Policy Practicum: Creating a National Census of Women Imprisoned for Murdering their Abusers

Client: Rachel Louise Snyder, author of "No Visible Bruises" (https://www.globalgrit.com/). The Stanford Criminal Justice Center at Stanford Law School is partnering with the award-winning journalist Rachel Louise Snyder on "The Regilla Project: Creating a National Census on Women Imprisoned for Killing their Abusers." The research studies the frequency with which women are imprisoned for killing their abusers. Spring 2022 research entails the following protocols: 1. Surveying women who are currently serving sentences at CCWF prison (in Chowchilla, CA) where relevant intimate partner violence was involved. 2. Analyzing and aggregating responses from returned surveys. 3. Researching how the cases of women currently incarcerated for murder and manslaughter were written about in the press, and whether intimate partner violence was included as a circumstance. 4. Undertaking qualitative research of formerly incarcerated survivors to document their reentry pathways, including challenges and successes. Collecting and making this data available will shed important light on the nature of the female correctional population, the largest growing segment of the U.S. prison population, and might guide policy discussions on charging, sentencing, prison programming, parole and reentry policies and decisions. The results may also inform laws regarding self-defense and other affirmative defenses, and strategies for addressing domestic violence. After the term begins, students accepted into the course can transfer from section (01) into section (02) which meets the R requirement, with consent of the instructor. Elements used in grading: Attendance, Performance, Class Participation, Written Assignments, Final Paper. CONSENT APPLICATION: To apply for this course, students must complete and submit a Consent Application Form available on the SLS website (Click Courses at the bottom of the homepage and then click Consent of Instructor Forms). See Consent Application Form for instructions and submission deadline.