Number Of Prosecutions Research Articles

En första kriminologisk inblick i lagen (2007:1150) om tillsyn över hundar och katter

AbstractWe present a first criminological insight into the Act (2007:1150) on the supervision of dogs and cats in terms of reporting and prosecution statistics, against the background of statistics on authority decisions based on this law, appeals of authority decisions and statistics from Folksam and the central dog register of the Swedish Board of Agriculture. The number of prosecutions under the Supervision Act in the district courts is 30-46 prosecutions per year between 2004 and 2021. Women account for 65% of dog ownership and for 42% of offenses against the Supervision Act. The proportion of reports received that led to a decision by the County Administrative Boards varied from zero to approx. 30% in 2020 and 2021. Of the 13 persons who died due to dog-related injuries 1998-2021 seven were women, in the age groups 45 and older, while of 6 180 patients who required inpatient care for dog-related injuries 2001-2021 made up 648 children of 0-4 years old.Introduction of the current Supervision Act in 2008 resulted in an increased load on administrative courts, while criminal cases in the district courts have been at about the same level as before. Transfer of responsibility for the Supervision Act from the Swedish Police Authority to the County Administrative Boards in 2018 increased the workload of the administrative courts even more. The criminal cases that are settled in the district courts no longer deal with first-time incidents where bite-prone dogs have caused property or personal damage or considerable inconvenience, but recurrences where society already had intervened through authority decisions, reflecting ineffectiveness of authority decisions based on the law. Not to criminalize Section 1 of the Supervision Act and transfer of responsibility for the law from the Swedish Police Authority to the County Admi- ESSAY nistrative boards have reduced the burden on the Police Authority and the district courts at the expense of an increased burden on the County Administrative boards and the administrative courts. The question is what, from a socio-economic perspective, is the best solution to approach the problem of dangerous dogs.

A trifling matter? Names in Irish on carts: the Dublin Castle files

At the beginning of the twentieth century, as the Irish language revival movement gathered pace, Conradh na Gaeilge encouraged those who were keen to promote the language to use the Irish version of their names as much as possible, including painting their name and address in Irish on carts, and a number of prosecutions were taken under the Summary Jurisdiction (Ireland) Act 1851. Most famously, Patrick Pearse represented Niall Mac Giolla Bhrighde in 1905 in a case stated to the court of King’s Bench. Pearse went on to represent Domhnall Ua Buachalla in a similar but less well-known case the following year. Drawing on files from the Chief Secretary’s Office in Dublin Castle and digitised contemporaneous newspaper reports, this article provides an overview of the names in Irish on carts cases, which began in 1893, peaked in 1905 and died off after 1906, and finds that, post-partition, there were at least three similar prosecutions in Northern Ireland.

MALAYSIA’S COUNTER-TERRORISM POLICY: SHIFTING FROM THE EXECUTIVE-BASED TO THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE APPROACH?

Malaysia’s counter-terrorism strategy has its roots within the 12-year campaign against the communist insurgency between 1948 and 1960. During the emergency period, the government relied heavily on executive-based measures, which operated as a primary instrument to execute the “Winning Hearts and Minds” agenda. The state executive body and its agents had a wide range of powers at its disposal, including indefinite detention without trial and the restriction of residence against terrorist suspects. A similar approach was maintained through various legislations, even after the country gained independence in 1957. However, recent developments indicate a significant change in the attitude of the government. The criminal justice approach begins to gain greater prominence, this being evident from the growing number of prosecutions against terror suspects and the creation of new terrorism-related offences. This paper first examines whether the apparent change is genuine and sustainable in the long term. This concern is connected with the nature and limits of the criminal law and justice system, along with other challenges derived from the existing structure, culture, and practices within the country. By adopting a socio-legal approach, this research also investigates the factors favouring and hindering the criminal justice approach empirically and theoretically as a primary legal response to countering terrorism in Malaysia. The ultimate aim is to contextualise an effective and fair legal response to terrorism that is able to operate within multifaceted counter-terrorism arrangements involving different stakeholders.

Escaping detection: illegal second marriages and the crime of bigamy

Official statistics on the number of prosecutions for bigamy clearly cannot be taken as an accurate guide to the number who went through a ceremony of marriage with a second ‘spouse’ while still married to their first. Nonetheless, when we compare those who were prosecuted with those who were not, the differences that emerge should make us cautious in assuming that the offence was common. There is evidence to suggest that many of the unprosecuted may not have been bigamists at all, given how long they waited to remarry. Even those who did not wait may have believed or persuaded themselves that their first spouse was dead and that they were entitled to remarry. Others adopted tactics to ensure that their bigamous marriage would not be discovered, with most moving considerable distances before remarrying and a few adopting aliases to disguise their identity. The data from the sample suggests that it was the fact that most of these bigamies were undetected, rather than tolerance of bigamy within the community, that explains why they escaped prosecution.

