COVID-19: Effects of the Pandemic on the Criminal Justice System
Edited by Alyssa M. Yetter, Ph.D. and Elizabeth E. Brault, Ph.D. Merrimack College, North Andover, Massachusetts
Contact email: braulte@merrimack.edu
The COVID-19 pandemic challenged all aspects of the criminal justice system. From changes in offending and victimization rates to shifts in practice and decision-making, criminal justice professionals and researchers have spent the intervening years tracking and responding to unprecedented changes. This edited volume will examine issues in six broad categories of criminal justice scholarship beginning with an overview of changes in offending rates and the challenges in measurement and crime research that accompanied the pandemic, followed by work in the areas of Law Enforcement, Courts, Corrections, Victimization/Victim Services, and Juvenile Justice.
This collection will use a broad lens to capture the rippling effects of the pandemic on criminology, criminal justice research, and stakeholders in the justice system. This book will be geared toward an undergraduate reading level and to be used either as a supplementary text in introductory criminal justice courses or as a core text in courses dedicated to COVID-19, emergency and disaster management, or crime and health.
Chapters in the proposed collection should fall into one of the following sections.
- Crime, Research, and Criminal Law: Potential chapter topics include the effects of COVID on the prevalence of different types of crime; challenges COVID created for measuring and researching crime and criminal justice; novel legal challenges created by COVID, etc.
- Law Enforcement: Potential chapter topics include the effects of COVID on the physical and mental health of police as first responders; police unions and vaccination mandates; the role of law enforcement in enforcing lockdowns and mask mandates; the effects of COVID on the day-to-day operations of law enforcement agencies; differences between local, state, and federal agencies in the response to and effects of COVID; challenges created by COVID for the use of community and problem-oriented policing, etc.
- Courts: Potential chapter topics include the effects of COVID on the day-to-day functioning of the courthouse, courtroom work group, and public defender services; changes caused by COVID to bail and pretrial detention decisions or the structure and prevalence of plea bargaining, etc.
- Corrections: Potential chapter topics include the effects of COVID on compassionate release and parole of incarcerated individuals; the mental health of incarcerated persons during social distancing and reduced visitation; the physical and mental health of corrections officers; changes caused by COVID in the supervision of individuals in community corrections; continuity and effectiveness of restorative justice programming during COVID, etc.
- Victimization and Victim Services: Potential chapter topics include the effects of COVID on the relationship between victims and service providers; the rise of hate crime against AAPI during the pandemic; the consequences of COVID for victims’ reporting decisions; disruption and continuity of restitution and victim compensation; physical and mental health and healing of victims during COVID; victimization of unique populations (e.g., immigrants, children, the elderly) during COVID; trauma-informed practices during pandemic conditions, etc.
- Juvenile Justice: Potential chapter topics include the effects of COVID on the juvenile probation system; disruption and continuity of educational programs for juvenile offenders; physical and mental health of incarcerated youth during social distancing and reduced visitation; unique challenges of COVID for unique juvenile populations (e.g., females, LGBTQ+), etc.
Each contribution should present empirical research, and must be original and unpublished work, not submitted for publication elsewhere.
Preference will be given to abstracts received before December 15, 2022 and should be 500-700 words. Please include a brief biographical statement and curriculum vitae.
The proposals must be in English and submitted in PDF format to Elizabeth Brault at: braulte@merrimack.edu.
The submitted proposals will be evaluated by the editors. Acceptance will be communicated to the authors by December 31, 2022 including the procedures for the full contribution submission. Full contributions should not exceed 10,000 words (including references) and should be submitted in APA Style by March 1st, 2023.