91福利

The Cambridge Centre for Science and Policy are holding a free virtual seminar entitled "Serious Organised Crime: Answering the Home Office鈥檚 call for evidence". The seminar will take place on Zoom at 11am on Thurs 25th June.

You can find out more and register .

Dr Ana Aliverti (Law) has published a new paper that examines the role of police in patrolling the UK's borders.

You can download a freely available version of the paper via .

Here is a general summary:

This paper examines the contemporary role of the police in patrolling the nation鈥檚 territorial and social borders. The police play an important role in framing ideas and perceptions of order and disorder. By selecting when and against whom to apply coercion, the police not only constitute crime and criminals. They shape the boundaries of civility and patrol the margins of citizenship. Such role has been revitalized lately as they are tasked with immigration enforcement functions. Drawing on an empirical examination of immigration-police cooperation in England, I explore how police and immigration officers define the remits of their job and work alongside in everyday policing. I argue that the reliance on immigration enforcement by the police evinces the limitations of modern policing to decipher the new geographies of crime and disorder, and their difficulties in offering a reassuring response to public anxieties and ultimately in producing social order.

Professor Vanessa Munro (Law) has published a new chapter that reviews findings on jurors' approach to decision-making in rape cases.

You can download a freely available version of the paper via .

Here is a general summary:

The jury plays a pivotal role within many criminal justice systems. It has often been lauded for its unique ability to ensure the involvement of, and accountability to, members of the public in the application of criminal laws to citizens. At the same time, however, what goes on in the jury room has remained remarkably opaque. We know little about the nature and content of jury deliberations, about how legal tests are understood and applied therein, and about what persuasive strategies are most effective in securing a verdict. Over the past two decades, I — together with colleagues — have conducted several studies, using trial simulations, designed to explore jurors鈥� approach to decisionmaking in rape cases. In this article, I reflect on the key findings from that work and situate them in the context of ongoing international dialogue about both how to respond to the 鈥渏ustice gap鈥� in rape cases, and what to do about juries.

Professor Tim Watson (WMG) and colleagues, Dr Gillian Tilly (Forensic Science Regulator), Neil Cohen (Defence Science and Technology Laboratory), Gareth Davies (United Kingdom Accreditation Service, and Prof Roy Isbell (University of South Wales), have published a paper that examines the quality standards for digital forensics in England and Wales.

You can view the paper .

Here is a general summary:

The Forensic Science Regulator has the role of setting quality standards for forensic science in the Criminal Justice System (CJS) in England and Wales. The current requirement is for organisations carrying out digital forensics to gain accreditation to the international standard ISO/IEC 17025 and the Forensic Science Regulator's Codes of Practice and Conduct. The aim of this requirement is to embed a systematic approach to quality, including understanding methods, validating software and systems, understanding risks, ensuring that all involved in the crime scene to court process have the skills and competence they need and the appropriate equipment and environment for the work, and providing ongoing assurance of quality through audit and proficiency tests. However, the challenge of implementing the standards in digital forensics should not be underestimated, particularly in an environment where there is insufficient capacity to meet a growing demand for services in an area of increasing complexity and fragmented delivery. It is therefore timely to review available data to determine the extent to which accreditation to ISO/IEC 17025 is addressing quality issues in digital forensics and consider what changes and resources could be made available to assist with implementation of quality systems.

PhD student, Danni Norman (Psychology), and her co-supervisors, Dr Kim Wade, Prof Derrick Watson (Psychology) and Prof Mark Williams (WMG), have published a new paper that explores how virtual reality might be used in police investigations to enhance the efficacy of the Concealed Information Test.

You can download a freely available version of the paper via .

Here is a general summary:

We explore how virtual reality could be used in police investigations to take a suspect back in time and demon- strate that they recognize a crime scene despite claiming not to. In this study, participants committed a mock crime before being incentivized to conceal recognition of crime related details (e.g., the stolen item or crime scene). The crime scenes and objects were laser scanned, converted to photo-realistic models, and presented to suspects either in virtual reality (VR) or as 2D images on a computer screen. While concealing recognition of crime information, participants鈥� heart rate and skin conductance were measured using a Concealed Information Test (CIT) to assess recognition. Detection of concealed recognition increased by over 25% when participants viewed crime items in VR compared to 2D images. Our findings suggest that revisiting crime scenes or objects in VR may enhance stimulus recognition and salience resulting in increased CIT diagnosticity.

On the 15th and 16th May 2019, COPR hosted the National Custody Forum at the 91福利 Business School. This event was attended by police officers and researchers from across the UK.

COPR Director Jackie HodgsonLink opens in a new window has a new chapter on Empirical Approaches to Criminal Procedure in .

The recently published chapter was written in collaboration with at the University of London, and focuses on criminal justice in its sociopolitical culture, routine criminal justice practices and the relationship between law and policy.

You can find out more and access the chapter .

Kim WadeLink opens in a new window has recently been appointed the role of Co-Director of COPR. She will take over from , who will continue to be an active COPR member and researcher at .

Kim (pictured left) will join Co-Director Jackie HodgsonLink opens in a new window (below right), who continues to work hard to keep COPR moving forward.

Kim's research focuses on memory distortions,and the implications of memory research for legal professionals, including work on eyewitness testimony, the best methods for constructing and adminsitering lineups, and the use of fabricated evidence. As well as being an active researcher, she also works as the Associate Editor at the journal, and as the Executive Director of the . No doubt she will also do a fantastic job as Co-Director of COPR!

You can find out more about Kim's work on her home pageLink opens in a new window, and also on her websiteLink opens in a new window.

COPR researchers Professors Jackie HodgsonLink opens in a new window and Vanessa MunroLink opens in a new window in 91福利 Law SchoolLink opens in a new window are investigating the experiences of female detainees in police custody. Working with academic colleagues (, Sheffield and , Cardiff) and Katie Kempen (Chief Executive, ), they have carried out a pilot study to investigate the needs and experiences of female detainees and the different ways in which these are met. This has involved speaking to detainees directly, as well as those managing Independent Custody Visiting schemes in five different areas of England and Wales.

The findings of this preliminary investigation will be presented in the spring in order to gain feedback and suggestions from a range of practitioners and policymakers, including the police themselves, with a view to conducting a larger scale study in collaboration with several police forces.

In January 2019, the Centre for Operational Police Research (COPR) released their final report on Public Confidence and Crime Reduction: The Impact of Forensic Property Marking.

The full text can be accessed here:

Public Confidence and Crime Reduction: the Impact of Forensic Property Marking (Final Report)

This project was completed in co-operation with West Mercia Police and assessed a field trial involving over 20,000 households in the Telford area. It evaluated the impact of interventions such as Smartwater to establish whether they are likely to improve public confidence and reduce offending.

The interim report launched in September 2017 discussed the preliminary findings on public confidence in policing. This included the responses from surveys completed by 1,666 Telford residents as well as interviews with police offers, Police Community Support Officers and public offenders. Since then, the COPR team have analysed crime figures from 14 sites treated with commercial property marking. The results are presented in the final report and suggest that such interventions could be beneficial in helping police to reduce crime.

The overall findings are also displayed in the infographic shown below, which is also available to download here:

Infographic from Final Report.