Objective Evaluation of Subclass Characteristics on Breech Face Marks

Subclass characteristics can be found on the breech face marks left on spent cartridge cases. Even if they are assumed to be rare and their reported number is small, they can potentially lead to false associations. Subclass characteristics have been studied empirically allowing examiners to recognize them and to understand in which conditions they are produced. Until now, however, their influence on the identification process has not been studied from a probabilistic point of view. In this study, we aim at measuring the effect of these features on the strength of association derived from examinations involving subclass characteristics. The study takes advantage of a 3D automatic comparison system allowing the calculation of likelihood ratios (LRs). The similarities between cartridge case specimens fired by thirteen S&W .40S&W Sigma pistols are quantified, and their respective LRs are computed. The results show that the influence of subclass characteristics on the LRs is limited, even when these features are prevalent among the potential sources considered in a case. We show that the proportion of firearms sharing subclass characteristics should be larger than 40% of the pool of potential firearms for the effect to be significant.     

Driving racial profiling research forward: Learning lessons from sentencing research

Discretion is an integral component of the criminal justice system and is exercised by both police and the judiciary. Based on the extant research, evidence of racial/ethnic disparities within the context of traffic stops and sentencing decisions has been documented. Due to its long history of inquiry, sentencing research has developed a more thorough understanding of disparity and its correlates. This article contends that racial profiling research could expedite its development by learning from the history of sentencing research. Specifically, the extant research on sentencing decisions has demonstrated the value and utility of theory and methods as pillars of knowledge development. Therefore, progress in racial profiling research is most likely accomplished by employing similar theoretical frameworks and appropriate quantitative and qualitative approaches.     

Reproductive health,birth control,and fertility change in Sweden,circa 1900–1940

This article deals with two aspects of reproductive health during the latter part of the Swedish fertility decline: failing health as a motive for birth control, and failing health as a possible consequence of illegal abortions. The main argument is that reproductive health was an important factor in most reproductive decisions during this period, a circumstance largely ignored by researchers of the fertility decline. Questions that are addressed include: How can aspects of reproductive health be viewed as explanatory factors of the fertility decline? How did men react to women's need to stop bearing children for health reasons? How did couples seeking abortion, sometimes for health reasons, perceive the risks associated with abortion? A source material mainly consisting of letters, written in the 1930s and sent to the Swedish Association for Sexuality Education, has been used to discern how aspects of health, contraception and abortion were experienced by ordinary men and women. The analysis shows that reproductive health became a motive for birth control, at this point in history, for at least two reasons. Firstly, the experience of childbirth had changed through institutionalization and secularization and, secondly, respectable masculinity was increasingly constructed to include sexual respect towards women. Still, when couples decided to abort, aspects of health were largely ignored. Often abortion was sought because the health risks associated with childbirth were perceived as larger than those associated with abortion. The connection between reproductive health and birth control was, therefore, of a rather complex kind.     

Restructuring Local Government in Hampshire: A Case of Mistaken Community Identity?

This article examines the impact of the idea of community identity upon the Local Government Review in England. It considers the extent to which the notion of community identity was built into the Local Government Review nationally and, moreover, locally in Hampshire, and the extent to which it shaped the outcomes of the Local Government Review. Three conceptions of community identity are examined - affective, effective and deliberative community identity - and their interplay assessed in shaping the process of restructuring local government. The article argues that the issue of community identity figured prominently in the early stages of the Local Government Review, but faded away as it got caught up with the political machinations of central government, local authorities and political parties.     

Crime in the Australian fishing industry: Key issues

This research suggests that opportunities exist for a wide range of criminal activity in Australia’s commercial fishing sector.Organised crime is attracted to the fishing industry because it is percieved as being a low-risk, high-gain endeavour involving high-value, low-volume product with a lucrative overseas market. Jurisdictions are trying to implement strategies to inhabit these activities in valuable, but diminishing sectors, such as abalone. These efforts have to extend across all attractive seafood products, for example, seahorse and shark fin. To do so sucessfully will require a range of operational, legeslative and educational strategies, implemented uniformly and (where possible) simultaneously across jurisdictions and bolstered by international support and cooperation. This will inhibit the likehood of displacement and will result in a greater ability by fisheries enforcement agencies to focus their resources. Disclaimer: This research paper does not necessarily reflect the policy position of the Australian Government. The Australian Institute of Criminology (the Institute) and the Commonwealth of Australia accept no responsibility for the content, accuracy or completeness of [this] material... This material is made available on the understanding that neither the Institute nor the Commonwealth is thereby engaged in rendering professional or expert advice. The material may include views of third parties and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Institute or the Commonwealth.     

Border Enforcement,Organized Crime,and Deaths of Smuggled Migrants on the United States – Mexico Border

In response to ever increasing numbers of illegal immigrants entering the United States from Mexico, the United States adopted a border enforcement strategy in the 1990s that sought to bring the problem under control. This strategy relied primarily on increasing the number of Border Patrol agents directly on the border, the erection of walls at heavy traffic areas, and insertion of electronic surveillance systems. While these efforts succeeded in making it more difficult for illegal migrants to gain entry into the United States undetected, it also resulted in an increased reliance on human smugglers. Thus, the nature of the problem has shifted from one of illegal immigration to one of human smuggling. In an effort to gain entry successfully, smugglers have continued to lead migrants through hazardous terrain along the border where surveillance is less intense. Anecdotal evidence is presented which suggests that smugglers' drive for profit often results in the abandonment and death of migrants. Implications for future border policing strategy and research are discussed. An earlier draft of this paper was presented at the International Conference on Organized Crime and Humanitarian Disasters at the initiative of the International Scientific and Professional Advisory Council of the United Nations Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Programme (ISPAC) in cooperation with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Courmayeur Mont Blanc, Italy, December 3–5, 2004.     

Public affairs as reality construction: an established paradigm with new implications

• This article was initially a reaction to the special issues of the Journal of Public Affairs on the relative lack of theoretical foundations for the research and practice of public affairs (Vol. 1 no. 4, Vol. 2 no. 1, 2002).
• The social‐scientific approach that is known under the name constructionism has interesting implications for the study and the practice of this field. The authors explore some of its central concepts and implications such as framing, priming, typification, claims making, symbolic power, background, sense making and narrative construction. They test some of these concepts for their applicability and usefulness for research, theory building and practice in the field of public affairs.

Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.