News

'Confirmation Bias' Called a Key Reason for Wrongful Convictions. Detectives investigating the murder of Dorka Lisker, a 66-year-old woman found stabbed in her Sherman Oaks, Ca., home in 1983, were convinced they had an open-and-shut case...

On Friday, April 26th, 2019, undergraduate students D’Mornaquah Fontenot and Courtney Meyers presented research conducted as part of an independent study. Under the supervision of Dr. Angela Jones, D’Mornaquah and Courtney examined the use of immersive environments to study eyewitness memory. Eyewitness misidentification is a leading contributing factor to wrongful convictions. In the current study, student participants were randomly assigned to view a crime with a head-mounted display in 360 or on a computer screen in 2D. This experimental design allowed for a test of whether an immersive environment results in a more realistic eyewitness experience relative to the more commonly employed 2D mock crime, and consequently whether there are differences in stress or memory accuracy. Student participants who viewed a crime in 360 thought the experience was more realistic and stressful, and they were less accurate than those who viewed the 2D crime. These findings suggest artificial witnessing conditions may overestimate a witness’s ability to make an accurate decision relative to more realistic witnessing conditions.

Students in Dr. Jones’ Wrongful Convictions class recently had the opportunity to meet Anna Vasquez, the current Director of Outreach and Education with the Innocence Project of Texas. During her visit, Ms. Vasquez talked about her wrongful conviction. Ms. Vasquez and three of her friends – Elizabeth Ramirez, Cassandra Rivera, and Kristie Mayhugh – were all wrongly convicted of child sexual assault in the 1990’s. All four, who became known as the “San Antonio Four”, were exonerated in 2016. For Anna, this life changing experience has called her to educate the general public about wrongful convictions and speaking out on related criminal justice reforms.

Dr. Kim Rossmo received the Paul Tappan Award at the 2019 Western Society of Criminology Conference in Honolulu, Hawai’i. The Tappan Award honors individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the field of criminology. Dr. Rossmo is the University Endowed Chair in Criminology and the Director of the Center for Geospatial Intelligence and Investigation in the School of Criminal Justice at Texas State University.

Drs. Donna M. Vandiver, Mark Stafford, and Angela Jones are hosting a Study Abroad trip this summer (May 24 – June 6, 2019). Academic credit is available for undergraduate and graduate students. Students must be in good academic standing. Scholarships are available. For more information please see http://www.cj.txstate.edu/resources/study_abroad/brazil-2019.html. Interested students should contact Dr. Vandiver at vandiver@txstate.edu.

Dr. Beauregard is Professor of Criminology at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia, Canada. An international expert on sex offending, he has published over 100 journal articles and is a frequent consultant, expert witness, and subject matter expert on cases involving missing persons and sexual homicide. All are welcome to attend.

The School of Criminal Justice announces a new Executive Track MSCJ degree option that aims to benefit working professionals in criminal justice agencies who currently hold a bachelor’s degree. The Executive Track is designed specifically for criminal justice professionals who want to demonstrate leadership and advance in the ranks of their organization. The MSCJ Executive Track is offered as a two-year cohort model comprised solely of criminal justice professionals as students. Our MSCJ Executive Track students will take two back-to-back, 8-week classes per semester, meeting physically on campus once per week (a second day of the week for covering course material will be an “alternative delivery” such as online). The coursework will be geared specifically towards the professional work that students are already doing, as well as providing tools, techniques, and information that will assist them in being recognized as a demonstrated leader in their field.

For more information on the program please click here.

TO APPLY, please click here.

The Hack Austin event is a 48-hour event that brings data enthusiasts from a variety of backgrounds together to provide health and safety solutions, addressing goals for Austin’s 5-year strategic plan. Data were made available to the participant’s disposal. They spent the weekend using advanced statistical techniques and creative geospatial applications to identify causes and correlates of long fire response times. Danielle Fenimore, a Texas State University criminal justice doctoral student, created a map that showed past and projected response times and emergency call volume. This highlighted where emergency responders may start seeing increasing numbers over the next two years. The project was presented to city executives and selected as the winner of Safety Outcome teams.

