The phenomenology and course of depressive syndromes in pre-trial detention

This study focuses on the prevalence, the phenomenology and the course of depressive syndromes in pre-trial confinement. In the course of the first examination, socio-biographic data and information pertaining to subjects' psychiatric and forensic record and their current situation in imprisonment were collected from a random sample of 105 male prisoners in a Berlin pre-trial detention center, with the help of a semi-structured interview. The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II) and the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD), each a self-rating questionnaire, taken together with a clinician rating were successively performed to assess the level of depression. A further examination was conducted approximately three weeks later. The subjects in the follow-up group (n=67) were questioned in a semi-structured follow-up interview regarding their confinement conditions and were requested again to fill in the BDI-II and HAMD questionnaires. The statistical analysis compares the results from administration of the two instruments at two points in time. Individual's symptoms of depression as well as potentially aggravating or protective factors relating to the development of depressive symptoms are taken note of separately. The results of the study reveal the prevalence of mild depressive syndromes in a pre-trial prison population and a tendency to improve within the period of pre-trial confinement.     

"We are also normal humans, you know?" Views and attitudes of juvenile delinquents on antisocial behavior, neurobiology and prevention

This paper presents and discusses the views and attitudes of juvenile delinquents regarding the implications of genomics and neurobiology research findings for the prevention and treatment of antisocial behavior. Scientific developments in these disciplines are considered to be of increasing importance for understanding the causes and the course of antisocial behavior and related mental disorders. High expectations exist with regard to the development of more effective prevention and intervention. Whether this is a desirable development does not only depend on science, but also on the ethical and social implications of potential applications of current and future research findings. As this pilot study points out, juvenile delinquents themselves have rather mixed views on the goals and means of early identification, prevention and treatment. Some welcome the potential support and help that could arise from biologically informed preventive and therapeutic measures. Others, however, reject the very goals of prevention and treatment and express worries concerning the risk of labeling and stigmatization and the possibility of false positives. Furthermore, interventions could aim at equalizing people and taking away socially disapproved capacities they themselves value. Moreover, most juvenile delinquents are hardly convinced that their crime could have been caused by some features of their brain or that a mental disorder has played a role. Instead, they provide social explanations such as living in a deprived neighborhood or having antisocial friends. We suggest that the hopes and expectations as well as the concerns and worries of juvenile delinquents are relevant not only for genomics and neurobiology of antisocial behavior, but also for prevention and intervention measures informed by social scientific and psychological research. The range of patterns of thought of juvenile delinquents is of great heuristic value and may lead to subsequent research that could further enhance our understanding of these patterns.     

Suicide with a manipulated hand grenade

Explosion injuries in civilians are rare. An uncommon case of suicide with a manipulated hand grenade is presented. The findings at the scene and on the body (i.a. massive soot blackening of the skin, singeing, size and number of splinters) gave reason to doubt the use of trinitrotoluene (TNT), the usual explosive charge in hand grenades. Further investigations showed that parts of several hand grenades and black powder from standard fire-crackers commercially available without legal restriction had been used as propelling charge. The victim, who was in a sitting position, held the hand grenade in the left hand and triggered it with the right. He bled to death due to a fracture of the right femur and lacerations of the liver. The chronological course and total circumstances of the case suggested suicide in a strongly intoxicated condition (BAC 2.5 per mille). In the flat, a larger number of unlicensed weapons and weapon parts were found.     

Trotz Art 6 MRK keine mündliche Verhandlung bei Aufhebung einer einstweiligen Verfügung, wenn nur Rechtsfragen und "technische Fragen" zu klären sind

Ist Verfahrensgegenstand eine einstweilige Verfügung nach § 382b EO, liegt eine Entscheidung über "civil rights" vor. Somit ist Art 6 MRK auch im Provisorialverfahren anwendbar. Die Aufhebung einer einstweiligen Verfügung erfordert trotz Art 6 MRK keine mündliche Verhandlung, wenn bei unstrittigem Sachverhalt lediglich Rechtsfragen oder in hohem Ma? technische Fragen zu kl?ren sind. Die blo?e ?nderung der Beweislage bildet keinen Grund für die Aufhebung einer einstweiligen Verfügung. Die analoge Anwendung der Vorschriften der ZPO über die Wiederaufnahmsklage ist im Provisorialverfahren nicht vorgesehen.     

