Deaths resulting from police pursuit

This study concerns deaths that result from police pursuit i.e., high-speed police chases. The case files from the Office of the Medical Examiner of Metropolitan Dade County in Miami, Florida, during the years 1980-1986, were examined. Presented in some detail are 18 cases, along with a discussion of the "patterns" or types of cases involved. Recommendations for future work are then noted.     

Regulating stop and search: a challenge for police and community relations in England and Wales

Policing in England and Wales has become increasingly contested since the 1960s and has been subject to unprecedented levels of public scrutiny. Stop and search powers have played a central role in this process and, though often described as an essential part of modern policing, have continued to provide a flashpoint in police–community relations. In this article the authors briefly review the history of stop and search in England and Wales, drawing particular attention to the concerns that have been raised about the use of this power in relation to minority ethnic communities. The article goes on to consider how issues of public trust and confidence have been addressed and raises questions about the effectiveness of efforts to regulate this area of activity. Finally, we suggest that regulation has become too tightly bound to ‘‘race’’ and measures of disproportionality. Instead, we argue that the current focus on ‘‘race’’ should be broadened to include other groups that may be subject to over-policing and that monitoring should be based on a system of triangulation, which combines multiple indicators and mixed methods.     

The perils of investigating and certifying deaths in police custody.

Procedures leading to the proper investigation and certification of deaths occurring in police custody are discussed. The importance of training and experience, of interchange of information between investigator and forensic pathologist, and of common sense in the pursuit of fairness toward this end is emphasized.     

Pretrial procedure in England and Wales

A.B., Harvard College 1980; J.D., Yale Law School 1984.     

Deaths in custody in Shelby County, Tennessee, January 1970-July 1985

The purpose of this study is to review retrospectively the deaths that have occurred in the Shelby County detention center from 1970 to 1985. The Shelby County data are compared and contrasted with other studies to discern significant and preventable causes of death in custody. This study confirmed natural causes as most prevalent; however, suicide accounted for greater than 20% of all deaths (15-50-fold greater than the general population). Suicide occurred by hanging in greater than 90% of cases. This is a preventable cause of death while in custody, and means of prevention are addressed.     

Psychopathy among prisoners in England and Wales

Most research into psychopathy among prisoners is based on selected samples. It remains unclear whether prevalences are lower among European populations. This study aimed to measure the prevalence of psychopathy, and the distribution and correlates of psychopathic traits in a representative national sample of prisoners. Psychopathy was measured using the revised Psychopathy Checklist (PCL-R) in a second stage, cross-sectional survey of prisoners in England and Wales in 1997 (n = 496). Poisson regression analysis was carried out to examine independent associations between correlates and PCL-R total and factor scores. The prevalence of categorically diagnosed psychopathy at a cut off of 30 was 7.7% (95%CI 5.2–10.9) in men and 1.9% (95%CI 0.2–6.9) in women. Psychopathic traits were less prevalent among women. They were correlated with younger age, repeated imprisonment, detention in higher security, disciplinary infractions, antisocial, narcissistic, histrionic, and schizoid personality disorders, and substance misuse, but not neurotic disorders or schizophrenia. The study concluded that psychopathy and psychopathic traits are prevalent among male prisoners in England and Wales but lower than in most previous studies using selected samples. However, most correlates with psychopathic traits were similar to other studies. Psychopathy identifies the extreme of a spectrum of social and behavioral problems among prisoners.     

Soziales Mietrecht in England und Wales

Der vorliegende Beitrag setzt die Reihe "Soziales Mietrecht in Europa" fort; die Beitr?ge werden im Rahmen eines von Prof. Dr. Paul Oberhammer (Zürich) und Univ.-Prof. Dr. Andreas Kletečka (Salzburg) geleiteten und vom Jubil?umsfonds der Oesterreichischen Nationalbank gef?rderten Projekts (Projektnummer 11997) erstellt und sollen rechtsvergleichende Impulse für die ?sterreichische Diskussion bieten.     

Deaths in custody. Atlanta City Jail and Fulton County Jail, 1974-1985

A total of 53 in-custody deaths that occurred in Atlanta-Fulton County, Georgia, between 1974 and 1985 are reviewed. Custody deaths showed characteristics similar to those described in other geographical areas. The majority of deaths were due to natural causes, about one-fourth were suicides, and homicides were rare. For jails that housed a daily population of about 1,000 prisoners, an average of 4.4 deaths were observed annually. Men predominated, and racial makeup paralleled the general prison population. Seizures, alcohol-related illness, and cardiovascular disease caused over half of the natural deaths. All suicides were accomplished by hanging. Over two-thirds of the incidents that led to death occurred in the prisoner's cell, and about one-half of the victims were found dead in their cells. Two-thirds of those who died in custody had been arrested for crimes in which persons were not harmed, while nearly two-thirds of those committing suicide had been arrested for crimes against persons. Deaths in custody are expected events, and familiarity with the circumstances under which they occur should be helpful in enabling prison managers to establish policies and procedures to minimize their occurrence.     

Reconceptualising the Custody Threshold in England and Wales

The custody threshold provision in England and Wales was intended to operate as a limit on the use of custodial sentences, preserving what is the system’s most severe sanction for the most serious offences. However over the past few decades it has become apparent that the custody threshold is failing. Academics have discussed the reasons for this failure, which has seen the prison population double in space of a quarter of a century. This piece explores the custody threshold in the context of the use of custody in other Western European jurisdictions. It examines the courts’ response to the provision and various judicial attempts to amplify Parliament’s language. The authors then consider the academic critiques of the custody threshold provision, analysing the extent to which said criticism can be seen as a solution to the problem, before offering a new critique of their own. Finally, in a move towards more a more principled approach to the custody threshold, the piece offers a solution which would, it is argued, make the provision more effective and more theoretically sound.     

论英国警察讯问较的发展

英国警察最初与普通公民一样,基本上不具有对犯罪嫌疑人的讯问权。司法判例以及20世纪前期发展的法官规则认可了事实上存在的警察讯问权并确立了基本的适用规则。由普通法调整的状况持续到20世纪80年代,制定法在规范警察讯问程序的同时也在一定程度上对公民的沉默权予以限制。警察讯问权总体上不断扩张,在这个过程中,普通法和制定法都努力保持警察侦查权与公民权利之间的平衡。