Crimes Against Minds: On Mental Manipulations, Harms and a Human Right to Mental Self-Determination

The neurosciences not only challenge assumptions about the mind’s place in the natural world but also urge us to reconsider its role in the normative world. Based on mind-brain dualism, the law affords only one-sided protection: it systematically protects bodies and brains, but only fragmentarily minds and mental states. The fundamental question, in what ways people may legitimately change mental states of others, is largely unexplored in legal thinking. With novel technologies to both intervene into minds and detect mental activity, the law should, we suggest, introduce stand alone protection for the inner sphere of persons. We shall address some metaphysical questions concerning physical and mental harm and demonstrate gaps in current doctrines, especially in regard to manipulative interferences with decision-making processes. We then outline some reasons for the law to recognize a human right to mental liberty and propose elements of a novel criminal offence proscribing severe interventions into other minds.     

CAI: Merkel’s choice

Asia Europe Journal -     

Elasticity in evaluations of criminal evidence: Exploring the role of cognitive dissonance

Purpose. Previous experiments have demonstrated asymmetrical scepticism in investigators' judgments of criminal evidence – evidence inconsistent (vs. consistent) with the dominant hypothesis about a case is judged as less reliable. In addition, some types of evidence (e.g., witness testimony) are more susceptible to asymmetrical scepticism than others (e.g., DNA evidence), indicating varying degrees of elasticity. This article proposes that inconsistent evidence arouses cognitive dissonance, and that the dissonance can be reduced through either asymmetrical scepticism (for high‐elasticity evidence) or belief change (for low‐elasticity evidence). The hypotheses are tested in two experiments. Methods. In both experiments, law students made a preliminary judgment about the guilt of a suspect in a homicide case, and subsequently received a piece of DNA or witness evidence which was either consistent or inconsistent with the preliminary judgment. The extent to which participants changed their guilt judgments, judged the additional evidence as reliable, and felt dissonance served as the main dependent variables. Results. Inconsistent (vs. consistent) evidence did arouse stronger dissonance, but only for witness (and not DNA) evidence. Experienced dissonance (Experiment 1) and dissonance reduction (Experiment 2) accounted for the effect of the evidence on changes in guilt judgments, but not for the effect on reliability judgments. The greatest dissonance reduction was observed among participants who received inconsistent witness evidence but did not change their guilt judgments accordingly. Conclusions. It appears that dissonance plays a significant, although complex, role in investigative judgments of guilt and reliability. Alternative dissonance‐reducing mechanisms that can account for the findings and practical implications are discussed.     

Eruption times of permanent teeth in male children and adolescents of Tehran (Iran)

The eruption times of permanent teeth and the sequence of tooth eruption were investigated in 952 individuals aged 4 to 24 years. Wisdom teeth were excluded from the evaluation. All individuals were inhabitants of Tehran, Iran. The results were compared to results of international studies on tooth eruption of the 20th century and studies published in recent years. The teeth emerged symmetrically in each jaw. However, teeth erupted earlier in the mandible than in the maxilla, excluding the earlier eruption of maxillary premolars. The sequence of emerging teeth in the maxilla is: first molar, central incisor, lateral incisor, first premolar, second premolar, canine, and second molar. The sequence of tooth eruption of the mandible differs from the maxillary sequence: first molar, central incisor, lateral incisor, canine, first premolar, second premolar, second molar. The sequence of all teeth is: lower first molar, lower central incisor, upper first molar, upper central incisor, lower lateral incisor, upper lateral incisor, upper first premolar, lower canine, lower first premolar, upper second premolar, upper canine, lower second premolar, lower second molar, and upper second molar. The results support current theories that the differences in tooth eruption times between humans of different ethnic origin are small.     

Keine Nichtigkeitssanktion bei Verstoß gegen die Verpflichtung zur Erstellung eines schriftlichen Heil- und Kostenplans gem § 18 Abs 3 ZÄG durch Zahnarzt

Aus dem Z?G folgt eindeutig, dass ein Versto? gegen die Verpflichtung zur Erstellung eines schriftlichen Heil- und Kostenplans mit einer Verwaltungsstrafe bedroht ist. Eine Nichtigkeitssanktion enth?lt das Gesetz dagegen nicht. Nun ist ein gegen ein gesetzliches Verbot versto?ender Vertrag nach § 879 Abs 1 ABGB nichtig, wenn diese Rechtsfolge entweder ausdrücklich angeordnet oder vom Verbotszweck erfordert wird. Ganz ungeachtet der Frage, ob eine positive Verhaltensvorschrift wie die des § 18 Abs 3 Z?G überhaupt als "Verbot" iSd Gesetzes verstanden werden kann, sind Rechtsgesch?fte im Allgemeinen gültig, wenn sich das Verbot nur an einen der beiden Vertragspartner richtet. Nach der Absicht des Gesetzgebers sollte § 18 Abs 3 Z?G die allgemeinen Regelungen des KSchG, insb betreffend Kostenvoranschl?ge, im Hinblick auf die berufsspezifischen Erfordernisse spezifizieren.     

Das Aufhebungs- und Rehabilitationsgesetz 2009

Das AufhG 2009 löst das AnerkG 2005 ab, über das in dieser Zeitschrift ebenso eingehend berichtet wurde wie über die vorangegangene Entwicklung. Nach einem kurzen Überblick über diese Vorgeschichte und die Gründe zur erneuten Gesetzgebung wird das politische Zustandekommen des neuen Gesetzes behandelt und dieses im Einzelnen dargestellt. Wenn auch die lang umstrittene Rehabilitierung der Wehrmachtsdeserteure vollkommen erreicht wurde, zeigen sich doch im Übrigen einige Mängel in der juristischen und rechtspolitischen Aufarbeitung der Materie, denen das Hauptaugenmerk gilt.