Crime and Punishment in Sweden: Historical Criminal Justice Statistics 1750–2000

The article is a summary of a book in Swedish on the development of crime (that is, violence and theft) and punishment in Sweden in a historical perspective. The data stem mostly from conviction statistics. Following a discussion of the reliability of conviction statistics, trends in these statistics are described and various criminological explanations for these trends are discussed.     

Violence at Work—The Emergence of a Social Problem

This article analyses trends in violence at work on the basis of victim surveys, work-environment surveys, and press material. It proceeds from the two most common explanations of why violence at work appears to have increased over recent decades. These emphasize shifts in working conditions that have increased employees' victimization risk, and a broadened view of what is regarded as work-related violence. The empirical analyses provide support for both these explanations, and the various dimensions examined—increased reporting propensities, expanded definitions, a reduced tolerance of violence, and altered working conditions—are linked to one another.     

Murder Followed by Suicide: Filicide–Suicide Mothers in Italy from 1992 to 2010

The international literature shows that in 40–50% of the cases, homicides–suicides involving children under the age of 10 are committed by mothers. Here, we report some results on homicides–suicides, in the mother–child relationship, occurred in Italy between 1992 and 2010. We examined 36 cases of filicide–suicide mothers by consulting the archives of RAI, daily newspapers, and the ANSA news agency. We focused on: mothers and children's age, place of residence, date and place of the murder, number and sex of the murdered children, and modality of the homicide–suicide. At the time of the homicide–suicide, the average age of mothers was 35.4. The number of children killed by each mother was one, except in seven cases. All the women had underestimated psychopathological disorders and only six women were regularly treated. The dynamics and characteristics of the events were much more similar to suicides than homicides, so we can consider them as “extensive suicides.”     

21世纪初美国经济发展趋势分析

美国经济在全球经济中占有非常重要的地位,因此美国经济的未来走势直接关系到全球经济的发展,美国在经济发展中所具有的优势地位以及在未来经济发展中所要面对的挑战与风险,美国未来经济面临着巨额的经常项目逆差、财政收支赤字、能源价格高涨以及房地产泡沫破灭的威胁,使美国必须采取措施进行调整,这将导致本世纪初美国未来经济发展速度减慢。     

The Toxicology of Methadone‐Related Death in Infants Under 1 Year: Three Case Series and Review of the Literature

Methadone‐related fatalities occur rarely in infants under 1 year, with five confirmed cases in the literature. The interpretation of pediatric postmortem toxicology relies on adult data; however, infants have crucial physiological differences that may impact interpretation of results. Retrospective case review included scene investigation, interviews, autopsy, and NIH/CDC Sudden Unexplained Infant Death Investigation Reporting Form. Methadone levels were confirmed by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC‐MS/MS). The fatal blood methadone levels in this case series ranged from 69 to 700 ng/mL. This review of the literature adds toxicological findings of three methadone‐related infant fatalities and reviews the current literature on methadone‐related death in infants under 1 year. With opioid use on the rise in today's society, forensic experts should have a high index of suspicion for the possibility of intentional or unintentional poisoning in infants.     

Sexual Homicide by Older Male Offenders

Recent research has expanded our understanding of sexual homicide offenders (SHOs). However, little exists beyond case reports for older SHOs. We characterized male SHOs ≥ 55 years, comparing them to typical adult male SHOs who are in their 20s. Analysis of 37 years (1976–2012) of US Supplementary Homicide Reports data provided a large SHO sample (N = 3453). Three case reports provide clinical context for the diverse nature and patterns of older SHOs. Only 32 older male SHOs and no older female SHOs were identified. Murders by older SHOs accounted for only 0.5% of US sexual homicides. Unlike typical SHOs that generally target young adult females, over two‐thirds of older SHO victims were ≥40 years, and one‐third were ≥55 years. Sexual homicides by older SHOs, like sexual homicide in general, decreased over the study period. These crimes, while exceedingly rare, do occur, warranting special consideration.     

Forensic Evidence and Criminal Investigations: The Impact of Ballistics Information on the Investigation of Violent Crime in Nine Cities,

We explore the impact of information from ballistics imaging hit reports on the investigation into violent crimes. Ballistics imaging hits link two crimes involving the same firearm by forensically matching tool marks on the fired bullets or cartridge cases. Interview data collected from detectives who received a hit report were used to explore the relationship between the presence of a hit report and outcomes in 65 gun‐related violent crime investigations in nine U.S. police agencies. Findings indicate hit reports rarely contribute to identification, arrest, charging, or sentencing of suspects, because of delays in producing hit reports. On average, hit reports were completed 181.4 days after the focal crime. This delay forces investigations to proceed without the benefit of information from ballistics analysis. Additionally, hit reports rarely contained detailed information that was immediately useful to investigators. Instead, hit reports required additional research by the investigator to unlock useful information.     

Comorbid,sequential, or different desires? Exploring the relationship between somnophilia and necrophilia

Relatively little is known of either somnophilia or necrophilia in comparison to other more commonly presented sexual paraphilias. Despite the overt similarities between the two, somnophilia being characterised as an attraction to the sleeping/unconscious, and necrophilia being characterised as a sexual attraction to the dead, there has been little examination of their concurrence or relationship in a single person. A case is presented here of their relationship with directions for clinical and law enforcement awareness.     

A case of stalking in the workplace and subsequent sexual homicide

A case of stalking in the workplace and subsequent sexual homicide by a 33-year-old male is reported. Following several months of stalking a 38-year-old female, the male subject went to the woman's office after business hours and restrained, raped, and murdered her. The cause of death was multiple stab wounds. The facts of the case reveal that the subject fits a predatory-type stalker, which represents a small subgroup within stalkers that has received little attention. Unlike other types of stalkers, the predatory stalker gives little warning to their victim (or multiple victims), as their stalking behaviors tend not to be very invasive or harassing. In general, most stalkers are not physically violent; however, predatory-type stalkers, given their tendency for sexual violence, are dangerous and the importance of identifying them is emphasized. Factors associated with perpetrators of sexual homicide are discussed.     

Matricide and Two Sexual Femicides by a Male Strangler with a Transgender Sadomasochistic Identity

Abstract: While violence against sexual minorities is a well‐known phenomenon, sexual homicides committed by men with cross‐dressing or transsexual identity are not, because they are relatively few. We report a 23‐year follow‐up of the case of a transvestite, possibly transsexual, man who killed his mother by strangulation at the age of 20, and later in two separate cases strangled a female victim towards whom he felt sexual desire. He reported being sexually aroused by being strangled himself. The case raises questions concerning legislation which does not allow life‐long control of criminals.