Guides: Justice & Law Administration Guide: Find Resources Online

Finding Resources on the Web

National Criminal Justice Reference Service This link opens in a new window
NCJRS is a federally funded resource offering justice and substance abuse information to support research, policy, and program development worldwide. Find bibliographic information and abstracts of more than 230,000 collection resources, including over 80,000 online materials and all known Office of Justice Programs' works

FBI Criminal Justice Information Services.
Compiles data from law enforcement agencies and creates reports detailing the state of crime in the US.
National Institute of Corrections Library
An agency within the U.S. Department, Federal Bureau of Prisons.

Law and Legal Research: Laws and Cases: How to Do Legal Research

http://www.nolo.com/legal-research

Includes among other things, definitions, how to find and read laws and cases, and helpful legal websites.

Legal Information Institute. Cornell University
http://www.law.cornell.edu/
A free-access site serving as a gateway to US and state laws (linking to the US. Code, The Code of Federal Regulations), court opinions and current awareness on legal issues. Search feature and links to Key and all US Supreme Court opinions, federal courts opinions, etc. Highlights recent law events and opinions.

Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences
Established in 1963, an international association to foster professional and scholarly activities in the field of criminal justice. ACJS promotes criminal justice education, research, and policy analysis within the discipline.
American Correctional Association
Oldest and largest international correctional association in the world. Serves all disciplines within the corrections profession and is dedicated to excellence in every aspect of the field.
American Jail Association
The American Society of Criminology
An international organization whose members pursue scholarly, scientific, and professional knowledge concerning the measurement, etiology, consequences, prevention, control, and treatment of crime and delinquency.
Crime Prevention Coalition of America
is a nonpartisan group of "national, state, federal, and community-based organizations united to promote and work toward citizen action to prevent crime". Members are from youth development organizations, municipalities, law enforcement agencies, federal and state government representatives, state crime prevention associations, and community-based groups.
National Crime Prevention Council
The National Crime Prevention Council is a national nonprofit educational organization. It is “the nation's focal point and voice for crime prevention: a source of help for individuals, neighborhoods, communities and governments.” Site includes NCPC's 10-Year Goals (2001-2010)
National Institute of Justice. Crimes and Prevention
Research and evaluation on many specific types of crime.

Federal Organizations

The Bureau of Justice Statistics.
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/
Source of CJ statistics. Includes links to publications, crime and justice data from other sources, and NACJD.

The FBI
http://www.fbi.gov/
Includes crime statistics /the UCR, FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, career information, etc

Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, U. S. Dept. of Justice
http://www.ojjdp.gov/

United States Department of Justice Home Page.
http://www.usdoj.gov/
Information on its organizations/agencies (including BJS, DEA, FBI, INS, & NCJRS), publications, employment; search engine.

Connecticut Organizations

Connecticut Bar Association

Connecticut Trial Lawyers Association

Connecticut Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (CCDLA)

Connecticut Defense Lawyers Association

National Immigration Legal Services Directory: Connecticut Organizations

Free Legal Service Providers - Connecticut (U.S. Dept. of Justice)

HG.org: Connecticut State and Local Bar Association

Professional Organizations

American Academy of Forensic Sciences
http://www.aafs.org/
A professional society dedicated to the application of science to the law. Includes recent issues of their Bulletin; links to graduate programs in psychology and the law and description of that discipline; many forensic sciences links.

Northeastern Association of Forensic Scientists
http://www.neafs.org/
NEAFS main purpose is to stimulate increased implementation of existing techniques, along with research and development of new techniques, and to encourage financial support for these efforts. It strives to encourage a high level of competency among professionals in forensic science

American Board of Criminalistics
http://www.criminalistics.com/
The ABC is composed of regional and national organizations which represent forensic scientists. . Includes recent issues of their Bulletin.

American Board of Forensic Document Examiners, Inc.
http://www.abfde.org/
The North American board for certifying qualified examiners in forensic handwriting comparison and all other facets of forensic document examination.

Evidence Photographers International Council
http://www.evidencephotographers.com/
An organization for the advancement of forensic photography/videography in civil evidence & law enforcement.

Uniform Crime Reports, FBI
Federal Bureau of Investigation. Uniform Crime Reporting
U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics
compiled by the U. S. Dept. of Justice. Office of Justice Programs.
Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics
Federal grant funded website of the University of Albany with statistics, current had historical, on criminal justice characteristics, crime and victims, courts, and more
Statistical Abstract of the United States
As of 2012, no longer compiled and published. Historical statistics available. Use WestSearch for more current editions.

Human Rights Mini Collection
The 30 rights and freedoms in UDHR include the right to be free from torture, the right to freedom of expression, the right to education, and the right to seek asylum. It includes civil and political rights, such as the rights to life, liberty and privacy. It also includes economic, social and cultural rights, such as the rights to social security, health and adequate housing.
Human rights advocates and NGOs continuously report on violations of human rights across the globe. This mini-collection highlights a few of these issues and aims to educate and engage students and faculty in the struggle to ensure the dignity and equal rights of all members of the human family.
U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor
Access to DRL Annual Reports: International Religious Freedom Reports, Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, Advancing Freedom and Democracy Reports.
United Nations Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights
The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (UN Human Rights) is the leading UN entity on human rights. We represent the world's commitment to the promotion and protection of the full range of human rights and freedoms set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

U.S. Department of State. Bureau of Counterterrorism and Countering Violent Extremism
The Bureau coordinates all U.S. Government efforts to improve counter-terrorism cooperation with foreign governments.
Council on Foreign Relations: Issues on Terrorism
Resources of a nonpartisan think tank promoting better understanding of world and foreign policy choices, including issue such as terrorism, human rights, homeland security among others.
RAND Corporation
The RAND Corporation is a research organization that develops solutions to public policy challenges to help make communities throughout the world safer and more secure. RAND is nonprofit, nonpartisan, and committed to the public interest.

Using Google Scholar for Research

You may have heard of, or even used Google Scholar in the past to search for articles. Like base Google, it can be a great tool when used correctly. Not everything that appears on Google Scholar will be accessible to you, so to make sure that it is, watch this video, or read the description below, to see how to connect the WCSU Libraries' catalog and list of databases to your search function:

Step-by-Step Google Scholar Guide

In addition to WestSearch and the libraries' subscription databases, Google Scholar can be a great way to find articles for your research. But if you want to be able to access full-text articles, you must update your settings in Google to link the search results to our libraries' databases.

1. Go to Google Scholar

2. Log in to your Google account

Google Scholar Sign-in Link