Swedish legal scholarship concerning protection of vulnerable groups: Therapeutic and proactive dimensions

This paper presents a brief overview of the legal theoretical problems that arise in connection with the societal ambition of protecting vulnerable groups. One of the central difficulties in legislation with proactive and therapeutic ambitions arises from the link between law and philosophy of science, i.e., the relationship between facts and norms. It is shown that Therapeutic Jurisprudence differs in several aspects from Swedish legal scholarship that follows Scandinavian Legal Realism. It is also demonstrated that Therapeutic Jurisprudence has several similarities with the so-called Proactive Approach. This paper suggests that Therapeutic Jurisprudence may serve as a useful legal theoretical perspective in Swedish legal scholarship, especially when studying complex and vague regulations with a future focus. Two examples from Swedish legislation are examined: (a) Laws regulating compulsory care of abused or neglected children, and (b) laws related to the mentally ill. This paper illustrates the complexity in these acts, and poses the question of whether the regulations serve their purpose of providing adequate care for and protection of those in need.     

Explaining health care system change: problem pressure and the emergence of "hybrid" health care systems

In this article, we will further the explanation of the state's changing role in health care systems belonging to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). We build on our analysis of twenty-three OECD countries, which reveals broad trends regarding governments' role in financing, service provision, and regulation. In particular, we identified increasing similarities between the three system types we delineate as National Health Service (NHS), social health insurance, and private health insurance systems. We argue that the specific health care system type is an essential contributor to these changes. We highlight that health care systems tend to feature specific, type-related deficiencies, which cannot be solved by routine mechanisms. As a consequence, non-system-specific elements and innovative policies are implemented, which leads to the emergence of "hybrid" systems and indicates a trend toward convergence, or increasing similarities. We elaborate this hypothesis in two steps. First, we describe system-specific deficits of each health care system type and provide an overview of major adaptive responses to these deficits. The adaptive responses can be considered as non-system-specific interventions that broaden the portfolio of regulatory policies. Second, we examine diagnosis-related groups (DRGs) as a common approach for financing hospitals efficiently, which are nevertheless shaped by type-specific deficiencies and reform requirements. In the United States' private insurance system, DRGs are mainly used as a means of hierarchical cost control, while their implementation in the English NHS system is to increase productivity of hospital services. In the German social health insurance system, DRGs support competition as a means to control self-regulated providers. Thus, DRGs contribute to the hybridization of health care systems because they tend to strengthen coordination mechanisms that were less developed in the existing health care systems.     

Regional parliaments questioning EU affairs

ABSTRACT

Since the Treaty of Lisbon, the desire of parliaments to adapt to their new powers has led to a new wave of Europeanisation. However, the early warning system (EWS) and the political dialogue with the Commission constitute only a small part of parliamentary scrutiny for regional parliaments, which still largely rely on traditional tools such as mandates, debates and questions. Therefore, this paper studies a traditional mechanism of scrutiny, parliamentary questions, in order to understand how they can be used in an EU context. The study shows that Europeanisation is progressing slowly. Interestingly, the vast majority of MPs who ask EU-related questions are not members of the European Affairs Committee. In addition, questions focus primarily on the implementation stage rather than the policy-making stage. Finally, the content of parliamentary questions shows that regional parliaments have a distinctive territorial approach to EU affairs.     

Conclusion: regional parliaments – a distinct role in the EU?

ABSTRACT

Regional parliaments can shape EU policy-making via a range of domestic and European channels. In the context of a renewed interest in the subnational level, this article aims to address three core questions: have regional parliaments really been empowered by the early warning system provisions? Which factors explain differences in strength and mobilisation? Finally, what kind of a role do regional parliaments play in EU policy-making today, now that they have had several years to react to the trend towards multilevel parliamentarism? The authors argue that regional parliaments do indeed have the potential to contribute a distinct perspective to EU policy-making, even if their current level of activity is still low. Their distinctive territorial focus sets them apart from national parliaments. Their level of activity still varies greatly between parliaments depending on a number of factors.     

Punishment justifications in rape cases: a community study

Norway is one of the countries with the most progressive criminal justice systems in the Western world. Traditionally, the Norwegian criminal justice system has been mainly based on treatment and deterrence perspectives. While it is believed that criminal justice practices should be in accordance with public attitudes, few studies in Scandinavia have investigated public attitudes towards criminal justice sanctions in a methodologically sound manner. The current study is the first to investigate the attitudes of the Norwegian public towards punishment of rapists. In a Norwegian community sample (N = 475) from 2005, participants found the typical sentencing severity of a convicted rapist too lenient. The participants did report that as a global sentencing orientation, they preferred incapacitation. When presented with a specific rape case, their sentencing judgements were oriented towards both incapacitation and retribution, but their global orientation were not related to their specific judgements. Aggravating circumstances (e.g. violence was used) were found to influence the participants’ judgements more than when no aggravating circumstances were present (e.g. no violence was used). Few gender or educational differences were found, which indicates that these attitudes towards punishment of rapists are quite consistent across demographical groups.