive criminal law, and the contribution of the Law Commission to the on-going programme of law reform. There are many other interesting aspects of the criminal justice system that could be considered, such as punishment, crime prevention, and theories of deviancy, but they lie beyond the scope of this text.

Routledge-Cavendish 2008

By Washington State Statistical Analysis Center

This project seeks to discover whether exclusionary discipline and later criminal justice system involvement are associated, and to determine whether race, sex, and homelessness are confounding factors. The Washington Statistical Analysis Center (SAC) applied for and received the 2018 State Justice Statistics Grant from BJS. Among other projects, the SAC sought the grant to evaluate the connection between a student’s exclusionary discipline and their future justice system involvement in Washington. This evaluation connects data from schools and the courts to assess the strength of this relationship and examine the influence of other factors (such as race, sex, and homelessness). Here are some of the main takeaways from this report: • Students identified as male were more than two times as likely to be associated with postgraduate convictions as compared to their female counterpart. • Students with any homelessness were 1.7 times as likely to be associated with a post graduate conviction than student with no record of homelessness. • Students identified as American Indian or Alaskan Native were more than two times more likely to have a post-graduate conviction than students identified as other races • Students identified as Black/African American had at least one exclusionary discipline event (25.1%) at nearly twice the proportion of the cohort average (13.6%), with students identified as American Indian/Alaskan Native and Hispanic/Latino not far behind. • Results should be interpreted with caution. 

Olympia, WA: Washington STate Statistical Analysis Center, 2022. 11p.

By Matthew B Robinson

The book provides a thorough summary of the relationships between race, ethnicity, crime, and justice practice and discusses the existence of disparities in criminal and juvenile justice practices and highlights the impact of race and ethnicity on the law, policing, courts, and corrections.It addresses the issue of institutionalized discrimination against different racial and ethnic groups in American institutions, including the criminal law and mainstream media.

Carolina Academic Press, 2021, 317 pages

By Jonathan Gu

AIM To estimate the association between judge-alone trials and the probability of acquittal, trial length, and sentence severity. METHOD We compared 5,064 jury and 805 judge-alone criminal trials finalised in the NSW District Court and Supreme Court between January 2011 and December 2019, excluding cases where the defendant entered a guilty plea to their principal offence or had a special verdict of “not guilty by reason of mental illness” (under s. 25 of the Mental Health (Forensic Provisions) Act 1990 (NSW)). Entropy balancing was used to match judge-alone cases with jury cases on available covariates. We then estimated the association between trial type (judge-alone vs jury) and four criminal justice outcomes, adjusting for relevant observable factors. The analysis was repeated for two subsets of offences: violent offences and offences with a higher likelihood of having prejudicial elements or complex evidence (prejudicial and complex offences). We also interviewed 12 legal practitioners, including District and Supreme Court judges, prosecutors, and defence lawyers, to identify factors motivating judge-alone applications that may be correlated with the outcomes of interest. RESULTS We estimated that compared to jury trials, judge-alone trials are associated on average with a statistically significant nine percentage point increase in the probability of acquittal and a shorter prison sentence by 7.6 months. Within prejudicial and complex offences, we found that judge-alone trials were associated with a statistically significant decrease in average trial days. Judge-alone trials were also associated with a statistically significant decrease in prison sentence length for the violent offences subgroup. Interviewees suggested that increased use of written submissions may influence both shorter trial length in judgealone matters and reduced prison sentences (i.e., via discounts from efficiencies resulting from pre-trial cooperation or time saved by submitting tendered evidence). Interviewees stated that judge-alone applications in NSW are mostly made in cases with prejudicial elements (e.g., evidence that cannot be separated from prior proven offending) or complex evidence (e.g., cases with substantial scientific or financial evidence). CONCLUSION Judge-alone trials are associated with an increased probability of acquittal, shorter trials, and a shorter prison sentence. However, we cannot determine whether these differences are driven by confounding factors (such as strength of the prosecution’s case) and/or causal factors.

Sydney: NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, 2024. 49p.

By Allison P. Harris

How does racial diversity impact institutional outcomes and (in)equality? Discussions about diversity usually focus on how individuals’ identities shape their behavior, but diversity is a group-level characteristic. Scholars must, therefore, consider the relationship between group composition and the individual decisions that shape institutional outcomes. Using felony data from a large U.S. court system, I explore the relationship between racial diversity among the judges comprising a court and individual judges’ decisions. I find that as the percent of Black judges in a courthouse increases white judges are less likely to render incarceration sentences in cases with Black defendants. Increases in racial diversity decrease the Black–white gap in the probability of incarceration by up to 7 percentage points. However, I find no relationship between judge’s racial identities and disparities in their decisions. This study highlights the importance of conceptualizing diversity as a group characteristic and the relationship between institutional context and outcomes.

