August 2012 Archives

Familiarize yourself with the blog. You'll quickly notice that all of your assignments are listed here in chronological order. Some of the later ones are still blank, and will be updated later. There are also many posts that go beyond these listed here for your assignments, and feel free to browse those using the links in the right side menu.

The course calendar (given to you in class, and available as a link on the Course Resources tab--look near the top of your screen) is a really important document. It shows your assignments, due dates, and in-class meetings. You'll see that for Thursday you are to register for this website (so you can log in and comment to posts), and that you are to read the blog post Using Movies (right below this one).

The Course Resources tab has links to important information that you will likely need to access throughout the course. One such link is the How To Register link. You'll need to go there next, click the link, and read and follow the directions carefuly. Make sure you have scrolled all the way to the bottom of the document so you follow all the directions.

Thanks and see you soon!

For Tuesday, you read the Dahmer chapter out of Minds on Trial.

Briefly summarize the chapter and your opinion of it. Then describe what aspects of psychology are relevant to this case. Finally, find three additional sources (links) on the internet that discuss some aspect of the Dahmer case, or a specific psychological issue relevant to the case. Discuss each of those links. Provide your links at the bottom of your comment.

The Bureau of Justice Statistics collects and presents data on crime in the US.

Browse the site: http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/index.cfm

Review this page: http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/index.cfm?ty=tp&tid=3 (notice the types of crimes linked in the left side menu)

Browse this document for things that interest you: http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/pub/pdf/cvus08.pdf

Summarize your experience with this website and your thoughts as a comment to this post.

Watch Bone Collector.

Next, write your comment. Your comment does not need to provide an overview of the movie (we have all seen it). Your comment should be an in-depth analysis of the elements of the movie that relate to psychology and law, particularly evidence collection.  You should use scenes and characters to provide examples of textbook/lecture concepts.

Watch Courage Under Fire.

Next, write your comment. Your comment does not need to provide an overview of the movie (we have all seen it). Your comment should be an in-depth analysis of the elements of the movie that relate to psychology and law, particularly eyewitness memory.  You should use scenes and characters to provide examples of textbook/lecture concepts.

What psychological characteristics were evident in Andrea Yates' case? Describe those characteristics and how they related to her competence/sanity.

Google around and find out 3 things you didn't know about her case and describe that information. Include your links at the bottom of the post.

Watch Primal Fear.

Next, write your comment. Your comment does not need to provide an overview of the movie (we have all seen it).  Discuss the movie in terms of the psychological principles operating in the court room but also in the relationships between lawyers and lawyers and clients. Pay special attention to the rationales and justifications that the prosecuting and defense attorneys give to themselves and others about why they do the jobs they do. 

Rely on your reading of Ch7 in the MoT book.

View these video clips: http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-shows/dirty-jobs/videos/bug-detective.htm (full episode is on netflix if you care to see it).

For this week's blog post, please reflect on who experts are, what they do, and how they can help a case.

Browse through Dr. Lee's website. He is a forensic science expert (and was the expert shown in the Peterson documentary).

http://drhenrylee.com/

Choose one of the cases that he was an expert on. This page only gives a brief summary of each case. You are of course not required to purchase anything to finish this assignment :) Please google around (e.g., henry lee martha moxley) to find additional information on the case to answer the following questions. What was his area of expertise? What evidence did he evaluate? How was his expertise and testimony used in trial? What other thoughts do you have about how experts are used in criminal cases?

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Watch 12 Angry Men (you can watch the old version, or the 'new' 1997 version).

Next, write your comment. Your comment does not need to provide an overview of the movie (we have all seen it).  Discuss the movie in terms of the psychological principles operating (particularly as relevant to social psychology).

Your Minds on Trial essay is due this week. You should turn it in hard copy in class.

The essay is worth 50 points.

Read one Minds on Trial chapter that is not assigned in the course.

Next, do some internet searching on your own on the person portrayed in the chapter.

