PROCEDURAL JUSTICE AND PUBLIC TRUST: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF OFFICER-INVOLVED SHOOTING INVESTIGATION MODELS IN CALIFORNIA LAW ENFORCEMENT

This thesis examines how investigative methods for officer-involved shootings (OIS) influence media reporting through the lens of procedural justice. Focusing on case studies of the Vallejo and San Diego Police Departments, it explores how shifts in investigative practices, such as transitioning to a task force method, impact media narratives about police agencies. The study reviews policies from over 100 California law enforcement agencies, legislative efforts, and media reports on OIS cases involving Vallejo PD and San Diego PD (2019–2023). The analysis focuses on the effects of investigative neutrality on public confidence, a key element of subjective police legitimacy. Findings indicate that adopting independent investigative practices enhances procedural justice perceptions in the press and can reduce public skepticism. At a minimum, such changes do not harm media portrayals of police agencies. Statewide variations in OIS methods highlight the need for standardized policies to uphold procedural justice tenets across agencies. The work contributes to understanding how investigative choices shape police legitimacy and offers recommendations for fostering transparency, fairness, and community trust in policing practices.Distribution Statement A. Approved for public release: Distribution is unlimited.Civilian, Oakland Police Departmen

COMPUTATIONAL ANALYSIS OF A BLUNT BODY RE-ENTRY VEHICLE AND UNSTART CONDITIONS IN A HYPERSONIC WIND TUNNEL

Includes Supplementary MaterialThe study of hypersonics has become a focal point not only for the Department of Defense but also multiple civilian agencies. This study was meant to focus on the high- speed fluid dynamics related to this regime of flight using the facilities at the Naval Postgraduate School. The current Gas Dynamics Laboratory (GDL) high-speed wind tunnel was capable of generating long runtime high Mach number flows. With only slight modifications to the current facilities, it was determined by previous research that a wind tunnel capable of sustained Mach 5.0+ flows for greater than 20 minutes was attainable. With this new test facility in mind, a computational fluid dynamics analyses was conducted on the feasibility of testing a portion of a blunt body hypersonic vehicle intended for re-entry purposes. This project was able to provide significant data for NASA’s sample delivery project and determined the viability of tests at the GDL given the supplied vehicle geometries. An additional analysis was conducted using the tunnel’s test chamber geometry as a means of studying hypersonic inlet unstart conditions. The proposed Mach 5.0+ tunnel test section was identified as being analogous to the inlets of numerous hypersonic air breathing vehicles. By increasing the pressure at the outlet of the system, repeatable unstarts were achieved. This analysis provided an excellent basis for analytical testing moving forward and real-world experimentation on hypersonic unstarts.Distribution Statement A. Approved for public release: Distribution is unlimited.Major, United States Marine Corp

Distance Learning (DL) Class Schedule AY/AQ: 2025/3

Distance Learning (DL) class schedule listing: CourseID / Seg / Course Name / Class Type / Instructor / Lec/Lab Hours / Class Schedule

AN ANALYSIS OF VORTEX CRITERIA FOR EVALUATING HURRICANE RAPID INTENSIFICATION

Hurricanes and other anomalous weather patterns affect all Naval Operations and pose significant operational risk. While deep-water undersea operations may be unaffected, shallow-water missions remain vulnerable—especially those involving interactions with surface targets. As such, there is a need for fast and accurate modeling. For this research, there is a particular interest in the formation stage of these hurricanes, referred to as rapid intensification, defined by tangential azimuthal wind velocity. These wind vectors form vortices, for which there is no single universally accepted identification method. Of the various vortex identification criteria that exist, six were explored in this research: Q-Criterion, Lambda2, Lambda Ci, Lambda Cr, Delta, and Liutex. These individual methods each have strengths and weaknesses in identifying specific vortex behaviors as a function of tangential azimuthal velocity. The research explores the individual strengths and weaknesses of each method in order to apply them in an optimal manner for potential use in larger codebases such as NUMA, which make use of advanced mesh refinement (AMR). This research aims to use these vortex identification criteria to guide AMR to ultimately improve hurricane simulation efficiency. This work supports SUBFOR thesis topic ID# 22-04, which addresses the identified S&T/R&D Gap Tactical Use of the Environment under the title Tactical Use of the Ocean Environment.Distribution Statement A. Approved for public release: Distribution is unlimited.Ensign, United States Nav