American Political Science Review, 2023, 16 pages

MAY CONTAIN MARKUP

BY ARYE RATTNER AND GIDEON FISHMAN

"Justice for All? Jews and Arabs in the Israeli Criminal Justice System" provides a comprehensive examination of the complex dynamics that shape the experiences of Jews and Arabs within Israel's legal framework. Through meticulous research and insightful analysis, this book delves into the intricacies of how the Israeli criminal justice system navigates issues of identity, power, and discrimination in cases involving Jewish and Arab individuals.

By shedding light on the unique challenges and disparities faced by these two communities, "Justice for All?" prompts readers to critically reflect on the notions of equality and fairness within the legal landscape of Israel. With a nuanced approach, the authors navigate through a range of perspectives, offering a compelling exploration of the multifaceted interactions between ethnicity, religion, and the pursuit of justice.

This book is essential reading for anyone interested in understanding the complexities of the Israeli criminal justice system and its implications for the diverse communities it serves. "Justice for All?" serves as a thought-provoking contribution to the ongoing dialogue surrounding issues of representation, equity, and human rights in the context of Israel's legal institutions.

Westport, Connecticut London. Praeger. 1998. 142p.

By User Voice

This report brings forth the experiences of people who are diagnosed and self-diagnose as neurodivergent. As the health and criminal justice sectors are learning more about the experiences of neurodivergent service users, User Voice wants to bring their voices front and centre, and to give them real agency. Their quotes are unedited and based on their personal experiences. As part of this study User Voice interviewed 104 service users across 11 prisons nationwide between September 2022 and February 2023. To gain as full a picture as possible, User Voice additionally surveyed 250 neurodivergent service users about their experiences in the criminal justice system. All interviewed or surveyed service users were either diagnosed or self-diagnosed as neurodivergent. To provide as holistic a picture as possible, User Voice spoke to service users about their lives before they were involved in the criminal justice system. In early life, most service users we spoke to came from lower socio-economic backgrounds, over half had experienced abuse and neglect, and one third had been in care. At a crisis point, service users often found that they did not have the needed support networks, and therefore as a result, many had turned to alcohol and drugs which then had led to a life of criminality. Many told us that due to their neurodiversity, they are easily manipulated, coerced, groomed, or susceptible to peer pressure. This report shines a light on the lack of support for people who end up in the criminal justice system. Half of the service users who took part in this report told us they had been diagnosed before they turned 17 years old. Nine had been diagnosed between ages 17 – 26, and 17 when they were older than 27 years. None of them had been told how to live with their conditions. This study finds a criminal justice system ill-prepared to help neurodivergent people. In police custody, only 2 service users had adjustments made around their neurodiversity, whereas in prison, 15 said adjustments had been made. Because of lack of assessments and screening in prisons, we found that only few were receiving the support they needed. We believe that lived experience has a crucial part to play in the formulation of policy and practice in every sector, whether it be criminal justice, health, or education. To benefit those who are neurodivergent, we advocate for more peer support as well employing staff with lived experience in neurodiversity. This would guarantee that services and resources are tailored to the needs of neurodivergent service users. As prison populations grow, a commitment to more neurodiversity qualified health care staff is a must. The prison population would benefit from clinical psychologists in prison as well as better management of medication. This report is a snapshot of people’s lived experience. To drive true reform, we hope that more resources are given to projects that share the voices and experiences of neurodivergent people. To stop neurodivergent people ending up in the criminal justice system, we need to learn from those who have been there.

London: User Voice, 2023. 41p

By Meredith Rossner and Helen Taylor

Restorative justice is an idea and a practice that has had a significant impact on criminology over the past four decades and has proliferated throughout the criminal justice system. Yet from the beginning of this movement, there have been worries that the mainstreaming of restorative justice will lead to its dilution, or even corruption, and undermine its transformative potential. Developing alongside the growing institutionalization of restorative justice has been a transformative justice movement that has arisen from larger movements for racial and gender justice, drawing on similar foundational values to restorative justice. This review interrogates the relationship between restorative and transformative justice by examining a flourishing of ideas and experiments at the margins of the restorative justice movement in three key areas—responses to racial injustice, sexual violence, and environmental harm—and finds that restorative justice has the capacity to work at multiple levels to respond to harm, transform relationships, and prevent future injustices.

Annual Review of Criminology, Volume 7, Page 357 - 381

By Hedwig Lee

I describe how cultural and structural racism operate the entire contemporary American criminal justice system via five features: devaluation of certain human lives, ubiquitous adaptation, networked structure, perceived neutrality, and temporal amnesia. I draw from specific historical and contemporary examples in policing, courts, and corrections to further emphasize the foundational nature of racism and its role in shaping racial/ethnic inequities not just in relationship to criminal justice outcomes but also in relationship to health, economic, and social well-being.

Annual Review of Criminology, Volume 7, Page 233 - 255