Crime Seriousness Research Articles

ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING CRIMES IN ISLAMIC LAW COMPARED TO THE ALGERIAN AND INDONESIAN LAW

<p><em> </em><em>Islamic law agreed with most modern laws on the seriousness of money laundering crimes, including Algerian law and Indonesia, despite the differences in regard to the methods which these crimes because of the different banking systems from one country to another on the one hand, because of the possibilities available to money launderers on the other.</em></p><p><em> This led to the need to pay special attention by the Algerian law and Indonesia in order to effectively provide for these modern criminal phenomena, it has resorted to the imposition of strict controls to combat the phenomenon is mostly derived from the provisions of Islamic Sharia.</em></p><p><em> Although the procedures and mechanisms that came in the Islamic Sharia and stipulated in the fight against money laundering in Algeria, Indonesia law, but many obstacles stand in the way without effective control of this crime along the lines of the principle of banking secrecy, which is an obstacle, often without disclosure of relevant financial transactions money laundering offenses.</em></p>

The Scope of Serious Crime and Preventive Justice

I first offer an account of serious crime that goes beyond victimizing crimes committed by individuals against other individuals. This approach extends the well-known framework offered by von Hirsch and Jareborg to include crimes undermining welfare-producing institutions. I then consider how the seriousness of crime justifies preventive measures, including the criminalization of acts preparatory to the commission of serious crime. I shall defend preventive measures, including highly intrusive ones, for the most serious crimes, such as terrorism in the form of mass killing, but I shall take issue with very expansive conceptions of serious crime that include what are intuitively much less serious offenses than terrorism or murder. In England and Wales, the Serious Crime Act (2007) lists relevant types of serious crime in its Schedule 1. This and other pieces of serious crime legislation in the UK are discussed critically.

Research in the Field of Economic Crime in Slovakia

Consequences of the crime influence the life of the whole society, it permeates to all areas of social life, as well as it penetrates into the lives of ordinary citizens of Slovakia. One of the most significant crimes is the economic crime. The relevance and the seriousness of the economic crime are expressed by its immediate threat of economic life and of the prosperity of society. The relevance of this issue is underlined by the fact that in the recent years there is an increase of new and more dangerous forms of crime. The aim of this paper is to examine the overall number of economic crime and the damages caused by these criminal activities in Slovakia during the last ten years. The emphasis will be put on the analysis of the number of business entities influenced by the economic crime, on the analysis of economic crime by the sectors of national economy and by the forms of economic crime in Slovakia. We will analyse the most common ways of committing tax frauds and accounting frauds, that distorts the business environment and it represents also a significant threat to the public finances. The complex accounting and tax issues enable the defrauders to commit accounting frauds and tax frauds; this is because of the deficiencies in the legislation, inefficient control processes and complexity of management. After that we analyse the number of Slovak companies with the owner from a tax haven. Within the analysis of secondary data in this paper appropriate mathematical and statistical methods will be used. Based on the evaluation of the results of research, conclusions and suggestions will be drawn.

The Association Between Soap Opera and Music Video Viewing and Fear of Crime in Adolescents

The potential impact of mass media has been virtually neglected in the study of adolescent fear of crime. This is remarkable, given adolescents’ heavy media consumption and developmental vulnerability. Music videos and soap operas have been completely overlooked in the TV-fear association, even though they have a large adolescent audience and contain a lot of violence. An online survey of 3,372 adolescents aged 12 to 18 years found that the relationship between exposure to soap operas and music videos on the one hand and fear of crime on the other hand was mediated by perceived personal risk of criminal victimization, perceived ability to control crime, and perceived seriousness of crime. Exposure to soap operas and music videos was associated with these cognitive factors of fear. Some relationships differed by age and sex. Our findings suggest that the age of 14 to 15 is pivotal for the development of media-induced fear.

A Comparison of Self-Report Measures of Callous-Unemotional Traits Among Incarcerated Youth

The current study compared the psychometric properties and incremental validity of the callous-unemotional (CU) traits dimensions from four self-report measures of youth psychopathic traits, including the Antisocial Process Screening Device Self-Report version (APSD-SR), the Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory (YPI), Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory–Short version (YPI-S), and the Inventory of Callous-Unemotional Traits (ICU) among a sample of male youth incarcerated in Portuguese detention centers ( N = 221). Across these measures, estimates of reliability and internal consistency were generally good; however, the correlations between measures ranged from very low to high suggesting moderate convergent validity. With regard to incremental validity, the Callousness dimension of the ICU was the best predictor of aggression, conduct disorder, and crime seriousness, whereas the Uncaring dimension of the ICU was the best predictor of age of crime onset. The current findings have important implications regarding the assessment of CU traits.

