Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice Hosts its 6th Annual Criminology and Criminal Justice Conference
By Terry Odhiambo
The Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice hosted its sixth annual conference themed, “Children in conflict with the law: Experiences from Western and African Criminal Justice Systems.” The virtual conference attracted over 50 academics, students, and practitioners from the global south and global north who shared research on juvenile delinquency, good practice, and strategies for policy and prevention of delinquency. The conference’s main objective was to highlight the complexities of juvenile justice practice and provide a critical examination of juvenile justice theory and practice from a comparative perspective, which is vital for the future development of international juvenile justice practices.
The Keynote speaker, Professor Camille Gibson from Prairie View A&M University, Texas, USA, highlighted the atmosphere of Juvenile Justice in America while sharing challenges, successes, and prospects for the future. The research was shared in the following sub-themes: Responding to Juvenile Offenders, the Juvenile Justice System, Police and Juvenile Offenders, Children in Conflict with the Law, and Mental Health, Juvenile Justice, Human Rights, and International Law and Juvenile Justice and Legal Aid.
As part of mentoring students, a special panel was constituted for five Criminal Justice students, Ms. Sophia Mohamed, Ms. Nayanka Singh, Mr. Teddy Osoro, Mr. Kenneth Eshiemomoh, and Ms. Cynthia Nyaboke. They shared their research with the participants, who enriched their papers by responding to critical questions and providing guidance on improvement. The Special Panel of Criminal Justice Practitioners also presented police procedures in dealing with cases of children in conflict with the law and the role of the prosecution.
This conference reflects the Department’s and the University’s commitment to quality research and scholarship. The papers presented at this conference will be published in February 2023 in the upcoming book “Juvenile Justice in African and Western Criminal Justice Systems.” This book intends to provide a comprehensive introduction to juvenile justice from a comparative perspective between African and Western criminal justice systems
