Working for Criminalization of Economic Offending: Contradictions for Critical Criminology?

While economic crime and itscontrol deserve the scrutiny of criticalcriminology, there are problems in being acritical economic crime criminologist. The conclusion that criminal law in this areabe strictly and consistently enforced seemsinconsistent with critical criminology'swarnings regarding the dangers ofcriminalization as a response to socialproblems. This article reports upon thisdilemma in the specific context of research ona recent Finnish initiative to combat economiccrime that resulted in the authors engaging inpolicy-debates to argue for even greatercriminalization of such crime. The articledescribes and reflects upon thispro-criminalization strategy. It provides anoverview of the research project and some ofthe dangers associated with the advocacy ofgreater criminalization that emerged from it,and which is raised more generally by criticalcriminologists. It concludes by justifyingwhy, in the particular context within whichthis project was conducted, the approachadopted towards conducting the research,disseminating findings, and advocatingcriminalization.     

An economic analysis of the voting on Michigan's tax and expenditure limitation amendment

This paper investigates electorate behavior on Proposal C, a proposed amendment to the Michigan constitution, whose passage would have limited taxes and expenditures in the State of Michigan. Voting behavior was analyzed within the framework of the basic hypotheses: that the electorate tended to vote on Proposal C in its economic interests, narrowly conceived. The results were contradictory, with some groups voting against their economic interests and others voting as the hypothesis would predict. Further, a relatively low percentage of the total voting variance was explained, indicating that perhaps other variables than economic ones influenced voting behavior.     

Eyewitness Lineups: Is the Appearance-Change Instruction a Good Idea?

The Department of Justice's Guide for lineups recommends warning eyewitnesses that the culprit's appearance might have changed since the time of the crime. This appearance-change instruction (ACI) has never been empirically tested. A video crime with four culprits was viewed by 289 participants who then attempted to identify the culprits from four 6-person arrays that either included or did not include the culprit. Participants either received the ACI or not and all were warned that the culprit might or might not be in the arrays. The culprits varied in how much their appearance changed from the video to their lineup arrays, but the ACI did not improve identification decisions for any of the lineups. Collapsed over the four culprits, the ACI increased false alarms and filler identifications but did not increase culprit identifications. The ACI reduced confidence and increased response latency. Two processes that could account for these results are discussed, namely a decision criterion shift and a general increase in ecphoric similarity.     

Collaborative Partnerships and Crime in Disorganized Communities

Collaborative partnerships can be an effective strategy for crime prevention, especially in disorganized communities. Using ordinary least squares regression with 414 American cities, this article finds that police departments with many collaborative partnerships are able to promote informal social control within their communities and capitalize on the resources available to them with the help of other groups. This contention is supported by the effects of collaborative partnerships on crime rates in disorganized communities in comparison to well‐organized communities. Thus, collaborative partnerships of public organizations with other groups may insulate disorganized communities from the effects of community disorganization on levels of crime.     

Appointee Confirmation and Tenure: The Succession of U.S. Federal Agency Appointees, 1989–2009

This article analyzes the confirmation and tenure of 2,300 Senate‐confirmed, presidential appointees to U.S. government agencies between 1989 and 2009, linking patterns of appointee confirmation and tenure to institutional politics, appointee independence, and agency context. Consistent with prior research, the authors find that nominees of new, powerful, and popular presidents enjoy expedited Senate confirmation. Contentious congressional committee oversight, by contrast, tends to delay confirmation and reduce tenure. Agency heads and positions insulated from removal, such as for fixed‐term positions and inspectors general, increase tenure. Extending empirical research, the analysis highlights program‐ and agency‐level variations that speak to the many contingencies shaping appointee politics. Appointee positions associated with national security and broad statutory discretion receive expedited confirmation. Agencies with more professionals are associated with increased tenure, whereas agencies with more appointees among managers see shorter tenures. The results speak to scholarship on appointee politics and to public knowledge about the role of appointments in American government.     

Power and Cognitive Accuracy in Local Emergency Management Networks

Using network power bases and cognitive accuracy concepts, this study examines two local emergency management network changes. The authors review five power bases—structural-based, resource-based, actor-based, cognitive-based, and political-based power—to explore the perceived power of network actors. Three research propositions are proposed with respect to the relationship between the network power bases and the cognitive accuracy of network participants. The authors find that political-based power is strongly correlated with perceived power. The article concludes with future research questions and directions for advancing current scholarship on emergency management networks.     

Optimal storage conditions for highly dilute DNA samples: a role for trehalose as a preserving agent

DNA extraction from trace samples or noninvasively collected samples often results in the recovery of low concentration solutions of DNA that are prone to DNA degradation or other loss. Because of the difficulty in obtaining such samples, and their potentially high value in wildlife and forensic studies, it is critical that optimal methods are employed for their long-term storage. We assessed the amplification yield of samples kept under different storage conditions with the addition of potential preserving agents. We stored dilutions of known concentration human placental DNA, and gorilla fecal DNA, under four conditions (+4 degrees C, -20 degrees C, -80 degrees C, dry at room temperature), and with three additives (Tris EDTA (TE) buffer, Hind III digested Lambda DNA, trehalose). The effectiveness of the treatment methods was tested at regular intervals using qPCR to assess the quantity of amplifiable DNA, and a PCR assay of a larger 757 bp fragment to evaluate the quality of that remaining DNA. The highest quantity of DNA remained in samples stored at -80 degrees C, regardless of storage additives, and those dried at room temperature in the presence of trehalose. Surprisingly, DNA quality was best preserved in the presence of trehalose, either dried or at -80 degrees C; significant quality loss occurred with -20 degrees C and +4 degrees C storage.