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Nov 4, 2009 stanfordlaw: Joan Petersilia: There is strong agreement that...
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Nov 4, 2009 Considering CA’s Voter Initiative System...
Nov 2, 2009 kdansky: SCOTUS: is state procedural default rule like PA's ...
Oct 30, 2009 kdansky: Thanks for the RTs and FFs @ianrichetti @brookpete...
Oct 30, 2009 kdansky: Suggestions for how to have less crime & less p...
Oct 30, 2009 kdansky: RT @CorrectionsOne: Pa. court dismissed 1000s of ju...
Oct 29, 2009 kdansky: SCJCblog: Accomplice liability in Richmond gang rap...
Oct 29, 2009 Accomplice Liability in Richmond Rape Case?...
Oct 29, 2009 kdansky: Interesting Daily Journal piece on the importance o...
Oct 28, 2009 kdansky: House Judiciary Committee hearing: Racial Dispariti...
Oct 28, 2009 kdansky: Tweets using #cadebate will be shown on feed during...
Oct 27, 2009 kdansky: Should consumers of child porn be ordered to pay re...
Oct 22, 2009 Errors in Judgment...
Oct 21, 2009 SCJC on KQED’s Forum with Michael Krasny...
Homecoming rape: When do bystanders become accomplices?
Publication Date: October 29, 2009
Source: The Christian Science Monitor
Kara Dansky talked to Christian Science Monitor reporter Michael Farrell about "accomplice liability" in the Richmond, California rape case which went unreported by bystanders:
The case of a 15-year-old girl who was raped outside her high school homecoming dance last weekend is likely to raise legal questions about who was merely a witness and who was an accomplice.
Four teenagers were arraigned in Richmond, Calif., Thursday. Three of the suspects are juveniles, and one is a 19-year-old man. All have been charged as adults. A 21-year-old man has also been arrested but not officially charged in the rape.
...
Accomplice liability is applicable to someone who aides and abets a crime, says Kara Dansky, executive director at the Stanford Criminal Justice Center. If a bystander verbally encouraged a crime, they can face the same level of punishment as those who actually carry it out, she says.
...
But Professor Dansky suspects the question of accomplice liability will become a key issue in the prosecution's case.
Answering the question of what amounts to aiding and abetting, however, will require "intensive fact investigation on the part of the police and difficult line-drawing on the part of the prosecutors," she notes on her blog.
More News from Stanford Criminal Justice Center (SCJC)Overview
The Stanford Criminal Justice Center (SCJC) serves as Stanford's vehicle for promoting and coordinating the study of criminal law and the criminal justice system, including legal and interdisciplinary research, policy analysis, curriculum development, and preparation of law students for careers in criminal law. The center is headed by faculty co-directors Robert Weisberg and Joan Petersilia and executive director Kara Dansky.
SCJC's areas of interest include criminal trial practice and procedure, institutional examination of the police and correctional systems, social science study of the origins of criminal behavior and methods of punishment, and criminal legislation and enforcement in areas ranging from drug crimes to federal white collar crimes.
One major goal of the center is to encourage collaborative criminal justice policy development at the national, state, regional, and local levels by: promoting public/private partnerships between different levels of government in the criminal justice arena; creating opportunities for the use of social science research to aid in the development and implementation of empirically-validated, data-driven criminal justice programs and policies; and serving as a public service consultant to public officials at all levels of government.
The center brings legal scholars together with social science experts, government officials, nonprofit leaders, and criminal justice practitioners in the form of conferences, academic symposia, policy forums and strategic roundtables addressing pragmatic issues of criminal justice reform.
Collaboration within the law school's faculty helps promote multi-student empirical research projects and co-authorship with professors. Reaching beyond SLS, law faculty and students in the program work with other units at Stanford whose work bears on criminal justice issues, including the Center for Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity (CCSRE) and the Institute for Research in the Social Sciences (IRiSS).
SCJC works closely with the law students’ Criminal Law Society to present the Stanford Criminal Law and Justice Speaker Series – a series of quarterly presentations by eminent academics and practitioners in criminal law and criminal justice.