More info links:

https://austinstrategicplan.bloomfire.com/posts/1496098-2-winners-announced-at-civic-hackatho

https://www.facebook.com/AustinFireDepartment/posts/1649524175115048

Dr. Wesley Jennings, professor at the School of Criminal Justice, joined other prominent Texas State University scholars at a recent panel discussion titled "Understanding discipline norms in terms of publishing, peer review, open access, data and metrics."

The event was part of Alkek Library's Trends in Scholarship and Research program, and involved an in-depth discussion of publishing-related issues. The panelists also offered advice regarding manuscript preparation, the identification of suitable journals, and raising one's profile as a researcher. The discussion was moderated by Rick Anderson, Associate Dean for Collections & Scholarly Communication at the University of Utah.

Panelists from left to right: Dr. Debbie Thorne, Associate Provost Dr. Rodney Rohde, Clinical Laboratory Science Dr. Patricia Shields, Political Science Dr. Caitlin Gabor, Biology Dr. Wes Jennings, Criminal Justice

Dr. Marcus Felson will be giving a talk on “Fallacies About Crime” as part of the university’s common experience. Dr. Felson, best known for the development of routine activities theory, will provide a down-to-earth account of what to expect with real crime, routine police situations, and the ordinary justice system. It is scheduled for 3:30 to 5:00 p.m. at the Alkek library, room 105/106. All are welcome to attend. See attached flyer for more info.

Felson-flyer.pdf

Felson Presentation

Joceline Garcia, a recent graduate of the BSCJ program in Criminal Justice, completed her basic training for U.S. Customs & Border Protection, graduating from the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Glynco, GA. Ms. Garcia will be stationed in the Laredo, TX Port of Entry.

Dr. Kim Rossmo’s geographic profiling recognized in a recent article in The New Yorker in its application to detecting serial killers in addition to a wide array of other behaviors, including shark hunting patterns and the identification of an anonymous street artist known as “Banksy."

Read The article here

On May 18, 2017, three Army ROTC cadets were commissioned as Second Lieutenants in the U.S. Army:

• 2LT Justin Horton – Signal Corps, Fort Gordon, GA
• 2LT Cody Letterman – Quartermaster Corps, Fort Lee, VA
• 2LT Julian Nardone – Military Intelligence Corps, Fort Huachuca, AZ

On May 19, 2017, two Air Force ROTC cadets were commissioned as Second Lieutenants in the U.S. Air Force:

• 2LT Osvaldo Herrera – Combat Systems Officer, Pensacola Naval Air Station, Pensacola, FL
• 2LT Henry (Dustin) Hill – Security Forces Officer, Dover Air Force Base, Dover, DE

Where: Alkek Library Room 105-106

When: Tuesday, April 18th 2017 at 3:30pm

Who: Professor Kim Rossmo

Join us for a lecture on the "Dangers of Finding (and Not Finding) Life on Other Planets."

The search for life on other planets – whether successful or not – has significant ramifications for life on this planet. In an astronomical and sociological tour of some of these implications, this presentation begins with ideas from Bernoulli, Darwin, and Fermi, and concludes with timely warnings from Nate Silver and Jared Diamond.

Lecture Flyer (PDF)

Dr. Shayne Jones presents his research that investigates whether the effects of mainstream criminological constructs depend on individual personality traits. Using data from the Pathways to Desistance study, Jones examines concepts relevant to several theories and shows how agreeableness and conscientiousness do condition the effects variables like delinquent peer association, parental efficacy, and exposure to violence. Dr. Jones' presentation considers more generally the role of personality in criminology.

On March 30, 2017, Deborah Mletzko successfully defended her Master’s thesis in a public forum. Her research focused on the spatial dynamics of sex trafficking in Austin, Texas, and was completed under the supervison of Drs. Lucia Summers (Chair), Ashley Arnio, and Donna Vandiver. Her findings revealed clear clusters of sex trafficking activity within the city, and highlighted the influence of several variables in shaping such spatial distributions. The thesis will be added to Texas State University’s Dissertations and Theses digital collection in due course. Deborah and her committee are grateful to Austin Police Department, who provided access to crime data.

