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Copyright of Rivista di Criminologia, Vittimologia e Sicurezza is the property of Societa Italiana di Vittimologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper examines the utility of previous attempts to subcategorize child molesters. We argue that research based on these categorizations has resulted in confusion due to differences across studies concerning which offenders belong in each group. For example, there are no agreed-upon guidelines for identifying a child molester as an incest offender or as a ‘stranger’ offender. We examine research findings associated with previous attempts to subcategorize child molesters as well as the literature on modus operandi. From this, we conclude that current attempts to subcategorize child molesters are flawed. We propose that distinguishing child molesters according to new criteria – that is, whether or not they have been previously associated with their victim – should result in more productive research and provide a better guide for treatment and postdischarge supervision. In our terminology, nonaffiliative child molesters are those offenders who are truly strangers to their victims whereas affiliative child molesters are characterized by an established caregiving relationship with the child for some period prior to the offense. These men, unlike nonaffiliative offenders, engage in a protracted grooming process before offending. Finally, we outline research, treatment, and risk-management strategies relevant to each of our subcategories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research conducted on criminal expertise contends that offenders obtain specialist knowledge and skills relevant to their domain, and that the successful execution of knowledge and skills is a function of learning and experience. Some child sexual offenders possess domain-relevant competencies such as in the selection and manipulation of victims, decision-making and problem-solving, and eluding detection; these competencies and areas of skill contribute to their sexual offending. In this paper, we first examine Ward's (1999) original application of the concept of expertise to sexual offenders and briefly overview his theory. Second, Bourke, Ward, and Rose's (2012) empirical investigation of Ward's theory with sexual offenders is reviewed and the resulting expertise model is described in detail. Third, theory and research on self-regulation patterns and modus operandi in child sexual offenders are reviewed and its links with expertise are highlighted. Finally, the practice implications of an expertise perspective are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The modus operandi is connected with the characteristics of the perpetrator of the crime; therefore it is a mean which through its analyses gives information that can be used to build a profile of the possible perpetrator of the crime. The XX and the beginning of the XXI century are marked by the many attempts to get to the real meaning and content of the phenomenon of trafficking in human beings. Called modern slavery, existing through the years, it has been adjusting its characteristics on the society's conditions, and its criminal process on the field conditions. The paper is directed to explain the process of trafficking in human beings using a review of its three phases, and afterwards building a framework of the possible modus operandi of the organized crime groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Romanian Journal of Forensic Science is the property of Romanian Forensic Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to tease out the real value-adding contributions university-based business schools can make to the business community and to society at large without compromising in any way its own ethos of academic rigour and scholarship in seeking knowledge and understanding for its own sake. Design/methodology/approach – This is a discursive discussion piece that excavates and examines the philosophical and historical underpinnings of universities as places of “higher” learning with a view to interrogating and clarifying the unique role university business schools can play in straddling the university/industry nexus. It draws from the author's extensive hands-on experiences in business, from the author's philosophical interests honed in academia, and from the author's wide-ranging experiences of being involved in bespoke executive education provision for senior business practitioners in large multinational corporations. Findings – The paper concludes with the view that paradoxically, university-based business schools must resist the temptation to capitulate to the demands to teach only what appears immediately “relevant” to the business world in order to be actually useful to business. Instead, they must rigourously seek to expand horizons of comprehension amongst students and business executives through the process of relevating the seemingly irrelevant. This way they can genuinely help prepare students and business executives for the challenges and exigencies of a dynamic and fast-changing world. Research limitations/implications – The paper points to a need for reframing and refocusing the aims and agenda of management education such that greater pedagogical priority is placed on refining perceptual sensibilities and expanding horizons of comprehension over that of content-knowledge dissemination. Practical implications – Business schools will have to revise their curriculum from a conventional emphasis on teaching functional business disciplines to include drawing from the wider humanities fields of study in order to emphasize the cultivation of aesthetic sensibilities and a deeper awareness of underlying global trends, patterns of relationships and social forces shaping business priorities and perceptions. Social implications – An enhanced sensitivity and awareness of the interrelatedness of socio-political, cultural and economic contexts, and managerial situations leads to more effective executive decision making that is economically sustainable, ethically informed and more attuned to the collective common good. Originality/value – There has been much debate surrounding the rigour/relevance issue within business schools. This paper shows that this false distinction is created by an insufficient examination of the underlying commonality mutually shared by both the very best of rigourous scholarship and the very best of business practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Few empirical studies have been conducted that examine the phenomenon of sexual homicide, and among these studies, many have been limited by small sample size. Although interesting and informative, these studies may not be representative of the greater phenomenon of sexual murder and may be subject to sampling bias that could have significant effects on results. The current study aims to provide a descriptive analysis of the largest sample of sexual homicide cases across Canada in the past 62 years. In doing so, the study aims to examine offender and victim characteristics, victim targeting and access, and modus operandi. Findings show that cases of sexual homicide and sexual murderers included in the current study differ in many aspects from the portrait of the sexual murderer and his or her crime depicted in previous studies. The authors’ results may prove useful to the police officers responsible for the investigation of these crimes. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The investigation of the crime scene plays an important role in discovering and sampling the proofs. The crime scene is considered to be the most important place in a penal investigation, as this is the place where the prints of the criminals and of the victims are to be found: visible, hidden, placed deliberately or by negligence or ignorance. The article under discussion will focus on the static and dynamic stages carried on in the investigation of the crime scene and will analyze the modalities and the operating systems used by the drugs traffickers. Such an investigation presumes that the penal legal authorities should have been informed that a penal deed had been committed by petition or denunciation, as provided by article 221 of the Penal Code, or to take its own self notice/ decision when finding out - no matter how - that such an offence has taken place and conclude a written report. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Car thieves and criminal activities are epidemics in the whole world. He is guilty for economical losses which affect the life general quality in the society. Vehicle theft is more than a crime which gives you bad time or the simple theft of a piece of a car. I tried to study this problem and to present here the real impact which induce victimization of a modern and flier society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deception is often associated with economic gain and white-collar crime. But studying deception highlights the need for criminologists and practitioners to move beyond legal definitions and conviction rates when attempting to achieve depth in understanding criminality, its motivations and possible specialisms. Further, to explore the complexity of deception requires recognition of the range of skills inherent in this modus operandi, which is better recognised as a potentially-criminal tool found in much criminal behaviour. Theories that attempt to explain specialisation need to move on from a focus on crimes committed and give appropriate attention to skills employed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paragraph (1) of Article 2506 of the Civil Code provides that "limitation does not operate automatically". The author considers this wording not only useless but also contrary to the reality. He supports his view by emphasizing that the doctrinal thesis underlying its preparation is inaccurate and also that paragraph (1) of Article 2506 of the Civil Code contravenes certain preceding or subsequent legal provisions. In conclusion, the author believes that limitation effect occurs automatically and removing civil liability, which is a consequence of this effect, operates only at the request of those entitled to invoke limitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It took Norwegian police 32 years to capture the Pocket Man who was responsible for more than 100 sexual abuses over that same time period. This article presents a study of the police investigations of the abuses by applying the value shop configuration. Primary activities in the value shop are (i) problem definition; (ii) investigation steps; (iii) investigation decision; (iv) investigation implementation; and (v) police performance evaluation. As discussed in this article, each value shop activity had serious deficiencies in the investigations of Pocket Man cases. The police investigation is evaluated based on modus operandi and signature as well as crime mapping using geographical information systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This comprehensive overview on a sample of 65 cases (134 total offenders, including some partnered teams of more than 2 offenders) provides information on female serial murderers who either work in a mixed-sex offending group or alone. These female serial homicide offenders have a distinct set of offender—victim characteristics, including specific victim preferences, methods, and motivations: Partnered serial homicide offenders are more likely to target adult strangers and despatch them using a combination of methods, whereas solo female serial murderers are most likely to target adult family members and murder them with poison. These patterns have the potential to add to our understanding of the possible similarities and differences of serial homicide cases by building on established offender characteristics. Convictions and sentences for the offenders are included and areas of future research and implications for treatment with this sample are also explored. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

For any police investigator, establishing the correct time and place of a crime can prove ti be crucial for a good start of the investigation. First of all, the right place gives the biggest amount of clues and samples to be collected, while the correct time offers hints regarding the amount of time between the comittence of the crime and the presence of the investigator at the crime scene. This article is concentrating on thefts from vehicles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: After presenting the rationale behind behavioural analysis of sexual crimes beyond the family circle (Ann Med Psychol 2008;166:552–7), the authors have adapted and automated this test to the working practices of the Department of Behavioural Sciences of the French Gendarmerie. The missions of the latter encompass author profiling and criminal case comparisons. This new search tool, aka PRACTIS, is based on the fundamental components of violent crimes as well as the reconstruction of events. It enables the scientific quantitative and qualitative analysis of sexual assaults beyond the family circle, whether these are committed by a single offender or different ones. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article presents information on the career developments of researcher Audrey L. Holland. It informs that Holland has measured the conceptual standards including behaviorism, functionalism, and cognitive neuropathology. It mentions that Holland has contributed to the bring a social change in the society. It states that Holland has contributed to the functional communications. It is also stated that the modus operandi is useful in the clinical research.

