回归法律规范:刑事值班律师制度适用问题再反思

目前我国刑事值班律师制度规范背后折射出有权机关抑制辩方权利的倾向。根据法律规范意旨,只要被追诉人没有辩护人,国家就应“强制指派”值班律师介入案件。将“约见”解读为国家指派值班律师需以被追诉人申请为前提,这混淆了律师会见与介入案件的关系,且将国家责任转嫁给个人,弱化了对被追诉人获得最低限度法律援助权利的保障。相关规范性文件将值班律师阅卷权能限定为“查阅”,但基于法律援助法第37条的文义、控辩平等之程序公正底线要求等因素,值班律师阅卷权能还应包括“摘抄”“复制”。《法律援助值班律师工作办法》第10条第2款规定,值班律师有量刑异议时,只要其认可犯罪嫌疑人认罪认罚的自愿性,就应在具结书上签字。这是对值班律师功能“见证化”的公开宣示,与2018年刑事诉讼法第201条的意旨以及值班律师实质性参与量刑协商的改革要求相矛盾。值班律师应被赋予拒绝签字的权利。“实质性参与”应是目前完善值班律师制度的基本方向。     

论税收法定原则的司法化

税收法定原则的司法化是“全面落实税收法定原则”的必然要求,而传统理论疏漏了其中的司法内涵,导致税收法定原则出现了作为基本原则却难以直接指导和适用于税收司法的悖论。鉴于税收法定原则与罪刑法定原则的亲缘性,发展相对成熟的罪刑法定原则可以为完善税收法定原则的内涵构成提供三点启示。同时,结合税收法定原则的固有内容,税收法定原则的司法化应当在适用范畴上向司法原则扩围,价值层次上向实质正义升华,法定程度上向相对法定适当松动。据此,三路并进,税收法定原则的司法内涵得以全面、系统的补漏。税收法定原则司法内涵的完善将有助于打破税收法定原则司法化的理论困局,助推“全面落实税收法定原则”法治图景的实现。     

Harming America: Corporate Crime in a Context of Deregulation

ABSTRACT

Like many Republican presidential candidates before him, Donald J. Trump campaigned on a pro-business, anti-regulation platform, and since his election in November 2016, he has directed his administration to move forward with deregulation in many arenas, including consumer financial protections, environmental controls, and workplace safety among others. Past efforts to roll back regulations governing certain industries, such as the savings and loan and the mortgage industries, have had harmful consequences for the general public or for specific interest groups. In this study, we review what the Trump administration has accomplished with regard to deregulation to date. Then, based on past deregulatory fiascos, we theorize the harmful collateral consequences that may result from this most recent swing of the regulatory-deregulatory pendulum.     

Psychopathy and Female Gender: Phenotypic Expression and Comorbidity; A Study Comparing a Sample of Women Hospitalized in Italy's Maximum Security Facility with Women Who were Criminally Sentenced and Imprisoned,

Various studies have shown that women with psychopathy tend to commit crimes that are less violent than those of psychopathic men. The present study was designed to address the influence of psychopathy on the crimes committed by female offenders. A national sample of female offenders found NGRI or of diminished responsibility and at risk for criminal recidivism (OPG patients) was compared with a sample of female offenders who were convicted and imprisoned. Results of this comparison between the two groups of female offenders indicate that psychopathy is a transversal psychopathological dimension which may or may not be associated with other mental disorders. In both samples, the most commonly reported offenses among women with high PCL‐R scores were minor offenses, not particularly violent, but they appear to be related to typical psychopathic features such as superficial charm, pathological lying, and manipulation.     

Forensic Application of Analytical Mechanics in Fatal Fall From a Height

Fatal fall from a height initiated with a swinging motion on the sagittal plane of the victim's body is examined. Method of analytical mechanics is adopted to establish the functional relations between the swinging angle of the body and the force needed to sustain the body until release, and the amount of the horizontal displacement that would occur after release. The analysis is applied to support an expert opinion presented in a criminal court in which two accused were convicted of murder for dropping a female victim from a bridge. The results indicate that it is unlikely for the body to locate as recorded by the police investigation report in the case. This study demonstrates that a straightforward mechanical analysis can be utilized to examine uncommon falling scenarios.     

