Saturday, October 07, 2006

Around the Blogs 10-06-07

The discussion at ELS on the need for better legal scholar-poli sci ties goes on, with a good post on the related need for law journals to have better peer review if they are going to be edging into social sciences. The recent article I noted Thursday linking increasing crime rates in states adopting sentencing guidelines was a timely example. I like the idea of a PhD in law and society that could couple the two fields and perhaps lead to the joint projects (or even a journal) that would foster the perspective necessary within the academy and give students the skills that the author feels are required for today's legal scholars. Good work all week, ELS. . . . A very good post on re-entry issues and questions at Black Prof blog, including an appeal for dialogue that would be beneficial (h/t Prawfsblawg). . . . Crim Law tips us to this article on a registered sex offender's proposal for CA to create a colony for all sex offenders if the state is successful in creating so many places the offenders can't live within whatever inches of that they have nowhere to go. The guy, who counsels sex offenders now, doesn't seem to think it's a good idea to have wandering, homeless sex offenders. The guy who proposed the initiative in question says "this idea is based on a faulty assumption that everybody will have to move. We don't think California can go in and kick someone out of his house." Those who read us regularly should remember the news story about exactly that potentially happening. But I'm sure the legislator had plenty of well-done impact studies at hand when he proposed the initiative and was quoted for his reaction to the wandering perverts. . . . Finally, so you won't think I'm obsessed with CA's problems, Grits for Breakfast has more on the state that gave CA inspiration and that decided long ago to keep throwing money at crime problems through imprisonment. Here's the proof to what I always say about prisons hoovering needed dollars away from more proven areas of criminal justice--the dollars going to the proposed prison expansion in TX would be taken from probation and parole, drug treatment, and sex offender treatment, all of which will feedback positively into more demand for prison beds. Grits doubts that Texans will want to pay for it all. Sorry, Grits. History just isn't on your side, there or in CA. Or frankly the whole country. Fear always trumps sense. Have a good weekend.

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