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Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (FVPSA): Background and Funding

Description: This report provides an overview of the federal response to domestic violence--defined broadly to include acts of physical and nonphysical violence against spouses and other intimate partners--through the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (FVPSA).
Date: October 14, 2015
Creator: Fernandes-Alcantara, Adrienne L.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Sentence Reform Acts: S.2123 and H.R. 3713

Description: This report discusses the Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act of 2015, S. 2123, and the Sentencing Reform Act of 2015, H.R. 3713, use virtually identical language to reduce the impact of the mandatory minimum sentences which federal courts must now impose for certain drug trafficking and firearms offenses.
Date: October 14, 2015
Creator: Doyle, Charles
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Backlog of Sexual Assault Evidence: In Brief

Description: This report provides background on the sexual assault kit (SAKs, also referred to as "rape kits") backlog and information on federal efforts to reduce it. The backlog of SAKs has raised concerns over justice for assault victims and that additional victimizations could have been prevented had the evidence from any given kit been tested and the perpetrator apprehended in a timely manner.
Date: October 19, 2015
Creator: Sacco, Lisa N. & James, Nathan
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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U.S.-Mexico Security Cooperation Following "El Chapo" Guzmán's Escape

Description: This report discusses U.S.-Mexican security cooperation in the wake of the escape of Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán on July 11, 2015, from a maximum security federal prison near Mexico City.
Date: October 20, 2015
Creator: Beittel, June S. & Seelke, Clare Ribando
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Sentencing Reform: Comparison of Selected Proposals

Description: This report is a comparison of selected criminal sentencing reform bills as introduced: H.R. 3713, H.R. 2944, S. 502, and H.R. 920; and S. 2123 as passed by the Senate Judiciary Committee with a manager's amendment).
Date: October 26, 2015
Creator: Cole, Jared P. & Doyle, Charles
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Crime Victims Fund: Federal Support for Victims of Crime

Description: This report provides background and funding information for Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) programs and the Crime Victims Fund (CVF). It describes the process through which CVF funds are allocated and explains how the CVF impacts the annual budget for DOJ. It then provides an analysis of selected issues that Congress may consider regarding the CVF and the federal budget.
Date: October 27, 2015
Creator: Sacco, Lisa N.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Is Violent Crime in the United States Increasing?

Description: Overall, homicide and violent crime rates have been trending downward for more than two decades, and both rates are at historic lows. An analysis comparing 2014 and 2015 homicide data from the nation's 60 most populous cities suggests that violent crime is not increasing. This report discusses several short-term factors that might help explain some of the reported upticks in violent crime across the country.
Date: October 29, 2015
Creator: James, Nathan
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Police Use of Force: Rules, Remedies, and Reforms

Description: This report addresses three overarching questions to provide legal context for the debate concerning the appropriate level of force police officers should wield: (1) what are the constitutional rules governing an officer's use of force; (2) what role has Congress played in providing a remedy for a violation of these rules; and (3) what are the potential reforms to these rules and remedies?
Date: October 30, 2015
Creator: Thompson, Richard M., II
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Tying Up Loose Ends... Supreme Court To Evaluate Federal Firearm Provision Again

Description: This legal sidebar discusses certiorari to hear Voisine v. United States, a decision examining the federal provision that makes it unlawful for an individual to possess a firearm or ammunition if he or she has been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence (MCDV).
Date: December 3, 2015
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Former U.S. Hostages of Iran to be Eligible for Compensation

Description: This legal sidebar briefly discusses the U.S. victims of the 1979-1981 Iran Hostage Crisis, who will become eligible to receive up to $4.4 million each in compensation, thanks to the Justice for United States Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Act.
Date: December 29, 2015
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Criminal Justice Reform: One Judge's View

Description: This report briefly provides highlights from an article written by Judge Alex Kozinski of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, in which he recommended 26 changes in the U.S. criminal justice system, federal and state.
Date: January 1, 2016
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Free-Riders or Compelled Riders? Key Takeaways as Court Considers Major Union Dues Case

Description: This report briefly outlines the ongoing debate regarding Union dues. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, as of 2015, 7.2 million employees in the public sector belong to a union, with more than 700,000 additional government employees being represented by a union without belonging to the union.
Date: January 1, 2016
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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U.S.-Mexican Security Cooperation: The Mérida Initiative and Beyond

