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Some reluctance exists among disability staff to report to police potentially criminal behaviour by people with intellectual disabilities. Both the nature and frequency of these behaviours and decision-making processes of staff concerning police involvement remain poorly understood. This study sought to explore potentially criminal behaviour by people living in disability services and the frequency of police involvement. A broad spectrum of potentially criminal behaviours was reported, most frequently involving acts of physical aggression. Police were contacted in 101/370 (27%) of the incidents reported; two-thirds involved acts where there was an identifiable victim; incidents reported to police were most likely to occur outside the disability service. A more detailed understanding of disability staff decision-making as it relates to initiating contact with the police, and the immediate and long-term issues and benefits concerning police contact and intervention, is required so as to more effectively prevent and manage potentially criminal behaviour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the course of their duties, police regularly have contact with mentally ill persons who are experiencing psychiatric crisis and require some form of mental health transfer. This study examined 2611 unique mental health transfers completed by police in the Australian state of Victoria over an eight-month period in 2009–2010. The overwhelming majority of mental health transfers performed by police during this period were the result of unplanned calls for assistance. Although police frequently requested assistance from other services, these were often not available. The study findings support a substantial body of anecdotal evidence from police citing lengthy involvement with people experiencing mentally illness, with the average mental health transfer consuming 2.5 h of police time. The frontline responses of police to people in psychiatric crisis need to be more formally acknowledged and creative solutions need to be sought with health and welfare services to better meet the needs of those who are falling between the cracks of community mental health care services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gang-affiliated youth are responsible for a disproportionate amount of serious and violent offenses. However, there is scant focus on the psychological variables that could be important for treatment planning and program development. Awareness of these variables is important for treatment planning and program development and also, potentially, for understanding which youth may be attracted to gangs. This study compared the criminal attitudes and psychopathic personality attributes of gang- and nongang-affiliated youth offenders (N=168) residing in youth correctional institutions in Singapore. Multivariate analyses indicated that favorable attitudes toward gangs (ATG), violence, and criminal associates remained significantly associated with gang membership after accounting for favorable attitudes toward violence and criminal associates, as well as increased attitudes of entitlement and impulsive/irresponsible traits. These attitudes were likely to perpetuate gang affiliation and criminal behavior, and thus should be a focus for intervention and rehabilitation efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

People with mental illness are more likely to be crime victims than others; however, little is known about the relationship between offending and victimisation among mentally ill offenders. This study investigated the rates and types of victimisation among people detained in police cells (N = 764), with and without histories of mental illness. Those with mental disorders were 1.56 times (95% CI = 1.11–2.17) more likely to be victims of violent crimes than other detainees. Some subgroups of people with mental disorders were not over-represented as victims, raising the possibility that they were less inclined to report certain types of crimes. Implications are discussed with reference to police practice. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]