Rule of law versus political interest

The limits of the rule of law are here tested by a case study. Two Arab prisoners were killed by Israeli security forces, a political cover-up was initiated and the tacit assent of the Supreme Court towards executive actions was achieved. The paper examines some theoretical positions in order to understand the relationship between the ideology of the Rule of Law and political interests — Althusser, Luhmann and Habermas. The conclusion is that structural and/or neo-structural functional theory is insufficient to explain the situation. The paper suggests alternative variables to account for the legal system's subservience to the dictates of political interests.     

Postmortem oxycodone and hydrocodone blood concentrations

There is limited data on postmortem oxycodone concentrations, consisting of three published reports with a total of 11 cases, many of which were polypharmacy cases. This report presents the results of a review of autopsy and coroner's reports from 10 counties for the years 2000 and 2001 to locate cases with oxycodone or hydrocodone exposure as a leading cause of death. Eighty-eight cases were located. Twenty-four deaths were attributed to oxycodone alone. Mean and median postmortem oxycodone blood concentrations were 1.23 mg/L and 0.43 mg/L, respectively. The range was 0.12 to 8.0 mg/L, with 13 cases (54%) < or = 0.5 mg/L. Seventeen deaths were attributed to hydrocodone alone. Mean and median postmortem hydrocodone blood concentrations were 0.53 mg/L and 0.40 mg/L, respectively. The range was 0.12 to 1.6 mg/L, with 11 cases (65%) < or = 0.5 mg/L. There were seven cases where the cause of death was attributed to the effects of a combination of hydrocodone and oxycodone. Mean oxycodone and hydrocodone blood concentrations were 0.34 mg/L and 0.14 mg/L, respectively. Forty cases involved polysubstance overdoses with significant involvement of other drugs and ethanol. Mean oxycodone and hydrocodone blood concentrations were 0.18 mg/L and 0.29 mg/L, respectively. The list of other substances involved was extensive but included ethanol, amitriptyline, methadone, codeine, propoxyphene, and acetaminophen. The findings of this study report oxycodone values associated with a fatality at blood concentrations lower than previously reported. This may represent enhanced information because of the larger sample group. Hydrocodone values associated with a fatality were similar to previously published values.     

Eyewitness Memory,Suggestibility, and Repeated Recall Sessions in Children with Mild and Moderate Intellectual Disabilities

This study of eyewitness memory questioned children with mild and moderate intellectual disabilities (ID) about a live staged event 1 day later and, again, 2 weeks later. Children with mild ID performed as well as typically-developing children of the same age in response to free recall instructions, and they were just as able as same age peers to resist misleading questions. However, they performed more poorly on general questions, probing for further information after free recall. The children with mild ID also changed their responses to specific questions more often in the repeated interview. The group of children with moderate ID showed markedly lower performance than peers of the same age on nearly every type of eyewitness memory question. Comparisons of the children with ID to mental age-matched peers indicated that performance was similar, although children with ID gave more information in response to free recall instructions and changed their answers in the repeated interview more often. Standardized measures of verbal memory (TOMAL) and suggestibility (Gudjonsson Suggestibility Scale) were modest to moderate predictors of eyewitness memory performance.     

Societal views of justice for adolescents accused of murder

Examines citizens' views about when juveniles accused of homicide should be tried and punished as adults. Responses from two randomly selected samples of adult Georgia residents suggest that these views are strongly influenced by whether adolescent defendants have been victims of abuse. Laypersons prefer juvenile court for juveniles who kill abusive parents (76% for first time offenders. 77% for those with one prior adjudication). Respondents are split concerning how to punish abused juveniles who have two prior adjudications (49% recommend juvenile court) and abused juveniles with one prior offense who kill a neighbor (48% recommend juvenile court). Most respondents, however, prefer adult court for repeat offenders who kill and have no history of child abuse. These findings suggest that legislative automatic transfers are overly simplistic compared to the contextual sensitivity of community sentiment. Policymakers may have serious misconceptions of societal views of fairness in this area.     

SCATTERED THOUGHTS ON A DEMOCRATIC DILEMMA

Americans, particularly American intellectuals, have a deeply held tradition that ineffectual, limited government is in the public interest. The author questions this premise and suggests that when government is ineffectual, democracy itself suffers.     

An analysis of toxic deaths, 1982 to 1985, Pima County, Arizona

Toxic deaths in Pima County, Arizona, were studied over a four-year period. The deaths were analyzed according to cause and manner of death, toxic substance, and demographic data. The age group 40 to 49 years had the highest rate of suicide from toxic substances. The accident death rate was highest for ages 20 to 29 years. Carbon monoxide was most often found to be the cause of deaths in this study. The most prevalent drugs were narcotics followed by antidepressants, cocaine, and barbiturates. Comparisons are made with similar studies.