TOPICS:
CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR
Youth Crime Prevention, Intervention and Social Policy
Youth Crime: Diverting Delinquents
What Constitutes a Hate Crime?

POLICE, COURTROOM AND PRISON PRACTICES
DNA Evidence: Use and Misuse in the Court
Fingerprinting and the Fallibilities of Criminal Identification
Prison Reentry Practices: Turning Criminals into Good Citizens

WHITE COLLAR CRIME
Identity Theft, Fraud and Cybercrime
White Collar Crime, Criminal Behavior and Crimes of the Century
“White Coat” Crime: Doctors and Medical Insurance Fraud

CRIMINAL BEHAVIOR

Youth Crime Prevention, Intervention and Social Policy
C. Ronald Huff is dean of UCI's School of Social Ecology, past-president of the American Society of Criminology, and a noted expert on gangs and youth crime. He has written extensively on youth violence, prevention, intervention and social policy, and his many books on the topic include three editions of the widely acclaimed Gangs in America. Huff has served as a consultant on gangs and youth violence to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, the FBI National Academy, the Ohio and Hawaii attorneys general and numerous other federal, state and local agencies. From 1979 to 1999, he served as director of the Criminal Justice Research Center at The Ohio State University, where he also directed the School of Public Policy and Management from 1994 to 1999. He currently serves on the California Attorney General's Research and Policy Advisory Board. Contact Huff at (949) 824-6094 or rhuff@uci.edu.

Huff can also comment on:
• Wrongful Convictions

Youth Crime: Diverting Delinquents
Arnold Binder, professor emeritus of criminology, law and society, has researched juvenile crime and delinquency for more than 25 years and is founder of a juvenile diversion program in several Orange County police departments. This program provides shelter, counseling, parenting classes and other services for youth offenders and high-risk youth. Binder has also conducted research on police officers’ use of deadly force and on their response to cases of spousal abuse. He is currently writing a book on the constitutional basis of being arrested. Contact Binder at (949) 824-5481 or abinder@uci.edu.

Binder can also comment on:
• Police Officers’ Use of Deadly Force by
• Law Enforcement’s Response to Spousal Abuse Cases

Quote: “Children in trouble with the law need help in the tradition of community services, not locked up in prison.”

What Constitutes a Hate Crime?
Valerie Jenness, associate professor and chair of criminology, law and society, has conducted extensive research on hate crimes and hate crime law – particularly on how the courts, legislators and social activists actually decide what constitutes a hate crime. Why, for example, are injuries against some people – Jews, people of color, gays and lesbians – recognized by the law and in the public’s mind as a hate crime, while other types of bias-motivated violence go unnoticed? Jenness is the author or co-author of several books, including Making Hate a Crime: From Social Movement Concept to Law Enforcement Practice, Hate Crimes: New Social Movements & the Politics of Violence, and Making It Work: The Prostitutes' Rights Movement in Perspective. Contact Jenness at (949) 824-1437 or jenness@uci.edu.

Jenness can also comment on:
• Civil Liberty Issues
• Prostitutes’ Rights

POLICE AND COURTROOM PRACTICES

DNA Evidence: Use and Misuse in the Court
William Thompson, professor of criminology, law and society, is a recognized expert on the use of forensic evidence in court and most recently assisted the much-publicized case of Josiah Sutton in Texas – a man whose rape conviction was overturned because of the mishandling and abuse of DNA evidence. (The case subsequently resulted in disciplinary actions for nine Houston Police Department crime laboratory employees.) An attorney trained in psychology, Thompson was a member of O.J. Simpson's defense team. He has raised concerns nationally about procedures used to interpret forensic DNA tests. Thompson has also studied the use in trials of hearsay and character evidence and the testimony of children. Contact Thompson at (949) 824-6156 or wcthomps@uci.edu.

Thompson can also comment on:
• Hearsay and Character Evidence
• Testimony of Children

Thompson: “DNA has the potential to do amazing good, but it’s not always definitive. Police labs should adopt the same scientific rigor that’s employed by researchers in academic labs.”

