Drunk and dangerous: a randomised controlled trial of alcohol brief intervention for violent offenders

To assess the effectiveness of an alcohol brief intervention administered to violent offenders in a judicial (Magistrates’ court) setting, a randomised controlled trial was conducted. Participants (n = 269) were men aged 16–35 years, who resided within a 30-mile radius of Cardiff, UK, and who had been sentenced for a violent offence committed whilst intoxicated with alcohol. Recruitment occurred on-site. Participants were randomly allocated to receive an alcohol brief intervention (n = 135) or to a control group (n = 134). Objective measures comprised re-offending and injury rates. Self-reported outcome measures comprised Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT); number of drinking days in the past 3 months; total weekly standard units of alcohol; and stage of change with respect to alcohol consumption (as measured by the Readiness to Change Questionnaire). Participants were followed up 3 months (n = 234; 87%) and 12 months (n = 202; 75.1%) after sentence. No significant between-group differences were observed in any of the alcohol measures or in re-offending. Injury was significantly less likely in offenders who had received the intervention (27.4%) than those who had not [39.6%; 95% confidence interval (CI) = −0.23, −0.009]. At 3-month follow-up, significantly more participants in the intervention group (31%; n = 37) than control group (16%; n = 18) demonstrated an increase in their readiness to change drinking behaviour (χ² = 8.56; df = 2; P = 0.014), but this did not persist at 12-month follow-up.

From Poisson to the present: Applying operations research to problems of crime and justice

In the 1830s Siméon-Denis Poisson developed the distribution that bears his name, basing it on the binomial distribution. He used it to show how the inherent variance in jury decisions affected the inferences that could be made about the probability of conviction in French courts. In recent years there have been a number of examples where researchers have either ignored or forgotten this inherent variance, and how operations research, in particular mathematical modeling, can be used to incorporate this variance in analyses. These are described in this paper, as well as other contributions made by operations research to the study of crime and criminal justice.     

Procedural justice in mental health court: an investigation of the relation of perception of procedural justice to non-adherence and termination

Mental health courts (MHCs) operate on the principles of procedural justice (PJ). PJ highlights the importance of process over outcomes in encounters with authority. Subjective perceptions of having voice, being heard by decision-makers, and being treated with respect and concern by figures of authority are influential in assessment of fairness and in cooperation with decisions, regardless of favorability of the outcome. In this paper, we investigate MHC participant perception of PJ in interactions with MHC staff and the association between perceptions and recidivism (i.e. time in jail, new arrests, and probation violations), treatment adherence, and MHC termination. Participants from two MHC programs (n?=?80) took part in this study. Results suggest that perception of PJ during interactions with the entire MHC team is significantly associated with program termination, but not with participant behaviors during MHC. Implications for MHC practitioners and researchers are discussed.     

Examining the Behavior of a System: An Outcome Evaluation of a Coordinated Community Response to Domestic Violence

One goal of a coordinated community response (CCR) to domestic violence is to create an infrastructure that will facilitate systems-level, and ultimately societal-level change. This study evaluated whether a CCR implemented in two counties in Georgia would be effective at increasing criminal justice system sanctions for male domestic violence offenders (i.e., arrests, prosecutions, convictions, sentencing, and referrals to batterer intervention programs). Time series analyses revealed that, in both counties, there was a significant increase in arrests of male offenders; however, law enforcement agencies also arrested more women following the intervention. More men were sentenced to probation and to attend a batterer’s intervention program post-intervention in one county; in the second county, there was no change in these outcomes. Results highlight the importance of examining how a CCR may affect the behavior of criminal justice systems, especially in terms of the unintended consequences for women.     

Referrals to a mental health criminal justice Liaison and diversion team in the North East of England

There is growing interest in the health correlates of people detained in police custody, and a number of innovations have been introduced to try to meet the complex needs of detainees. The implementation of Criminal Justice Liaison and Diversion (CJL&D) Services commissioned by the Department of Health in England is a substantial part of this investment. In this paper, we describe data from 858 detainees who were referred to the CJL&D service of a busy metropolitan police station in the North East of England. The detainees referred to the service had complex mental health needs, substance misuse and a range of vulnerabilities requiring specific intervention. The effective operation of these teams and how they interface with health and criminal justice systems also depend upon a number of systematic issues that emanate both from within the teams, and from external policy drivers.     