Description: This report begins with a brief discussion of security challenges in Mexico and Mexico's security strategy. It then provides information on congressional funding and oversight of the Mérida Initiative, with details about each of the program's four pillars. The report concludes by raising policy issues that Congress may wish to consider.
Date: January 5, 2016
Creator: Ribando Seelke, Clare & Finklea, Kristin
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Juvenile Justice Funding Trends

Description: This report provides a brief overview of the juvenile justice grant programs and the overall appropriation administered by the Department of Justice's (DOJ's) Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP). There is no federal juvenile justice system, however the government uses federal juvenile justice entities and grant programs in order to influence the states' systems. Eligibility for some of these grant programs is tied to certain mandates that the states must adhere to in o… more
Date: January 8, 2016
Creator: Finklea, Kristin
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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President Obama Announces Executive Actions to "Reduce Gun Violence"

Description: This report briefly discusses executive actions aimed at, among other things, "keep[ing] guns out of the wrong hands through background checks" and "mak[ing] our communities safer from gun violence." These actions include, for example, directing specified executive agencies to conduct or sponsor research into gun safety technology and finalizing a rule requiring firearms shippers to notify law enforcement of any firearms lost or stolen in transit.
Date: January 8, 2016
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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U.S.-Mexican Security Cooperation: The Mérida Initiative and Beyond

Description: This report begins with a brief discussion of security challenges in Mexico and Mexico's security strategy. It then provides information on congressional funding and oversight of the Mérida Initiative, with details about each of the program's four pillars. The report concludes by raising policy issues that Congress may wish to consider.
Date: January 15, 2016
Creator: Ribando Seelke, Clare & Finklea, Kristin
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Federal Conspiracy Law: A Brief Overview

Description: This report is a brief discussion of the common features of federal conspiracy law that evolved over the years, with passing references to some of the distinctive features of some of the statutory provisions.
Date: January 20, 2016
Creator: Doyle, Charles
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Federal Conspiracy Law: A Sketch

Description: This is a brief discussion of the common features of federal conspiracy law that evolved over the years, with passing references to some of the distinctive features of some of the statutory provisions.
Date: January 20, 2016
Creator: Doyle, Charles
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Body Armor for Law Enforcement Officers: In Brief

Description: This report contains an overview of the Bulletproof Vest Partnership Initiative (BPV program). It also provides a discussion of data on law enforcement agencies that require their officers to wear armor vests while on duty, research on why officers may choose to wear armor vests, research on the life cycle for armor vests, data on the use of body armor by law enforcement officers who were killed with a firearm, and research on the effectiveness of armor vests.
Date: January 28, 2016
Creator: James, Nathan
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Public Trust and Law Enforcement--A Brief Discussion for Policymakers

Description: This report provides a brief overview of police-community relations and how the federal government might be able to promote more accountability and better relationships between citizens and law enforcement.
Date: March 22, 2016
Creator: James, Nathan; Bjelopera, Jerome P.; Finklea, Kristin; Keegan, Natalie; Lister, Sarah A.; Sacco, Lisa N. et al.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Sexual Violence at Institutions of Higher Education

Description: This report provides background information on sexual violence on campus and its prevalence, descriptions of the Clery Act and Title IX, and an analysis of prominent policy and legal issues related to these two statutes. It also includes a brief description of a related third statute focused on educational privacy.
Date: April 15, 2016
Creator: Gonzalez, Heather B. & Feder, Jody
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Sentencing Reform Act of 2015 (H.R. 3713): A Summary

Description: This report examines H.R. 3713, the Sentencing Reform Act of 2015, which addresses the sentences that may be imposed in various drug and firearms cases. It proposes amendments to those areas of federal law that govern mandatory minimum sentencing requirements for drug and firearm offenses; the so-called safety valves which permits court to impose sentences below otherwise required mandatory minimums in the case of certain low-level drug offenders; and the retroactive application of the Fair Sen… more
Date: May 16, 2016
Creator: Doyle, Charles
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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RICO: A Brief Sketch

Description: This report examines the various elements of federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization (RICO) provisions and discusses constitutional questions pertaining to the law. In spite of its name and origin, RICO is not limited to "mobsters" or members of "organized crime" as those terms are popularly understood. Rather, it covers those activities which Congress felt characterized the conduct of organized crime, no matter who actually engages in them.
Date: May 18, 2016
Creator: Doyle, Charles
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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