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Labelled 'the shadow pandemic' by UN Women, violence against women received considerable global public attention during 2020–21. Underpinning this moment of public concern, there lies a substantial history of efforts to document the nature of, and campaign against, the extent of violence against women globally. This is also the case in relation to femicide. Whilst we recognise that this is a contested term, for the purposes of this paper we use femicide to refer to the killing of women and girls because they are female by male violence. Femicide, as a death to be specifically counted in law only exists in a small number of jurisdictions. Where it is so recognised, primarily in South American countries as feminicidio, such deaths represent only the tip of the iceberg of such killings globally. This paper, in drawing on empirical data from a range of different sources (including administrative data, media analysis, and Femicide Observatory data) gathered throughout 2020, considers: what it means to call a death femicide, what implications might follow if all the deaths of women at the hands of men were counted as femicide, and the extent to which extraordinary times have any bearing on this kind of ordinary death. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past four decades, hundreds of studies have examined the presence of racial disparities in criminal punishment. The bulk of this research has been conducted in the United States and a few other western democracies, with limited research assessing the presence of racial disparities in criminal sentencing for homicides in South America. Using information gathered via original data collection on homicide cases from five different capital cities in Brazil, the current study examines two criminal court outcomes: whether a defendant was convicted and the length of sentence. Findings reveal the absence of racial disparities in conviction decisions, even though Black and Brown defendants received longer sentence lengths. Supplementary analyses show racial disparities in sentence length are most pronounced when the homicide victim was White. Implications for studying court outcomes in international contexts are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to analyse how novel homicide defences predicated on contemporary neuroscience align with legal insanity. Design/methodology/approach: Doctrinal analysis, systematic investigation of relevant statutes and cases, was used to elucidate how the law of insanity is evolving. Cases represent the first recorded instance of a particular neuroscientific defence. US appellate cases were categorised according to the mechanism of action of neurotransmitter relied upon in court. A case study approach was also used to provide a contextualised understanding of the case outcome in depth. Findings: Findings broadly depict how the employment of expert testimony runs parallel with our contemporary understanding of key neurotransmitters and their function in human behaviour. Generally, medico-legal evidence concerning neuromodulating agents and violent behaviour was inconclusive. However, the outcome of defence strategy may depend on the underlying neurotransmitter involved. Practical implications: This study shows that as more discoveries are made about the neurobiological underpinnings of human behaviour; this new knowledge will continue to seep into the US court system as innovative defence strategies with varying success. Medical and legal practitioners may gauge the success of a defence depending on the neuromodulating agent. Originality/value: Many scholars have focused on the role of neuroimaging as neuroscientific evidence and how it is used is shaping US criminal jurisprudence. To the best of the author's knowledge, no study has incorporated the true origin of neuroscientific evidence as being underpinned by the understanding of neurotransmitters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article considers legal responses to intimate partner femicide in Scotland. It reflects on how the plea of provocation on the basis of infidelity has been used, pointing to misrepresentation of the relationship between domestic abuse and stalking. From there, findings from 57 intimate partner femicide cases are presented. These findings indicate problematic stereotypes in how intimate partner femicide cases are reported and the operation of the "love narrative" in sentencing. It is concluded that more must be done to label intimate partner femicide cases appropriately and that improvements are achievable within the current criminal justice framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Expert testimony on "Intimate Partner Battering and its Effects" (IPBE) and "Battered Woman Syndrome" (BWS) is offered in courtrooms to assist the factfinder in making more informed decisions in cases involving battered women defendants. Such testimony situates a battered woman's behavior in the context, thereby making sense of behavior that might appear dysfunctional, inappropriate, culpable, or otherwise impossible to understand from an objective frame of reference. Expert participation in battered women's criminal cases can be influential at many junctures in the case. This paper explores potential roles for expert consultation. such as educating prosecutors and defense attorneys, potentially influencing charging/plea decisions. Forensic evaluation reports document a battered woman's history and responses to IPV that can be relied upon by defense attorneys to develop more effective legal defense strategies pertinent to IPV history. Experts may assist in jury selection and provide general or case-specific testimony that may provide an alternative framework within which a defendant's thoughts, actions, and behaviors can be more appropriately understood within the context of intimate partner battering. At the post-trial stage, experts may assist in sentencing, state and federal post-conviction proceedings, clemency, probation, and parole proceedings. Post-conviction and habeas corpus claims often relate to expert testimony that was either not offered at trial in a battered woman's first trial, or excluded by a judge. In those cases, an expert may assist by preparing a declaration in support of a habeas corpus petition and/or testifying at any subsequent hearing to explain the myriad ways in which expert participation might have led to a more lenient outcome in the original