The invisible/visible claims to justice: sexual violence and the university camp(us)

If the relationship between international tribunals and reconciliation remains empirically under‐researched within the transitional justice literature, this is even truer in respect of hybrid and local courts. Seeking to address this gap, the purpose of this article is to explore whether the State Court of Bosnia and Hercegovina (BiH) – and more particularly its War Crimes Chamber (WCC) – can contribute to reconciliation in BiH. Unlike the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY), the State Court is located in the country itself. Hence, in theory at least, it has greater potential to involve local people and thus to facilitate the reconciliation process. In practice, however, the Court faces many of the same problems as the ICTY, including perceptions of bias and the difficulty of satisfying victims. What this ultimately demonstrates is that criminal trials are not a panacea or “magic bullet” and that reconciliation – both in BiH and in post‐conflict societies more generally – requires a comprehensive and holistic approach to transitional justice that does not over‐rely upon the administration of retributive justice. The State Court, therefore, is merely one potential path to reconciliation.     

Back for the future: a client centred analysis of social welfare and family law provision

The landscape of legal advice provision is entering a period of significant change in England and Wales. Whilst there is a great deal of uncertainty about how the future landscape of advice service provision will evolve, there are lessons to be drawn from past delivery models.

This article first looks back at the period following the Access to Justice Act 1999, setting out a range of delivery models initiated following the Act, as well as research and evaluation conducted in the millennium decade. Findings are then presented from a comprehensive qualitative study on how people experience and deal with social welfare and family problems, and on facilitators and barriers to integrated advice provision, including inter-organisational working. This is explored through the lens of a delivery model which emphasised partnership and the pooling of resources and specialisms to meet client needs: the Community Legal Advice Centre model.     

(Re)configuring the criminal justice response to human trafficking: a complex-systems perspective

Abstract

The multidimensional complexities associated with the criminal justice response to human trafficking are well documented. The transient and subversive nature of human trafficking as organised crime and the large number of multidisciplinary role-players involved in coordinating cross jurisdictional efforts to prevent, investigate and prosecute such cases, contribute to this complex undertaking. Complex systems theory suggests that a complex social problem such as human trafficking cannot be approached by using a linear or simplified lens, and requires a holistic perspective on the complex interactions between actors, and emergent behaviour in both the criminal justice system and the human trafficking system that it seeks to combat. This paper explores the characteristics of complexity, and uses illustrations from the lived experiences of actors in South Africa’s efforts to combat human trafficking, in order to demonstrate how complex systems theory could be considered and integrated into the criminal justice response to human trafficking.     

细化缓刑适用条件的若干思考——《刑法修正案（八）》对缓刑适用条件的修改及其展开

《刑法修正案（八）》对缓刑适用条件作了一定程度的细化，但还存在一些问题，包括没有对缓刑的裁量适用条件进行类型化、缓刑的强制适用条件过于绝对化、缓刑的禁止适用条件范围太小、没有规定适用缓刑的程序条件等。因此，刑法应对缓刑适用条件作进一步细化，以类型化的方式补充缓刑的裁量适用条件，完善缓刑的强制适用条件的规定方式，扩大缓刑的禁止适用条件的范围，增设缓刑适用的程序条件。     

刑罚轻缓、人权保障与《刑法修正案(八)》——以相关国际公约为蓝本的分析

对照《公民权利与政治权利公约》分析,《刑法修正案(八)》在死刑改革方面的进步值得肯定,但与公约要求的、逐步限制死刑适用以最终废除死刑的目标仍有距离;参照《北京规则》、《美洲人权公约》等分析,新修正案对未成年人、老年人犯罪适用刑罚增加了从宽处理的规定,实现了对弱者的人权保障,但该修正案在建立未成年人及成年人前科消灭制度等方面仍有不足;比照《东京规则》等国际公约分析,其以社区矫正入刑化为代表的非监禁刑之完善,体现了我国对国际公约相关要求的积极回应。     

The German Berufsgenossenschaften (institutions for statutory accident insurance and prevention): organisation, mandate and activities in the area of mental health

The present article first describes the institution of the German Berufsgenossenschaften (BGs, the institutions for statutory accident insurance and prevention) and their mandate. Besides rehabilitation and compensation, these comprise the prevention of occupational accidents and diseases, and work-related hazards. The main focus within the area of mental health is the prevention work, but rehabilitation and compensation within the German social insurance system in general, and with respect to mental health, will also be explained. Furthermore, the prevention-rehabilitation interface will be illustrated and the cooperation with the health insurance institutions will be described. In the second part, selected results of a survey regarding mental health and stress will be presented.     

