The Prior Authorisation Procedure Adopted for the Deliberate Release into the Environment of Genetically Modified Organisms: the Complexities of Balancing Community and National Competences

Abstract: The cornerstone of the Community regulatory framework on this subject is EC Directive 90/220/EEC, as repealed by EC Directive 2001/18/EC on the deliberate release into the environment of genetically modified organisms (GMO), which is based on a fundamental premise: that in order to prevent the risks caused by the release of genetically modified organisms, GMOs can only be released subject to the grant of a prior authorisation, following a scientific assessment, which confirms that such organisms do not represent a risk to the environment and human health. Yet it is obvious that Member States are not willing to entirely transfer their sovereignty in relation to issues that are of such fundamental importance to environmental protection and human health; at the same time however, the objective of achieving free movement of GMOs implies the establishment of a genuine Community procedure for this sector. The need to strike a balance between these competing demands therefore requires an enormous collaborative effort from national and Community authorities, which, contrary to expectations, has not produced any concrete results as yet. The authorisation procedure that has been developed was intended to bridge the gap between the divergent interpretations of what actually constitutes a biotechnical risk; conversely, it has reached a stasis, and causing protracted delays in the procedures granting authorisations. Admittedly, some changes to the procedure were implemented in 2001, but they were not intended to restructure the general architecture of the procedure established in 1990. Yet are such remedies going to be effective? Or is it time to make a more radical revision of the existing procedures by redistributing the competences on this delay?     

Testing the School‐to‐Prison Pipeline

The School‐to‐Prison Pipeline is a social phenomenon where students become formally involved with the criminal justice system as a result of school policies that use law enforcement, rather than discipline, to address behavioral problems. A potentially important part of the School‐to‐Prison Pipeline is the use of sworn School Resource Officers (SROs), but there is little research on the causal effect of hiring these officers on school crime or arrests. Using credibly exogenous variation in the use of SROs generated by federal hiring grants specifically to place law enforcement in schools, I find evidence that law enforcement agencies learn about more crimes in schools upon receipt of a grant, and are more likely to make arrests for those crimes. This primarily affects children under the age of 15. However, I also find evidence that SROs increase school safety, and help law enforcement agencies make arrests for drug crimes occurring on and off school grounds.     

The Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI): Treatment Scales and Interpersonal Characteristics in a Sample of Men Charged with or Convicted of a Sexual Offense*

An individual's interpersonal features are pertinent to treatment within clinical populations. The Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI) contains two scales that assess the interpersonal features of warmth (WRM) and dominance (DOM), as well as two additional measures to assess to treatment prediction, process, and rejection (RXR; TPI). The current study examined associations between these PAI scales in a sample of 92 men who underwent comprehensive evaluations of sexual behavior after being charged with or convicted of a sexual offense. Analyses indicated that RXR was positively associated with WRM and DOM, TPI was negatively associated with WRM, and the two interpersonal scales of WRM and DOM were positively correlated with each other. A significant inverse relationship was found between the two treatment scales RXR and TPI indicating that motivation for treatment may have a limited relationship with the treatment process. WRM significantly predicted scores on the TPI, and both WRM and DOM predicted individual scores on RXR. Higher scores on positive impression management (PIM) were predictive of lower TPI and higher RXR, as individuals with higher stakes cases may score higher on PIM and underreport obstacles within treatment or be unwilling to accept the need for treatment. Overall, findings suggest that interpersonal characteristics identified by the PAI scales may be advantageous in approaching treatment within this population.