LONG-TERM FOLLOW-UP OF A COURT-BASED INTERVENTION FOR DIVORCING PARENTS

This study investigated whether participation in an educational program for divorcing parents is associated with a lower incidence of relitigating divorce-related decisions over time. A systematic review of court records indicated that couples who attended this program (n = 159) in central Illinois were just as likely as those in the control group (n = 43) to relitigate over a 6-year period. Furthermore, county-wide rates of relitigation increased from 2 years before to 3 years after the program's introduction. However, reports obtained from participating families suggest that the program may serve an important function for families in which there is a high risk of triangulating children into postdivorce conflict.     

Crossing the Great Divide: Dilemmas of U.K. Voluntary-Sector Leaders Who Move into Government

Evidence suggests the boundaries between the U.K. government and the voluntary sector are blurring because of an increasing emphasis on partnership between the two. One symptom of this changing relationship–or a contributing cause of it–is the practice of recruiting senior managers from the voluntary sector into government service. The intention is that these managers should play a significant role in formulating and implementing government strategy with regard to the voluntary sector and in other policy areas where voluntary‐sector organizations are seen as key players. This article addresses the issues that voluntary‐sector leaders face when they move into government–to what extent are they insiders, outsiders, or critical friends, and to whom? It concludes that the madness of the government machine is more than the sum of its parts: people, policy, and process.     

Vital parameters for patent morality a question of form

Legal context: At the interface between patent law and biotechnology, a debatehas arisen over the application of the morality provision, designedto ensure the future development of society on a principledbasis. This article reviews the provision in its European context,adopting UK and European perspectives for analysis. Key points: Analysis of the provision identifies that there is ambiguityregarding interpretation of the morality provision, which haslead to inconsistent application between the European PatentOffice and the European Patent Boards. This article assessesthe provision in the context of the patent system and offersa legal philosophy framework within which to understand theprovision as conveying: a methodology, a standard of moralityand a source for that standard which can be utilized to describethe possibilities. It then re-centres the debate to its practicalcontext in order to demonstrate that the patent system removesthe options which are inapplicable: advocating valid and achievablemethods for complying with the law both nationally and on aEuropean level. Practical significance: The morality provision has become an accepted ‘wild card’in assessing the patentability of biotechnology: it has cometo rely upon the identification of danger areas in innovationthat may trigger moral objections. This falls far short of thelegal certainty which is so vital to biotechnological growth.In the face of the impending implementation of the unitary patentright across Europe, the importance of achieving a predictableand practical approach to applying the morality cannot be underestimated.     

Now You See Them, Now You Don't: The Legal Field and Newspaper Desegregation of Sex-Segregated Help Wanted Ads 1965–75

We analyze the timing and extent to which major newspapers in the United States ceased publishing sex-segregated help wanted columns. We situate our study within a specific scholarly literature in organizational sociology and the sociology of law interested in patterns of organizational compliance with U.S. employment law. More specifically, this article is conceptually and theoretically organized around the concept of the "legal field," defined as the dynamic and emergent interactions among formal law and legal rules, legal officials, self-interested organizations, and the broader political and cultural environment. Content analysis of major U.S. newspapers between 1966 and 1975 indicates that, for nearly five years (1966–70), newspapers collectively refused to desegregate their help wanted columns, despite clear legal rules prohibiting their use. Then, in a comparatively condensed period between 1971 and 1973, virtually all newspapers abruptly abandoned the traditional practice of sorting job ads explicitly by sex.     

The impact of race on the adjudication of sexual assault and other violent crimes

This study assessed whether sexual assault offenders were differently adjudicated from other violent felons and to what extent any differences in adjudication decisions were explained by the defendant's race. Five court decisions were analyzed using a weighted sample of 41,151 cases adjudicated between 1990 and 1996 that were representative of cases in the seventy-five most populous United States counties. The results did not support the hypothesis that sexual assault cases were given, on average, more leniency than less serious violent offenses, however, various adjudication decisions for the four violent offenses were moderated by the defendant's race. Interaction models showed minorities were treated more punitively compared to Whites when they were charged with an assault, robbery, or murder, but they were treated more leniently when they were charged with a sexual assault. Explanatory models that accounted for the differential processing of minorities that were disproportionately lenient or punitive, depending on the crime, are discussed.     

Routine Activities Theory as a Formula for Systematic Sexual Abuse: A Content Analysis of Survivors’ Testimony Against Larry Nassar

American Journal of Criminal Justice - Larry Nassar, a once world renowned Olympic doctor, was arrested and charged with child abuse and child pornography in 2016, becoming one of the most prolific...     

Whole bovine blood use in forensic research: Sample preparation and storage considerations

Mammalian whole blood sources are often used for forensic research and training when human samples cannot be sourced. While porcine, ovine and equine blood have been shown to be viable alternatives to whole human blood for forensic purposes, procurement can still pose a problem, especially for smaller and remote institutions. This work explores the use of whole bovine blood for basic bloodstain simulation. Sample preparation through the addition of ACD-A anticoagulant was optimized and storability was explored. Viscosity, surface tension, density, and packed cell volume, four fluid properties relevant to bloodstain pattern analysis, were monitored over four days and in two temperature conditions. Linear mixed models accounting for variation in the donor demonstrated that these fluid properties of the bovine blood changed predictably over time and with temperature. Whole bovine blood with 12.5% v/v ACD-A was found to be viable for use in basic bloodstain simulation at ambient and physiological temperature.