The Jerry Lee Center of Criminology

Below are links to the most recent news articles concerning the Jerry Lee Center of Criminology and its faculty. See also this page for more news concerning the Department of Criminology.

February 13, 2008 - The New York Sun
Book Review of Violence: A Micro-Sociological Theory
...Sociologist and amateur martial artist Randall Collins starts his wonderful, rambling book, "Violence: A Micro-sociological Theory" (Princeton University Press, 2008), by pointing out that violence baffles us, and that it rarely resembles our imaginations, or what we see in films. Between individuals, combat often looks goofy and undignified, more slappy flailing than solid punches..."

January 14, 2008 - Foreign Policy
Suicide Bombers: Warriors of the Middle Class, by Professor Randall Collins
"We tend to imagine suicide bombers as hardened, bloodthirsty killers. But most people aren’t nearly as ready to commit violence as you think. It’s actually the quiet, docile members of the middle class who make the best human explosive devices. And that’s what makes this weapon of mass murder so hard to stop..."

November 27, 2007 - The Telegraph, UK
Can we stop anti-social behavior?
..."According to Prof Adrian Raine, a British 'neuro-criminologist' at the University of Pennsylvania, they lack the emergency brakes to curb their violent behaviour. Indeed, the brains of criminals are physically different from those of non-criminals..."

October 31, 2007 - Philadelphia Inquirer
Alarming trend: Nationally and locally, criminals aim at police
"...Lawrence W. Sherman, director of the Jerry Lee Center of Criminology at the University of Pennsylvania, was effusive, calling Ramsey's efforts to upgrade the Washington force "pioneeering..."

October 31, 2007 - Philadelphia Inquirer
Alarming trend: Nationally and locally, criminals aim at police
"... Experts said police shootings peaked in the 1970s, partly as a political response by militant black groups directed mostly at white police officers, said Lawrence Sherman, director of the Jerry Lee Center of Criminology at the University of Pennsylvania..."

October 5, 2007 - Philadelphia Inquirer
'Stop and Frisk' can help here, too
"... According to Lawrence Sherman, a professor of criminology and sociology at the University of Pennsylvania and director of its Jerry Lee Center of Criminology, police departments can use crime data to target known "gun areas" with efforts to confiscate illegal guns...."