Comments on Doug Husak: The Low Cost of Recognizing (and of Ignoring) the Limited Relevance of Intentions to Permissibility

Doug Husak frames a worry that makes sense in the abstract, but in reality, there is not much to worry about. The thesis that intentions are irrelevant to permissibility (IIP) is a straw man. There are reasons to think that the moral significance of intentions is not properly registered in criminal law. But the moral basis for criticism is not nearly as extreme as the IIP, and the fixes are not that hard to make. Lastly, if they are not made, some people may not get the punishments they deserve, and there will be some extra inequities in the criminal law as a result. But these inequities are not so great that change must be made now. The moral categories that are used may be too crude, but they are also familiar and easy to work with, and that counts for something.

Evaluation of the improving access to psychological therapies for offenders programme at HMP Lincoln: a three year prospective cohort study

The mental health needs of prisoners are significant with a high incidence of common mental health problems including anxiety and depression. Extending national initiatives such as the National Health Service Improving Access of Psychological Therapies programme to people in prison offers a valuable opportunity to address these mental health problems and improve continuity of care from prison to the community. This study adopts an observational, prospective cohort design and evaluates an IAPT for offenders service over the first three years of operation within a male Category B prison holding remand/convicted prisoners. The evaluation found large effect sizes for changes in anxiety and depression with clinical recovery being achieved in 55% of depression and 52% of anxiety cases. On average, prisoners were treated in less than five sessions employing a low-intensity cognitive-behavioural approach. The lack of established formal diagnoses and a control group limits the findings.     

A randomized experiment of a prisoner reentry program: updated results from an evaluation of the Minnesota Comprehensive Offender Reentry Plan (MCORP)

Using a randomized experimental design, this study evaluated the effectiveness of the Minnesota Comprehensive Offender Reentry Plan (MCORP), a prisoner reentry pilot project implemented in 2008. In an effort to reduce recidivism, MCORP attempted to increase offender access to community services and programming by producing greater case management collaboration between caseworkers in prison and supervision agents in the community. Results from Cox regression models showed that MCORP significantly reduced four of the five recidivism measures examined, although the size of the reduction in hazard ratios was relatively modest (20–25%). The findings further suggested that MCORP reduced costs. Sensitivity analyses showed, however, that the cost avoidance estimates were not robust across all assumptions that were examined.     

Perpetrators of organised child sexual exploitation (CSE) in the UK: a review of current research

ABSTRACT

Researchers and professionals tend to agree that there continues to be a paucity of evidence on who perpetrates organised child sexual exploitation (CSE). This article provides a review of currently available research and data pertaining to this form of offending. It also considers gaps in existing research and some of the challenges surrounding current data recording. Beginning with a discussion of terminology surrounding organised CSE - which has also been called “group localised grooming”, “internal trafficking” and “contact child sex abuse” – there then follows a request for greater clarity of terminology. Finally, the specific issue of offender characteristics is broached through an examination of available research and evidence relating to the perpetrators of organised CSE.     

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.     

Reply to Mac Giolla and Ly (2019): On the reporting of Bayes factors in deception research

Bayes factors provide a continuous measure of evidence for one hypothesis (e.g., the null, H0) relative to another (e.g., the alternative, H1). Warmelink et al. (2019, Legal Criminol Psychol, 24, 258) reported Bayes factors alongside p‐values to draw inferences about whether the order of expected versus unexpected questions influenced the amount of details interviewees provided during an interview. Mac Giolla & Ly (2019) provided several recommendations to improve the reporting of Bayesian analyses and used Warmelink et al. (2019) as a concrete example. These included (I) not to over‐rely on cut‐offs when interpreting Bayes factors; (II) to rely less on Bayes factors, and switch to ‘nominal support’; and (III) to report the posterior distribution. This paper elaborates on their recommendations and provides two further suggestions for improvement. First, we recommend deception researchers report Robustness Regions to demonstrate the sensitivity of their conclusions to the model of H1 used. Second, we demonstrate a method that deception researchers can use to estimate, a priori, the sample size likely to be required to provide conclusive evidence.     

Regulating (for the benefit of) future persons: a different perspective on the FDA's jurisdiction to regulate human reproductive cloning

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has taken the position that human reproductive cloning falls within its regulatory jurisdiction. This position has been subject to criticism on both procedural and substantive grounds. Some have contended that the FDA has failed to follow administrative law principles in asserting its jurisdiction, while others claim the FDA is ill suited to the task of addressing the ethical and social implications of human cloning. This Article argues, that, notwithstanding these criticisms, the FDA could plausibly assert jurisdiction over human cloning as a form of human gene therapy, an area in which the FDA is already regarded as having primary regulatory authority. Such an assertion would require that the FDA's jurisdiction extend to products affecting future persons, i.e., those not yet born. This Article demonstrates, for the first time, that such jurisdiction was implicit in the enactment of the 1962 Kefauver-Harris Amendments to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and that the FDA has historically relied on such authority in promulgating regulations for drugs and devices.