Accountability and Coercion: Is Justice Blind when It Runs for Office?

Through their power to sentence, trial judges exercise enormous authority in the criminal justice system. In 39 American states, these judges stand periodically for reelection. Do elections degrade their impartiality? We develop a dynamic theory of sentencing and electoral control. Judges discount the future value of retaining office relative to implementing preferred sentences. Voters are largely uninformed about judicial behavior, so even the outcome of a single publicized case can be decisive in their evaluations. Further, voters are more likely to perceive instances of underpunishment than overpunishment. Our theory predicts that elected judges will consequently become more punitive as standing for reelection approaches. Using sentencing data from 22,095 Pennsylvania criminal cases in the 1990s, we find strong evidence for this effect. Additional tests confirm the validity of our theory over alternatives. For the cases we examine, we attribute at least 1,818 to 2,705 years of incarceration to the electoral dynamic.     

What Has Driven the Great Fertility Decline in Developing Countries since 1960?

Several developing countries are currently experiencing a significant fertility decline, however, academic economists have paid little attention to this transition. This paper seeks to explain the fertility transition by infant mortality, urbanisation, income, culture and educational attainment of females and males using annual data for 92 developing countries over the period 1960–2014. External instruments are used to deal with endogeneity. The results suggest that increasing per capita income, improved female education and increasing secularisation have been important determinants for declining fertility in the developing world.     

Variation in central bank independence across countries: Some provisional empirical evidence

In this paper seven hypotheses to explain variation in central bank independence across countries are tested. The predictions based upon the theory that delegation of authority by politicians to the central bank is used as a commitment device are not supported: central bank independence is not higher the larger the employment motivated inflationary bias, the higher political instability or the larger the government debt. Central bank independence is positively related to historical inflation experience and negatively with political instability. We do only find limited support for the view that countries with a universal banking system and countries whose central banks do not regulate financial institutions have more independent central banks.     

The chronology of third molar mineralization in the Austrian population--a contribution to forensic age estimation

The aim of the present study was to determine the chronology of third molar mineralization and to establish Austrian reference data. Therefore, a cross-sectional study was undertaken by evaluating 610 panoramic radiographs in order to assess the mineralization status of the mandibular third molars of Austrian male and female individuals (275 males and 335 females) between the ages of 12 and 24. The evaluation was carried out using the eight grade scheme of Demirjian et al. (1973). Mean ages, standard deviations, standard errors and percentile distributions are presented for each stage of development. Significant differences between the left and right mandibular third molars were not found. Males reach the developmental stages earlier than females, statistically significant differences were noted in stages E and F. Both mandibular third molars were observed in the majority of the individuals of the Austrian sample (477 individuals, 78.2%). For medicolegal purposes the likelihood of whether an Austrian individual is older than 18 years or not was determined.     

Value,Nature, and Labor: A Defense of Marx

In this theoretical intervention, I argue that Karl Marx’s theory of value remains a powerful way to understand nature–society relations under capitalism. I suggest environmentalist critiques often misunderstand Marx’s value theory as a theory that “values” workers over nature. His critical theory is better understood as an explanation of how capitalist value exploits both workers and the environment. My defense of Marxian value theory is articulated through five “theses.” I provide empirical illustration based on recent research into the nitrogen fertilizer industry. (1) Value theory does not refer to all values. (2) Marx’s contention that nature does not contribute to value helps us explain its degradation under capitalism. (3) Marx’s value theory rooted in production allows for a critique of environmental economic valuation schemes (e.g. payments for ecosystem services) which are based on neoclassical value theories rooted in consumption/exchange. (4) Value is abstract social labor, but that means it also abstracts from nature. (5) Capital does value certain parts of nature and that matters. I conclude by advocating a “value theory of nature” in the spirit of Diane Elson’s powerful articulation of Marx’s “value theory of labor.”     

Parteien,Namen, Gerichte und Behörden

Für die Bezeichnung von wahlwerbenden Parteien finden sich bestimmte Regeln in § 44 NRWO. Diese Regeln hat eine Verwaltungsbehörde, die Wahlbehörde, anzuwenden. Gleichzeitig stellt § 43 ABGB ein allgemeines System des Namensschutzes zur Verfügung, das vor den ordentlichen Gerichten in Anspruch genommen werden kann. Die österreichische Rechtsordnung unterscheidet zwischen Wahlpartei, politischer Partei und im Nationalrat vertretener Partei. Aufgrund der verfas sungsmäßigen Trennung von Justiz und Verwaltung in allen Instanzen können Entscheidungen von Verwaltungsbehörden nicht in jenen Bereichen ergehen, in denen eine Zuständigkeit von Gerichten besteht, und umgekehrt. Für die Bezeichnung von wahlwerbenden Parteien bedeutet dies, dass die Frage der Namensver wendung am Stimmzettel von der Wahlbehörde zu lösen ist. Für durch eine rechtswidrige Verwendung einer Bezeichnung verursachte Schäden sind jedoch die ordentlichen Gerichte im Rahmen einer Schadenersatzklage zuständig.     

Fatal ischemic stroke due to dissecting aneurysm of the intracranial arteries presenting as sudden unexpected death in childhood

Sudden unexpected death is any nontraumatic death in healthy individuals with normal activities for age until acute demise. Whereas not uncommon in adults and infants, it is considered a rarity in children, with most cases due to infection or occult cardiovascular abnormalities. Pathologic intracranial findings are rarely found in sudden unexpected death in childhood, with most cases due to occult intracranial neoplasms. Cerebral arterial dissection is an uncommon cause of arterial ischemic stroke in childhood. Outcome is poor, with more than 20% of patients dying. We report 4 cases of sudden unexpected death due to arterial ischemic stroke after cerebral arterial dissection in childhood and present a review of the literature.