Editorial Introduction

Welcome to the third volume of the Journal of Qualitative Criminal Justice & Criminology. I am pleased to report that the journal is still going strong  and manuscripts continue to be submitted on a regular basis. The journal continues to hold its authors to a high standard and as you will note for this issue’s updated analytics, the journal is currently holding a 16.9% acceptance rate. I believe you will see the satisfactory results of maintaining the high standards in this first issue of Volume 3. Lisa Kort-Butler and Michael Killingsworth lead off with a historical analysis of media-crime relationship in criminology textbooks; Kevin Steinmetz looks at how a person becomes a hacker through his ethnographic interviews and participant observation; Danielle Lavin-Loucks and Kristine Levan explore the use of neutralization techniques in state parole hearings using ethnographic observation methods; and Brad Campbell looks at a little known policing phenomenon, the Summer Cop, through his summer conducting participant observation. Each of these pieces contributes to the qualitative body of literature in criminal justice and criminology, while the many book reviews included in this issue also demonstrate additional work in qualitative methods being published.

Since the last issue, it has come to my attention a number of changes in institutional affiliations among the editorial board. Kevin Steinmetz, the book review editor for JQCJC is now at Kansas State University. Craig Hemmens is now at Washington State University where he serves as the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology Chair. Wilson R. Palacios has also moved to a new position at the University of Massachusetts in Lowell. And, finally, perhaps the biggest change is Shadd Maruna coming back across the pond to take the position of Dean and Professor in the School of Criminal  Justice at Rutgers University. My congratulations to each of you in your new positions, and my thanks to all of the members of my editorial board for their assistance and dedication to this journal.

I would also like to take the time to thank everyone for their kind words in learning that I was planning to step down as the editor of the journal at the end of this year/volume. I have enjoyed getting this journal off and running, but I believe it is time to get someone else in the position with new ideas who can take the journal even farther in the future. If you are interested in being that person, please see the call for an editor at the end of this issue.

Finally, I must thank all of those people who have made this journal a success. In addition to the editorial board, I must thank my book review editor, Kevin Steinmetz; our excellent and very demanding copy-editor, Ronda Harris; our excellent publisher who makes the journal look like a journal, Harriet McHale; and our webmaster who makes sure everyone can see and download the journal, Melina Gilbert. The support of these dedicated professionals at Sam Houston State University has been critical to the success of the journal. And, I must thank the Southwestern Association of Criminal Justice’s Executive Board for their support of me, my ideas for the journal, and the journal itself.