--- Miles Jackson <cqmv at pdx.edu> wrote:
> On the other hand, I recall larger scale studies
> that show the same
> effect: in regression models that include a variety
> of sociodemographic
> factors, the race of the victim is a statistically
> signficant predictor
> of a death penalty sentence in homicide cases. If I
> recall this
> correctly, Woj's criticism is valid for the example
> that Dennis C.
> brought up, but not for these larger scale archival
> studies.
Thanks for your reply re. the "sample"/population size issue - I have nothing else to add to it.
I cannot comment on the other studies of DP that you refer to - this is really not my area of interest, academic or otherwise - but I wonder if the address the other problem that I mentioned, namely biased sample. The bias results from the fact that only a ceratin fraction of murders are tried as capital ofenses, and these form the sample (or population - but that is another subject to debate), while other murder cases that are not prosecuted as capital offences are excluded from it. The bias results from the fact that prosecutors make conscious decisions how to prosecute and, ceteris paribus, they would go for death penalty only when they are reasonably shure of getting a convicion (after all their job perfomance depends on it). As a result the cases in the sample are already higher probablity of getting death penalty than murder cases not included in the sample. What is more, increasing sample size will not alleviate th eproblem becaouse the same process works in the selection or self-selection of every case.
Now, the prosecutorial discretion how to prosecute a case may be racially motivated, but it does not have to. It is quite possible that prosecutors' decisions is based on the quality of evidence, the suspect's willingness to cooperate (plea bargains, etc.), the perceived strength of the defense (e.g. competence of defense attorneys) - which may or may not coincide with race of the victim or the defendant, but would not qualify as racial bias in any meaningful sense. It is thus easy to see that this form of bias in sample selection may led to a conclusion that race is a factor even if the sample is sufficiently large.
Therefore, the validity of correlational studies in this area -as well as any other area where self-selection bias is a problem - is a valid methodological question that does not necessarily equals defending the status quo.
I do admit, however, that I find some of the horror stories about the corruption in the criminal justice system circulated on this list and elsewhere highly improbable. The system is certainly far from being perfect, but it is difficult to deny that it one of the most sophisticated, professionally run, and best functionning systems in the world, and it is unlikely that any systematic abuses (as opposed to random errors and sporadic corruption) would go uncorrected. All such horror stories seem to be a part of the juvenile contumacy and silly government hating that is la specialite de la maison of the US political discourse, both on the left and the right. For a while, it was amusing, then it started to be boring, and now it is becoming irritating.
Wojtek _______________________ DISCLAIMER: Opinions posted by this writer to this forum are solely forms of literary criticism exercised as the First Amendment right, and do not necessarily reflect the author's views or attitudes toward real-life people, including other writers posting to this forum, groups of people, institutions, or events to which the critiqued texts may refer, either explicitly or implicitly. Any statement asserting or implying such views or attitudes on the basis of this writer's opinions posted to this forum is thus unfounded, and may be libelous. ________________________
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