The 2021-2022 Criminology, Law and Society Honors Seminar, led by Dr. Robert Norris, focused on how wrongful convictions and other injustices affect the public’s views of the criminal legal system. Over the course of the year, twelve undergraduates learned about key issues related to the convictions of innocent people in the United States, as well as the factors that shape people’s political opinions. The students conducted original survey research to explore a variety of topics including how race influences public opinion about the system, perceptions of forensic and eyewitness evidence, and stigma toward people returning from incarceration. The honors students presented their research to faculty and peers at the department's awards and recognition ceremony in May.
Next year's honors seminar will be led by Dr. Evan Lowder. Students will learn about pretrial case processing and examine the effectiveness and limits of recent pretrial reform efforts.
More information about the CLS Honors Seminar is available here.
June 08, 2022
