Terror and Law: German Responses to 9/11

In reaction to the 9/11 terror attacks the German Parliamentenacted a number of statutes under the auspices of the so-calledwar against terror. The repressive new legislation aims at enhancingsurveillance and control by police and intelligence agenciesby introducing, for example, new passports and ID-cards. Inorder to prevent attacks similar to those of 9/11, Parliamenteven established statutory authority to shoot down, using militaryforce, passenger planes being used as a weapon. At the sametime the Federal Public Prosecutor General has prosecuted anumber of persons as alleged supporters of the 9/11 pilots,and several others, as alleged Islamic terrorists. These forcefulreactions of both Parliament and the Public Prosecutor provedpremature and were overturned by Germany's highest courts. Thefight against terrorism has thus been shown to be bound by constitutionallaw and general principles of law; such special measures stillneed, ultimately to adhere to the rule of law.     

The Ins and Outs of the Jains in Tamil Literary Histories

The Jains and their texts play a key role in the literary histories of the Tamil-speaking region. However, in their modern form, dating from 1856 to the present, these histories have been written almost exclusively by non-Jains. Driving their efforts have been agendas such as cultural evolutionism, Dravidian nationalism or Śaiva devotionalism. This essay builds on ideas articulated by the contemporary Tamil theorist K. Civatampi, examining how various models of periodization have frozen the Jains in the ancient past. Further, it will explore how this unfolding historical drama, which gloriously climaxes in Tamil literature, has attributed the Jains, as dramatis personae, merely a role in early Jain texts; their role as communities transmitting these texts has been ignored. In contrast to this typical pattern, this article will also introduce a literary history written in 1941 by the Jain A. Cakravarti Nāyaṉār (1880–1960). It will explore whether or not his voice, which emerged from within the same academic community contributing to the strange absence of Jains in the contemporary awareness of Tamil literary, was successful in finding another way for Jains of being heard, and for non-Jains, of listening.     

Gewöhnung an ein Suchtmittel,Eigensuchtfinanzierung

Eine Begrenzung des der Gew?hnung zugrunde liegenden Abh?ngigkeitsbegriffs iS eines schon medizinischen Krankheitswertes oder einer jedenfalls psychotherapeutischen Behandlungsbedürftigkeit ist weder dem Gesetzeswortlaut zu entnehmen, noch ergibt sich diese Auslegung aus der Systematik des Gesetzes oder dessen historischem Hintergrund bzw der Teleologie des SMG. Nicht nur die privilegierte Form des Suchtgifthandels, sondern auch der nunmehr in die Kompetenz des Einzelrichters fallende Grundtatbestand des § 28a Abs 1 SMG unterliegt im Fall einer Gew?hnung des T?ters den Diversionsbedingungen des § 35 Abs 2 SMG. Angesichts der in § 27 Abs 2 SMG vorgesehenen (mit § 27 Abs 1 SMG aF identen) Strafdrohung im Zusammenhalt mit der nach der SMG-Novelle 2007 wesentlich weitergehenden Diversionsm?glichkeit nach § 35 Abs 1 und Abs 2 SMG ist nach § 48 SMG iVm § 61 StGB die für den Rechtsmittelwerber günstigere Bestimmung des § 27 Abs 2 iVm Abs 1 Z 1 erster und zweiter Fall SMG anzuwenden.     

Betriebsübergang bei Veräußerung eines Miethauses im Hinblick auf das Hausbesorgerdienstverhältnis

Vor dem Hintergrund der bestandrechtlichen Rechtslage und den Besonderheiten des Hausbesorgerdienstverh?ltnisses ist unter dem Aspekt der Erlangung der ma?geblichen "Verfügungsbefugnis" über den Betrieb davon auszugehen, dass diese noch nicht nachgewiesen wurde, wenn weder nachgewiesen ist, dass die Bestandverh?ltnisse übergegangen sind, noch, dass der einzige "Arbeitnehmer" – der Hausbesorger – von der übernahme und den neuen Verfügungsbefugnissen informiert wurde.     

Post-mortem forensic neuroimaging: correlation of MSCT and MRI findings with autopsy results

Multislice-computed tomography (MSCT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are increasingly used for forensic purposes. Based on broad experience in clinical neuroimaging, post-mortem MSCT and MRI were performed in 57 forensic cases with the goal to evaluate the radiological methods concerning their usability for forensic head and brain examination. An experienced clinical radiologist evaluated the imaging data. The results were compared to the autopsy findings that served as the gold standard with regard to common forensic neurotrauma findings such as skull fractures, soft tissue lesions of the scalp, various forms of intracranial hemorrhage or signs of increased brain pressure. The sensitivity of the imaging methods ranged from 100% (e.g., heat-induced alterations, intracranial gas) to zero (e.g., mediobasal impression marks as a sign of increased brain pressure, plaques jaunes). The agreement between MRI and CT was 69%. The radiological methods prevalently failed in the detection of lesions smaller than 3mm of size, whereas they were generally satisfactory concerning the evaluation of intracranial hemorrhage. Due to its advanced 2D and 3D post-processing possibilities, CT in particular possessed certain advantages in comparison with autopsy with regard to forensic reconstruction. MRI showed forensically relevant findings not seen during autopsy in several cases. The partly limited sensitivity of imaging that was observed in this retrospective study was based on several factors: besides general technical limitations it became apparent that clinical radiologists require a sound basic forensic background in order to detect specific signs. Focused teaching sessions will be essential to improve the outcome in future examinations. On the other hand, the autopsy protocols should be further standardized to allow an exact comparison of imaging and autopsy data. In consideration of these facts, MRI and CT have the power to play an important role in future forensic neuropathological examination.     

Nationaler Naturschutz und Europäisches Gentechnikrecht

Im Oktober 2005 best?tigte ein Urteil des Europ?ischen Gerichts Erster Instanz (EuG) eine Kommissionsentscheidung aus dem Jahre 2003, in der diese entscheidende Regelungen des ober?sterreichischen Gentechnikverbotsgesetzes für unvereinbar mit EU-Recht hielt. Das Verfahren war insoweit von gro?er Bedeutung, als damit erstmalig ein EU-Gericht zu nationalen Regelungen Stellung nahm, welche den Schutz von Biodiversit?t und gentechnikfreier Landwirtschaft vor den Risiken der Agro-Gentechnik betreffen. Im folgenden Beitrag wird das Urteil einer kritischen Analyse unterzogen.