Murder Stories engages with the current theoretical debate in death penalty research on the role of cultural commitments to 'American' ideologies in the retention of capital punishment. The central aim of the study is to illuminate the elusive yet powerful role of ideology in legal discourses. Through analyzing the content and processes of death penalty narratives, this research illuminates the covert life of 'the American Creed,' (a nexus of ideologies-liberty, egalitarianism, individualism, populism, and laissez faire-said to be unique to the United States) in the law. Murder Stories draws on the entire record of California death sentence resulting trials from three large and diverse California counties for the years 1996 - 2004, as well as interviews with 26 capital caseworkers (attorneys, judges, and investigators) from the same counties. Employing the theoretical framework proposed by Ewick and Silbey (1995) to study hegemonic and subversive narratives, and also the ethnographic approach advocated by Amsterdam and Hertz (1992) to study the producers and processes of constructing legal narratives, this book traces the ideological content carried within the stories told by everyday practitioners of capital punishment by investigating the content, process, and ideological implications of these narratives. The central theoretical finding is that the narratives constructed by both prosecutors and defenders tend to instantiate rather than subvert the ideological tenets of the American Creed.

Murder Stories engages with the current theoretical debate in death penalty research on the role of cultural commitments to 'American' ideologies in the retention of capital punishment. The central aim of the study is to illuminate the elusive yet powerful role of ideology in legal discourses. Through analyzing the content and processes of death penalty narratives, this research illuminates the covert life of 'the American Creed,' (a nexus of ideologies-liberty, egalitarianism, individualism, populism, and laissez faire-said to be unique to the United States) in the law. Murder Stories draws on the entire record of California death sentence resulting trials from three large and diverse California counties for the years 1996 - 2004, as well as interviews with 26 capital caseworkers (attorneys, judges, and investigators) from the same counties. Employing the theoretical framework proposed by Ewick and Silbey (1995) to study hegemonic and subversive narratives, and also the ethnographic approach advocated by Amsterdam and Hertz (1992) to study the producers and processes of constructing legal narratives, this book traces the ideological content carried within the stories told by everyday practitioners of capital punishment by investigating the content, process, and ideological implications of these narratives. The central theoretical finding is that the narratives constructed by both prosecutors and defenders tend to instantiate rather than subvert the ideological tenets of the American Creed.

"Due to the graphic nature of this program, viewer discretion is advised." Most of us have encountered this warning while watching television at some point. It is typically attached to a brand of reality crime TV that Paul Kaplan and Daniel LaChance call "crimesploitation": spectacles designed to entertain mass audiences by exhibiting "real" criminal behavior and its consequences. This book examines their enduring popularity in American culture. Analyzing the structure and content of several popular crimesploitation shows, including Cops, Dog: The Bounty Hunter, and To Catch a Predator, as well as newer examples like Making a Murderer and Don't F**K with Cats, Kaplan and LaChance highlight the troubling nature of the genre: though it presents itself as ethical and righteous, its entertainment value hinges upon suffering. Viewers can imagine themselves as deviant and ungovernable like the criminals in the show, thereby escaping a law-abiding lifestyle. Alternatively, they can identify with law enforcement officials, exercising violence, control, and "justice" on criminal others. Crimesploitation offers a sobering look at the depictions of criminals, policing, and punishment in modern America.

"Due to the graphic nature of this program, viewer discretion is advised." Most of us have encountered this warning while watching television at some point. It is typically attached to a brand of reality crime TV that Paul Kaplan and Daniel LaChance call "crimesploitation": spectacles designed to entertain mass audiences by exhibiting "real" criminal behavior and its consequences. This book examines their enduring popularity in American culture. Analyzing the structure and content of several popular crimesploitation shows, including Cops, Dog: The Bounty Hunter, and To Catch a Predator, as well as newer examples like Making a Murderer and Don't F**K with Cats, Kaplan and LaChance highlight the troubling nature of the genre: though it presents itself as ethical and righteous, its entertainment value hinges upon suffering. Viewers can imagine themselves as deviant and ungovernable like the criminals in the show, thereby escaping a law-abiding lifestyle. Alternatively, they can identify with law enforcement officials, exercising violence, control, and "justice" on criminal others. Crimesploitation offers a sobering look at the depictions of criminals, policing, and punishment in modern America.

Republics and empires provides transnational perspectives on the significance of Italy to American art and visual culture and the impact of the United States on Italian art and popular culture. Covering the period from the Risorgimento to the Cold War, it reveals the complexity of the visual discourses that bound two relatively new nations together. It also gives substantial attention to literary and critical texts that addressed the evolving cultural relationship between Italy and the United States. While American art history has tended to privilege French, British and German ties, these chapters highlight a rich body of contemporary research by Italian and American scholars that moves beyond a discussion of influence as a one-way directive towards a deeper understanding of cultural transactions that profoundly affected the artistic expression of both nations. -- .

The anthology Law in Society explores how law shapes and is shaped by societies. The selections stem from a view of law as an integral part of the wider socio-political economy and one of its central institutions. The introduction familiarizes students with definitions and explanations of criminal law, explores the functions of law, and provides an overview of the theories of law covered in the rest of the book. The first section of the text examines sources of law, natural law theory, and the concept of positive or formal law. The second section considers the origins of law in social structures and provides an overview of sociology of law. The third section is devoted to sources of law and social control such as custom, social norms, and group processes. The final section introduces critical theories of law and considers recent developments in alternative dispute resolution and restorative justice. Through reading Law in Society students come to recognize that as a society changes, so too do its laws and legal system. The book is well suited to courses in criminal justice and sociology, as well as those in social or cultural anthropology.

"Crime and Behavior" combines theories of crime causation with their implications for key policy questions relevant to today's world. The anthology integrates theory and contemporary issues, and provides encyclopedic readings by leading theorists of crime.
The introductory chapter provides an overview of theories that link criminal acts and crime events to individual, social, cultural and structural causes. Each section of "Crime and Behavior" includes an introduction to the ideas that are presented in the readings that follow.
The first section of the text examines micro-level theories of crime and behavior, specifically individual and social process theories including classical and rational choice theory, and social learning. In the second part of the text, students consider macro-level theories such as social ecology, anomie and strain, and a variety of critical criminological theory from Marxist to anarchist and from feminist to postmodernist explanations.
The interesting, student-friendly articles lay the foundation for a systematic and more profound understanding of the roots of crime in the 21st century.
"Crime and Behavior" can be used in courses on criminology, sociology of crime and deviance, public affairs, and criminal justice.
Sylvia Valenzuela holds a Ph.D. in criminology, law and society from the University of California, Irvine, and is a lecturer in the Department of Criminal Justice at San Diego State University.
Paul Kaplan has a Ph.D. in criminology, law and society from the University of California, Irvine, and is an associate professor of criminal justice in the School of Public Affairs at San Diego State University.
Stuart Henry earned his Ph.D. at the University of Kent, United Kingdom. Dr. Henry is a professor of criminal justice and Director of the School of Public Affairs at San Diego State University. He is the author or editor of 28 books, and over 100 professional journal articles on topics ranging from criminological theory and deviant behavior, to law and society, and occupational crime. His books include "The Hidden Economy," "Criminological Theory," "Constitutive Criminology," "What is Crime?," " Essential Criminology," "The Politics of Interdisciplinary Studies," and "Social Deviance." Dr. Henry is the current co-editor of "Western Criminology Review."