Next, write your essay. You should summarize the case (citing the chapter and your internet sources), but spend most of your essay on whatever psychological factors you believe are most relevant to the case (you may need to cite your textbook, and/or an intro to psych textbook to define various psychological terms). Clearly link the psychology to the case/person.

You should include a cover page and a reference page. The body of your paper (not including the cover and reference pages) should be 3-5 pages.

Grading rubric:

6 points (grammar/spelling)

6 points (writing style/flow)

6 points (appropriate apa style citation and reference page)

16 points (summary of case-level of detail, insight, sources)

16 points (appropriate connection to and explanation of relevant psychological factors)

Watch the movie.

Next, write your comment. Your comment does not need to provide an overview of the movie (we have all seen it).  Discuss the movie in terms of the psychological principles operating in terms of the realities of prison life with a particular focus on social psychology.

Many states have 'innocence projects' which assist in exonerating people who have been wrongfully convicted. The original one is here: http://www.innocenceproject.org/

Their Mission: The Innocence Project is a national litigation and public policy organization dedicated to exonerating wrongfully convicted people through DNA testing and reforming the criminal justice system to prevent future injustice.

Other Innocence Projects:

Innocence Project of Texas:

http://www.innocenceprojectoftexas.org/

The Wisconsic Innocence Project:

http://www.law.wisc.edu/fjr/clinicals/ip/index.html

The Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project:

http://www.exonerate.org/

Georgia Innocence Project:

http://ga-innocenceproject.org/

Medill Innocence Project:

http://www.medillinnocenceproject.org/

Innocence Project New Orleans:

http://www.ip-no.org/

Midwest Innocence Project:

http://www.innocenceprojectmidwest.org/

Northern California Innocence Project:

http://law.scu.edu/ncip/

Idaho Innocence Project:

http://www.idahoinnocenceproject.org/

The Pennsylvania Innocence Project:

http://www.innocenceprojectpa.org/

Innocence Project of Minnesota:

http://www.ipmn.org/

Innocence Project Northwest Clinic:

http://www.law.washington.edu/Clinics/IPNW/

California Innocence Project:

http://www.cwsl.edu/main/default.asp?nav=cip.asp&body=cip/home.asp

Connecticut Innocence Project:

http://www.ocpd.state.ct.us/Content/Innocence%20Project/Innocence%20Project.htm

Innocence Project of Florida:

http://floridainnocence.org/content/

New England Innocence Project:

http://www.newenglandinnocence.org/

Kentucky Innocence Project:

http://www.kyinnocenceproject.org/home.html

Innocence Project Bournemouth:

http://innocenceprojectbournemouth.com/

Mississippi Innocence Project:

http://www.mississippiinnocence.org/

Innocence Project of Iowa:

http://www.iowainnocence.org/

North Carolina Center on Actual Innocence:

http://www.nccai.org/

Montana Innocence Project:

http://www.mtinnocenceproject.org/

Justice Brandeis Innocence Project:

http://www.brandeis.edu/investigate/innocence/

Oregon Innocence Project:

http://www.law.uoregon.edu/org/oip/

Alaska Innocence Project:

http://www.alaskainnocence.org/

Nebraska Innocence Project:

https://people.creighton.edu/~plw92048/

Life After Innocence Project:

http://blogs.luc.edu/afterinnocence/

http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/210/perfect-evidence

Listen to the show Perfect Evidence from This American Life available via the above link (below is a summary):

After a decade in which DNA evidence has freed over 100 people nationwide, it's become clear that DNA evidence isn't just proving wrongdoing by criminals, it's proving wrongdoing by police and prosecutors. In this show, we look at what DNA has revealed to us: how police get innocent people to confess to crimes they didn't commit and how they get witnesses to pin crimes on innocent people. There have always been suspicions that these kinds of things take place. With DNA, there's finally irrefutable proof.

What are your thoughts?

Watch the movie.

Next, write your comment. Your comment does not need to provide an overview of the movie (we have all seen it).  Discuss the movie in terms of the psychological principles operating in terms of witness and system variables.