INTERPRETATION OF EMERGENT BEHAVIORS IN EVENT TRACES USING GENERATIVE AI

Emergent behaviors are present in all complex systems, and some can cause harmful effects. Monterey Phoenix (MP) provides a way for modelers to identify those behaviors through exhaustive event trace generation based on a scope definition that places limits on event iteration. The identification of emergent behaviors allows engineers to design constraints for them and mitigate associated risk. However, the current method for inspecting MP event traces for system behaviors is a storytelling process that is limited to the past experiences and creative imaginations of the humans inspecting the traces. This research explores the question: could the current method for MP event trace interpretation be improved using generative artificial intelligence (AI) with a designed prompt? The stories created by an AI model increase the total number of stories, giving the modeler additional information to consider when conducting trace analysis for behavior validation. To accomplish this an iterative process was used to design a prompt that can be used for improving MP event trace interpretation. The results show that use of generative AI with MP suitably automates a behavior validation task that previously had to be done manually for every trace, with promising implications for enhancing speed and volume for trace analysis. Future integration of AI into MP is expected to increase scenario variant coverage, increase recognition of missed requirements and design constraints, and decrease risk.Distribution Statement A. Approved for public release: Distribution is unlimited.Civilian, Department of the Nav

SIMULATING AWS SUPPORT TO THE JOINT FORCE IN LBC

As the Army develops requirements for new Army Watercraft Systems (AWS), researchers at The Research and Analysis Center (TRAC) and NPS used Modeling and Simulation (M&S) to evaluate the critical parameters influencing AWS performance. An unclassified vignette set in the USINDOPACOM Area of Responsibility (AOR) was developed using existing AWS data, the Marine Littoral Regiment (MLR) concept, and historical use cases. This vignette was instantiated in the Logistics Battle Command (LBC) modeling tool, which simulated an MLR deployment as part of a Pacific Pathways Exercise. A Design of Experiments (DOE) methodology, incorporating Nearly Orthogonal Latin Hypercube (NOLH) sampling, generated scenarios to assess differences in vessel performance. The study compared existing AWS, such as the Landing Craft Utility (LCU) and Logistics Support Vessel (LSV), to a hypothetical Ship-to-Shore Logistics Vessel (SSLV). A statistical assessment using analysis of variance (ANOVA) in John's Macintosh Project (JMP) found vessel speed, deck space, and number of assets as major factors impacting operational success. The SSLV outperformed conventional systems in terms of efficiency in the scenario, with asset availability emerging as the most important indicator of mission success. Augmented by M&S, these findings emphasize the significance of scalability and performance optimization during joint force deployments to inform analysts investigating future AWS design and acquisition strategies.Distribution Statement A. Approved for public release: Distribution is unlimited.Major, United States Arm

READ @your library Thomas M. Jamison (poster)

A project of the Dudley Knox Library at the Naval Postgraduate School

HOW CAN NORSOF ENDURE ATTRITION ON SOF OPERATORS IN WARTIME?

Norwegian Special Operation Forces (NORSOF) have time-consuming selection and training pipelines for their special operators. While the pipelines are suitable for operations where attrition is low, this thesis predicts that they are unable to sustain high attrition rates of special operators in war. By proposing three distinct courses of action (COA): 1) Make more NORSOF with the existing framework, 2) Make more NORSOF with a new framework, and 3) Get more out of NORSOF as it is, this thesis aims to provide NORSOF with a solution that ensures sustainability of special operators in war. The courses of action were analyzed through a sustainability, feasibility, and acceptability framework to determine their strengths and weaknesses. The analysis indicated that all three COAs have distinct qualities at different timesteps moving from peace to war. The current constructs of selection and training within NORSOF could be adapted to increase the production of special operators and be further enhanced with increased recruitment. Reserves present a viable, but limited capacity, while new formations could be a long-term solution for maintaining NORSOF’s utility in war. Preparing for all three COAs outlined in this thesis provides NORSOF commanders with redundancy when facing high attrition of special operators in war.Distribution Statement A. Approved for public release: Distribution is unlimited.Lieutenant Commander, Royal Norwegian Nav

Faces of NPS: Vice Adm. Timothy J. White, USN (Ret)

Faces of NPS features interviews spotlighting the students, faculty, staff and alumni of our Nation's premier defense education and research institution