Judicial intervention of the DNA test (comment on decisions of the Second Chamber of the Supreme Court No. 501/2005, of April 19, 2005, and No. 1311/2005, of October 14, 2005)]

The controversy has been arisen by the Spanish Supreme Court in two recent judgments, as they clearly show the lack of a unique criterion in the Spanish jurisprudence when genetic data have to be analysed in the course of a criminal process, in order to identify a person. The DNA proof cannot be practised without judicial intervention under Spanish law.     

论夫妻一方婚前借款购置不动产的利益归属——对“《婚姻法》司法解释(三)征求意见稿”第11条的商榷

近年以来,离婚时夫妻一方婚前借款购置的不动产之归属争议越来越多,法学研究中对此类问题的认识分歧较大,各地人民法院对此类争议的裁判结果也不一致。根据"《婚姻法》司法解释(三)征求意见稿"第11条的规定,应考虑离婚时不动产的市场价格及共同清偿借款等因素,要求"不动产权利人对另一方进行合理补偿",具有相当大的合理性。但该规定可能存在重财产利益"清算"而轻人身关系特殊性的嫌疑,它可能因为对女性的弱势地位重视不足而不利于妇女。夫妻既是两个各自独立的利益主体,又是彼此紧密结合的共同生活伴侣。区分婚姻当事人双方的财产利益,不应当脱离婚姻的特殊性。处理这类不动产归属争议的司法裁判规则,宜根据不动产用途、财产来源、当事人对财产的贡献等因素,予以公平合理对待。     

Setting the Record Straight: Comment on Gurley,Piechowski, Sheehan,and Gray (2014) on the Admissibility of the Rorschach Performance Assessment System (R-PAS) in Court

Gurley et al. (Psychological Injury and Law 7:9–17, 2014) express reservations about the admissibility of testimony based on the Rorschach Performance Assessment System (R-PAS) in court. They question whether there is sufficient evidentiary foundation in the underlying psychometrics and adequate general acceptance among psychologists for R-PAS-based testimony to meet either the Daubert or Frye criteria for admissibility and also raise doubts about how well it meets the criteria for the use of forensic tests proposed by Heilbrun (Law and Human Behavior 16:257–272, 1992). This invited comment addresses their concerns about the admissibility of R-PAS-based testimony and corrects some erroneous statements about the psychometrics of R-PAS and the pertinent empirical literature. Gurley et al. characterize R-PAS as being in competition with the established Comprehensive System (CS; Exner 2003), though we clarify that it is actually an evolutionary development from the CS and designed to be a replacement for it. We also point out how their conclusion that R-PAS-based forensic testimony may be hazardous or premature is based on an insufficient familiarity with the R-PAS scientific and professional literature, a misinterpretation of the Frye and Daubert evidentiary standards, and a mischaracterization of several of Heilbrun’s (Law and Human Behavior 16:257–272, 1992) criteria for the use of tests in forensic testimony.     

民国晚期工商团体的法律规制与行政控制--以津冀为中心的考察

以"业必归会"为原则,民国晚期已经形成工业会和工业同业公会、商会和商业同业公会、矿业会分治的较为完善的工商团体法律体系.各种具体法律制度也臻于完善,工商团体的任务、宗旨、性质、会员、组织机构、会议、会计及清算等均有明确法律规定.在行政控制上,政府主要通过指导和监督来实现.其主要手段是检核报备材料、敦促工商团体成立、回复提案以及催缴欠费.在行政控制中,工商团体并非完全处于被动状态,他们往往借助于政府权力实现其目的,二者之间实际上形成了一种互动.正是这种互动和完善法律体系的存在,为工商团体发挥作用提供必要的环境.     

中国市民社会研究的新进展——《国家与市民社会》(增订版)评介

《国家与市民社会》(增订版)为我们提供了认识和理解市民社会理论的清晰脉络:不但提供了市民社会作为一种需要不断反思的理论模型的面向,同时也提供了市民社会作为一种需要建构的社会实体的面向,或者说,不管是在理论方面还是在经验方面,该书都向读者提供了有关市民社会的令人印象深刻的视野范围,从而为读者较为完整地把握这一理论指明了方向。     

Problems in expert deception detection and the risk of false confessions: no proof to the contrary in Levine et al. (2014)

Lie-detection research has shown that observers who rely on nonverbal cues or on verbal cues correctly classify on average 54% of truth tellers and liars. In addition, over the years, countless numbers of innocent people have made false confessions and, in analysing the problem, researchers have implicated both a suspect's vulnerability and the persuasive influence of certain police interrogation tactics. Levine et al. (2014) aim to contribute to these vast bodies of literature by reporting two studies purportedly showing that expert interviewers – when they are permitted to question interviewees – can achieve almost perfect accuracy without eliciting false confessions. We argue that theoretical and methodological aspects of these studies undermine the reliability and validity of the data reported, that as a result the studies do not contribute to the scientific literatures on lie detection and false confessions in any meaningful way, and that the results are dangerously misleading.     

Determination of Malathion levels and its effect on the development of Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius) in South China

The present study determines the concentration of Malathion in rabbit tissues and Dipteral larvae feeding on those tissues. Malathion was found in all muscle and liver samples of the test rabbit, as well as larvae fed on it. Samples from the control rabbit and pupae from all colonies were negative for Malathion. Correlations were found between administered dosage, tissue concentrations and younger or prepuparial larvae. Effects of Malathion on the development rate of Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius) were also reported. C. megacephala is the most common fly species found on corpses in South China during the early stages of decomposition. Significant differences in larval growth rate were both observed among the colonies fed on muscle and liver. The presence of Malathion in both muscle and liver appears to retard the normal growth rate of C. megacephala in larval stage. Larvae from all colonies fed on tissues from rabbits treated with Malathion were smaller and attained maximum length later than those from the control colony. Duration of the larval and pupal stages was both significantly prolonged for larvae on tissues from rabbit receiving Malathion than those from the control colony. The difference of the duration of the larval and pupal stages together from the muscle colonies would alter the postmortem interval estimation by up to 36 h. As for liver colonies, it would alter the postmortem interval estimation by up to 28 h. A significantly different duration of the larval and pupal stages from the muscle colonies would alter a postmortem estimate by up to 28 h relative to the liver colonies.     

