Kenneth Padowitz - Fort Lauderdale Criminal Defense Attorney

Police Enforcement Intensity & DUI

Various articles have been written exploring the associations between increased police activities and a reduction in DUI related crashes and fatalities. A review by James Fell and colleagues attempted to quantitatively measure increased policing efforts and determine if there was a relationship or reduction in DUI's and DUI's resulting in crash or jury; number of checkpoints, special DUI/DWI patrols, and arrests are all variables that were considered in the analysis. Various other law enforcement strategies were considered: specific deterrence, general deterrence, highly visible traffic [...]

Police Enforcement Intensity & DUIKenneth Padowitz2024-08-01T00:22:15+00:00

Fundamental Attribution Error and Criminal Behaviors

What is the Fundamental Attribution Error? The fundamental attribution error is a term, which refers to the common human error in which people tend to underestimate situational influences and overestimate individual personality factors, when explaining behavior. Even though most research on crime favors the view that both personality and situational factors play a mutual role in determining behavior, most people neglect to realize or acknowledge this. The fundamental attribution error tends to only apply when making attributions about others. When explaining our own [...]

Fundamental Attribution Error and Criminal BehaviorsKenneth Padowitz2024-08-01T00:13:55+00:00

Juvenile Delinquency | Theories and Risk Factors

Although some individuals may be born with a predisposition to violence or criminal behavior, the general consensus among forensic psychologists is that in the majority of cases, beginning at birth, a child is exposed to various risk factors that contribute to the development of antisocial behaviors and juvenile offending. Juvenile delinquency will be explored in greater detail in terms of the reasons for antisocial behavior and any measures that can be taken to prevent an offending trajectory; beginning with the relevant statistics pertaining to [...]

Juvenile Delinquency | Theories and Risk FactorsKenneth Padowitz2024-07-30T13:58:04+00:00

Crimes of Obedience

In a previous post, we discussed a psychological term, the fundamental attribution bias, and were able to determine how it affects the way people make judgments about others. To recap, the fundamental attribution error is a term, which refers to the common human error in which people tend to underestimate situational influences and overestimate individual personality factors, when explaining behavior. This post will focus on the phenomenon of crimes of obedience, which is defined as: an act performed in response to orders from authority that [...]

Crimes of ObedienceKenneth Padowitz2024-07-29T20:21:07+00:00

Capgras Syndrome | Is Delusion a Defense?

Capgras Syndrome Capgras syndrome is a delusional disorder, which results in those afflicted believing an impostor has replaced someone or something close to them. Capgras syndrome (CS) is one of four variations of delusional misidentification syndrome, a group of disorders in which the identity of someone or something close to the patient is believed to have changed. Capgras syndrome, the focus of this post, will be explored in greater detail in terms what it may be like to live with this condition and will [...]

Capgras Syndrome | Is Delusion a Defense?Kenneth Padowitz2024-07-29T20:16:14+00:00

Is Identification Reliable?

Eyewitness Testimony: Identification One of the main goals for law enforcement is to solve crimes; police strive to "clear" these crimes. They have a much higher chances of clearing the crime if the offender is caught within a few minutes, or an eyewitness provides specific information that is considered relevant to the case. Researchers have shown that if neither of these are available to police, there is less than a 10% chance that the crime will be solved, or "cleared". This is the first of many [...]

Is Identification Reliable?Kenneth Padowitz2024-07-29T20:09:31+00:00

Risk Factors For Criminal Behavior | A Child’s Preschool Experience

Preschool Experience Over the last forty years or so, children have been gradually shifting from parental home care, to nursery school or other types of day care. The percentage of mothers with children under the age of 6, and working full time jobs outside of the home, increased from 12% in 1947, to over 70% as of today. About 15-20% of these children are actually in two or more different forms of day care throughout the week. Due to the high employment turnover and [...]

Risk Factors For Criminal Behavior | A Child’s Preschool ExperienceKenneth Padowitz2024-07-29T20:05:00+00:00

Deep Connection Between Terrorism and the Criminal Personality

The Wide Scope of Terrorism Terrorism to the average Joe takes a racial and ethnic dimension. Technically, though this is a misrepresentation and terrorism is far more expansive. According to the U.S. Code, terrorism, regardless of its form refers to acts with intent to coerce or intimidate a civilian population. Going by this definition, most criminals operate as terrorists. The victims they terrorize may be as specific as one person or as widespread as an entire country. Terrorism takes different forms. A man guy [...]

Deep Connection Between Terrorism and the Criminal PersonalityKenneth Padowitz2024-07-29T20:01:05+00:00

Frustration Hypothesis of Criminal Behavior

What Role Does Frustration Play in Criminal Behavior? Frustration and criminal behavior may be related, but the relationship between the two is complex. It is hypothesized that the more intense and frequent the periods of frustration are in a person's life, the more sensitive they may become to future frustrating events. When various animals, including humans, are unable to respond in a way that has previously produced a reward, their behavior may often become frantic, energetic, or aggressive. For instance, animals may bite, growl, [...]

Frustration Hypothesis of Criminal BehaviorKenneth Padowitz2024-07-29T19:56:29+00:00

The courts take a jab at civil detention practices: What about professionals?

The trend in the courts In the last three months, two consecutive court decisions have deemed the civil commitment program to be unconstitutional. Which is insightful because 20 states and the federal government uphold some form of the civil commitment laws also called “SVP” laws. To put it simply, the laws permit authorities to confine indefinitely, sex offenders expertly assessed to have mental diagnosis that makes them more likely to engage in future sexual violence. In retrospect, the laws have had several dates with [...]

The courts take a jab at civil detention practices: What about professionals?Kenneth Padowitz2024-07-29T19:50:27+00:00

About Kenneth Padowitz