Short summaries present significant research findings from 12 recent NIJ-funded (National Institute of Justice) reports, and titles of other recently completed projects are listed.
An evaluation of the Los Angeles County Juvenile Drug Treatment Boot Camp, one of the longest running boot camps in the Nation, supported previous conclusions about boot camps; i.e., that as a treatment model, boot camps are probably not any more effective than most existing juvenile programs. An examination of how sentencing laws affect the cost of inmate medical care found that estimating the need for medical care cannot be based on the prevalence of disease outside of prison. An evaluation/assessment of Navajo peacemaking compared it to family court; it concluded that peacemaking offers individuals and groups that are experiencing conflict a compelling opportunity to achieve resolution as well as community and family justice. An analysis of the development and impact of truth-in-sentencing laws in Virginia found that they had and will continue to have a significant impact on crime and recidivism rates; property offenders had the highest rate of recidivism, followed by drug offenders and violent offenders, respectively. A study of the sex trafficking of women in the United States found that the sex industry is prolific and occurs in a wide range of settings. A longitudinal study of the developmental antecedents of violence against women found that victims of physical and sexual abuse are more prone to such abuse in future stages of their life courses. A study of the effects of casino gambling on crime and the quality of life in new casino jurisdictions found no single "casino effect," since impacts varied across communities. Other study summaries pertain to the evaluation of efforts to implement no-drop policies; the crime-control effect of incarceration; alcohol problems and violence against women; a guide to frugal evaluation for criminal justice; and models of community coordination in partner violence cases. A Web address is provided for access to the full abstract of each project.