In alliance with the Clinical Education Program and Public Interest Program at Stanford Law School, SCJC supervises and places students in outstanding externships in prosecution and defense agencies, advises students on a range of criminal law career opportunities, and provides students with the resources they need to move successfully into careers in the fields of criminal law and criminal justice policy.
News & Announcements
- Homecoming rape: When do bystanders become accomplices?
- Silicon Valley Mystified By Reports Top Executive Hector Ruiz Leaked Company Secrets
- Concerns of jury influence helped move Mehserle case, experts say
- ACLU Challenges DNA Testing
- In Polanski Case, ’70s Culture Collides With Today
- Expanding DNA Databases Raise Questions
- Parole Holds Key To California Prison Overcrowding
- Is A Second Execution Attempt Cruel And Unusual?
- Schwarzenegger's Prison Reduction Plan Falls Short Of Court Order
- California Faces Federal Judge on Prison Gridlock
- Time's Up For Schwarzenegger On Prison Plan
- Crowded Calif. Prisons
- Do Early-Release Programs Raise The Crime Rate?
- Fire Starter's Intent Is Key To Possible Murder Charge
- Can The Wrongs In California's Criminal Justice System Be Righted?
- Federal Parole Officials Released Phillip Garrido From 50-Year Sentence After Short Interview
- Garrido Among Many Sex Offenders In Calif. Town
- Dugard Case: Is California's Parole System Overstretched?
- How Garrido Got Out The First Time
- Monster in Our Midst
- Nancy Garrido: Victim or Monster?
- California Assembly Passes Diluted Prison Reform Bill
- Sex Offenders Move To Antioch Area 'Because They Can'
- Lockerbie Bomber's Early Release Spurs Discussion: Was Compassion Misplaced?
- KCBS News Radio
- 9th Circuit Tosses Reyes' Backdating Conviction Due To Prosecutorial Misconduct
- Riot at Chino's Men Prison Came Amid An Array Of Overcrowding And Deficiencies
- Prisons in Crisis
- California May Have Tough Battle Ahead If It Appeals Order To Reduce Prison Population
- California Prisons Must Cut Inmate Population
- The Prison System
- Study Finds Record Number Of Inmates Serving Life Terms
- Bonds Adviser To Help Pick U.S. Attorney
- Over 1000 Law Professors Join Letter Endorsing Sotomayor
- Latest FSR issue, "On the Shoulders of Giants," now available on-line
- Deadline Looms To Charge Suspected Old Fire Arsonist
- Bad Times For Good Programs
- Money Shortage Forces Cut In Cases To Be Prosecuted
- City Attorneys Cross Into Criminal 'Quality-of-Life' Cases
- Cases Pile Up As Public Defenders Are Stung By Budget Cuts
- Petersilia From UC Irvine To Stanford
- State prison advisor gets Stanford Law post
- Prosecutors To Appeal Evidence Ruling; Bonds Trial Faces Delay
- The Prison Overcrowding Fix
- Video Hints At Unprovoked Attack In BART Shooting
- BART Shooting Update
- Legal Experts Weigh In On Murder Charge Against Ex-BART Officer
- ‘Chain Of Custody’ Key In Bonds’ Case
- Explainer: How To Prosecute a Shoe-Thrower
- The Madoff Litigation: No Billion Dollar Jackpots, More Like 'Medium-Sized'
- Proposition 6: The Most Implosive
- Federal Judge Refuses To Accept Guilty Plea In Health Care Fraud Case
- Q&A: D.C. Gun Ban Overturned; What's Next?
- Law May Allow Police To Search Smartphones Without Warrant
- Can Executions Decrease Murder Rates?
- Clemens Again Rejects Charges Of Steroid Use
- Baseball Notebook | Bonds Wants Case Dismissed
- Bonds’s Lawyers Use Two Tactics To Battle Charges
- Brocade Ex-CEO Reyes Sentenced To 21 Months In Prison
- Novitzky's Reach Extends From BALCO To Clemens
- Key Witness Against Former Brocade CEO Is Balking
- Why Did Fallen Hero Vick Go To Jail Early?