A tale of many jurisdictions: how universal jurisdiction is creating a transnational judicial space

AbstractUniversal jurisdiction (UJ), which not very long ago seemed condemned to extinction, is now becoming routine. It has been endorsed by 109 states, and the number of prosecutions is increasing. This article is based on an ethnographic study of the recent trial in France of Pascal Simbikangwa, a Rwandan accused of participating in the genocide against the Tutsi in 1994. Using the concepts of ‘vernacularization’ and ‘transnational legal orders’, it shows how UJ is creating a transnational judicial space (TJS). Involving both partisan and ordinary actors, this process is fraught with multiple conflicts. Although UJ does not participate in the dissemination of a uniform definition of genocide, it makes various jurisdictions work together. This fragmented transnational justice is paradoxically contributing to the integration of national legal systems.

UK: New Borders; New Approach

Until ten years ago, the UK’s approach to bribery and corruption, including at its borders, was fragmented, limited in scope and unsuccessful in tackling bribery across borders. This article focuses on the changes which the Bribery Act 2010 has brought about over the last decade which has elevated the UK’s anti-bribery regime to one which is highly regarded. One might expect the natural consequence of the Bribery Act’s international reach to be a dramatic increase in the number of prosecutions (particularly in relation to bribing public officials) – however that has not proved to be the case. This article shows that the Bribery Act has instead brought about a fundamental change of approach by lawmakers and businesses alike – which is not evident from the raw statistics. The Bribery Act’s power lies in the combination of its international reach and the obligations it places on commercial organizations to prevent bribery which have caused UK corporates (including those incorporated elsewhere but who carry on a business, or part of a business, in the UK) to significantly tighten their anti-bribery internal policies and procedures. The shift in focus from the individual to the corporate has also been reflected in the approach of UK law enforcement through their use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements which has resulted in corporate offenders being punished with unprecedented fines. The paper ends by asking whether Brexit and the re-establishment of a large number of hard borders with EU countries will lead to an increase in the number of prosecutions for bribing customs officials after all. Bribery Act 2010, bribery and corruption, corporate offence, commercial organization, failure to prevent, extra-territorial reach, strict liability, Deferred Prosecution Agreement

Criminal Dissent: Prosecutions under the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798. By Wendell Bird (Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Press, 2020) 560 pp. $55.00

<i>Criminal Dissent: Prosecutions under the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798</i>. By Wendell Bird (Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Press, 2020) 560 pp. $55.00

Ecclesiastical Discipline and the Crisis of the 1680s: Prosecuting Protestant Dissent in the English Church Courts

This article argues that as a part of the Tory reaction (1680–5) England's church courts were revived and utilised in the prosecution of religious dissent. The records of the church courts in three deaneries in and around London demonstrate that the numbers of prosecutions in the courts increased significantly in the early 1680s after the defeat of the Exclusion Bill and that the vast majority of these prosecutions were for religious offences. This brief flowering of persecution sought to ‘exclude the excluders’ and to remove political and religious dissidents from positions of secular power and from parish vestries.

The Rise and (Potential) Fall of U.S. Cartel Enforcement

Government enforcement against collusion, now viewed by the Supreme Court as the “supreme evil” in antitrust, has gone through various phases of enforcement in the United States. There have been periods in which cartels have been able to collude more or less effectively given various institutional tools at the disposal of the government. By analyzing enforcement and prosecutions data over a long time horizon, 1969–2016, this Article examines the attributes of cartel enforcement over time and the changing use of tools to assist with detection and punishment. We provide a comprehensive description of critical cartel enforcement events and institutional developments from 1890 to the present. Our examination of the data includes a detailed descriptive analysis which tends to reveal three broad phases of U.S. cartel enforcement and prosecutions. The most recent data indicate a marked decline in the number of prosecutions, but sharp increase in per capita penalties. We also conduct regression-based estimation of the potential quantitative impact of the key institutional innovations to foster detection and prosecutions. Based on the raw data as well as our estimation, we comment on the potential factors that may be driving lower prosecutions in the more recent years. Finally, we briefly compare some key data between U.S. and European Commission cartel prosecutions to examine potential dynamic interlinkages.

