The analysis of substituted cathinones. Part 3. Synthesis and characterisation of 2,3-methylenedioxy substituted cathinones

The first synthesis of the 2,3-isomers of MDPV, butylone and methylone is reported. The isomers were characterised by (1)H and (13)C NMR spectroscopy and compared to the corresponding 3,4-isomers. A GC method is described which separates the 3,4- and the 2,3-isomers from each other. IR spectra of the 2,3-isomers are also compared with the corresponding 3,4-isomers. Two seized drug samples were analysed by GCMS and the samples were found to contain the 3,4-isomers.     

Perceptions of gangs among prosecutors in an emerging gang city

Gangs were a target of widespread political and social attention during the 1990s, and despite a short-lived lull in policy focus, gangs are recently receiving increased attention from policymakers. In spite of political concern about gangs, very little research had examined perceptions of gangs. By conducting face-to-face interviews with thirty of thirty-five county prosecutors, this study was among the first to examine prosecutors' perspectives of gangs in Gainesville, Florida, an area that could be considered an “emerging” gang city. Themes from the interviews were extracted and included prosecutorial perceptions of the: (1) definition and prevalence of gangs in Gainesville, Florida; (2) personal and social characteristics of gang members; (3) reasons people join gangs; and (4) best approaches to stop or eliminate gangs. The ways in which prosecutors' perspectives mirror prior research on gangs is highlighted.     

The Exclusion of (Failed) Asylum Seekers from Housing and Home: Towards an Oppositional Discourse

‘Housing’– the practical provision of a roof over one's head – is experienced by users as ‘home’– broadly described as housing plus the experiential elements of dwelling. Conversely, being without housing, commonly described as ‘homelessness’, is experienced not only as an absence of shelter but in the philosophical sense of ‘ontological homelessness’ and alienation from the conditions for well‐being. For asylum seekers, these experiences are deliberately and explicitly excluded from official law and policy discourses. This article demonstrates how law and policy is propelled by an ‘official discourse’ based on the denial of housing and the avoidance of ‘home’ attachments, which effectively keeps the asylum seeker in a state of ontological homelessness and alienation. We reflect on this exclusion and consider how a new ‘oppositional discourse’ of housing and home – taking these considerations into account – might impact on the balancing exercise inherent to laws and policies concerning asylum seekers.     

Assessing the Direct and Indirect Effects of Legitimacy on Public Empowerment of Police: A Study of Public Support for Police Militarization in America

The process‐based model dominates contemporary American research on police‐community relations and perceptions of police. A sizable literature has examined the linkages between procedural justice, legitimacy, compliance with the law, and cooperation with police. Less examined is the relationship between legitimacy and public empowerment of police. This study examines this relationship, focusing on police militarization. We first examine the direct effect of legitimacy on public willingness to allow police to become more militarized. Drawing from cognitive psychology and rational choice theories, we then consider indirect paths between legitimacy and empowerment, concentrating on two anticipated consequences of militarization—an increase in police effectiveness and possible harm to civil liberties. Using a national sample of over 700 American adults, and structural equation modeling, results indicate legitimacy has both direct and indirect effects on police empowerment, in part by shaping assessments of the possible consequences of empowerment. Implications for theory and policy are discussed.     

"Holding the child down" for treatment in paediatric haematology: the ethical,legal and practice implications

Very little has been written about involuntary treatment for adult patients and even less about such treatment for paediatric patients. Ethical dilemmas for nurses in such situations have not been clearly articulated and there are no clear guidelines available in this area. The following findings from a qualitative, longitudinal study on the psycho-social aspects of treatment for childhood leukaemia and related diseases are offered as preliminary work on this important professional issue. The feelings of parents when confronted with the necessity of holding their child down so that they may receive probably curative treatments for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia are described and some of the ethical and legal issues confronting nurses who provide these treatments are explored.