Punishment

Welcome to “The 101,” our premiere staff-written blog for breaking news and commentary on today’s most compelling research.

New research finds a substantial minority of baseball fans disregard their own moral views and support the idea of “beaning” a player in retaliation for an earlier incident.

An Urban Institute examination of U.S. homicides where self-defense was claimed suggests that the possible costs of “Stand Your Ground” laws exceed their benefits.

As the U.S. Supreme Court gets ready to examine life without parole for juvenile killers, a new study identifies the racial and sociological backstories of the existing prisoners.

Aging prisoners serving long sentences are filling overcrowded lockups across the nation. Colorado prison officials hope a new program will help let some of these old guys get out — and stay out.

A report from The Sentencing Project argues that a primary driver for privatizing corrections isn’t really paying off.

Europeans are lagging the United States in using aerial drones for police work – and they don’t really mind.

Since the LAPD's cold case unit began 10 years ago, detectives have used science to arrest serial killers and dozens of others who thought they had gotten away with murder.

The LAPD's Sean Malinowski wants to prevent crime with "predictive policing," which can forecast patterns of where crime occurs using computer algorithms.

In this Miller-McCune Q&A, Los Angeles County's top cop Lee Baca explains why he wants to offer an education to tens of thousands of prisoners.

Steve Santorelli gets computing experts and law enforcers to cooperate in a global fight against organized Internet crime.

David Onek works to bring together stakeholders in the criminal justice system who often agree — usually without knowing they do.

Hate crimes against people with disabilities are widespread and often involve extraordinary levels of sadism. The first step in combating these shameful incidents is an acknowledgment that they exist.

The PBS documentary "Me Facing Life: Cyntoia's Story" asks the question: Who is responsible when family and society so fail a promising child that she turns to prostitution and murder in her teens?

Why incarceration should be just one of many strategies helping neighborhoods that produce bumper crops of crooks.

Some crime victims find their only real healing comes from a face-to-face meeting with the criminals who hurt them. Can research into this counterintuitive process help more victims regain control of their lives?