The Cost of Doing Business: Corporate Crime and Punishment Post-Crisis

For many years, law and economics scholars, as well as politicians and regulators, have debated whether corporate criminal enforcement overdeters beneficial corporate activity or in the alternative, lets corporate criminals off too easily. This debate has recently expanded in its polarization: On the one hand, academics, judges, and politicians have excoriated enforcement agencies for failing to send guilty bankers to jail in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis; on the other, the U.S. Department of Justice has since relaxed policies that encouraged individual prosecutions and reduced the size of fines and number of prosecutions. A crucial and yet understudied piece of evidence in this debate is to understand how corporate crime rates have responded to changes in enforcement practices. And yet, unlike most other types of crime, the government does not provide data about corporate crime levels. Therefore, we cannot easily determine whether these policy changes are effectively deterring future incidents of crime. In this paper, we take important first steps in determining whether corporate crime, and financial institution crime in particular, is on the rise. Specifically, we proxy for corporate crime using three novel sources: the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs), consumer complaints made to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), and whistleblower complaints made to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Each source reveals an increase in complaints or reports indicative of corporate misconduct in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. We also examine levels of public company recidivism and find that they are also on the rise. And we document a potential explanation: recidivist companies are much larger than non-recidivist companies, but they receive smaller fines than non-recidivist companies (measured as a percentage of market capitalization and revenue). Put simply, for large companies, criminal penalties may be just another cost of doing business—and quite a low cost at that. We conclude by offering recommendations for enforcement agencies and policymakers. In particular, our results suggest that enforcers are unlikely to achieve optimal deterrence using fines alone. Enforcement agencies should therefore consider other ways of securing deterrence, such as by seeking penalties against guilty individuals and the top executives who facilitate their crimes.

How Much Insider Trading Really Happens in Stock Markets?

We estimate that the actual prevalence of illegal insider trading is at least four times greater than the number of prosecutions. Using novel structural estimation methods that explicitly account for the incomplete and non-random detection and hand-collected data of all US prosecuted insider trading cases, we estimate that insider trading occurs in one in five mergers and acquisition events and in one in 20 earnings announcements. Key drivers of the decision to engage in illegal insider trading include stock liquidity, the value of the inside information, and the number of people in possession of the information. Detection and prosecution are more likely when there are abnormal trading patterns and more regulatory resourcing.

Hadi Ahmadi - and the Myth of the 'People Smugglers' Business Model'

The case of Hadi Ahmadi is one of the highest profi le prosecutions of people smuggling in Australia. Convicted in August 2010 for bringing over 500 asylum seekers to Australia, Mr Ahmadi's case is one of only a small number of prosecutions involving an organiser of migrant smuggling ventures - unlike the hundreds of cases before Australian courts which involve Indonesian captains and crew working on migrant smuggling vessels. This article explores the case of Mr Ahmadi to shed light into the so-called 'people smugglers' business model', which successive Australian Governments from both sides of politics are determined to 'crush'. The article examines the facts of Mr Ahmadi's offending, the criminal proceedings against him, and draws comparison to other organiser cases and to the general patterns of people smuggling prosecutions in Australia. Findings of this research cast doubt over the Government's rhetoric and its strategies to prevent and suppress migrant smuggling.

Challenges and possible solutions concerning the inspection/investigation dichotomy in the context of transnational organised fisheries crime: A South African perspective

This contribution aims to address transnational organised fisheries crime more effectively by addressing the fact that a number of prosecutions are unsuccessful as a result of non-compliance with constitutional imperatives originating from a failure to properly grasp the inspection/investigation dichotomy. The paper provides a short background to the intricacies of transnational organised fisheries crime with emphasis on their implications for investigations and prosecutions. In the context of South Africa, it discusses the powers of fishery control officers (FCOs) in terms the Marine Living Resources Act, 1998 (MLRA),22Act 18 of 1998. before turning to relevant case law. This discussion provides the background for a discussion on the correct exercise of the powers of FCOs and the impact of failures to correctly exercise legal powers. The final part of the essay looks at possible solutions to the challenges created by the dichotomy by proposing that a number of factors be considered to determine whether an inspection is in fact an investigation, or has evolved into one. It will also propose amendments to the legislation to remove the existing ambiguities and to increase the number of successful prosecutions by reducing fatal ‘legal technicalities’.