Adaptation of the Narcissistic Personality Inventory among a Portuguese sample of incarcerated juvenile offenders

ABSTRACTThe aim of the present study was to assess the psychometric properties of the Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI) and two of its short forms (NPI-16 and NPI-13) among a Portuguese sample of male incarcerated juvenile offenders (N = 221). Of these, only the NPI-13 short version demonstrated a good fit in terms of its factor structure. The NPI-13 also showed promising psychometric properties in terms of its internal consistency, convergent validity, discriminant validity, and criterion-related validity. Statistically significant associations were found with age of crime onset, crime seriousness, conduct disorder symptoms, alcohol abuse, and cannabis use. These findings justify the use of the NPI-13, especially its Entitlement/Exploitativeness dimension, among incarcerated male youths.

The Intersection of Crime Seriousness, Discretion, and Race: A Test of the Liberation Hypothesis

Spohn and Cederblom’s interpretation of the liberation hypothesis asserts that with trivial crimes, judges are “liberated” to consider extra-legal attributes such as race when making sentencing decisions. The current study posits that this perspective may be too theoretically simplistic because it fails to distinguish between the concepts of discretion and uncertainty. In light of this argument, we examine the sentencing decisions of felony cases in the Florida circuit courts. Results indicate that blacks and Hispanics are more likely to be imprisoned than whites, and males more so than females. Contrary to expectations, this disparity increases with crime seriousness. Consistent with the imprisonment model, blacks and males receive longer sentences and the effect increases with case seriousness. We found no evidence that the effect of offender extra-legal attributes depends upon the characteristics of the judges handling the cases. Suggestions for future research and implications for the liberation hypothesis are discussed.

“Victim Refuses to Cooperate”: A Focal Concerns Analysis of Victim Cooperation in Sexual Assault Cases

Research suggests that victim cooperation is a strong predictor of arrest and prosecution in sexual assault cases. Relatively little research has focused on identifying the factors that shape the decision to cooperate and the research that does exist is largely atheoretical. We address these gaps by examining victim cooperation using a revised version of the focal concerns perspective. We use data on cases reported to law enforcement agencies in Los Angeles to estimate models using factors situated within three victim focal concerns—crime seriousness, costs of cooperation, and likelihood of conviction—for three stages of the case process. We supplement these results with qualitative data from police reports regarding the reasons why victims refused to cooperate. The findings of this study provide initial support for the theoretical development of victim cooperation using the focal concerns perspective and provide potential guidance to criminal justice practitioners on how to increase victim cooperation.

What Makes a Crime?

The purpose of this research was to explore the perceived seriousness of crimes, such as abuse and neglect, committed against nonhuman animals. Drawing upon the methods of previous work on crime seriousness, it was hypothesized that perceptions of the harmfulness and wrongfulness of animal offenses would influence perceptions of seriousness, with wrongfulness being the most powerful predictor. A survey was administered to a sample of college students (n= 245), and the hypotheses were supported. The results also indicated that crimes against animals were ranked as more serious than property offenses but less serious than crimes against persons. Furthermore, the two predictors—harmfulness and wrongfulness—explained a greater amount of variance in the perceived seriousness of offenses against animals than for property or person offenses. Results are contextualized within policy and philosophical perspectives pertaining to how offenses against animals are viewed by society and addressed by the legal system.

Psychometric properties of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale version 11 among a Portuguese sample of incarcerated juvenile offenders

The aim of the present study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale version 11 (BIS-11) among a forensic sample of incarcerated male juvenile offenders (N = 221). Principal Component Analysis with Promax rotation revealed the expected 6-factor structure, but Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the 6-factor first-order and the 3-factor second-order factorial structures did not present sufficiently good fits. Despite that, the Portuguese adaptation of the BIS-11 demonstrated generally acceptable psychometric properties in terms of internal consistency, mean inter-item correlation, convergent validity, discriminant validity, and concurrent validity that justifies its use among the youth forensic population. Statistically significant associations were found with age of crime onset, conduct disorder, crime seriousness, alcohol use and drug use.

