Theft in Sweden 1831?1998

This paper on theft in Sweden analyses crime and reactions to crime in non-individual, structural terms. The data used stems from Swedish convictions statistics which are available for the period since 1831. Swedish trends in theft convictions follow an international pattern with reductions during the second half of the 19th century and settling at a comparatively low level during the decades around the turn of the 20th century. A sharp occurred after the mid-1920s until the mid-1980s. Upon closer examination, this increase took the form of an S-curve whose course resembles that of goods production. One interpretation is that once a basic level of material security had been guaranteed, theft convictions followed the availability of goods; with more to consume, there is more to steal, and levels of control tend to diminish. Howthat ever, this interpretation may not apply to a smaller proportion of convictions ? those which concern persistent offenders. Their development differed in one decisive manner from that of casual offenders ? the steep rise is very sudden and occurred first after the Second World War. An explanation based on the relationship between livelihood, excessive alcohol consumption and theft is put forward.     

Replacing Provocation in England and Wales: Examining the Partial Defence of Loss of Control

In October 2010, provocation was abolished as a partial defence to murder in England and Wales. Through the introduction of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009, a new partial defence of loss of control was implemented. This sought to overcome problems associated with the provocaton defence and the gendered operation of the law of homicide, particularly in relation to male‐perpetrated intimate homicides, and the inadequate response of the law to the contexts in which battered women kill. This article first provides an account of these developments, and then examines legal stakeholders' perceptions of them. Drawing from in‐depth interviews with criminal justice professionals, it considers their perceptions of the operation of the law of homicide during a period of transition, specifically considering the formulation of the new partial defence, the initial effects of its implementation, and the significant differences between the Law Commission's recommendations and the reforms implemented by the government.     

Crime and reactions to crime in 34 Swedish birth cohorts: from historical descriptions to forecasting the future

This article analyses 34 Swedish birth cohorts with regard to their participation in crime as measured by data from the convictions database maintained by Statistics Sweden. Most existing cohort studies are limited to one or a few cohorts. By contrast, the present study includes 34 cohorts, i.e. all persons born in Sweden between 1958 and 1991. The article discusses methodological problems associated with this type of approach and examines the possibility of making forecasts. The central results are that the number of males with a criminal record has decreased, whereas the number of females has remained fairly stable. Forecasts indicate that the cohorts' participation in crime will continue to decrease. Research and policy implications of the findings are outlined. It is proposed to introduce cohort statistics as a standard branch within regular criminal justice statistics.     

Durch den Balkan nach Europa? Deutschland und Frankreich in den Jugoslawienkriegen

Starting from very different positions on the outbreak of violence in Slovenia and Croatia in 1991, French and German policies slowly converged over time and even reached a similar position on the Kosovo crisis. Yet, both foreign policies did not concentrate on the conflict solution as such but were rather concerned with preventing any negative spill-over on the European integration process and Franco-German relations respectively. The first part of the article summarises the two foreign policies in three phases of the Yugoslavian drama: First, the recognition of Slovenia and Croatia, second, the Bosnian war and third, the Kosovo crisis in 1998–99. By means of two heuristic criterea (behaviour towards institutions and conflict perception), both foreign policies are then compared analytically. Moreover, the striking differences in policies towards institutions and conflict perceptions motivate the generation of hypotheses in the next part. For France, we hold that identity theory might present a good approach in order to understand why French foreign policy was primarily driven by self-perceptions. Germany, by contrast, seems to be better suited to the application of role theory with its strong emphasis on alter-expectations. The article concludes by focusing on the perspectives of European integration and the Franco-German relations.     

Crime Statistics as Constructs: The Case of Swedish Rape Statistics

Using Swedish rape statistics as a focus, this article aims to empirically describe the way in which different factors affect official crime statistics produced at the national level. It is argued that cross-national comparisons of crime levels are extremely hazardous when based on official crime statistics, since the construction rules vary widely. International comparisons of crime levels should as a rule be confined to findings of international victim surveys. The example of rape statistics in Sweden - about three times higher when compared to other countries in the European Sourcebook - is used to explain what factors can influence statistics. Statistical, legal and substansive factors are to be taken into account. The author shows that changes in statistical routines, the legal definition of rape and changes over time all influence the statistics in a substansive way. This article indicates the great extent to which crime statistics are a construct, whose appearance is very sensitive to the rules applied in the process of construction. In order to employ statistics appropriately, a thorough knowledge of the principles guiding this process is therefore essential.     

Patent Protection in Europe: Integrating Europe into the Community or the Community into Europe?

Patent protection in Europe basically rests on two pillars: national grants or grants from the European Patent Organisation (EPO). The EPO grants patents by a centralised procedure with uniform conditions, but once granted the patents become national and subject to the divergent national laws of EPO–Member States. The system has been very successful, so successful, indeed, that it overshadowed the Community's many unsuccessful attempts to set up a Community patent system of its own by way of a convention between Member States. As the Commission has recently stepped in by proposing the establishment of a Community Patent system by way of regulation, a kind of 'cooperative rivalry' has arisen between the Community and the EPO about how to unify patent protection in Europe. This rivalry not only mirrors divergent views on the politico–economic functions of the patent system, but also is illustrative of different concepts of regional integration in a context of global competition for innovation.