Observer determination of the make,model, and year of questioned vehicles

Often, criminal acts involving a vehicle are caught on digital video surveillance systems. While potentially useful for an investigation, the recording conditions are typically less than optimal for the extraction of key information for the identification of the perpetrator, such as a license plate. Providing the make, model and year of a questioned vehicle is a common request for examiners, to narrow the field of potential suspect vehicles. This study seeks to compare the performance of a nonpeer-reviewed make, model, and year determination between two separate groups, specifically, trained forensic image examiners and nontrained individuals. Results show that even with varied image capture conditions and quality, the trained forensic image examiners more correctly and completely identified the test group of questioned vehicles make, model, and year.     

Psychopathy and Female Gender: Phenotypic Expression and Comorbidity; A Study Comparing a Sample of Women Hospitalized in Italy's Maximum Security Facility with Women Who were Criminally Sentenced and Imprisoned,

Various studies have shown that women with psychopathy tend to commit crimes that are less violent than those of psychopathic men. The present study was designed to address the influence of psychopathy on the crimes committed by female offenders. A national sample of female offenders found NGRI or of diminished responsibility and at risk for criminal recidivism (OPG patients) was compared with a sample of female offenders who were convicted and imprisoned. Results of this comparison between the two groups of female offenders indicate that psychopathy is a transversal psychopathological dimension which may or may not be associated with other mental disorders. In both samples, the most commonly reported offenses among women with high PCL‐R scores were minor offenses, not particularly violent, but they appear to be related to typical psychopathic features such as superficial charm, pathological lying, and manipulation.     

Forensic Application of Analytical Mechanics in Fatal Fall From a Height

Fatal fall from a height initiated with a swinging motion on the sagittal plane of the victim's body is examined. Method of analytical mechanics is adopted to establish the functional relations between the swinging angle of the body and the force needed to sustain the body until release, and the amount of the horizontal displacement that would occur after release. The analysis is applied to support an expert opinion presented in a criminal court in which two accused were convicted of murder for dropping a female victim from a bridge. The results indicate that it is unlikely for the body to locate as recorded by the police investigation report in the case. This study demonstrates that a straightforward mechanical analysis can be utilized to examine uncommon falling scenarios.     

Child Sexual Abuse Perpetrated by Women: Case Series and Review of the Literature

The literature on child sexual abuse (CSA) perpetrated by female sexual offenders (FSOs) is exiguous, and many studies have focused on judicial databases. The present retrospective study, instead, analyzed clinical and judicial data of a group of both victims and alleged FSOs, to additionally include women who have not been convicted by the criminal justice system, but who hold strong clinical suspicions of being perpetrators of CSA. The medical records and the Court files of 11 children and their eight suspected FSOs have been collected and critically reviewed in light of the literature to date. This approach allowed for a deeper understanding of the relationship between child and FSO. The authors hypothesize that the victims’ severe psychopathological outcomes were a result of a failure to develop appropriate attachments with their prospective caregivers, which could have been damaged by the pathological relationship with FSOs, who were the victims’ caregivers.     

Prisons or Problem-Solving: Does the Public Support Specialty Courts?

ABSTRACT

Recently, “problem-solving” courts have been developed as an alternative to imprisonment. They are often called “specialty” courts because they process and divert into treatment programs offenders who are seen as different from the general criminal population, such as those with mental health or drug problems, those who are homeless or veterans, and those who engage in domestic violence. Based on a 2017 national survey of 1,000 respondents, the current study examines overall public support for rehabilitation as a goal of corrections and then focuses specifically on support for different types of specialty courts. The analysis reveals that the American public endorses not only the rehabilitative ideal but also the use of problem-solving courts. Further, with only minimal variation, strong support for these courts appears to exist regardless of political orientation and sociodemographic characteristics.     

日常性:民族地区社会工作的实践取向

解决好我国社会工作在区域之间"不平衡"的发展问题,将是社会工作专业进一步参与提升民族地区基层社会治理能力和治理体系现代化水平的重要着力点和突破口.但当前民族地区社会工作发展的相关研究,为了突出民族地区的特殊性,将文化本身从当地的日常生活中抽离出来,成为研究的客体和对象,忽略了民族地区社会工作的"日常性",即少数民族群众生活的绵延性和社会工作的结构性的矛盾与统一.从日常性出发,民族地区社会工作应当遵循浸入而非介入、主体而非客体、理解而非解释、互构而非设计的实践取向.     

Inclusivity in Online Platforms: Recruitment Strategies for Improving Participation of Diverse Sociodemographic Groups

Governments are increasingly implementing smart and digital approaches to promoting citizen participation. However, whether online participation platforms are tools that improve inclusivity in citizen participation remains underexplored. To address this gap, this article focuses on the role of recruitment messages and their effect on participation in an online participation platform by gender and age. A field experiment with a neighborhood census sample (N = 6,066) shows that online participation dips for younger and older citizens and is equal among women and men. For the age groups between 60 and 75, differences in the control and intervention recruitment messages significantly impacted participation. These findings can help public managers tailor recruitment strategies to facilitate inclusive participation and represent a first step toward learning what types of messages are effective for whom.     

人民政协专门协商机构制度建设的国家治理逻辑

人民政协作为专门协商机构在国家治理体系和治理能力现代化建设中具有重要地位和作用,体现着中国特色社会主义民主政治的优势。国家治理的本质特征、价值理念与运作过程为人民政协专门协商机构制度建设赋予必要前提、基本遵循与现实要求,人民政协专门协商机构制度的功能结构主要包含政治协商、民主监督、决策参与、凝聚共识。基于体系过程与结构功能分析以及主体角色与优势效能分析,人民政协专门协商机构制度建设的关键领域分别是人民政协政治协商更好纳入国家治理决策过程以及人民政协政治协商有效发挥国家治理共识凝聚功能。     

关于混合性党内法规的理论与实证研究

混合性党内法规能不能作为概念存在?其与党政联合发文是什么关系?它因何"入"规?有没有必要"入"规?这些问题都与当前建立完善的党内法规制度体系、协调党内法规与国家法律关系、推进依规治党等任务密切相关.基于对党政联合发文的实证分析可以得出,区分混合性党内法规和其他党政联合发文,把混合性党内法规纳入党内法规体系,并进一步规范其调整范围、制定实施、备案审查、清理等基本问题,是贯彻落实习近平法治思想,加快建设完备的党内法规制度体系,实现以"良法促进发展,保障善治"的基本条件.为此,还应当结合党内法规的形式和实质特征,合理控制党政联合制定混合性党内法规的数量,并明确混合性党内法规的边界,将其限定在党政机构统筹改革、党的直接管理、党政同责等领域.