- Bonds' Chances To Beat Charges
- Of Crime And Punishment
- Early Federal Prison Release
- State Prison Case May End By January
- Ousting An Elected Official A First Since City Created Ethics Commission
- Attorney Seeks To Overturn Hsu's Fraud Conviction
- Lawyer At Heart Of Broadcom Investigations
- Federal Judge Holds Off On Brocade Ruling
- Racial Disparity in California's Prisons
- Judges Weighing Prison Cap Could Tackle Sentence Reform, Some Say
- Can Scooter Get A Refund?
- Court: Defendants Were 'Delinquent' But Gonzales Case Lacks Legal Foundation
- Prosecutors Mull Next Move In Case Against Former San Jose Mayor
- Editorial: Prison Progress
- Hutchison: Readers Question Why Laws Don't Protect Victims
- De Anza Rape Case Sends Bleak Message
- D.A. Won't File In Case Involving De Anza Athletes
- Big Bond Deal to Fund Prison Expansion
- California Headlines
- State Sentencing Bill Advances
- Stanford Conference To Explore Prisons, Race
- Guards, Defense Lawyers Sorta Join Forces
- "Unusual" Deal Evolved To End HP Cases
- For Inzunza, Justice Takes Its Time
- Courts In Fog On Sentencing After Overturning Of Law
- Lawmakers Passes Quick Fix For State Sentencing Scheme
- Spanking Mad
- Editorial: Prison Crisis And Public Safety
- U.S. Supreme Court Overturns California Sentencing Practices
- Democratic Lawmakers Propose Creating a Panel With Power To Set Prison Sentences
- New Question In Bonds Investigation After A U.S. Attorney Resigns
- Fetal Murder Charge Sought In Stabbing
- Time To Fix Overcrowding; Governor Backs One Good First Step: A Sentencing Commission
- U.S. Eases Its Tactics On Suspect Firms
- Time To Consider Sentencing Reform In Prisons
- California Prisoners Shipped Out of State
- Clock Ticking On Overcrowding
- Robber Testifies In 1986 Case, Hoping To Invalidate 3rd Strike
Courses
Library
The Stanford Criminal Justice Center is frequently asked to provide legal analysis for various government and non-profit entities on a broad range of topics related to criminal law and criminal justice policy. Our goal in this endeavor is to offer the best possible legal analysis of the subjects we're asked to comment on, and to remain neutral regarding any related political issues. Please feel free to review some of the reports that we've developed here.
Police Use of Tasers
Federal Sentencing
- Press release
- Information Letter to the Public
- Issue Table of Contents
- Introduction to Issue by Professors Weisberg & Miller
Parolee Housing
The Stanford Executive Sessions on Sentencing and Corrections
The Stanford Executive Sessions on Sentencing and Corrections is an innovative form of policy working group designed to bring together the key public, academic, and organizational leaders in the field of criminal justice policy in a spirit of cooperative movement toward reform of the sentencing and corrections systems, as well as the criminal justice system as a whole, in California. During the 2007 phase of the Executive Sessions we held a series of theoretical and analytical discussions on four topics pertinent to state sentencing and corrections policy generally: the possibility of creating a sentencing commission for the state of California, the history of state-local partnerships in the field of sentencing and corrections, the role of the judiciary in developing sentencing policy, and data integration in the state-wide criminal justice system. For the 2008 phase of the Executive Sessions, we have narrowed our focus to center on ways in which information exchanges in criminal justice at the county level can inform public policy. Specifically, our mission in the 2008 Executive Sessions is to encourage collaborative criminal justice policy development by: promoting public/private partnerships with state, county, and municipal governments in the criminal justice arena; creating opportunities for the use of social science research to aid in the development and implementation of empirically-validated, data-driven criminal justice programs and policies; and serving as a public service consultant to the State of California and its fifty-eight counties.
