In a podcast interview with the Harris School of Public Policy at the University of Chicago, I discussed gun violence prevention and the need to maintain a balanced evidence base. Continue reading Podcast Interview
New York Public Radio– The Docket: The Tessa Majors Case and the State of New York’s Juvenile Justice System
The Tessa Majors case is a test for New York’s recently-enacted Raise The Age law, which barred the state from automatically prosecuting 16- and 17-year-olds as adults. Jeffrey Butts, who leads John Jay College’s Research and Evaluation Center, told Floyd that this is the exact kind of case that the law’s critics could use as leverage to reverse it.Continue reading New York Public Radio– The Docket: The Tessa Majors Case and the State of New York’s Juvenile Justice System
WRVA NewsRadio—Immigration and Crime
Researchers have been looking at this for a number of years, and the conclusion that most people reach is “no.” … There is no direct link, or there is no differential probability of crime due to the size of your immigrant population.Continue reading WRVA NewsRadio—Immigration and Crime
WRVA NewsRadio—Changing Crime Rates
It’s really hard to just point to one thing. The problem with the crime debate right now is that there are so many people who want to point to just one thing. … Everyone wants to claim credit.Continue reading WRVA NewsRadio—Changing Crime Rates
WNYC: Waiting for Violence to Break Out
“We don’t divulge matters that we work hard on to the police, and the police know that about us,” Mitchell said. “We’re not sharing information that may be helpful in some sort of investigation. That’s not or role.” That code of silence lead to the demise of a Cure Violence group in Chicago, according to Jeffrey Butts, director of the research and evaluation center at John Jay College. “The precinct can feel aggrieved to find out this whole episode of violence that just happened was known, that people knew that it was about to happen and no one told the police,” Butts said.Continue reading WNYC: Waiting for Violence to Break Out
Wisconsin Public Radio—”Knockout Game” and Media Responsibility
November 26, 2013 – 7:00 a.m. (CST) A growing number of stories involving teens punching random people, knocking them unconscious, are being reported across the country. Joy Cardin’s guest criminologist discusses the “Knockout Game,” why he says the media is reacting “hysterically” to the matter, and what can be done about it.
WYNC – Is the News Media Over-Hyping “The Knockout Game?”
“The Knockout Game” is a phenomenon where teens assault strangers by trying to knock them out with one punch. Is this a new trend? Is the media making it worse? Jeffrey Butts, director of the Research and Evaluation Center at John Jay College of Criminal Justice at CUNY assesses the patterns behind this story and how it’s being addressed by the media.Continue reading WYNC – Is the News Media Over-Hyping “The Knockout Game?”
Public Radio Special Report: A Look Inside Moriah Shock Prison
Even critics of [shock incarceration] agree that this kind of commitment among the staff is valuable. Jeffrey Butts directs the Research and Evaluation Center at John Jay College. Butts says that if the only contribution of this program is to make the staff focus on structure, and having a theory that they follow so that their behavior is consistent and they respond consistently to people and incidents as they come up, then this is preferable to a facility or correctional program with no structure and no plan. “But that does not mean that there is some magic potion that they’ve discovered,” says Butts.Continue reading Public Radio Special Report: A Look Inside Moriah Shock Prison
