Scott H. Decker – författare

The United States deported nearly two million illegal immigrants during the first five years of the Obama presidency—more than during any previous administration. President Obama stands accused by activists of being “deporter in chief.” Yet despite efforts to rebuild what many see as a broken system, the president has not yet been able to convince Congress to pass new immigration legislation, and his record remains rooted in a political landscape that was created long before his election. Deportation numbers have actually been on the rise since 1996, when two federal statutes sought to delegate a portion of the responsibilities for immigration enforcement to local authorities.Policing Immigrants traces the transition of immigration enforcement from a traditionally federal power exercised primarily near the US borders to a patchwork system of local policing that extends throughout the country’s interior. Since federal authorities set local law enforcement to the task of bringing suspected illegal immigrants to the federal government’s attention, local responses have varied. While some localities have resisted the work, others have aggressively sought out unauthorized immigrants, often seeking to further their own objectives by putting their own stamp on immigration policing. Tellingly, how a community responds can best be predicted not by conditions like crime rates or the state of the local economy but rather by the level of conservatism among local voters. What has resulted, the authors argue, is a system that is neither just nor effective—one that threatens the core crime-fighting mission of policing by promoting racial profiling, creating fear in immigrant communities, and undermining the critical community-based function of local policing.

This study is based on three years of field work with 99 active gang members and 24 family members. The book describes the attractiveness of gangs, the process of joining, their chaotic and loose organisation, and their members' predominant activities - mostly hanging out, drinking, and using drugs. The authors also discuss gang members' rather slapdash involvement in major property crime and their disorganised participation in drug traffic, as well as the often fatal consequences of their violent life-style. Although the book focuses on the individual, organisational, and institutional aspects of gang membership, it also explores gang members' involvement with other school and neighborhood structures. Extensive interviews with family members provide groundbreaking insights into the gang members' lives. As much as possible, however, the story is told in the gang members' own words.

Although a well-known phenomenon in the U.S., street gangs and other violent and criminal groups_including racist groups_exist also in European cities and countries, and are of increasing concern in global law enforcement. The eminent contributors to this volume present valuable new data on European youth gangs, describing important characteristics of these groups, and their similarities and differences to American gangs. Their findings from the Eurogang Research Program compare European and American gang interventions, and highlight the impact of immigration and ethnicity, urbanization, national influences, and local neighborhood circumstances on gang development in several European countries. It is an important resource on crime, delinquency and youth development for criminologists, sociologists, youth workers, policy makers, local governments, and law enforcement professionals.

Pyrooz and Decker pull apart the bars on prison gangs to uncover how they compete for control. While there is much speculation about these gangs, there is little solid research. This book draws on interviews with 802 inmates - half of whom were gang members - in two Texas prisons; one of the largest samples of its kind. Using this data, the authors explore how gangs organize and govern, who joins gangs and how they get out, the dark side of gang activities including misconduct and violence, the ways in which gang membership spills onto the street, and the direct and indirect links between the street and prison gangs. Competing for Control captures the nature of gangs in a time of transition, as prison gangs become more horizontal and their power is diffused across groups. There is no study like this one.

Pyrooz and Decker pull apart the bars on prison gangs to uncover how they compete for control. While there is much speculation about these gangs, there is little solid research. This book draws on interviews with 802 inmates - half of whom were gang members - in two Texas prisons; one of the largest samples of its kind. Using this data, the authors explore how gangs organize and govern, who joins gangs and how they get out, the dark side of gang activities including misconduct and violence, the ways in which gang membership spills onto the street, and the direct and indirect links between the street and prison gangs. Competing for Control captures the nature of gangs in a time of transition, as prison gangs become more horizontal and their power is diffused across groups. There is no study like this one.