The use of self-protection strategies and related situation in rape has been studied by several scholars. The circumstances in which children are more likely to resist sexual victimization have, however, not been studied. This study examines the association between offence-related factors-specifically, the preoffence situation, the modus operandi strategies adopted by offenders, and victim characteristics-and victim resistance in sexual offences against children. The sample consisted of 94 adult offenders convicted of having committed a sexual offence against a child (or adolescent) of 16 years of age or younger and who agreed to provide confidential self-report data concerning their offending behavior and victim resistance actions. Victim resistance strategies were regrouped into three categories, namely, physical resistance, forceful verbal resistance, and nonforceful verbal resistance. The total number of resistance strategies was also used in the analyses. Overall, the age of the victim was found to be related to nonforceful verbal resistance, and violence was related to all forms of resistance. Younger girls were found to be more likely to employ nonforceful verbal resistance than older girls and to use a greater number of strategies as well. To provide reliable knowledge to build on for reducing the risk of child sexual abuse, this study suggests the need for prevention programs to include empirical findings regarding the circumstances in which children are more likely to resist sexual victimization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growing need to prepare American students with a global perspective and promote mutual understanding, has urged several colleges and universities across U.S to send their graduate and undergraduate students to nontraditional destinations with particular emphasis on developing countries such as Africa, Asia, South America or India to study or student teach. This paper reports descriptive data yielded through hermeneutic phenomenological methodology; the meaning of student teaching and how it was experienced by 14 student teachers from a teacher education and professional development program at a public university in Midwestern United States. Descriptive data yielded multiple meanings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Criminological research has shown the relevance of examining offender–victim interaction and related factors to understand crime event outcomes. In sexual offenses against children, an obvious lack of knowledge exists regarding this issue. From a criminological perspective, we seek to improve our understanding of the offender–victim interaction in sexual offenses against children and, in particular, what factors might increase the risk of a more intrusive offense. We argue that modus operandi strategies play a central role in crime event outcomes and examine this hypothesis with data obtained from a semistructured interview conducted with offenders. As expected, modus operandi was found to have a strong effect on crime event outcomes, especially victim participation during sexual episodes. Victim effects also emerged from the analyses. Specifically, a strong interaction effect between age and gender of the victim was found for victim participation, which suggests that as the victim gets older, offenders are more likely to make their victim participate in sexual episodes when abusing a male victim but are less likely to do so when abusing a female victim. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The purpose of this article is to review the theoretical, empirical, and practical implications related to the modus operandi of sexual offenders against children. First, the rational choice perspective in criminology is presented. Second, descriptive studies aimed specifically at providing information on modus operandi of sexual offenders against children are also presented. This is followed by research that investigates the links between the modus operandi of sexual offenders against children and various factors such as victim characteristics. Third, offenders'' treatment, as well as situational crime prevention implications in regards to modus operandi, is discussed in order to highlight their respective potential for the prevention of child sexual abuse. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The statistically positive correlation between severe mental disorders and physical violence has now been firmly established by international studies. In Europe, about 10% of homicides are committed by psychotic patients who may re-offend. Three medicolegal observations of homicides with bodily mutilation are presented. The first concerns a 31-year-old schizophrenic man who killed a passer-by in the street when in a state of paranoid delusion with themes of homosexual rape and persecution. The crime was committed in two separate phases: first, emotional violence and then, a few hours later, operational utilitarian violence with amputation of the victim''s hands. The second case concerns a 21-year-old man suffering from paranoid schizophrenia associated with an antisocial personality disorder. During the night, he assassinated two women who worked in a psychiatric unit, one of whom was decapitated while still alive. Although living freely in the community, the patient acted with premeditation and method under the influence of ideas of persecution and cosmic supernatural terror. The third case concerns a 30-year-old man who had been forcibly hospitalized in a psychiatric unit for delusional disorder of persecution with paranoiac personality disorder. During a period of weekend leave, he killed his own mother in the family home in a totally disorganized emotional moment of acting out, then cut off her leg and threw it out of the window. Six years beforehand, he had already killed a prison inmate who was sharing his cell. In the first two cases, the patients’ behavior was partially or totally organized despite delusional motives of paranoid type. In the light of these three dramas and a litterature review, the main psychopathological predictors of physical violence committed by psychotic patients are discussed: severe psychotic episode, persecutory delusional beliefs, comorbidity with substance abuse (alcohol, cannabis) and personality disorders, little or no antipsychotic treatment, and poor therapeutic compliance. In France, it appears mandatory to apply a rigorous procedure for evaluating the dangerousness of severe mental patients and violent criminals. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Residential location of a criminal can be predicted statistically [M. Laukkanen, P. Santtila, Predicting the home location of a serial commercial robber, Forensic Sci. Int. 157 (2006) 71–82]. Examined were: accuracy of the technique for urban burglary series, correlations between way of committing burglary and distance and use of those correlations in enhancing prediction accuracy. Data: 78 residential burglary series from Greater Helsinki area, Finland. Series for which the home location prediction was made was never part of the predicting model. Distances between home and crime-site were short (Mdn 3.88km; IQR=1.16–10.10km). Search area of a perpetrator could be limited to 1.95% (Mdn, IQR=0.64–18.70%) of the total study area. For series which conformed to Circle Hypothesis (45%), search area was 0.84% (Mdn, IQR=0.51–2.34%). Correlations between crime features and distance were found to enhance accuracy when features of series hinted short distance: sub-model limited search area to 0.19% (Mdn, IQR = 0.07–0.65%). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The relationship between situational factors and the modus operandi of 103 adolescents involved in sexual offenses against children (12 years old or younger) is analyzed. Situational factors taken into account in this study are the location of the crime, the offender—victim relationship, and the presence of deviant sexual fantasies involving the victim prior to the offense. Modus operandi strategies were measured on the basis of participants' responses to Kaufman's Modus Operandi Questionnaire. Results indicate that modus operandi strategies are influenced by situational factors and that the offender's home, when no one else is home, is likely to be the place and the situation for adolescent offenders to adopt manipulative strategies. Suggestions are made regarding future modus operandi studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the crimes and travels of 22 American, 4 European, and 1 Chinese serial killers employed as regional or long-distance truck drivers. The subjects selected were obtained through various database searches that included LexisNexis(r), Google(r) and the National Newspaper Index(r). The article provides an overview of the offenders, victims, geographic locations, modus operandi, and offender variables. Additionally, the article presents a set of strategies that might be implemented by the trucking industry and law enforcement to prevent or reduce the occurrence of these offenses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the modus operandi of 103 adolescents involved in sexual offenses against children (12 year old or less) is analyzed. Modus operandi strategies were measured by the participants' responses to the Modus Operandi Questionnaire. Findings indicate that the degree of intrusiveness of the sexual behaviors committed by the adolescents is contingent on the participation of their victims during the sexual episodes. Moreover, the more strategic adolescents may be more likely to secure compliance. This study shows the relevance of analyzing adolescent modus operandi as purposeful behavior and discusses some implications of the findings for crime-commission or offending process models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The analysis of violent crime could be performed through six fundamental criteria which are violence, emotion, crime-process, sexual-aspect, relationship and circumstances. Each of these components includes several items such as the offender''s affect, the characteristics of the context, the crime itself and the global modus operandi. The main items of theses components are different, depending on the three following steps: Before, during and after the crime. The Behavioural Analysis Unit of the French Gendarmerie Nationale is currently carrying out an experiment on an original criminal profiling method, embracing all these items. Moreover, if the offender''s identity is discovered and if he''s arrested, this new tool, equally used for behaviour, crime and crime scene analysis, is dedicated to help psychiatrists determining the offender''s mental state during his crime process. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This descriptive and analytic study concerns 12 men who committed homicide recidivism and were under compulsion admitted to the maximum-security hospital for insane in Cadillac, near Bordeaux, between 1st January 1990 and 1st January 2005. These patients murdered 17 victims at their first crimes and 18 during the following homicides. There are 6 cases of schizophrenia (50%) usually of paranoid type, 2 cases of persistent delusional disorder (17%), 2 cases of moderate mental retardation (17%), respectively one case of schizo-affective disorder and of pervasive developmental disorder (8%). Mean age for the first crime is 28,2 years (SD 9,8; range 14–42) and 37,8 years for the second (SD 12; range 23–64). Mean interval between criminal events (2 to 5 homicides by patient) is 8,9 years (SD 8,6; range 0–28). Most of the 35 victims are not family relatives (83%) but the murderer knew them before (74%). One third of homicide recidivism occurs against another patient during hospitalisation (4 cases) or against another prisoner in jail (2 cases). The act of homicide often seems to be impulsive and very violent. The weapon used is frequently the one that just comes to hand at the time. Criminal background and acts of violence linked to murders, especially assault and battery (75%) and attempted murder (50%), are frequent in lifetime. Three patients have committed at least one attempted murder before the first homicide. Clinician and expert knowledge of previous psychiatric, legal and violent criminal history of these patients is essential in prevention of recidivism. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The aim of this study was to provide the first empirical description of the modus operandi of sexual offenders working or doing voluntary work with children and adolescents across all aspects of offender–victim interactions. The modus operandi was studied along the offence continuum, which included strategies used for gaining the victim's trust, getting the victim to participate in sexual activity and keeping the victim from telling someone about the sexual contact. Twenty-three offenders agreed to participate in this study. They were recruited from prisons, probation and parole services, penitentiaries and treatment programs. Three sources of information were used. The most important source was the Modus Operandi Questionnaire (MOQ) developed by Kaufman. Data were also obtained from semi-structured interviews conducted with the offenders and from official sources, such as police reports and victim statements. Our results suggest that the modus operandi of these sexual offenders depended on their position of trust in relation to their victim. In fact, they used non-coercive strategies to achieve victim compliance. Implications for prevention strategies are also highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using techniques developed in the field of epidemiology, recent research conducted in both the UK (Johnson and Bowers 2004) and Australia (Townsley et al. 2003) demonstrates that the risk of victimisation can be treated as communicable. That is, following a burglary at one home the risk of burglary at nearby homes is amplified. This heightened risk endures for a shot period of time, typically one month. The pattern has been labelled the `near repeat' phenomenon, and the results have clear implications for crime prevention and for the prediction of future patterns of crime. One question that has remained unanswered concerns the similarity of the Modus Operandi (MO) used in near repeat events. If similar this may suggest a common offender across a crime series. It may also allow us to increase the accuracy of attempts to predict how, as well as when and where, crime will be committed. In this paper, we compare the similarity of the MOs of near repeat and unrelated burglary events, and demonstrate that for the farmer the configuration of `the means of entry' and `point of entry' are significantly more congruent than for the latter. The implications of the results are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prehistoric images are particularly versatile and difficult to grasp. In a few cases of historical continuity, local cultural glosses provide researchers with a rich corpus of data and help in the interpretation of the imagery. Such approaches contribute to the interpretation of the material in a “frozen time” perspective. Their impact on the development of archaeological methodologies enabling researchers to deal with strictly prehistoric image making traditions without any known descendant communities remains to be felt. This paper is an attempt to develop a subtle and robust archaeological methodology for the study of prehistoric images. The suggested approaches are replicable, and conclusions are falsifiable. Les images préhistoriques sont particulièrement versatiles, et leur sens difficile à cerner en raison de leur polysémie. Dans une poignée de cas, là ou il y a continuité historique, les chercheurs ont reussi à constituer une riche documentation sur les pratiques culturelles liées à l'utilisation des images. Ils/elles parviennent ainsi à des niveaux d'interpretation très detaillée, dans une conception paradoxalement réifiée des sociétés en question, conservant des pratiques culturelles inchangées pendant des millénaires. L'impact de telles approches sur l'élaboration de bonnes méthodes archéologique est négligeable. Dans la plupart des cas, les images et les vestiges matériels sont le uniques témoins des sociétés préhistoriques étudiées. Cet article s'efforce de developper des méthodes, à la fois subtiles et robustes, permettant une analyse systématique des images préhistoriques. Les méthodes proposées sont réplicables, et les conclusions refutables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Fetal abduction by maternal evisceration (FAMAE) cases are statistically rare but warrant closer scrutiny as planned homicides. This study reports lessons regarding abductor modus operandi, motivation, intent, planning, and the dynamics in the attack to inform public safety.Methods: The fifteen FAMAE cases reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children from 1987 to 2011 were reviewed. Court documents for the cases were retrieved, and investigators and attorneys were called to verify information where necessary.Results: All abductors were female, between 19 and 40 years of age. Seven stages of the structure of the crime were identified: targeting and making contact with a pregnant woman, securing weapons, determining the location, subduing the mother, securing the newborn, disposing of the victim mother's body, and informing others that they birthed a child.Conclusion: The case histories analyzed demonstrate how FAMAE perpetrators target an unsuspecting pregnant woman, and entrap and murder her in the service of fetal kidnapping. Awareness of FAMAE promotes public safety from those who would do anything to claim they have borne a child. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]