Evan Lowder, assistant professor, Criminology, Law and Society, received funding for "Indiana Justice Reinvestment Advisory Council Racial Equity Project."
The goals of the study are to understand criminal-legal decision points that may be contributing to racially disparate outcomes and to further data collection efforts at the state and local levels that can facilitate improved tracking of decisions and outcomes in the criminal-legal system.
The broader project involves two sub-studies.
The first study will establish a baseline understanding of available data sources at the local and state level, identify potential decision-making measures, and report on baseline descriptive outcomes by race in local jurisdictions.
The second study will complement this investigation by increasing the rigor of causal inferences about disparate decision-making. Specifically, Lowder will collect data on factors that contribute to disproportionate involvement in the criminal-legal system. She will compare outcomes from these complementary investigations (Study 1 and Study 2) to better understand the role of broader systemic disparity in contributing to disparate outcomes.
"Jointly, these studies will advance understanding of the system-wide causes and consequences of racial disparities in the criminal-legal system," Lowder said.
Lowder received $91,000 from Indiana Office of Court Services for this project. Funding began in June 2023 and will end in July 2024.
July 19, 2023