Doctoral Dissertation Research: No Good Place: Community Responses to States' Crime Control Policies

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This research examines the placement of sexually violent predators (SVPs) in California communities in order to understand variations in community responses to sex offenders, and, more broadly, to understand how local circumstances shape official and unofficial responses to crime. The research considers how current and past relationships between local government officials, law enforcement agencies, and residents shape community members' responses when a sex offender moves in, and what accounts for differences in responses between communities. To answer these questions, this research uses archival analyses and in-depth interviews with residents and officials in five communities that have recently experienced SVP placements. This project will contribute to understanding the dynamics of the local politics of crime control, including how residents and officials negotiate responsibilities for crime control given general public distrust of government, formal and informal strategies for achieving public safety in light of the unique mixtures of social control already at work in communities, and the meaning of rights when working toward the shared goal of public safety. Exploring these issues at a local level will not only expand understanding of the politics of crime control, but will also contribute to discussions about how to balance community and criminal justice concerns in policies that regulate sex offender releases. To provide a foundation for community members, policymakers, and criminal justice workers to work together in addressing sex offender reintegration and broader crime control issues, this research will be disseminated through academic journals, presentations to academics and sex-offender practitioners, and participation in the Visualizing Governing through Crime in California research collaborative.