trial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the standard of proof for unlawful killing in coronial proceedings. Historically, the criminal standard of proof governed inquest findings of unlawful killing. In R (Maughan) v Her Majesty's Senior Coroner for Oxfordshire, the Supreme Court resolved the important question of whether the criminal or civil standard governed inquest conclusions of unlawful killing. The court concluded that the correct standard of proof for all conclusions in coronial proceedings is the balance of probabilities. This article argues that whilst preserving differing standards of proof in coronial proceedings was no longer defensible and Maughan has provided welcome clarity, unanswered questions remain concerning the implementation of this fundamental change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Case files can show how aggressors use different explanations to reduce the seriousness of their crime. We aimed to identify and categorize a 2016 Brazilian case file from a perpetrator of femicide, based on moral disengagement theory. Content analysis yielded 47 verbalized excerpts, with 70 disengagement occurrences. The most frequently used mechanisms throughout the aggressor's speeches consisted of moral justification and blaming the victim herself. Results indicated that he reduced the seriousness of the femicide and sought reduction of the consequences. We discuss how speeches in criminal cases can serve as a secondary source for producing data on violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although some existing indices quantified the mixture strength of state gun laws, methodological supports are still lacking. The study aimed to build a new state gun law strength (GLS) index, evaluate the contribution of all state gun laws to the new index, and assess the association between the new index and firearm homicide mortality. This is a population-based ecological study. We condensed 134 state gun laws into a mixture GLS index at the state level to quantify each state's overall GLS by using the weighted quantile sum regression in each year from 1999 to 2018. The weights of state gun laws in the GLS index revealed their influence on GLS. The model also estimated the association between the GLS index and state-level firearm homicide mortality. From 1999 to 2018, 15 of 134 (11.19%) state gun laws significantly contributed to the GLS index for firearm homicide every year, five of which related to the minimum age of possessing firearms. The most influential gun law was "no possession of handguns until age 21." The GLS index was significantly and negatively associated with firearm homicide mortality; however, the association gradually diminished over time. The GLS index has methodological support and can take different gun violence outcomes into account. Future research can adopt the GLS index to conduct additional gun violence research or apply the modeling approach to build new GLS indexes for other gun violence outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Domestic Homicide Reviews (DHRs) are a statutory requirement in England and Wales, conducted when somebody aged 16 and over dies from violence, abuse or neglect by a relative, intimate partner or member of the same household. While key aims of DHRs are to identify recommendations and lessons learned to eventually prevent further domestic homicides, there is limited evidence globally regarding the extent to which these are followed up or make a difference. This paper explores the barriers and facilitators to the conduct and impact of DHRs to enhance their learning potential. It is based on nineteen qualitative interviews with professionals involved in the DHR process across five Safeguarding Boards in Wales and fourteen Community Safety Partnerships in the North‐West of England, UK. Findings are presented thematically under four section headings: upskilling and democratising the review process; family and friends' involvement; negotiating organisational blame to foster learning; and actioning and auditing recommendations. It is suggested that organisational learning cannot be achieved without accepting organisational responsibility, which could be interpreted as blame. The role and skills of the Chair are perceived as key to ensure a safe, evidence‐based, transparent and learning‐focused DHR process. Developing and actioning recommendations may challenge longstanding prejudices. Promoting the role of families/survivor networks and professionals on an equal footing would support a more democratic process. Learning could be enhanced by thematising recommendations and proactively using lessons from one area to inform another. Participants called for appropriate central regulation and accountability to support the action of recommendations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ever since Ruschenbusch published his seminal study of the laws of Solon, the near universal assumption in scholarship has been that the Solonian 'amnesty law', quoted by Plutarch, is a genuine document. Yet, scholars have found no convincing route around the problem identified by Plutarch, that the law as cited cannot combine with the silence of Draco about the Areopagus. This paper argues that the text which Plutarch quoted at Sol. 19.3, Solon's 'amnesty law', was authentic, but for none of the reasons conventionally given. A fresh consideration of the law on homicide will lead to the conclusion that its original purpose was to limit the power of the magistrate to inflict punishment, and to protect the rights of the killer by taking account of extenuating circumstances such as involuntary or lawful killing. Draco did not need to refer to the Areopagus because, by unwritten tradition, this was the court before which all homicide cases had previously been tried, without possibility of appeal. The first written law on homicide transferred jurisdiction from the Areopagus to other courts in the event of extenuating circumstances, such as justifiable or involuntary killing, which explains Draco's silence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When women are killed, they are more likely to be killed by an intimate partner than anyone else, and a substantial number of women who are killed by an intimate were abused by that intimate partner before their death. The proportion of men killed by an intimate partner is much lower and prior research indicates that male intimate partner homicide victims are likely to abuse their partners prior to their deaths. However, limited