Fingerprinting and the Fallibilities of Criminal Identification
Simon Cole, assistant professor of criminology, law and society, is the author of “Suspect Identities: A History of Fingerprinting and Criminal Identification,” a comprehensive examination of criminal identification and particularly the rise of fingerprinting in the nineteenth century. Cole argues that the public and criminal justice system have a blind and dangerous faith in the infallibility of science and technology. In addition to his research, Cole has testified as an expert witness in hearings on the admissibility of fingerprint evidence. His current interests include the development of criminal identification databases and examining such biometric technologies as DNA, fingerprints, eye scanning, voice recognition and face recognition. Contact Cole at (949) 824-1443 or scole@uci.edu.

Cole can also comment on:
• Forensic Science

Cole: “The relevant question isn’t whether two fingerprints could ever be exactly alike. It’s whether they are ever similar enough to fool a fingerprint examiner.”

Prison Reentry Practices: Turning Criminals into Good Citizens
Joan Petersilia, professor of criminology, law and society, researches prisoner reintegration, parole, sentencing, career criminals and corrections. Her new book, When Prisoners Come Home: Parole and Prisoner Reentry, examines how the current prison and parole system are failing badly. She offers specific solutions to prepare inmates for release, reduce recidivism and restore them to full citizenship while never losing site of the demands of public safety. A former president of the American Society of Criminology and the California Association of Criminal Justice Research, Petersilia is a consultant to the U.S. Department of Justice and to many state and local agencies. Contact Petersilia at (949) 824-6438 or jrpeters@uci.edu.

Petersilia: “Prison reentry is a critically important public safety issue, and the current system is failing badly.”

WHITE COLLAR CRIME

Identity Theft, Fraud and Cybercrime
Henry Pontell, professor of criminology, law and society, is a leading expert on white-collar crime, including the growing problems of identity theft and fraud, international financial fraud, cybercrime and a variety of corporate crimes. Pontell is a co-author of the recently released "Looting America: Greed, Corruption, Villains, and Victims," which traces the roots of scandals that have impacted our economy. Pontell argues that white collar crime has greater financial, physical and social costs than street crime. He is currently involved with a large project investigating identity fraud in Australia, where it is estimated to cost the nation $4 billion a year. Contact Pontell at (949) 824-6153 or hnpontel@uci.edu.

Pontell can also comment on:
• Prison and Jail Overcrowding

Pontell: "There are kids out there today who can steal your identity, destroy your credit, and empty out your bank account without ever leaving their computers. And they can do it as fast as unwrapping their birthday presents."

White Collar Crime, Criminal Behavior and Crimes of the Century
Gilbert Geis, professor emeritus of criminology, law and society, is former president of the American Society of Criminology, as well as recipient of its Edwin H. Sutherland Award for outstanding research, While his primary expertise is in white collar crime and understanding criminal behavior, Geis brings an historical perspective to today’s crimes, having researched such “crimes of the century” as the Lindbergh kidnapping, the Alger Hiss case and the O.J. Simpson trial. He’s also written about such off beat subjects as 17th century witchcraft prosecution and prostitution in Portugal. A prolific author, he has published numerous books and articles on crime.
Contact Geis at (949) 824-9401 or ggeis@uci.edu .

Geis can also comment on:
• Juvenile Delinquency
• Crime Victim Compensation
• Rewards and Informers

“White Coat” Crime: Doctors and Medical Insurance Fraud
Paul Jesilow, associate professor of criminology, law and society, is lead author (with colleagues Gilbert Geis and Henry Pontell) of Prescription for Profit: How Doctors Defraud Medicaid. In researching the book, Jesilow and his colleagues interviewed doctors and government officials, as well as extensively reviewed case files, to uncover the stories of doctors who profit from abortions on women who aren't pregnant, needless surgery, overcharging for services, and excessive testing. The research traced patterns of abuse to Medicaid’s inauguration in the mid 1960s, when government authorities, not individual patients, were entrusted with responsibility for payments. Contact Jesilow at (949) 824-7195 or pdjesilo@uci.edu.

Jesilow can also comment on:
• Community Policing