Law enforcement agencies are teaming up with mental health clinicians to improve behavioral health responses and allow police officers to focus on crime reduction. In this episode, our host discusses how Denver police work side-by-side with mental health clinicians to treat residents experiencing mental health emergencies and connect them with treatment ..read more

Marijuana legalization poses many challenges — especially those related to drug chemistry and toxicology — for researchers, law enforcement, and policy makers. In the latest episode of Justice Today, NIJ Communications Assistant Josh Mondoro hosts a conversation with NIJ Scientist Frances Scott about marijuana toxicology, including comparing its effects to alcohol, measuring impairment, and maintaining public safety as more and more states legalize recreational marijuana. Read the transcript. Listen to Part One. Reading and Resources from NIJ: Effects of Marijuana Legalization on Law Enforcem ..read more

Marijuana poses many challenges for researchers, law enforcement, and policy makers, challenges that fall into two fields: drug chemistry and toxicology. NIJ scientist Dr. Frances Scott joins this episode to explain the complications in drug chemistry and how difficulties defining marijuana lead to backlogs in crime labs around the country. NIJ Communications Assistant Josh Mondoro hosts. Read the transcript. Reading and Resources from NIJ: Study Reveals Inaccurate Labeling of Marijuana as Hemp | Article Effects of Marijuana Legalization on Law Enforcement and Crime | Final Report Other reso ..read more

In April 2018, the Golden State Killer, Joseph DeAngelo was arrested. NIJ support helped lead to his arrest, and in the aftermath of the arrest, NIJ Social Science Analyst Eric Martin was among those tasked with finding other cases NIJ helped law enforcement solve. Eric joins the show to talk about some of those cases, and answer some broader questions about serial killers: What is a serial killer? Are they on the rise? How do we know how many serial killers are currently active? Mark Greene, the Director of the Office of Technology and Standards at NIJ, and Lucas Zarwell, the Director of NIJ ..read more

The emerging drug crisis in the U.S. touches both criminal justice and public health, and experts from both fields came together at NIJ’s 2023 National Research Conference to discuss strategies and tools to fight this problem. Dr. Frances Scott, NIJ scientist and program manager, continues the conference discussion with two fellow panelists: Ciena Bayard, the Method Development and Validation Program Manager for D.C. Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, and Haley Greene, the Deputy Epidemiologist for the Central Region for the Virginia Department of Health. Read the transcript. Reading and Re ..read more

During this episode, Ernie Cato, a 30-year veteran of the Chicago Police Department, and Eddie Bocanegra, a former gang member who founded an organization that works with young men at high risk of committing crimes, discuss their pioneering work in the field of Community Violence Intervention, an innovative approach to reducing crime and violence ..read more

Learn how the need for secure housing for victims of crime and their companion animals led to the creation of the Emergency and Transitional Pet Shelter and Housing Assistance Grant Program. Office for Victims of Crime Director Kristina Rose and Nancy Blaney, Director of Government Affairs at the Animal Welfare Institute, speak about how this program is ensuring that victims and their pets can access shelter services.  ..read more

Every day, Joe Platania and his office make complex judgment calls that help decide whether people will spend years or even decades behind bars. In this episode, Platania explains how this process of “prosecutorial discretion” works ..read more

In April 2018, the Golden State Killer, Joseph DeAngelo was arrested. NIJ support helped lead to his arrest, and in the aftermath of the arrest, NIJ Social Science Analyst Eric Martin was among those tasked with finding other cases NIJ helped law enforcement solve. Eric joins the show to talk about some of those cases, and answer some broader questions about serial killers: What is a serial killer? Are they on the rise? How do we know how many serial killers are currently active? Mark Greene, the Director of the Office of Technology and Standards at NIJ, and Lucas Zarwell, the Director of NIJ ..read more

The road to recovery from substance use has many twists and turns, and often stops and restarts. In Navajo County, Arizona, county prosecutor Bradley Carlyon is working to help residents on the road to recovery from the moment they enter the county jail ..read more