The California Sentencing Commission: Laying the Groundwork. Report and Recommendations
California Corrections Reform: State/Local Partnerships. Findings and Analysis
The Role of the Judiciary in Shaping Sentencing Law and Policy. Report and Analysis
Criminal Justice Information Sharing: Enhancing Early Intervention, Measuring Results
Coordination at the Front-End of Sentencing: The Judiciary, Probation, and the Pre-Sentencing Report
County to County, Agency to Agency: Information Sharing and Operational Collaboration in the Bay Area and Southern California
The First 72 Hours of Re-Entry: Seizing the Moment of Release
Catch and Release: Using Risk-Needs Assessment to Manage Local Custodial Populations
Partnership with the Little Hoover Commission's study on Sentencing Reform
The Stanford Criminal Justice Center is partnering with the Little Hoover Commission on its Sentencing Reform study, which represents a complete review of the opportunities for sentencing reform in California within the broader context of the State's correctional policies. As part of this study, the Commission will assess the role of sentencing reform as an element of overall correctional system reform including parole and prison reforms, and the importance of a "holistic" approach to reform policy. The Criminal Justice Center's Executive Director testified before the Commission at its public hearing on August 24, 2006. View a copy of the report submitted in preparation for that hearing. The Criminal Justice Center is currently preparing a report for the Commission on the history of amendments to California's sentencing system.
California Sentencing & Corrections Policy Series
Dr. Joan Petersilia, a Visiting Professor of Law, taught a Stanford Law School class entitled, "Crime and Punishment Policy: Reforming California Corrections" during the fall semester 2005. This course offered students a unique opportunity to learn about California's historic attempt to reform its juvenile and adult corrections system. The students heard from many speakers, including the Director of Corrections, the Director of Juvenile Justice, ex-convicts, victims, families of prisoners, advocacy groups, and other researchers. Each student was required to choose a research topic for their term papers. Some of these student term papers, along with Dr. Petersilia course syllabus, have been placed on Stanford's Criminal Justice Center website in the hopes that they may be useful in the reform efforts.
Working Papers
Criminal Sentencing
- Hindsight and the Failure of California's Uniform Determinative Sentencing Act
- by Emily de Ayora (2006)
- Felon Disenfranchisement
- by Timothy Bender (2006)
- Creating and Passing a Successful Sentencing Commission in California: An Examination of Failed Attempts in California and Successful Sentencing Commissions Across the Country
- by Lauren E. Geissler
- The End Of Determinate Sentencing: How California's Prison Problem Can Be Solved With Quick Fixes and A Long Term Commission
- by Sean Hayes (2006)
- Felon Reenfranchisement: Political Implications and Potential for Individual Rehabilitative Benefits
- by Nancy Leong (2006)
Adult Prisons
- Mentally Ill Prisoners in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation: Strategies for Improving Treatment and Reducing Recidivism
- by David Ball (2006)
- Prisoners as Parents: The Importance of Strong Parent-Child Relationships During Parental Incarceration
- by Katy Califa (2006)
- Assessing the CCPOA's Political Influence and its Impact on Efforts to Reform the California Corrections System
- by Ben Carrasco (2006)
- Legislating from the Bench: Judicial Activism in California and its Increasing Impact on Adult Prison Reform
- by Chantale Fiebig
- Gangs in California's Prison System: What Can Be Done?
- by Davis Forsythe (2006)
- Elderly Prisoners Are Literally Dying For Reform
- by Tia Gubler (2006)
- The Prison Industry Authority
- by Michael Hamilton (2005)
- Prison Reform and the California Correctional Peace Officers Association
- by Danielle A. Holwerda (2006)
- A Return to the "World of Work": An Analysis of California's Prison Job Training Programs and Statutory Barriers to Ex-Offender Employment [Note: see Tables]
- by Julia Lipez (2005)
- Making the Most of California's Correctional Education Reform: A Survey and Suggestions for Further Steps
- by Aidan McGlaze
- Providing Services to Female Offenders: Policy Perspectives on Sentencing and Parole
- by Elizabeth Pederson (2006)
- The Privatization of California Correctional Facilities: An Inmate-Centered Approach
- Kathryne TafollaYoung (2006)
- Prison Privatization: Possibilities and Approaches to the Privatization of Prisoner Security and Services.