research has examined the criminal and civil justice help seeking of intimate partner homicide victims. This study examines administrative data from one large urban police jurisdiction to understand rates of help seeking by homicide victims in the 1 to 3 years prior to the homicide. Over 4 years (2010-2014), 197 women and 776 men were killed. The proportion of women killed by an intimate or ex-intimate partner was 39.6%, and the proportion of men killed by an intimate or ex-intimate partner was 3.9%. Police had been in contact with the victim of intimate partner femicides for a domestic violence complaint in 91% of cases in the 3 years prior to the femicide (44.9% resulted in arrest), with an average of 6.2 visits per contacted victim. Among male intimate partner homicide victims, 73.3% had been the complainant on a domestic violence case (38.1% resulted in arrest). Few (<10%) victims sought protection orders before the homicide. Over the 3 years prior to their deaths, 36.7% of male homicide victims and 9.0% of femicide victims had been the suspect in a domestic violence case. Results indicate high rates of engagement of police officers with intimate partner homicide victims before their deaths, and highlight the opportunity for homicide prevention through integration of risk assessment (to identify high-risk cases) and enhanced criminal justice and social service interventions in high-risk cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To determine differences among intimate partner homicides (IPH) by whether or not a firearm was used in and whether a protective order (PO) was filed prior to IPH. We identified all incidents of IPH recorded in the National Violent Death Reporting System from 2003 to 2018, based on the relationship between victim and perpetrator. We characterized incidents, perpetrators and victims in IPH cases by whether or not a firearm was used, and whether a PO had been sought or issued prior to the IPH. We identified 8375 IPH incidents with a total of 9130 victims. Overall 306 (3.3%) victims were killed in a firearm IPH with PO, 4519 (53.9%) in a firearm IPH without PO, 176 (2.1%) in a non-firearm IPH with PO and 3416 (40.7%) in a non-firearm IPH without PO. Based on review of incident narratives, 5.4% (n = 451) of incidents involved a previously-granted or sought PO, and none of which had explicitly mentioned firearm removal as a part of the PO. The majority of victims were killed with a firearm. Prior literature suggests that POs with firearm removal may be effective strategies for reducing risk of IPH, but we found no documentation in the narratives that firearm removal was a condition in the POs identified. As very few IPH narratives included documentation of a PO, it is likely that ascertainment of PO status is incomplete and could be an area for improvement in NVDRS data collection efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A dozen systematic reviews published since 1978 have sought to clarify the complexities of deterrence theory. These reviews emphasize the general deterrent effects of police presence, arrest, and incarceration on rates of homicide and other serious crimes, such as assault, rape, and burglary. These reviews provide less attention to specific deterrence processes and to the deterrent impacts of intermediate sanctions, such as prosecution or conviction; none of these reviews incorporate any of the research on criminal sanctions for intimate partner violence. To address these limitations, this research uses meta-analytic methods to assess the specific deterrent effects of three post-arrest criminal sanctions--prosecution, conviction, and incarceration--for one offense type--intimate partner violence. Based upon 57 studies that reported 237 tests of specific deterrence theory, the effects of sanctions varied: there is a marginal deterrent effect for prosecution, no effect for conviction, and a large escalation effect among incarcerated offenders. In addition, deterrent effects in the available research are stronger in tests that use more rigorous research designs, that measure repeat offending using victim interviews instead of official records, and that use new offenses against the same victim--not new arrests or new convictions against any victim--as the criteria for repeat offending. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The killing of a family member, when the offenders believe that the victim's activities have resulted in immense dishonor to the family or community is called honor killing or shame killing. The absence of systematic data collection in most countries has resulted in lack of clarity on the judicial approach and its consequences, with many of the killings being reported falsely as suicides or accidental deaths by the families. Honor killings are prevalent all over the world, with the majority of them happening in the Asian countries, closely followed by the Middle East and South Asia regions. This review article attempts to analyze the present legal status of honor killing in the country of India, predominantly in the southern states. The sensational killing of a Dalit youth, Gokulraj in 2015 found in the company of a girl belonging to the Gounder community at a temple in Tiruchengode, sent shock waves across the state. Another prominent case occurred in the state of Tamil Nadu, where the marriage of Ilavarasan - a Dalit youth from Dharmapuri to a Vanniyar girl from Sellangottai, evoked deep conflicts in 2013, that lead to the former's body lying on a railway track. With the ideals of 'honor' and 'disgrace' being deeply rooted in the Indian mindset, the laws alone will not suffice to curb such forms of violence and it has to be addressed as a sociological issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two men--we 7/ call them John and Will--share an apartment. Unfortunately, both men are addicted to heroin. The men are struggling to get by. Neither one o f them would consider themselves "drug dealers, " but both have made minor sales here and there to help support their drug habit, and both have had their share o f run-ins with the law. One evening, John tells Will he is going to pick up some heroin, and John asks Will if he wants any. Will decides to chip in; he gives some money to John. John takes the money, pools it with his own, and travels across town to his dealer. He picks up the drugs, travels back to the apartment, and hands Will his share of the drugs. Tragically, Will overdoses, and cannot be revived. Do John's actions constitute murder? Or perhaps the better question--should John's actions be prosecuted as murder? North Carolina, along with the rest o f the nation, is facing an opioid crisis. Policymakers and law enforcement are scrambling to find a solution. Holding dealers of illegal drugs responsible for the deaths of overdose victims has been one of North Carolina's answers--this Comment analyzes North Carolina's Drug-Induced Homicide laws. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In response to the opioid crisis gripping our country, numerous states have been pursuing charges against drug dealers in situations where someone has overdosed on the drugs they received. Not only are prosecutors looking to press drug charges against these dealers, but surprisingly to most people, these prosecutors are looking to hold them responsible for murder. Whether by advancing new state legislation or reviving existing state statutes, prosecutors in at least twelve states are pursing these charges, as is the federal government under the Controlled Substances Act. Rather than offering any sort of deterrence effects, these homicide statutes are inappropriately holding drug dealers strictly liable for homicide due to the lack of a mens rea requirement in the statute. They are turning drug dealers, who are many times interchangeable with users, into murderers and leaving them with lengthy prison sentences. When one dealer becomes incarcerated, another one takes his place to keep up with the demand. As a result, the number of overdoses is not decreasing, and these statutes are not doing what the legislatures intended them to do. Rather, they are needlessly punitive in nature for everyone involved. These statutes should be either repealed or completely revamped to incorporate some form of an intent requirement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Murders committed by juveniles have been a major concern in the USA for more than 40 years. Due to decisions in the 21st century by the United States Supreme Court, the likelihood of juvenile homicide offenders being sentenced to life without parole (LWOP) is less than in past decades. In addition, hundreds of individuals in prison who were sentenced to LWOP under mandatory sentencing statutes or their equivalent as juveniles for murder are now eligible for resentencing and may be released. Given these changes in sentencing policies and practices, follow-up research on juveniles involved in murder is needed. This study is a 35-year follow-up study of 59 boys who were convicted of murder and sentenced to adult prisons in a southeastern state, and initially interviewed in the early 1980s. Twenty-two of these men agreed to participate in clinical interviews about their experiences in prison and upon return to the community if released. The experiences in prison are highlighted for all men. Thereafter, attention focuses on the 19 juvenile homicide offenders who have been released. Of these 19 men, 11 were classified as failures given that they were sent back to prison at least once. Length of time served and completion of GED were the best predictors of post-release success. Clinical observations, implications of the findings, limitations of the study, and directions for future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study investigated whether different types of sexual homicide perpetrators are more or less skilled at delaying detection. A newly proposed direct/indirect typology was used alongside information about the time of arrest, the frequency of specific precautions as well as the impact of forensic strategies used by the perpetrators to examine skill at delaying detection. The results indicated that the time from the killing to the arrest, as measured in days, was longer for the direct than the indirect sexual killers. Despite the fact that the direct aggressors were better at delaying detection, overall the indirect and the direct offenders did not differ in the frequency of use of most of the precautions. However, different forensic awareness strategies were more efficacious for the direct and the indirect offenders. These results are discussed in relation to the crime scripts for the two perpetrator groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contrary to popular misconceptions, offenders who kill sex workers as part of their series exhibit substantial variability in their victim selection and behavioral patterns, thus creating additional issues for the investigation of these crimes. This article first aims to outline differences in the demographics of crime scene actions present in homicide series with exclusively sex worker victims and series that includes both sex worker and non-sex worker victims, with the aim of understanding the crime scene aetiology of these two different types of series. Second, the research aims to determine between-series differences of victimology as well as crime scene action between sex worker series and mixed-victim series. Third, the research focuses on mixed-victim series and aims to determine the within-series similarities of victimology and crime scene actions, that is, what factors link sex worker victims and non-sex worker victims in the same series. Data were collected through a large-scale review of international media sources to identify solved serial homicide cases that have included at least one sex worker. Of the 83 series looked at, 44 (53%) included sex worker victims only, and 39 (47%) of the series included both sex worker and non-sex worker victims. The findings highlight the challenges that these types of crime present for investigation and the implications they have on current crime analysis research and practice, and results are discussed in line with theoretical and psychological issues relating to understanding differentiation and similarity, as well as investigative implications relating to linkage blindness and linking of serial crimes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To date, systematic studies of sexual homicides from Europe are scarce, in which none have been conducted in Sweden. This study aims to describe male-on-female sexual homicides in Sweden and differentiate from corresponding nonsexual homicides. Unsolved and solved sexual homicide (n = 33) cases were identified in a database containing all homicides in Sweden between 1990 and 2013 (N = 2,126), and subsequently data from forensic psychiatric evaluations were collected for convicted offenders. Male-on-female sexual homicides