Stonehill Skyhawk View

By Ian Harte JRN-100 Staff Writer Very few sexual assault cases lead to conviction, in part because law enforcement continues to doubt the credibility of victims, a recent study found. The trend will continue until the law is changed to encourage objective data-based investigations, said April Pattavina, a criminology professor at the University of Massachusetts at Lowell and one of the authors of the study Decision Making in Sexual Assault Cases: Replication Research on Sexual Violence Case Attrition in the U.S. She also believes that there would be fewer credibility issues if investigators spent more time working with victims. “We need to understand more about victim cooperation and determine if we can ultimately reduce the rate of case attrition [or, failure of arrests to come to trial] by engaging victims in the criminal justice system and encouraging them to be receptive to following through with prosecution of their assailants,” the study’s researchers concluded. Only...

By Scott Valenti JRN100 Journalist   Andrea and Greg Spano of North Reading enthusiastically rolled up their sleeves to get their Covid-19 vaccines as soon as they were eligible. But as with many parents, they’re feeling more cautious about getting the vaccines for their children. “I’m not so worried about myself, but I want my kids to be healthy. But what worries me is, the vaccine is so new that I don’t know if there will be any significant long-term effects that will occur from my kids getting vaccinated," said Andrea Spano. Despite the concerns, the Spanos said they plan to have their children vaccinated. “As of right now, I would still get my children vaccinated not because I’m very worried that they are going to get very sick. I’m more worried about them spreading the virus to other people,” Andrea Spano said. The Spanos aren’t alone with their worries about the Covid-19 vaccine when it’s available to their children. Researchers recently surveyed 19,700 parents in the United...

  Mental Health of Student Athletes a Concern in Pandemic   By Blaine Lidsky   JRN-100  News Staff   The mental health of college athletes has suffered since COVID-19 hit last year and curtailed team sports, according to those working with students and a recent survey.       Seth Murray, a student at Stonehill College   and a member on the Stonehill  m en ’ s Hockey team ,   is involved in working with student athletes  to fight  the stigma of mental health with  the college group  Hope Happens Here .   Murray  said the  p andemic has had a large effect on the student   athlete's   well-being .     “There has definitely been an increase in mental health concerns ever since quarantine and lockdown have begun. I  can't  speak on behalf of Stonehill students, but overall, there has been a dramatic increase in mental health concerns.  So much so that some therapists are no...