Supports for Families Affected by Substance Abuse

Using an in-home services program model, Project Connect works collaboratively with the child welfare system, substance abuse treatment providers, the courts, and other community agencies to support parental recovery, enhance safety and permanency, and strengthen family relationships. Results from the most recent evaluation of the program, which used a dosage level design to examine project outcomes for 415 families, are presented here. Data indicate that the program was particularly helpful in strengthening parenting capacity. Child safety and permanency were also positively correlated with program participation.     

食品监管渎职罪的主观罪过探析

食品监管渎职罪条文中“滥用职权或者玩忽职守”的规定表明其与滥用职权罪和玩忽职守罪有直接的联系,故此有学者认为食品监管渎职罪兼具故意和过失两种罪过形态,突破了传统刑法的单一罪过说。刑法总则中故意和过失的确定是针对危害结果而非危害行为而言,滥用职权罪和玩忽职守罪的主观罪过均应是过失,食品监管渎职罪没有突破单一罪过说。     

论校园“虐童”行为的法律规制——基于虐待儿童罪“不必说”的刑法立场

随着各地有关幼师“虐童”行为的报道不断地见诸报端,针对“虐童”行为法律规制的探讨亦如火如荼,但总体而言,论者们争议较大,莫衷一是。其中,有学者主张设立“虐待儿童罪”以之应对,但其是否妥当,有待进一步论证。不论怎样,鉴于“虐童”行为自身具有的危害性,即应从法律的视角探寻规制的路径。     

When Should the Police Investigate Cases of Non-recent Child Sexual Abuse?

Non-recent child sexual abuse (CSA) and child sexual exploitation (CSE) have received recent attention. Victims often do not report their ordeal at the time the incident occurred, and it is increasingly common for agencies to refer concerns to the police years, or decades, after the event. The combination of the non-recent nature of the offence, the lack of engagement by the (potentially vulnerable) victim, and the huge resource burden of investigation make deciding whether to proceed with investigation complex and ethically challenging. Although there will always be a presumption in favor of investigation, for some cases the reasons against investigating will outweigh this presumption. We examine the considerations at stake in making a decision about whether to make contact with the victim and proceed with investigating a particular non-recent CSA case. Arguing for a “broad rights” approach, we identify considerations relating to (1) the victim, (2) criminal justice and crime prevention, (3) limited resources, and (4) legitimacy. We argue that, all other things being equal, non-recent and current investigations are equally worthy of investigation. We assess the implications of suspects being persons of public prominence. We outline a principled decision-making framework to aid investigators. The Oxford CSA Framework has the potential to reduce unnecessary demand on police resources.     

Correlates of Pre-College Males' Sexual Aggression

Abstract

Current literature suggests that the causes of sexual aggression toward women lie in the fabric of a patriarchal society. The acceptance by males of negative, stereotypical and harmful myths about women, traditional sex-role stereotypes, the acceptance of interpersonal violence and the objectification of women foster an environment where sexual aggression can flourish. This paper explores several factors associated with male aggression and date rape in a sample of pre-college males entering a medium-sized Southern University. Indicators of the acceptance of rapemyths, hostility toward women, acceptance of interpersonal violence, adversarial sexual beliefs, drug and alcohol use and sexual history were examined in relation to three degrees of sexual aggression. Discriminant Analysis indicated that the four attitudinal and three behavioral variables successfully classified 56 percent of the original grouped cases.     

Relational Violence in Women's Prison: How Women Describe Interpersonal Violence and Gender

Using data from interviews with former female inmates, I focus on how women describe aggression and violence in prison. Interviewees outline the connection between prison violence, gender, and interpersonal relationships. Similar to in previous studies on adolescent girls, women describe ostracism and rumors as a form of aggression. Furthermore, they detail how some inmates fight over correctional officers as the only men in their lives. I define this form of aggression as relational violence, which is commonly described as adolescent behavior. This article broadens the current work on gender and inmate conflict by focusing on violence used by adult female offenders. Moreover, it extends understanding of inmate culture by allowing interviewees to verbally construct the social reality of prison violence from their perspective to evaluate how they connect violence to gender roles.     

成年小鼠氯胺酮慢性中毒后脑细胞凋亡

目的研究不同持续时间和剂量下氯胺酮慢性中毒对成年小鼠脑细胞凋亡发生的影响。方法氯胺酮按不同剂量(4、10、20、30mg/kg)每周2次于成年小鼠尾静脉注射,建立小鼠氯胺酮滥用慢性中毒模型,氯胺酮连续注射1、2、4、8、12周后处死。采用透射电镜进行细胞凋亡的定性检测,以Caspase-3免疫荧光染色法和脱氧核糖核苷酸末端转移酶介导的缺口末端标记法(terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling,TUNEL)定量检测凋亡细胞数,推断凋亡发生的时间,并统计分析实验结果。结果氯胺酮染毒1周后,在透射电镜下见到脑组织海马及纹状体区域有明显的神经元凋亡,并持续至8周后;染毒1周可见Caspase-3高表达,4周后呈持续低水平表达;染毒1周后可见TUNEL阳性细胞较对照组明显增加,4周时仍处于高水平表达。结论氯胺酮尾静脉注射可致成年小鼠神经元凋亡。     

Editor’s note

ABSTRACT

Over the past decade, a small movement endorsing the use of animal abuse registries (AARs) has emerged in the United States. Today, one state, 16 counties, and the City of New York have adopted AAR legislation, and 28 other states have attempted to pass such legislation. Here, we discuss similarities between AARs and sexual offender registries in theoretical terms, discuss the nature of AAR legislation, and provide data on the use of AARs, and count the number of offenders listed in those registries at two points in time. We also provide a count of animal abuse, and potential ways that animal abuse might be counted that are not addressed in current AAR legislation. We discuss whether AARs are ‘a good idea,’ especially as a policy response that might be associated with green criminology.     

The endorsement of cognitive distortions: comparing child pornography offenders and contact sex offenders

This study examined the endorsement of cognitive distortions in child pornography offenders (CPOs), using an established assessment tool, the Abel and Becker Cognition Scale. The scale was expanded to include cognitions specific to child pornography offending, extracted from Howitt and Sheldon's Children and Sexual Activities Inventory (C&SA). Three samples of CPOs, child sex offenders and offenders with both offence types responded to the cognition items. An exploratory Principal Component Analysis suggested six main components of the scale. CPOs were significantly less likely to endorse these statements in general, and this was more pronounced on items that project blame onto the child or other people, describe a need for power and consider children as sexually active. The statements extracted from C&SA did not differentiate between the groups. These findings are discussed under consideration of the relationship between cognitive distortions and contact sex offending, and in reference to the general criticism concerning the definition and appropriate measurement of cognitive distortions.