In the Media

March 22, 2018

California's Proposition 47, implemented in 2014, lowered prison populations by reclassifying certain low-level drug and property crimes from felonies to misdemeanors. It has been blamed for rising crime in the state.

So a study done by Charis Kubrin, a professor of criminology, law and society, that found the measure was, in fact, not responsible for the rise in crime was sure to stir debate.

March 17, 2018

A federal court has blocked nearly all of the Los Angeles Police Department's gang injunctions because of concerns that they have violated due process rights. George Tita, professor of criminology, law and society, told KPCC that the LAPD's gang injunctions worked when cops were stopping drug deals on the streets or drive-by shootings.

March 14, 2018

Gang borders are often invisible to passerby, but for residents of a particular neighborhood, knowing where the lines are can make the difference between life or death, according to George Tita, a professor of criminology, law and society and urban planning and public policy. Tita was recently interviewed by KCRW.

February 21, 2018

The water crisis in Cape Town, South Africa offer three main lessons for water planners, writes David Feldman, professor of planning, policy and design: governments must plan ahead of time, solutions cost money and public trust is crucial.

February 15, 2018

February 1, 2018

Saying that illegal immigrants have caused the loss of "many" innocent lives, as President Trump has done, doesn't really say much, according to Charis Kubrin, professor of criminology, law and society.

January 25, 2018

Just because local police in Milwaukee, Wis. identified several criminal suspects with the help of a youtube rap video they appeared in, doesn't mean anything else in the video should be used as evidence in their prosecution, Charis Kubrin, professor of criminology, law and society, told CBS 58, a local news station in Milwaukee.

December 16, 2017

Hip hop artist Russell Simmons has been accused by 12 women of sexual misconduct. He says the claims are "an insane pile on."

Charis Kubrin, professor of criminology, law and society, spoke with KCRW about the story.

December 16, 2017

California's sanctuary cities bill, which limits cooperation between federal immigration authorities and local police, is good for communities, writes Charis Kubrin, professor of criminology, law and society.

"Greater policing of immigrants by local law enforcement, it turns out, has not enhanced public safety and has resulted in significant human costs," Kubrin writes in The Hill.

December 14, 2017

When a Mercedes-Benz official suggested last year that it would be better for a driverless car to save its driver even if that meant sacrificing multiple other people, the ensuing media coverage and public indignation quickly prompted the company to do damage control.

The episode highlighted some of the difficulties of gauging how the public will react to and accept driverless cars, Azim Shariff, assistant professor of psychology and social behavior, told Science Magazine.