Pulling together the most salient, current issues in the field today, The Handbook of Gangs provides a significant assessment by leading scholars of key topics related to gangs, gang members, and responses to gangs.•  Chapters cover a wide array of the most prominent issues in the field of gangs, written by scholars who have been leaders in developing new ways of thinking about the topics•  Delivers cutting-edge reviews of the current state of research and practice and addresses where the field has been, where it is today and where it should go in the future•  Includes extensive coverage of the individual theories of delinquency and provides special emphasis on policy and prevention program implications in the study of gangs•  Offers a broad understanding of how other countries deal with gangs and their response to gangs, including Great Britain, Latin America, Australia and Europe• Chapters covering the legacies of four pioneers in gang research—Malcolm W. Klein, Walter B. Miller, James F. Short Jr., and Irving A. Spergel

In 2000 several European academics decided it was time to launch a European Society of Criminology. From the start the new Society encouraged the creation of working groups on specialized topics. One of the first such working groups was focused on “juvenile justice,” launched by the first author of this book. The idea for this book emerged from concerns about recent developments in juvenile justice in our own countries, developments that were leading toward an evermore punitive, but not necessarily more effective, system in juvenile justice. To our surprise numerous Society members specializing in the field of Juvenile Delinquency and Youth Justice shared these sentiments and joined the working group. In addition, some American and Canadian experts became ESC members and were interested in joining the working group, adding an international dim- sion to our undertaking. The working group was guided by several key qu- tions. How have different states developed their juvenile justice system in the last 25 years, and if one compares countries, to what extent are these developments similar or different? To be more precise: to what degree has the Welfare system that had existed for most of the 20th century changed into a Just Desert and more punitive system in these countries? The present book tries to answer these questions for a great number of European and two North American countries in a comparative perspective, including 19 national reports on juvenile justice and

In the field of criminal justice, public policy is designed to address the problems brought on by criminal behavior and the response to that behavior. However, too often, the theories carefully developed in the academy fail to make their way into programs and policy. The editors and contributors to this second edition of Criminology and Public Policy highlight the recent development of “translational criminology” to address the growing movement in criminology to use the results of criminological research and theory to better inform policy and practice.  The essays in Criminology and Public Policy propose an in-depth look at both theory and practice and how they are integrated across a number of key criminal justice problems-from racial and environmental concerns to gun control and recidivism rates as well as police use of force and mass incarceration. The end result is an essential volume that blends both theory and practice in an effort to address the critical problems in explaining, preventing, responding to, and correcting criminal behavior.    Contributors include: Robert K. Ax, Michelle N. Block, Anthony A. Braga, Rod K. Brunson, Jennifer Carlson, Ronald V. Clarke, Shea Cronin, Megan Denver, Kevin M. Drakulich, Grant Duwe, Amy Farrell, Cheryl Jonson, Charis E. Kubrin, Justin Kurland, Megan Kurlychek, Shannon Magnuson, Daniel P. Mears, Robert D. Morgan, Kathleen Powell, Danielle Rudes, Cassia Spohn, Cody Telep, Natalie Todak, Glenn Trager, Jillian J. Turanovic, Sara Wakefield, Patricia Warren, David Weisburd, Michael D. White, Rob White, Lauren Wilson and the editors

In the field of criminal justice, public policy is designed to address the problems brought on by criminal behavior and the response to that behavior. However, too often, the theories carefully developed in the academy fail to make their way into programs and policy. The editors and contributors to this second edition of Criminology and Public Policy highlight the recent development of “translational criminology” to address the growing movement in criminology to use the results of criminological research and theory to better inform policy and practice.  The essays in Criminology and Public Policy propose an in-depth look at both theory and practice and how they are integrated across a number of key criminal justice problems-from racial and environmental concerns to gun control and recidivism rates as well as police use of force and mass incarceration. The end result is an essential volume that blends both theory and practice in an effort to address the critical problems in explaining, preventing, responding to, and correcting criminal behavior.    Contributors include: Robert K. Ax, Michelle N. Block, Anthony A. Braga, Rod K. Brunson, Jennifer Carlson, Ronald V. Clarke, Shea Cronin, Megan Denver, Kevin M. Drakulich, Grant Duwe, Amy Farrell, Cheryl Jonson, Charis E. Kubrin, Justin Kurland, Megan Kurlychek, Shannon Magnuson, Daniel P. Mears, Robert D. Morgan, Kathleen Powell, Danielle Rudes, Cassia Spohn, Cody Telep, Natalie Todak, Glenn Trager, Jillian J. Turanovic, Sara Wakefield, Patricia Warren, David Weisburd, Michael D. White, Rob White, Lauren Wilson and the editors