Texas Undergraduate Research Day at the Capitol was held this week. Mykle Ayala, a student in the School of Criminal Justice and the Honors College, was one of two students selected to represent Texas State University at the event.

The day included a Capitol Tour, research presentations, and the opportunity to meet with officials of the State of Texas. Mykle Ayala’s research poster was displayed in the Capitol Building. His faculty supervisor was Dr. Bob E. Vásquez.

Texas Undergrad Research Day

Bob E. Vásquez Profile

Callie Shaw, a current doctoral student presented her research, “Female Sex Offenders: An Analysis of a Disparate Response within the United States Criminal Justice System,” at the Century of Conflict: Dialogues on Women, Gender, Intersectionality and Militarism Symposium, hosted by the Women and Gender Research Collaborative.

Dialogues on Women, Gender, Intersectionality and Militarism Symposium

On March 10th, eight criminal justice students depart for Brazil to participate in a 10-day study-abroad trip led by Drs. Vandiver and Stafford. The students include one doctoral student—Monica Caballero, three master’s students—Samantha Aguirre, Raymond De Leon, and Kaylee Kadlubar, and four undergraduate students, Albreesha Culberson, Brianna Gordon, Tessa Lantsberger, and Tristan McPherson.

The students vary widely in their travel experience from this being their first travel experience outside of the U.S. to one student who will make Brazil her 24th country visited. The students have been meeting with Drs. Vandiver and Stafford in preparation for their departure.

While in Brazil, the students will be hosted by Dr. Corinne Rodrigues in the sociology department at the Universidade Federal De Minas Gerais in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. The students will attend various lectures and seminar sessions. They will also participate in various educational and cultural activities. The students will visit a judge, witness a trial, and meet diverse criminal justice officials. No trip would be complete, however, without a weekend trip to Rio de Janeiro to visit the Christ the Redeemer statue and the famous Rio beaches.

Dr. Kim Rossmo presents findings from his research on the geospatial patterns that underlie terrorist activities.

Relying on historical records, official reports, and a heavy dose of shoe-leather, Dr. Rossmo’s research investigates cases such as the Madrid Train Bombings, and the Assassination of the Minister of Justice of Ankara, Turkey to illustrate the patterned nature of terrorism. Dr. Rossmo’s presentation highlights the potential for geographic profiling to assist law enforcement in investigating and preventing terrorist attacks.

The School of Criminal Justice and Career Services presents the 2017 Criminal Justice Career Fair for criminal justice students and any major interested in law enforcement and criminal justice opportunities.

This event will provide an opportunity for students to meet and ask questions of representatives from a variety of local, state, and federal government agencies, the military, and the private sector who are actively recruiting for full-time and internship positions.

Criminal Justice professor, Dr. Scott Bowman and MSCJ student, Charian Knight, are presenting at this two-day interdisciplinary conference, hosted by the Center for International Studies.

School of Criminal Justice graduates four doctoral students this December.

The School of Criminal Justice and Criminological Association of Texas State is hosting a brownbag seminar for faculty and graduate students on Thursday December 15, at 3:30 pm. The guest speaker, Dr. Timothy Hart, will be discussing Conjunctive Analysis of Case Configurations.

On October 21st, Dr. Wayman Mullins received the Negotiator of the Year Award by the the National Tactical Officers Association, at their annual Negotiator Division annual conference for his contributions and service to the field.

Dr. Jaqueline Sebire, Head of Crime and Community at Bedfordshire Police, presented her University Lecture, “Profiling Intimate Partner Homicide: Best Uses of Police Data,” on Thursday, September 8, 2016.

Dr. Sebire has 23 years of policing experience, mainly as a detective in homicide and serious crime investigation with the London Metropolitan Police. She is also a visiting scholar at the University of Cambridge, and has researched and published in the areas of domestic violence and risk assessment.

Presentation Slides (PDF)

Ph.D. Dissertation

Several Criminal Justice professors were welcomed back to the new school year with recognitions and awards.

Anne Li Kringen, who earned her Ph.D. in Criminal Justice, has been selected to receive the Texas State University, Graduate College's Outstanding Dissertation Award in the Social Sciences, Business, and Education.