Modelling escalation in crime seriousness: a latent variable approach

This paper investigates the use of latent variable models in assessing escalation in crime seriousness. It has two aims. The first is to contrast a mixed-effects approach to modelling crime escalation with a latent variable approach. The paper therefore examines whether there are specific subgroups of offenders with distinct seriousness trajectory shapes. The second is methodological—to compare mixed-effects modelling used in previous work on escalation with group-based trajectory modelling and growth mixture modelling (mixture of mixed-effects models). The availability of software is an issue, and comparisons of fit across software packages is not straightforward. We suggest that mixture models are necessary in modelling crime seriousness, that growth mixture models rather than group-based trajectory models provide the best fit to the data, and that R gives the best software environment for comparing models. Substantively, we identify three latent groups, with the largest group showing crime seriousness increases with criminal justice experience (measured through number of conviction occasions) and decreases with increasing age. The other two groups show more dramatic non-linear effects with age, and non-significant effects of criminal justice experience. Policy considerations of these results are briefly discussed.

The Reactive–Proactive Aggression Questionnaire: Validation Among a Portuguese Sample of Incarcerated Juvenile Delinquents

The aim of the present study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Reactive-Proactive Aggression Questionnaire (RPQ) among a forensic sample of incarcerated male juvenile offenders ( N = 221). The Portuguese version of the RPQ demonstrated promising psychometric properties, namely, in terms of factor structure, internal consistency, convergent validity, discriminant validity, and concurrent validity that generally justifies its use among this population. Statistically significant associations were found with conduct disorder, age of criminal onset, age of first problem with the law, crime seriousness, physical violence use in committing crimes, alcohol use, cannabis use, cocaine/heroin use, and having unprotected sex. The findings provide additional support for the extension of the RPQ across different cultures, ethnic groups, and samples.

Validation of the Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory and Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory – Short Version Among Incarcerated Juvenile Delinquents

The aim of the present study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory (YPI) and of the Youth Psychopathic Traits Inventory – Short version (YPI-S) among Portuguese juvenile delinquents within a forensic sample of 221 incarcerated males (ages 13–20 years). Confirmatory Factor Analysis supported the three-factor structure of the YPI and YPI-S, and the reliability of both instruments was good for the majority of subscales and factors. The YPI and YPI-S and their subscales showed good criterion, external, and divergent validity. That is, positive associations were found with a number of external criteria including Conduct Disorder, crime seriousness, and violent crimes. Total and subscale scores on both YPI versions were positively related to the Antisocial Process Screening Device, the Inventory of Callous-Unemotional Traits, and the Child and Adolescent Taxon Scale. Finally, both the YPI and YPI-S were mostly unrelated to the Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents. Overall, the YPI-S presented less problems with reliability, but weaker relations to external correlates. These findings justify the use of the YPI and the YPI-S among incarcerated youths.

The DSM-5 Limited Prosocial Emotions subtype of Conduct Disorder in incarcerated male and female juvenile delinquents

The aim of the present study was to analyze the relevance of the DSM-5's Conduct Disorder new Limited Prosocial Emotions (CD LPE) specifier in incarcerated juvenile delinquents. A sample of 201 males and 98 females from the Juvenile Detention Centers managed by the Portuguese Ministry of Justice diagnosed with Conduct Disorder (CD) was used. Results showed that male juvenile delinquents with the CD LPE specifier scored higher on callous-unemotional traits (CU), general psychopathic traits, psychopathy taxon membership, self-reported delinquency, and crime seriousness, and lower on prosocial behavior and social desirability, while female juvenile delinquents with the CD LPE specifier scored higher on callous-unemotional traits (CU) and general psychopathic traits, and lower on prosocial behavior. Significant associations for both genders were found between the CD LPE specifier and age of crime onset and first problems with the law.

Incarcerated youths with high or low callous–unemotional traits: a comparison controlling for age of crime onset

The aim of this study was to analyze the relevance of callous–unemotional (CU) traits in incarcerated juvenile delinquents. A sample of 160 incarcerated male youths was used. Results showed that youths with high CU traits had an earlier age of crime onset and of trouble with the law, and also had higher levels of conduct disorder. When controlling for age of crime onset, youths with high CU traits showed higher levels of general psychopathic traits and of psychopathy taxon membership as well as lower levels of prosocial behavior, but no differences were found for self-reported delinquency, crime seriousness, impulsivity-conduct problems, and general conduct problems. Also, no significant associations of CU traits with self-reported delinquency and crime seriousness were found when controlling for age of crime onset. Future studies of CU traits should take into account the specific importance of age of onset.

