Juvenile justice reform and the courtroom workgroup: Issues of perception and workload

Criminal justice policies may be enacted, but the actual implementation of those policies depends upon those working on the frontline. Policies that affect how cases are processed in the courtroom can be thwarted by the efforts of courtroom workgroup members. The present study analyzed how courtroom workgroups adjusted to a new juvenile justice policy. Qualitative interviews demonstrated that while there was widespread agreement on the basic tenets of the reform, perceptions of the reform varied by confidence in workgroup membership. Further, the reform inherently increased the workload for some and decreased the workload for others. Those whose workload increased discussed subverting the reform effort in order to continue with business as usual. These findings demonstrated that effective policies must consider the needs of workgroups as adaptation of policies in actual practice depend upon workgroup members' support.     

On Giving Legal Form Its Due. A Study in Legal Theory

Abstract.  The four theses of this paper are: (1) that an appropriate organizational form is used to design, define, and organize a functional unit of a legal system, (2) that the functional units of a legal system, contrary to the emphasis in Hart and Kelsen, consist of far more than rules, and include institutions, interpretive and other methodologies, sanctions and remedies, and more, (3) that frontal and systematic study of the forms of these units is a major avenue for advancing understanding of them as duly organized wholes, and, (4) that such study reveals that much credit is due these forms, along with complementary material or other components of the units, for values realized through law.     

Zur Berücksichtigung des Denkmal-, Kulturgüter- und Welterbeschutzes in der Novelle des Bundeswaldgesetzes

Der Wald hat für uns ?konomische, ?kologische, soziale und kulturelle Bedeutung. Leider ist in letzter Zeit die kulturelle Bedeutung im Vergleich zur ?kologischen Bedeutung ins politische Abseits geraten. Nun will man das seit 1975 geltende Bundeswaldgesetz novellieren. Dabei sollte zur besseren Berücksichtigung des Denkmalschutzes bei der Definition des Waldes klargestellt werden, dass Park-, Garten- und Friedhofsanlagen kein Wald im Sinne des Bundeswaldgesetzes sind. Die Bedeutung des Waldbodens als Archiv der Natur- und Kulturgeschichte muss betont werden. Nicht zuletzt wegen der angestrebten Eintragung der Deutschen Buchenw?lder in die Liste des Erbes der Welt muss zum Ausdruck kommen, dass Deutschland die europ?ischen und internationalen Bemühungen zum Erhalt des Kultur- und Naturerbes wie das übereinkommen zum Schutz des Kultur- und Naturerbes der Welt von 1972 unterstützt.     

Comparison of fingernail striation patterns in identical twins.

The fingernail ridge patterns of a pair of identical twins were compared to each other, their parents, and an unrelated subject. The patterns of the twins' nails showed regions of strong similarity but were distinguishable from one another. Fewer similarities were found when comparing the nails to those of the parents and the unrelated control. The twins were shown to be monozygotic by means of DNA profiling. This therefore represents the first demonstration of unique fingernail ridge patterns in subjects shown conclusively to be identical twins. When the fingernail ridge patterns were examined with a scanning electron microscope, the backscattered electron (BEI) images were found to have superior contrast when compared to the secondary electron (SEI) images.     

Regulatory Risk Management of Psychoactive Substances

Congress and the Drug Enforcement Administration have assigned certain psychoactive substances to one of five schedules, based on assumed or demonstrated abuse potential. Although formidable difficulties exist in assessing the hazards of drug use, some of these assignments do not appear consistent with empirical estimates. This mismatch of assignment and abuse potential -possibly due to "radical" political ideology - obscures significant differences in drug effects, and therefore stifles meaningful public participation in evaluating the benefits, risks, and proper use (if any) of available psychoactive substances.