A Fatality Following Ingestion of the Designer Drug Meta‐Chlorophenylpiperazine (mCPP) in an Asthmatic—HPLC‐MS/MS Detection in Biofluids and Hair

A 20‐year‐old man, a cocaine addict and regular ecstasy user, with a medical history of allergic asthma died after ingesting half a tablet earlier the same day. The white tablet, stamped with a “smiling sun” logo looked very much like an ecstasy tablet and was sold as such. He experienced a severe asthma attack just after ingesting the half tablet and it evolved over the next few hours into fatal cardiorespiratory arrest. Biological samples, taken after embalming, were analyzed by high‐performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC‐MS/MS). Analysis revealed meta‐chlorophenylpiperazine (mCPP) in concentrations of 45.8 mg in a similar tablet obtained later from the drug dealer, 5.1 ng/mL in the bile, 0.3 ng/g in the liver, 15.0 ng/mL in the urine, and its absence in a hair sample (<0.02 ng/mg), which indicated he was not a regular user (whereas strong concentrations of MDMA and cocaine were found in the hair). Interrogated by the police after his arrest, the dealer said that he had sold the victim and for the very first time two tablets with the same “smiling sun” logo. The tablet used for analysis was from the same brand as the one ingested by the victim. The autopsy excluded other causes of death, while the histological analyses showed a large number of polynuclear eosinophils in the bronchial walls, confirming the asthmatic pathology. None of the other organs examined (larynx, liver, heart, adrenal glands, and kidneys) showed any distinctive signs, and in particular no inflammatory infiltrate. The death was the result of an asthma attack in an asthmatic person, violently decompensated following ingestion of approximately 20 mg of mCPP.     

法律翻译在中国近代的第一次完整实践——以1864年《万国公法》的翻译为中心

无论在中国,还是世界上其他国家,法律移植都是与法律翻译联系在一起的。后者是前者的前提,前者是后者的结果———当一个国家希望学习、借鉴、吸收其他国家的法律时,由于是不同的语言,就必须将他国的法律先翻译为本国的语言,然后才有可能作出判断、作出评价、作出采纳与否的选择。本文以1864年翻译出版的《万国公法》为具体个案,着重解读中国近代第一次完整的法律翻译实践过程及这一实践的成果与不足,分析其对中国近现代法律翻译与移植乃至本土化运动的影响,并揭示其如何促进了中国近代翻译学、语言学的进步。     

First Report of Blaesoxipha plinthopyga (Diptera: Sarcophagidae) from a Human Corpse in the U.S.A. and a New State Geographic Record Based on Specimen Genotype

Carrion flies in the taxonomic family Sarcophagidae are often recovered from a human corpse. However, because such specimens are difficult to identify, the forensic literature on this taxon is quite limited compared with that of the commonly employed Calliphoridae. Faced with a sarcophagid larva that could not be identified microscopically from a death investigation in the state of Idaho, we generated cytochrome oxidase one DNA sequence data from the specimen. Comparison to a reference data set of forensically significant sarcophagids from Canada and the U.S.A. confirmed that this was the first discovery of Blaesoxipha plinthopyga in a human corpse in the U.S.A. and the first record of this species in Idaho. Because B. plinthopyga occurs from the Northern U.S.A. to the Neotropics, it is potentially useful for estimating time since death at many locations.     

Guilt and Innocence in the Criminal Justice System: A Comment on R (Mullen) v Secretary of State for the Home Department

The House of Lords upheld the Secretary of State's right to deny compensation under section 133 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 and the ex gratia scheme to Mullen, whose conviction for conspiracy to cause explosions had been quashed by the Court of Appeal solely by reference to actions by the authorities (securing his illegal deportation to the UK) that constituted an abuse of process, without impugning the fairness of his trial or the accuracy of the verdict The note discusses the different judgments in the House of Lords and the Court of Appeal in terms of their implications for the respective roles of legal and political systems in determining guilt and innocence. In particular, the note explores the nature of the legal principle of the presumption of innocence as it operates in the context of successful appeals.     

The Principle of Proportionality: Summary and Consensus in the 6th International Conference on Human Rights Protection Under Pandemic Prevention and Control,Beijing (China) 2020

Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic and China’s regularized pandemic prevention and control, leading legal scholars from China, North America, and Eurasia participated in The 6th International Conference on Human Rights Protection under Pandemic Prevention and Control. Participants engaged in fruitful discussions on the normative necessity and practical relevance of the principle of proportionality in justifying their current governments’ anti-pandemic measures. Focusing on pandemic-related human rights conditions and rule of law challenges in global contexts, this article summarizes the participating scholars’ speeches through the integrated lens of human rights and the jurisprudence of health law in the COVID-19 containment phase. Speeches can be divided into six topical dimensions, involving normative utility, governance logic, reasonable limits, constitutional criteria, viable approaches, and post-pandemic challenges with respect to the principle of proportionality. To provide a more policy-relevant and theoretically sound framework for a community of common health for mankind, this article succinctly concludes with a series of overlapping consensus on the application of the principle of proportionality in the fight against the pandemic. This consensus, tentatively named the “Renmin Human Rights Consensus,” builds on five interrelated elements and generates five human rights assertions and a series of specific principles of health law.