constituted 1.6% of all homicides and the clearance rate was 82%, which is comparable with the 83% overall clearance rate but took longer time to solve. Three factors differentiated sexual from nonsexual homicides: strangulation, younger age of the victim, and the absence of eyewitnesses. In solved cases, distance from the offender's home to the crime scene was strongly correlated with time to clearance. A majority of the offenders suffered from personality disorders, while other diagnoses were uncommon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sex workers as a group are one of the more common targets in serial homicide, yet the most likely to go unsolved. Part of the reason for this is the difficulty in linking individual crime scenes to a series, especially in those series where offenders not only target sex worker victims but also target non-sex worker victims. Inconsistencies in both victim targeting and behaviors engaged in across series add to the difficulties of linking and solvability in these types of crimes. The current study aimed to add to the current body of literature on serial crime linkage by examining not only the most salient behavioral indicators useful for crime scene classification of serial homicides that involve sex worker victims but also examine the trajectories of behavioral change that can help link apparently inconsistent crime scenes and proposes the new Model for the Analysis of Trajectories and Consistency in Homicide (MATCH). The study examines 83 homicide series, including 44 (53%) series where all victims were sex workers and 39 (47%) series that included a mix of sex workers and non-sex worker victims. Using the MATCH system allowed for the majority of series to be classified to a dominant trajectory pattern, over half as many as a traditional consistency analysis that focusses on behavioral similarity matching. Results further showed that Sex Worker Victim series were almost three times more consistent across their series than Mixed-Victim series, not only in victim selection but also in the overall behavioral patterns. Findings are discussed in line with theoretical and psychological issues relating to understanding the nature of behavioral consistency and the importance of going beyond simple matching toward a model that allows for the identification of consistency in seemingly inconsistent series, as well as investigative implications relating to linking serial crimes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the 1970s, scholars have produced a large body of research attempting to establish the mechanisms by which sexual serial killers come to arrive at a life of repeat fatal violence. From the standpoint of developmental psychology, however, the explanations offered are far too limited in scope. Human development is the product of complex reciprocal transactions that occur between an individual and their environment throughout their life span. This present study is meant to encourage a critical reconsideration of past knowledge (mainly static traits) in favor of the recognition of the complexity of human development. Using life span developmental psychology as a guiding framework, this study traces the developmental mechanisms that come together to shape the psychopathology that drives the motivations of sexual serial killers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sexual homicide of a child is an unusual event, and very few studies have been conducted on the topic. Previous studies have mainly focused on the differences between sexual homicide of child and adult victims. The current study aims to identify a typology of sexual homicide of children based on modus operandi, offenders' and victims' characteristics. Using two-step cluster analysis on a sample of 72 cases of extra familial sexual homicide of children (aged 16 years or below) from France, six clusters have been identified on the basis of eight modus operandi variables: intentional/prepubescent, inadvertent/prepubescent, intentional/preteen, inadvertent/preteen, indiscriminate/teen, and intentional/teen. External validity of the classification was tested using 51 additional variables related to victims, offenders, and other modus operandi characteristics. Findings showed that sexual homicide of children is a heterogeneous phenomenon, largely influenced by the actual age of the victim and the type of violence used. Implications of the findings are discussed considering prevention, criminal investigation, and correctional practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The primary objective of this study was to describe and compare the modus operandi, and associated contextual and situational factors, of French serial sexual murderers (SSMs) and nonserial sexual murderers (NSMs). A further objective was to verify the generalizability of the conclusions of James and Proulx's 2016 systematic review of the modus operandi of sexual murderers, the majority of whom were American or English. Detailed data on the precrime, modus operandi, postcrime, and victimology factors of 120 French sexual murderers (SSMs: n = 33; NSMs: n = 87) were compared. The results suggest that choice-structuring properties that shape the modus operandi of French sexual murderers are similar to those reported by James and Proulx: The modus operandi of French SSMs was shaped by homicidal, sadistic, and rape fantasies, while that of NSMs was shaped by the need to satisfy immediate, especially sexual, needs. However, it should be noted that while the modus operandi of American and English NSMs is primarily shaped by general deviance, that of French NSMs appear be primarily shaped by sexual deviance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sexual child homicides are rare, even among sexual homicides, and no previous study has compared sexual child homicide with nonsexual child homicides. To address this gap in research, this study aims to compare sexual child homicide offenders (n = 8) with two comparison groups: sexual adult homicide offenders (n = 89) and nonsexual child homicide offenders (n = 176) regarding victim, offender, and modus operandi factors. Using bivariate analysis, the results show that although sexual child homicide offenders appear more similar to other sexual homicide offenders than to homicide offenders, sexual offenders targeting children differ from both groups on certain variables. Sexual child homicide offenders more often used strangulation as a method of killing, had intoxicated victims, used