Defenders of Freedom or Perpetrators and Facilitators of Crimes? Beyond Progressive Retreatism in the Trump Era

ABSTRACT

Heavily influenced by broad definitions of crime developed by a few pioneering critical criminologists, the main objective of this article is to provide evidence showing that the current Trump administration is a regime that commits crimes of the powerful and facilitates some types of interpersonal violence in private places. Special attention is devoted to direct and in-direct state-perpetrated violent crimes against women.     

Effect of Wind on Horizontal Displacement of Fatal Fall from a Height

The horizontal displacement of the human body resulting from fatal fall from a height is an important variable commonly used to inversely determine the cause or identify other forensic aspects of the fall. When examining the horizontal displacement, the wind effect is generally ignored. This technical note reports analytical modeling of the falling process, utilizing previous measurements of wind force acting on the human body, for determining the functional relationship between the wind speed and the horizontal displacement in the falling process. The result reveals that it does not take extremely rare wind conditions to cause a considerable shift of the human body, highlighting the importance to consider wind as a factor in investigations of fatal falls.     

网络信息安全犯罪的定量评价困境和突围路径——大数据背景下网络信息量化标准的反思和重构

刑法对网络安全的保护立场，正由网络运行安全转向网络信息安全。刑事立法更新不断增设网络信息安全专属罪名的同时，刑事司法的定量评价体系却未能一体构建，成为网络安全刑法保护的薄弱环节。当前网络信息安全犯罪的定量评价体系缺乏明确的逻辑主线，同时适用错位的“传统法益侵害程度”量化标准和模糊的“数据规模”新型量化标准，无法满足网络信息安全专属罪名司法适用的准确性和统一性需求，导致了司法适用的困境。消弭规范和技术之间的差异，以“信息规模”为定量评价核心的基础上，建构信息价值的分层评价模型，并将“组信息”作为基础的数据规模计量单位，是大数据时代背景下，突破网络信息安全犯罪司法定量评价困境的合理路径。     

Improved Area of Origin Estimation for Bloodstain Pattern Analysis Using 3D Scanning

An important component of crime scene reconstruction is bloodstain pattern analysis (BPA). Where BPA concerns impact patterns, estimating the area of origin is critical information for scene reconstruction. Traditionally, this is achieved by measuring individual bloodstains and performing trigonometric calculations; however, 3D scanning has been proposed as a viable alternative for overcoming logistical and practical concerns with the manual method. Therefore, this project aimed to establish whether the FARO Focus 3D scanner and FARO Zone 3D software can improve the accuracy of area of origin estimates relative to the manual method. We created a series of eight bloodstain impact patterns and performed paired analysis using the two methods to estimate areas of origin for each pattern. Our data suggested that FARO-derived estimates were generally more accurate than using the manual method. FARO-estimated heights of origin areas were generally closer to the true distance. Both methods underestimated the distance from the wall for most patterns originating 150mm or greater from the wall, but overestimated distances for patterns originating closer to the wall. The degree to which distances were underestimated increased significantly the further the blood source was from the wall and was greater for FARO-derived estimates. The results of this research contribute to the validation of these instruments for operational implementation for BPA and should be considered alongside the practical benefits of 3D scanning relative to manual methods. Further, 3D scanning can provide reliable BPA reconstruction documentation for technical review and court presentation.     

Applying Stone in a Western Landscape: Ranchers,Conservationists, and Causal Stories in the “American Serengeti”

As the emergence of nongovernmental conservation efforts generates conflict among various stakeholders, the causal story that each party articulates regarding conservation and the causes of land degradation reflects their unique interests. This study uses existing literature to evaluate causal stories surrounding a contemporary conservation effort: Montana's American Prairie Reserve. Through qualitative review of web‐based documents and newspaper articles, it generates a preliminary account of key stakeholders' causal stories. The case study suggests that parties who might be disadvantaged by ascribing responsibility for environmental harms in an adversarial fashion may instead elect to articulate causal stories that are more neutral than existing approaches might forecast. The study concludes by suggesting that further development of causal story literature may enable it to better address contemporary conservation efforts.