Criminalization on the Basis of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity: Reframing the Dominant Human Rights Discourse to include Freedom from Torture and Inhuman and Degrading Treatment

This article examines the evolving discourse under the international human rights legal framework regarding laws that criminalize people on the basis of their actual or perceived non-normative sexual orientation and/or gender identity. Legislation typically outlaws specific types of sexual activity or any sexual activity between persons of the same sex. Some laws specifically dictate adherence to a gender identity and/or gender expression according to a traditional notion of a male/female binary by banning conduct such as “imitating the appearance of the opposite sex.” These laws have predominantly been interpreted by United Nations human rights mechanisms, regional human rights mechanisms, and national courts as a breach of the rights to privacy, equality, and non-discrimination. However, some mechanisms and courts are increasingly acknowledging the impact of these criminal sanctions on the right to freedom from torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment. In particular, these mechanisms and courts are demonstrating a greater understanding of the ways in which such criminalization serves to foster and reinforce the stigmatization of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) individuals and increases their vulnerability to inhuman and degrading treatment and, in some cases, torture. The evolution of this discourse is important because, in appropriate cases, the assertion of the non-derogable, customary law prohibition against torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment may provide legal recourse to those challenging LGBTI criminalization in the national context where it would not otherwise be available under the privacy/equality/non-discrimination paradigm. Moreover, in instances where the persecutory impacts of LGBTI criminalization are being assessed in refugee claims based on sexual orientation and/or gender identity, decision makers can be encouraged not only to look at the number of prosecutions but also to assess specific information about the way such criminalization reinforces the vulnerability of LGBTI asylum seekers to inhuman and degrading treatment and sometimes torture.

Justice for victims of human trafficking in Australia? Issues associated with Australia’s criminal justice response to trafficking in persons

Australia has witnessed an increase in human trafficking cases in recent years, most of which have involved women trafficked for sexual exploitation. In response, and within the framework of the United Nations Protocol to Prevent and Suppress Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, Australia has introduced legislation to combat human trafficking and punish traffickers. However, the number of prosecutions of human trafficking offences in Australia has, to date, been low. Drawing on the available literature, this article sets out to explore the reasons for this, which the paper argues have largely centered on Australia’s previously restrictive visa framework for trafficking victims. The paper also explores other obstacles and barriers to successful prosecutions, such as issues associated with discrediting and attacking vulnerable witnesses, and lengthy and complex trials. The paper argues that Australia needs to increase its efforts to meet the obligations set out by the United Nations Recommended Principles and Guidelines on Human Rights and Human Trafficking, and to balance its priorities regarding prosecution and victim protection.

Prosecuting Human Trafficking - Progress in the UK

This paper examines the United Kingdom’s approach to prosecutions and convictions of modern slavery and human trafficking offences. It focuses on the UK’s journey and the progress that it has made thus far, from having no legislation by which to tackle this crime to the newly enacted Modern Slavery Act (2015). The paper observes the low numbers of prosecutions leading to convictions as well as the difficulty in effective data collation and recording of trafficking offences. The paper focuses on a non- governmental organisations experience of working with victims and law enforcement agencies, using a sample of seventy four case files to record interactions with the criminal justice process. Further the paper suggests that in order for the Modern Slavery Act (2015) to obtain successful convictions, prosecution should only be seen as part of the solution and not the whole solution. It will only be a successful part of the UK narrative if it is used in conjunction with effective, long-term victim support and prevention efforts.

International Criminal Law as a Site for Enhancing Women’s Rights? Challenges, Possibilities, Strategies

Many scholars and activists have argued that the International Criminal Court (ICC) holds potential for advancing the rights of women and girls, leading to extensive feminist engagement with and investment in the Court. As the ICC enters its second decade of existence, this article offers a reflection on both the possibilities and the challenges facing feminists. Can the international criminal law really offer a site for enhancing the rights of women? And if so, how? To explore these questions I focus on the interaction between feminist activism and international criminal law institutions in relation to crimes of sexual and gender-based violence. I argue that some of the feminist strategies deployed to get sexual violence onto the international agenda have resulted in perverse outcomes. This should lead us to greater critical reflection regarding how international law conceives of sexual violence and direct our future engagements with international legal institutions. In particular feminist activists and scholars need to move away from focusing on the number of prosecutions towards challenging the international criminal law to characterise the nature of the harm in accordance with a recognition of sexual rights.

Characteristics of persons convicted for offences relating to animal hoarding in New South Wales.

