Suicidal Decapitation by Hanging—A Population‐based Study

A prospective study was undertaken at Forensic Science SA over a 15‐year period from July 2002 to June 2017 for all cases of adult (>18 years) suicidal hangings with decapitation. A total of 1446 cases of suicidal hangings were identified from a general population of approximately 1.5 million (1206 males—age range 18–97 years, average 42.6; and 240 females—age range 18–96 years, average 40.1). Only three cases of decapitation were found, all from long‐drop hangings; these consisted of three males (ages 32–55 years; average 45 years). Spinal transections had occurred between the first and second, second and third, and third and fourth cervical vertebrae, respectively. In this study, the number of suicidal hangings with decapitation represented only 0.2% of the total number of hangings. These events are therefore extremely rare, most likely due to most suicidal hangings occurring from relatively low levels in a domestic environment.     

走私犯罪若干疑难问题之探析——兼评《关于办理走私刑事案件适用法律有关问题的意见》

走私犯罪的主观故意只能是直接故意,司法机关对走私人的主观心理状态认定存疑时应允许适度的司法推定,不宜将走私犯罪中的"概括故意"与"认识对象错误"相混淆。海关工作人员受贿又放私构成牵连犯,按从一重罪从重处断。对单位与个人犯走私普通货物物品罪,不能因为主体不同而规定不同的起刑点。在一次走私行为中既走私普通货物物品又有其它特定物品的,属于并发的数罪,应实行数罪并罚。武装掩护走私应为一个独立罪名。     

“辩护人、诉讼代理人伪证罪”之质疑

刑法第306条辩护人、诉讼代理人伪证罪的设置是一项不公正不平等的规定,存在诸多负面影响,如助长了职业报复,危及律师事业的发展等,且该法条规定本身亦不严谨。笔者建议,考虑到现行刑法完全存在其他可以援引的法条对该罪规定的三种行为予以规制,有必要取消刑法第306条。     

中国古代律中条标演进之论纲——以唐律、宋刑统、大明律和大清律例为例

中国古代著名的唐律、宋刑统、大明律和大清律例等都有条标,条标是这些律中的组成部分,而且还在不断演进。在演进中,这些条标保持了共同点,具体表现为:条标的分布具有共同点、所含内容具有共同点、种类也是具有共同点等。它们在演进中还存在着不同点,后者总比前者有不同程度的演进之处。在这些条标的演进的过程中有一些值得关注的问题,主要是:立法技术问题,形成不同点的原因问题和条标演进的走向问题等。     

The twenty-first century Armed Forces of the Philippines: orphan of counter-insurgency or military geared for the long war of the century?

This article examines the factors that account for the Armed Forces of the Philippines's (AFP) never-ending involvement in many wars of the third kind. It discusses the essence of counter-insurgency warfare or low-intensity conflict in the Philippine setting. The article then notes that the disruption in the US military assistance after 1992, the AFP's inability to modernize, and its continuous campaign against communist and secessionist insurgents have adversely affected its structure and overall combat efficiency. It also analyzes the impact of the global war on terror on the Philippine military's counter-insurgency operations and the reforms undertaken by the Philippine defense establishment to address these issues. In conclusion, the article argues that reforms will not lead to a significant transformation of the AFP as it will continue to be an orphan of counter-insurgency in the near future. However, if wars of the third kind will persist, this situation will paradoxically make the AFP the only military in Southeast Asia aptly geared for the long war of this century.     

再议现行医疗纠纷调整机制的立法缺陷与完善

《医疗事故处理条例》这部倍受关注的法规,它的出台曾经得到了社会各界的广泛好评。然而,随着实践的深入,一些新的问题也逐渐暴露出来,引发了许多学者的关注和研究。通过对新颁布的《医疗事故处理条例》存在的一些问题进行法律分析,同时结合最高人民法院第33号司法解释中关于医疗纠纷的举证责任倒置的规定,可对部分法律问题的解决做出理论分析。     

《保险法》中投保人如实告知义务条文的结构性解读及完善

结构主义法学视角下,我国《保险法》第16条具有双重结构,对双重结构进行"法律后果"等多层次设问及解析,可以获取投保人如实告知义务条款的立法以及法律适用层面的完善路径。第4款和第5款应当增加保险人行使合同解除权的适用前提;保险人在投保人履行告知义务之前与之订立保险合同的,保险人丧失解除权;发现投保人违反告知义务的,保险人有权选择下发拒赔通知书和行使保险合同解除权的顺序。"足以影响保险人决定是否同意承保或者提高保险费率"应当替换为"重要事项";"对保险事故的发生有严重影响"的实质是与保险事故发生具有因果关系。投保人故意违反告知义务的,未告知的事项应当与保险事故的发生存在因果关系,保险人才有权解除保险合同。     

论民法典法定离婚理由的设计及残疾人权益保护

正在制定的我国《民法典·婚姻家庭编》(草案)第856条是整个离婚制度的核心。其立法主张和立法技术彰显了整个离婚制度的价值追求和逻辑体系。但是,从整个制度设计上看,其也存在利益失衡和逻辑失范之处。其概括条款"其他导致夫妻感情破裂的情形"缺乏对"重大"和"有责配偶请求权"的限制,整个离婚理由缺乏"苛刻条款"等平衡弱势配偶权益的制度设计。上述缺陷对残疾人离婚权益保护具有负面影响,借助对残疾人离婚案件实证分析所得出的数据,参考世界最新立法例和国际社会最新相关成果,增设"重大情形""残疾人配偶提出离婚需设限制性条件""苛刻条款"以及限缩"第830条重大疾病范围"等立法建议,将对《民法典·婚姻家庭编》(草案)离婚制度构建中残疾人婚姻权益保障有所裨益。     

Re‐imagining Geographic Labour Mobility through ‘Distance Labour’

Geographic labour mobility is necessary for increasing productivity in Australia. Long‐distance commuting has been found to be especially significant. However, important considerations are being excluded from policy discussions within the Productivity Commission on this topic. This commentary covers these important omissions. They are, namely, the problematic conflation of the terminologies of ‘fly‐in, fly‐out’ and ‘long‐distance commuting’ with mining, and a lack of qualitative research investigating the material impacts of these labour practices on people's lives. This commentary puts forward a new terminology, ‘distance labour’, to better include those industries on the margins of distance commuting. By accounting for the social worlds of workers engaged in distance labour, the Productivity Commission could increase the validity of its datasets, and provide more egalitarian policy recommendations.     

The inversion of the ‘really big trade-off’: homeownership and pensions in long-run perspective

Abstract

The hypothesis of a trade-off between homeownership and welfare state provision, first proposed by Jim Kemeny around 1980, is a foundational claim in the political economy of housing. However, the evidence for this hypothesis is unclear at both macro and micro levels. This paper examines the link between welfare and homeownership at the macro level using new long-run data and a multilevel modelling approach. It shows that the negative cross-sectional correlation between homeownership and public welfare provision observed in the earliest available data disappears and becomes neutral by the 1980s and possibly positive subsequently. Within-country trajectories vary, but are significantly positive in more countries than significantly negative, suggesting that in some contexts welfare and homeownership are complements rather than competitors. The paper posits a dual ratchet effect mechanism in both pension benefits and homeownership capable of producing this inversion, and further suggests that rising public indebtedness and the debt-stabilising effects of welfare states may account for the emergence of complementarity in the pension?homeownership relationship. The latter supports the hypothesis that some countries have avoided the trade-off by ‘buying time’ on credit markets.