Gangs are multifaceted and varied, so any attempt to understand them cannot be restricted to a singular approach. On Gangs provides a diverse and comprehensive survey of the available theories for understanding this social issue as well as the broad range of responses to it. The authors look at the many influences on gangs’ operation, growth, prevention, and enforcement.The authors provide different criminological, psychological, and sociological approaches to gang studies, including interviews with past and current gang members. On Gangs presents the core issues for understanding gangs, including emerging topics like prison gangs, gender and gangs, and international gangs. There is also a focus on policing, legislation, and punishment. Weaving together research and policy findings to address the causes, contexts, and consequences of gangs, the authors address topics including joining, resisting, and leaving gangs, and how gangs operate in communities and institutions.  An authoritative and sweeping tour of gang scholarship, On Gangs showcases the critical evidence-based solutions in prevention, enforcement, legislation, and intervention. The authors seek to answer the question: How do we effectively deal with gangs and gang membership?

Gangs are multifaceted and varied, so any attempt to understand them cannot be restricted to a singular approach. On Gangs provides a diverse and comprehensive survey of the available theories for understanding this social issue as well as the broad range of responses to it. The authors look at the many influences on gangs’ operation, growth, prevention, and enforcement.The authors provide different criminological, psychological, and sociological approaches to gang studies, including interviews with past and current gang members. On Gangs presents the core issues for understanding gangs, including emerging topics like prison gangs, gender and gangs, and international gangs. There is also a focus on policing, legislation, and punishment. Weaving together research and policy findings to address the causes, contexts, and consequences of gangs, the authors address topics including joining, resisting, and leaving gangs, and how gangs operate in communities and institutions.  An authoritative and sweeping tour of gang scholarship, On Gangs showcases the critical evidence-based solutions in prevention, enforcement, legislation, and intervention. The authors seek to answer the question: How do we effectively deal with gangs and gang membership?

Drug Smugglers on Drug Smuggling examines the organizational structures of drug smuggling from Colombia to the US.  Career drug smugglers describe a series of often disconnected networks that enable smugglers to best organize their business in a way that will minimize the risks of apprhension and maximize profits.

This comprehensive reference work presents an in-depth analysis of juvenile justice systems across the world. The second edition of this Handbook has been updated with 13 new chapters, now covering a total of 34 countries, across North and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East from an international and comparative perspective. The International Handbook of Juvenile Justice is the result of research conducted by a group of outstanding scholars working in the field of juvenile justice. It reflects a collective concern about trends in juvenile justice over the past two decades, trends that have begun to blur the difference between criminal and juvenile justice. Also new to the second edition, each chapter is formatted to increase the comparative aspect of the book, highlighting:·         The legal status of juveniles·         Age of majority·         The country’s stance toward the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child·         Trends in juvenile crime over the period 2004-2014·         Causes of juvenile crime·         Policing and juveniles·         Courts and juveniles·         Custodial rules for juveniles (detention, prison, mixing juveniles with adults)·         Alternative sanctions for juveniles: home confinement, restorative justice, restitution, etc.·         Differences in treatment of boys and girls This seminalwork highlights similarities and differences between the various systems, and will be an important reference for researchers in criminology and criminal justice, particularly interested in juvenile delinquency and youth crime, as well as related disciplines like sociology, social work, and public policy.

This comprehensive reference work presents an in-depth analysis of juvenile justice systems across the world. The second edition of this Handbook has been updated with 13 new chapters, now covering a total of 34 countries, across North and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East from an international and comparative perspective. The International Handbook of Juvenile Justice is the result of research conducted by a group of outstanding scholars working in the field of juvenile justice. It reflects a collective concern about trends in juvenile justice over the past two decades, trends that have begun to blur the difference between criminal and juvenile justice. Also new to the second edition, each chapter is formatted to increase the comparative aspect of the book, highlighting:·         The legal status of juveniles·         Age of majority·         The country’s stance toward the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child·         Trends in juvenile crime over the period 2004-2014·         Causes of juvenile crime·         Policing and juveniles·         Courts and juveniles·         Custodial rules for juveniles (detention, prison, mixing juveniles with adults)·         Alternative sanctions for juveniles: home confinement, restorative justice, restitution, etc.·         Differences in treatment of boys and girls This seminalwork highlights similarities and differences between the various systems, and will be an important reference for researchers in criminology and criminal justice, particularly interested in juvenile delinquency and youth crime, as well as related disciplines like sociology, social work, and public policy.