multiple locations, and destroyed evidence after the murder. The study concludes that sexual homicide offenders targeting children should be considered distinct from other offenders and that the salient characteristics linked to sadism and instrumentality should be further examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study investigates the question of the specificity of sexual homicide offenders by comparing three types of crimes: sexual homicide, nonsexual homicide, and violent sexual assault. The comparison is based on victim, offender and modus operandi characteristics throughout 102 variables. The sample has been taken from a French national police database including 1,736 cases. Among these cases, there are 463 nonsexual homicides, 173 sexual homicides and 1,100 violent sexual assaults. Bivariate and multivariate analyses are performed to highlight the differences. Major differences are observed between, on one hand, sexual homicides and, on the other hand, nonsexual homicides and violent sexual assaults. These differences focus mainly on the offender and modus operandi characteristics. By analyzing specifically the type of observed differences, this research suggests that the sexual murderer and his crime should be analyzed through the lens of a unique type of crime. Findings present implications in terms of correctional practices, offender treatment, and rehabilitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sexual homicide typically implies a crime involving two people: perpetrator and victim. Thus, multiple-perpetrator and multiple concurrent victim sexual murderers are unusual, empirically invisible due to their exclusion from (or burying within) research samples. The present study examines 21 such cases of male sexual murderers having perpetrated at least one sexual homicide either together with a co-offender or alone but killing two victims at once. The aim was to investigate just how unusual, or not, these cases may be in relation to current scientific understanding of sexual murderers and their crimes. A descriptive analysis of offenses (co-offender and offender-victim dynamics, modus operandi) and offender characteristics is presented. Main findings, that multiple-perpetrator and multiple concurrent victim sexual murderers are not so unusual in that they are well conceptualized through application of the established sexualized, grievance, and rape murderer typology, are discussed in relation to clinical and empirical implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nearly all information available on sexual homicides are limited to studies conducted in the West. Little is known about sexual homicides that occurred in China. The current study is arguably the first to explore the offender, victim, and offense characteristics of Chinese sexual homicides. Over a period of 23 years (1994 to 2016), the data of 59 cases collected from two data sources (i.e., published Chinese case reports and police data) are examined. Findings indicate that heterosexual assaults are far more prevalent in Chinese sexual homicides. Sexual murderers who averagely aged 32.44 years are mostly males (97%), single (67%), secondary school educated (68%), and with no prior overall (80%) and sexual (88%) convictions. The victims are mostly females (83%) with mean age of 35.35 years. The frequently observed offending patterns include strangers as victim choice (63%), con tactics as victim approach method (57%), sexual pleasure as primary motivation (49%), and personal weapons as murder weapon of choice (41%). Vaginal penetration is a commonly observed sexual assault (88%) and victim body mutilation is also not uncommon (47%). Three case examples are also presented to illustrate the diverse nature and offending patterns of Chinese sexual homicide offenders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

States have implemented a variety of legal and policy approaches to address the overdose epidemic. Some approaches, like increasing access to naloxone and connecting overdose survivors with evidence-based treatment, have a strong public health foundation and a compelling evidence base. Others, like increasing reliance on punitive criminal justice approaches, have neither. This article examines law and policy changes that are likely to be effective in reducing overdose-related harm as well as those that are likely to increase it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents addiction-related news briefs on topics including the Thailand government's decision to suspend the nation's medical cannabis cultivation licencing application and approval process due to concerns about potential monopolization by international companies. It states that the global use of the death penalty for drug crimes declined by 68 percent between 2017 and 2018. Virginia's drug-induced homicide legislative bill is assessed.

The discipline of forensic odontology is at a crossroads with the application of bitemark evidence in the court of law. In the last decade, the increase in the number of cases in which bitemarks were the 'smoking gun' to a conviction being appealed and verdicts reverse is alarming and due in a large part to the lack of validated rules and scientific rigor needed to evaluate this evidence objectively. In some cases, post-mortem trauma to human remains has been misinterpreted as human bitemarks. This case report illustrates how bitemarks misinterpreted as human-caused were reevaluated by a computerized imaging analytical method and determined to be consistent with those caused by crayfish scavenging on the remains. Fetal pigs were exposed to crayfish native to the crime scene for a period of 72 h. Crayfish bitemarks on the pigs were compared to marks on the victim and the bite width of the crayfish and found to be statistically the same. These findings led to the exoneration of the convicted individual. Such computer-aided pattern recognition protocols are necessary in traditional forensic identification sciences such as forensic odontology to minimize biased conclusions by extraneous evidence and preconceived assumptions and replace subjective guesswork with sound scientific protocols. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article considers whether a young offender in Great Britain charged with two counts of causing death by driving when disqualified and two counts of causing death by careless driving be charged with an offence of homicide or be exempted under the Crime and Disorder Act (CDA) 1998.