- by Marc TafollaYoung (2005)
- Cost Benefit Analysis of Vocational Training Programs
(On file at the Stanford Criminal Justice Center) - by Nicholas Tuosto (2006)
Probation and Parole
- A Survey of Employment Sanctions Imposed Upon Ex-Offenders by California Law [Note: see Tables]
- by Jonathan Cantú (2006)
- Sex Offender Re-Entry: A Summary and Policy Recommendation on the Current State of the Law in California and How to "Safely" Re-Introduce Sex Offenders Into Oour Communities [Note: see Tables]
- by Maaren Alia Choksi (2006)
- Controlling Sex Offender Reentry: Jessica’s Law Measures in California [Note: see Tables]
- by Jason Peckenpaugh (2006)
- Building an Employment Bridge: Making Ex-Offenders Marketable, Getting Employers to the Table, and Increasing the Likelihood of an Employment Connection
- by Robert Rodriguez (2005)
- The Lynchpin To Parole Reform: A Case Study of Two Parolee Housing Proposals in Redlands, California
- by Benjamin Singerman (2005)
- Family-Based Re-Entry Programming: A Promising Tool for Reducing Recidivism and Mitigating the Economic and Societal Costs of Incarceration in California
- by Rebecca S. Thalberg (2005)
California Sentencing & Corrections Policy Series Stanford Criminal Justice Center Working Paper.
Distributed for Review and Comment only. Do not cite without author's permission.
Please send questions or suggestions to Kara Dansky Executive Director, Stanford Criminal Justice Center.
Publications
Faculty
- Joan Petersilia
- Professor of Law
- petersilia@law.stanford.edu
- 650 723-4740
- Robert Weisberg
- Edwin E. Huddleson, Jr. Professor of Law
- weisberg@stanford.edu
- 650 723.0612
Lecturers
- Kara P. Dansky
- Lecturer in Law
- kdansky@law.stanford.edu
- 650 724.5786
Affiliated Faculty
- Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar
- Professor of Law and Deane F. Johnson Faculty Scholar
- tcuellar@stanford.edu
- 650 723.9216
- George Fisher
- Judge John Crown Professor of Law
- fisherg@stanford.edu
- 650 723.2578
- Jeffrey L. Fisher
- Associate Professor of Law
- jlfisher@stanford.edu
- 650 724.7081
- Pamela S. Karlan
- Kenneth and Harle Montgomery Professor of Public Interest Law
- karlan@stanford.edu
- 650 725.4851
- Lawrence C. Marshall
- Professor of Law, David and Stephanie Mills Director of Clinical Education, and Associate Dean for Public Interest and Clinical Education
- lmarshall@stanford.edu
- 650 723.7572
- Miguel A. Méndez
- Adelbert H. Sweet Professor of Law
- mmendez@stanford.edu
- 650 723.0613
- David W. Mills
- Senior Lecturer in Law
- dmills@dmills.com
- 650 723.3842
Program Contacts
- Kara P. Dansky
- Executive Director
- kdansky@law.stanford.edu
- 650 724.5786
Recorded & Past Events
May 2009
March 2009
February 2009
-
SLPR Drug Law Policy Lunch Series: The war on drugs
-
SLPR Drug Law Policy Lunch Series: Outside the box
-
SLPR Drug Law Policy Lunch Series: Drug courts: magic bullets or band-aids?
January 2009
December 2008
November 2008
September 2008
August 2008
June 2008
March 2008
January 2008
December 2007
September 2007
-
Executive Sessions on Sentencing and Corrections
-
Mandatory Minimums and the Crack/Powder Sentencing Disparity
August 2007
June 2007
April 2007
March 2007
Contact Information
- Stanford Criminal Justice Center (SCJC)
-
Stanford Criminal Justice Center
Crown Quadrangle
559 Nathan Abbott Way
Stanford, CA 94305 - crim@law.stanford.edu
- 650 724.5786