Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: This paper presents a view of judicial involvement in the development of public policy which challenges common understandings of the interaction between courts and legislatures as being marked by conflict or emphasizing struggles for power. It draws on a study of the relationship between the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts (the high court) and the General Court (the legislature) from the 1970s through the 1990s' in which over 3400 opinions were analyzed and for which justices and staff were interviewed.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: The Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety (EOPS) received a sex offender management grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance in FY2004. Like all of the program’s grantees, Massachusetts was given the task of putting together a multi-disciplinary group to: 1) conduct a comprehensive assessment of current sex offender management policies and practices; 2) identify strengths and weaknesses in the system; and, 3) implement changes that address the identified gaps. EOPS put together a state-wide collaborative team with project partners from over 25 different agencies and organizations across the criminal justice, human services, victim advocate, and offender treatment fields.

Thus far, this group has completed the state-wide assessment and is planning implementation at three selected pilot sites: Attleboro, Boston, and the North Quabbin region (a collection of nine rural towns). These communities were selected to vary based on population and geographical location and are designed to serve as models for other Massachusetts communities. In this presentation, Massachusetts will present the findings of the state-wide assessment and discuss the similarities and differences of the three pilot sites.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Massachusetts is the first state in the United States to pass legislation with the express goal to create universal access to health insurance. This presentation will examine the structure of this reform model which combines the language of personal and employer responsibility with a public commitment to provide affordable health insurance for all.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: This paper offers an interpretation of court decisions and social change by examining the conservative response to the case of Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, which legalized same-sex marriage in the state of Massachusetts. Rather than focusing on progressive change, or lack thereof, after a court decision, the evidence here suggests the real importance of a court decision may be in its ability to instigate the mobilization of losers. In short, it is not that court decisions do not result in change; rather, it is that the change is not always progressive but reflective of a strong response from those the courts ruled against.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: In the transgender policy domain, there is a strong association between citizen attitudes as measured by ideology and the existence of statewide gender identity inclusive hate crimes or nondiscrimination laws. If that is the case, why is Massachusetts without a transgender inclusive law? This case study investigates that question. It finds that the state’s gay and lesbian communities gained statutory protections before transgender identities were important policy concerns. Additionally, distributional concerns in light of scare resources later focused advocacy coalition attention on another policy core item, same sex marriage. Such a trade off was somewhat more palatable given that courts in the Bay State extended some employment discrimination protections to transgender persons under existing law. This paper discusses how gay and lesbian advocates serve as gatekeepers for transgender inclusion.