Background Sweden's firearm legislation obligates physicians to report patients that are deemed unsuitable to possess a firearm. This study aimed to explore the involvement of firearm use in firearm fatalities and to evaluate physician reporting concerning cases of firearm deaths. Methods Fatal firearm suicides and homicides in Sweden were studied for the years 2012–2013, accidental deaths and undetermined manner of deaths for the period 1987–2013. Police reports and autopsy protocols were collected from the National Board of Forensic Medicine, health care data in 1 year before the fatality from the National Board of Health, and information about physician reports and firearm licences from the Swedish Police. Results A total of 291 firearm deaths (213 suicides, 52 accidental deaths, 23 solved homicides and 3 cases with undetermined manner of death) were identified. Firearm suicides were positively correlated with the number of licensed firearm owners. Legal firearm use predominated in firearm suicides and accidental deaths, illegal in homicides. No suicide victim or shooter in an accidental death was previously reported by a physician to the police according to the firearm law. The majority of the shooters in accidental deaths and suicides had no registered health care visits. Less than half (42%) of all suicide victims had a previous health care contact due to mental health problems. Conclusions Not one single suicide victim nor any shooter in accidental deaths in the present study had been reported according to the firearm law, bringing the evidence of a suboptimal framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The complexity and diversity of unlawful killings -- particularly those involving mentally impaired offenders -- does not fit neatly across the binary distinction of offence/defence that structures criminal law. This is demonstrated in the Australian State of Victoria, where cognitively impaired homicide offenders who fail to meet the strict remit of the mental impairment defence have no (partial) defence or offence available to them which adequately captures their levels of criminal responsibility, moral agency and culpability. This makes the sentencing of such offenders not only particularly complex but means that the only stage in which both moral and legal culpability can be considered is in mitigation. This article argues that a progressive framework is needed to permit a small minority of (mentally impaired) homicide offenders to be simultaneously inculpated and (partially) exculpated. Accordingly, we propose introducing a model of diminished culpability manslaughter in Victoria, drawing from Loughnan's seminal reconceptualisation of 'diminished responsibility manslaughter' as an offence-cum-defence, which renders the diminished accused differently liable. Informed by a study of all homicide cases (n=647) sentenced in Victoria between 1 January 2000 and 31 July 2017, we argue that this model would not revoke legal capacity and would instead enhance the legitimacy and coherence of criminal law procedures, allowing a wider range of more legitimate convictions and reflective sentencing dispositions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In May 2015, the judgment of the High Court of Australia in Lindsay v The Queen reignited debate surrounding the use of the partial defence of provocation in cases involving a non-violent homosexual advance. Lindsay re-established the legal possibility that a man provoked enough to lose self-control and commit lethal violence in response to a non-violent homosexual advance could be convicted of manslaughter by reason of provocation rather than murder. The judgment arrived in the midst of two decades of national law reform activity, whereby all Australian jurisdictions have either introduced or proposed reform to abolish or restrict the application of the controversial partial defence of provocation. In doing so, cases involving a homosexual advance defence are increasingly shifting to the realm of sentencing. This article offers a timely analysis of the sentencing of homosexual advance defence cases in New South Wales and Queensland. In doing so, it examines the judicial treatment of a defendant's claim of a 'special sensitivity' to a homosexual advance, problems arising from the private nature of an alleged homosexual advance and the treatment of intoxication in sentencing. It reveals that reform of legal categories alone may not be sufficient in ensuring a just legal response to homicides incited by alleged homosexual advances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This commentary discusses law reform on diminished responsibility in the United Kingdom and provides a personal perspective on forensic psychiatric practice relating to diminished responsibility in Hong Kong. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this research, we estimate the association of firearm restrictions for domestic violence offenders with intimate partner homicides (IPHs) on the basis of the strength of the policies. We posit that the association of firearm laws with IPHs depends on the following characteristics of the laws: 1) breadth of coverage of high-risk individuals and situations restricted; 2) power to compel firearm surrender or removal from persons prohibited from having firearms; and 3) systems of accountability that prevent those prohibited from doing so from obtaining guns. We conducted a quantitative policy evaluation using annual state-level data from 1980 through 2013 for 45 US states. Based on the results of a series of robust, negative binomial regression models with state fixed effects, domestic violence restraining order firearm-prohibition laws are associated with 10% reductions in IPH. Statistically significant protective associations were evident only when restraining order prohibitions covered dating partners (−13%) and ex parte orders (−13%) and included relinquishment provisions (−12%). Laws prohibiting access to those convicted of nonspecific violent misdemeanors were associated with a 23% reduction in IPH rates; there was no association when prohibitions were limited to domestic violence. These findings should inform policymakers considering laws to maximize protections against IPH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Women's mortality due to violent deaths is a public health issue that has received national attention. Many data systems only collect death certificate data, which provide very limited information about the circumstances surrounding a violent death. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC's) National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) is the first and only surveillance system to capture data from death certificates, coroner/medical examiner reports, and law enforcement reports allowing for a more comprehensive picture and targeted prevention efforts. The system currently operates in 40 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico; however, with additional funding from the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018, this surveillance system will fully expand to cover all 50 states. A number of analyses have been conducted using NVDRS data to compare suicide and homicide among women with men; however, only a handful of studies have been conducted among subgroups of women. The present study provides an overview of NVDRS while highlighting a few key analytic studies with implications for suicide and homicide prevention/intervention among women. Data from the 2014 NVDRS Surveillance Summary are also presented to emphasize the unique opportunity to use NVDRS data to study the characteristics of suicide and homicide among women. The summary includes data from 18 states that were collected statewide. This information can provide state and local public health experts with essential data on female suicide and homicide, not provided in other surveillance systems, to help shape prevention and intervention efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: One of the early concerns regarding the use of neuroscience data in criminal trials is that even if the brain images are ambiguous or inconclusive, they still might influence a jury in virtue of the fact that they appear easy to understand. By appearing visually simple, even though they are really statistically constructed maps with a host of assumptions built into them, a lay jury or a judge might take brain scans to be more reliable or relevant than they actually are. Should courts exclude brain scans for being more prejudicial than probative? Herein, we rehearse a brief history of brain scans admitted into criminal trials in the United States, then describe the results of a recent analysis of appellate court decisions that referenced 1 or more brain scans in the judicial decision. In particular, we aim to explain how courts use neuroscience imaging data: Do they interpret the data correctly? Does it seem that scans play an oversized role in judicial decision‐making? And have they changed how criminal defendants are judged? It is our hope that in answering these questions, clinicians and defence attorneys will be able to make better informed decisions regarding about how to manage those incarcerated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following a recent high-profile case in which a regulatory, strict liability offence was utilised to provide the "unlawful act" in unlawful act manslaughter, this article examines what is a sufficiently "unlawful" act to underpin that offence. It argues that the breadth of offences that can now be used to found an unlawful act manslaughter charge has led to a departure from the fair-labelling principle and traditional notions of culpability. Even the traditional argument, that the requirement of dangerousness sufficiently circumscribes those offences that qualify, has been weakened as that requirement has been diluted, and no longer provides adequate protection. Considering the legal position when a death resulted from a collision with a bike which did not comply with a Regulation, this article argues that Hying to use unlawful act manslaughter to fill a lacuna in the law relating to fatal collisions involving cyclists risks unfairness to defendants through the unwarranted expansion of liability. New legislation is likely to be the most appropriate way properly to criminalise riding falling below the standard of a reasonable cyclist, but not amounting to gross negligence, that causes death. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Catholic doctrine's strict prohibition on abortion can lead clinicians or institutions to conscientiously refuse to provide abortion, although a legal duty to provide abortion would apply to anyone who refused. Conscientious refusals by clinicians to end a pregnancy can constitute murder or reckless homicide under American law if a woman dies as a result of such a refusal. Such refusals are not immunized from criminal liability by the constitutional right to the free exercise of religion or by statutes that confer immunity from criminal homicide prosecution. Core principles of the rule of law require the state to protect the lives of all persons equally and to place the life and health of persons above any the interests of providers have in moral integrity or in respecting the moral status of prenatal humans. In some states criminal liability related to conscientious objection also applies to corporate hospital officials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emeritus Professor and Editor-in-Chief Edward Alan Glasper discusses why children's nurses must fully adopt the duty of candour in care delivery, which in some countries is a legal obligation, to ensure that consumers of healthcare and their families are apologized to, and communicated with, openly and honestly when things have gone wrong in their care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Empirical research pertaining to sentencing of homicide offenders has been restricted almost exclusively to samples of male offenders in the United States. To fill this void in international research and to explore questions regarding the treatment of female homicide offenders further, we examined the extent to which victim-offender relationships and motives independently affect the length of sentences imposed by analyzing a nationally representative sample of female offenders adjudicated guilty of homicide in South Korea, over the period 1986-2013. In contrast to previous studies conducted in Canada, the Netherlands, and the United States, the current study found that the victim-offender relationship has no affect on sentence lengths. Rather, the most significant predictor for the sentence lengths of the female homicide offenders was the motive for killing. We discuss future directions for international comparative research on the roles of victim-offender relationships and motives in sentencing outcomes of female offenders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article analyzes the problems that exist in homicide laws in Great Britain and the concern that the law of self-defense is unjust. It explores the obligation of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) to protect the fundamental right to life. The potential solutions to the inconsistency regarding the country's homicide laws and self-defense laws are provided.

Abstract: The Murder Act (1752) decreed that homicide perpetrators should be hanged and sent for post‐execution punishment. This article explores the event management of criminal dissections by penal surgeons in situ. It reveals that the punishment parade of the condemned did not stop at the scaffold, contrary to the impression in many standard historical accounts. Instead, ordinary people accompanied criminal corpses to many different types of dissection venues. Penal surgeons hand‐picked these performance spaces that were socially produced for legal and practical reasons. They had to be able to process large numbers of people who wanted to be part of the consumption of post‐mortem ‘harm’ in English communities. Event management on location had to have emotional and visual appeal, moral coherence, be timed appropriately, and, if successful, would enhance the deterrence value of the capital code. Yet, managing the ‘dangerous dead’ involved a great deal of discretionary justice with unpredictable outcomes. It often happened in ‘counter‐sites’ of punishment in the community and involved a great deal of immersive theatre. Some events worked well, others threatened the social order. In ‘Other Spaces’ the ‘Dangerous Dead’ was hence a fascinating feature of the Murder Act outside the Metropolis from 1752 to 1832. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]