To highlight the characteristics of persons convicted for offences related to animal hoarding in New South Wales, Australia, document the outcomes of cases and compare them with overseas studies. Retrospective case series. Records of finalised prosecutions for offences relating to animal hoarding between 2005 and 2011 were examined. Data recorded included: the age of each subject at the first offence, sex, postcode, occupation, living conditions, number of charges, number of prosecutions, title of each charge, number and species of live animals, whether animals needed veterinary attention, the medical conditions that the animals suffered, whether dead animals were on the property, how animals were obtained, veterinary and legal costs accrued and case outcomes. The data were analysed to obtain frequencies and relative frequencies for categorical variables and summary statistics for quantitative variables. Observed frequencies were compared using Chi-square test with the expected frequencies calculated based on the Australian Bureau of Statistics data for NSW. The number of persons included was 29. Most were female (72.4%) and 23 were 40-64 years of age at their first offence. Almost one-third identified themselves as breeders, eight as pensioners and four as unemployed. Most resided in inner regional Australia (45%), 28% lived in major cities and 28% lived in outer regional Australia. Dogs were the species hoarded in 80% of cases. Animals requiring veterinary attention were identified in all cases. Dead animals were found on premises in 41.4% of cases. Persons prosecuted for charges relating to animal hoarding in NSW have similar characteristics to those of previous studies, although the outcomes may be different. More farm animals and horses were hoarded in NSW and hoarders in NSW were more likely to live in inner regional and outer regional areas (rural areas) than animal hoarders in the USA.

Animal Activism and the Ethics of Terrorism

Terrorism is a subject deeply connected to the issue of animal welfare. This has not always been the case. Whereas it is definitely true that some criminal activity has been justified in the name of animal welfare, misdemeanors and even felonies are of a very different order than terrorism. The charge of terrorism can strip a person off their most fundamental rights, even without trial. Animal terrorism has not witnessed quite such a situation, although a number of animal activists who have committed direct action have been convicted for a range of crimes, and some have had the terrorism enhancement applied to them. For these activists, this has resulted in a terrorist listing and the possibility of serving (part of) their sentence in a special prison called a Communication Management Unit. The extreme reality of the situation raises a lot of questions about what exactly terrorism entails, why this type of activity is labeled terrorism, and if the pursuit of animal activists as terrorist is morally justified. It also pushes us to ask whether, in light of the extreme suffering endured by animals for the sake of profit, there are forms of terrorism that are ethically permissible. This paper, first, looks at the meaning of particular types of action and their role in animal activism. These include direct action, civil disobedience, and violence. Secondly, it offers a discussion of terrorism by looking at its most recent iterations as well as an alternative definition. Thirdly, it reviews past and current legislation pertaining to animal activism and terrorism, including the Animal Enterprise Protection Act. This section will also take note of a number of prosecutions of animal activists under these laws, including the SHAC7 case. Finally, it offers a discussion of the ethics of animal terrorism, in which I argue for the ethical permissibility of animal terrorism, and the necessary conditions that need to obtain in order for this to hold.

Conceptualizing a Hybrid Approach in Enforcement and Compliance in China: Adapting Responsive Regulation and Confucian Doctrines to Regulate Commerce

In the last few decades, China has transplanted a number of commercial laws from the West. However, without active enforcement of the laws, the Chinese economy in the mid to longer term is unlikely to benefits from the pledges of the new laws. This is not to say hefty number of prosecutions and successful litigation outcomes are unable to achieve the objects of the laws, rather this command and control approach creates an adversarial culture through protracted courtroom battles liken to a game of ‘cat and mouse’, not to mention the financial cost involved. Alternatively, regulators should combine regulatory innovations like responsive regulation pioneered by Ayres and Braithwaite with the Chinese business cultural values and practices to accomplish greater voluntary regulatory compliance. This approach would put the emphasis on forging a cooperative relationship between regulators and to bring about greater compliance with the spirit of the law. Adding to this is reviving elements of non-legal regulatory doctrine from Confucius that is a combination of moral precepts, hierarchical order and relational obligations between individuals and groups to compel voluntary compliance to codes of conducts known as ‘li’. And given Chinese business people belief in ‘guanxi’, this means relationships are valued more important than rules, embedded Confucian doctrines in regulation and compliance will be a sensible approach. In sum, enforcement should not be about ‘catch me if you can’. Instead, fostering a ‘culture of compliance’ with by adapting notions of responsive regulation by Ayres and Braithwaite with elements of Confucian legal doctrine will be more fitting for China.