Linguistics for Legal Purposes with Dr. John Baugh

LINGUISTICS FOR LEGAL PURPOSES
Dr. John Baugh
Professor of Psychology, Anthropology, Education, English, Linguistics, and African and African-American Studies
April 8, 3:00-4:30pm ET
RU-NB CAC - Location TBD (in-person event)

This presentation describes various ways in which linguistics can be used for legal purposes, beginning with the murder case that launched the field of forensic linguistics. Housing discrimination that resulted from linguistic profiling will also be recounted, along with spectrographic evidence and experimental survey research that were employed during testimony pertaining to two separate murder trials. The linguistic foundations of a class action law suit, based on allegations that gave rise to a hostile work environment precedes another case where discourse analysis was utilized to prevent a single mother from losing her job and custody of her two young children. Different linguistic methods and evidence were required to help resolve each of these cases, thereby demonstrating instances where linguistics has been used to advance justice and equal opportunity under the law.

John Baugh is President of the Linguistic Society of America and received his PhD from the University of Pennsylvania in linguistics as an advisee of William Labov. He has taught sociolinguistics at Swarthmore College, The University of Texas at Austin, Stanford University and Washington University in St. Louis. He has published several books, including Out of the Mouths of Slaves: African American Language and Educational Malpractice (U. Texas Press), Beyond Ebonics: Linguistic Pride and Racial Prejudice (Oxford University Press), and his most recent book is Linguistics in Pursuit of Justice (Cambridge University Press). He is a fellow of the Linguistic Society of America, the American Dialect Society, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He is also a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.