On the Correlates of Reporting Assault to the Police in Malawi

It is well known that many victims of crime do not notify the police. Research suggests that factors related to the victim, crime event and wider community are all implicated in the decision to report victimization. Few studies have investigated the correlates of victim reporting in developing countries, mainly owing to a lack of relevant data. It is therefore unclear whether the determinants of victim reporting in Western industrialized countries are generalizable to low-income developing settings. This paper explores the factors associated with victims reporting assault to the police in the African context of Malawi, using data from a nationally representative household survey. Results of a multilevel logistic regression indicate some similarities with the Western criminological literature, such as age of the victim and crime seriousness positively correlating with crime reporting. Other results seem to reflect the distinctive characteristics of Malawi, with victims more likely to report being assaulted if they are male, have access to a working phone or live in urban areas. The results illustrate the importance of studying criminological phenomena across a diverse range of settings. Implications of the findings for future research and crime prevention are discussed.

Validation of the Inventory of Callous-Unemotional Traits Among a Portuguese Sample of Detained Juvenile Offenders.

The main aim of the present study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Inventory of Callous-Unemotional Traits (ICU) among a sample of incarcerated male Portuguese juvenile offenders (N = 221). Based on this sample, the Portuguese version of the ICU demonstrated promising psychometric properties, namely, in terms of factor structure, internal consistency, convergent validity, discriminant validity, and concurrent validity that generally justifies its use among this population. Statistically significant associations were found with conduct disorder, age of criminal onset, crime seriousness, physical violence use in committing crimes, alcohol use, cannabis use, and cocaine/heroin use.

Light at the End of Tunnel: A Forethought on Age of Criminal Responsibility

Does age really matters to punish an offender? Is the discretion on the basis of seriousness of crime wrong? These are two different questions leading us to two different aspects, two different changes in law. As we have recently seen the nastiness of human in Nirbhaya case, the brutal act carried out by the six merciless men including a juvenile as the main accused, who did not flinch while inserting a rod inside the victim’s body. And the irony of our juvenile law, he just got away with three years in jail! This article sketches out some of the main themes on Juvenile Justice in India and highlights on the controversies related to Nirbhaya case. It briefly discusses the various provisions that talks about the role of state for the care and protection of a child under constitution of India. It narrates the history of juvenile legislation in India, its ‘laudable’ objectives and then technical difficulties faced by the legislation resulting in its failure. We have been following international trends from the starting of Juvenile Justice in India. The developed countries like U.K, U.S, and France has already incorporated changes in their laws with respect to increase in number of crimes by minors, unlike India. Justice Verma Committee Report has also highlighted that there is no need to lower the age of juvenile which in our opinion provides discretion by the court in the interest of justice.

Cyberbullying: The Shades of Harm

Empirical studies undertaken to date report that exposure to cyberbullying can have potentially serious consequences. This paper assesses the potential harm associated with the various specific manifestations (forms) of cyberbullying based on initial empirical research and a crime seriousness framework originally applied to traditional crimes. The analysis provides valuable theoretical insight into the associated harms of each of the forms of cyberbullying. This is significant in light of the infancy of the research in this area. The research demonstrates that the various manifestations are indeed associated with different levels of harm. It concludes that, based on a principle of harm, not all forms warrant criminalization.

Fugitives in the United States

Little is known, empirically, about fugitives in the U.S. There is no research describing basic facts such as the prevalence of warrants or how features of warrants vary across geography or demographics of fugitives. PurposeTo (A) describe the prevalence of warrants in the U.S., including variation in warrant features across geography as well as demographics of fugitives (age, race, and gender). In addition, the paper (B) models a key feature of warrants (extradition limits) as a function of legal and extra-legal factors. MethodsThis study draws on the Wanted Persons file—the central operational database maintained by the National Criminal Information Center (NCIC) for tracking warrants from all jurisdictions in the United States. Warrant factors are described across demographic groups via bivariate comparisons. Extradition is modeled via a multivariate fixed effects logistic regression framework (i.e., within state comparisons) ResultsThe data show approximately 2million warrants are active on any given day. Warrant features vary significantly across states (per capita), and fugitive demographics. Extradition varies as a function of legal (e.g., crime seriousness) and extra-legal factors (e.g., race of fugitive). ConclusionsWarrants may provide an important new avenue for scholarship on disparity, criminal carreers, and the administration of justice.