Showing papers in "Howard Journal of Criminal Justice in 1996"

People Talking About Punishment

Abstract: Using focus groups, this study has investigated public attitudes to sentencing Respondents emerged as highly cynical about the ability and performance of sentencers, and thought that in general sentences are far too soft They tended to be systematically misinformed about sentencing practice, often substantially overestimating sentencers' leniency They found a series of Court of Appeal judgments broadly acceptable, and advocated sentences that were often in line with current practice, at least with regard to the type of sentence But many expressed highly punitive views about serious crimes, and wanted longer prison sentences for these Respondents lacked any clear understanding of probation and rehabilitative sentences The findings imply an urgent need for action to correct public misunderstanding about the leniency of sentencing, as this is an important source of frustration with sentencing

‘Tracking’ Sex Offenders

Abstract: This paper considers what legal and practice arrangements exist in England and Wales to monitor sex offenders following release from prison and comments on the limitations and implications of such ‘tracking’ in the community. Recent developments in the USA are also reviewed. The authors argue that ‘tracking’ should be seen in the wider context of the political economy of risk, which emphasises both the proactive ‘management’ of knowledge about offenders and the production of compensatory measures.

Kirkholt Revisited: Some Reflections on the Transferability of Crime Prevention Initiatives

Abstract: Little attention has been paid to the transferability of ‘successful’ crime prevention projects. The Kirkholt Burglary Prevention Project has been hailed by academics (Forrester et al. 1988, 1990; Bottoms 1990) and policy-makers (Burns 1990; Home Office 1990) as one of the most successful crime prevention projects undertaken in the UK. In this paper we report on an ethnographic research case study of a crime prevention project which sought to transfer the mechanisms – both processual and those aimed at desired preventative outcomes – used in the Kirkholt Project to a different location. In doing so we develop a critique of dominant understandings of what constitutes ‘success’, ‘multi-agency co-operation’ and ‘evaluation’ in the field of crime prevention.

Doctors, Rape and Criminal Justice

Abstract: This article considers the medical examination of women who report rape to the police. Fourteen women who reported rape to the Sussex police between 1991 and 1993 were interviewed in depth about their experience of the medical examination. Eighty-six per cent of them were wholly, mainly or partly negative about it whilst 36% were wholly or partly positive. The article considers those factors perceived as positive and those perceived as negative. It offers some suggestions as to how medical services for victims of rape might be improved.

Drug control in prisons

Abstract: This article examines the UK government's recent prison drug control strategy. The focus is on the control aspects of the proposals, for example, tightening security and the introduction of mandatory urine testing. A national telephone survey of prison Heads of Custody reveals broad support for the strategy but indicates that there are certain tensions and conflicts within it. These tensions are likely to make implementation problematic and limit its effectiveness. It is argued that, given the complexity of the prison system, a drug strategy needs to be firmly embedded within overall prison and penal strategies.

Parents of Young People in Trouble

Abstract: The parents of young people in trouble have long been blamed for the anti-social conduct of their children. For courts in England and Wales the 1991 Act introduces new specific powers to punish such parents. This paper provides evidence from a small-scale exploratory study, that while in theory such powers are widely regarded as unhelpful, in practice they might be more fully used than anticipated. The knowledge and understanding of both sentencers and parents are set out and their contrasting views explored. A conclusion is developed which suggests that rather than promoting parental responsibility the 1991 measures are more likely to undermine and embitter those upon whom they are imposed.

Ex‐offenders and enterprise

Abstract: Offenders are by their nature potentially greater risk-takers than the general population, as are entrepreneurs For this and reasons such as difficulty in finding employment, many offenders are likely to work in their own businesses The provision of training in running a small business or self-employment can improve the chances of success Offenders, as a group of people with special needs, may benefit from the provision of this type of training This paper describes the initial results of a study which examined the potential of offenders for running small business and the current provision of small business training in prisons and probation services in the UK

Users' Rights and the Probation Service: Some Opportunities and Obstacles

Abstract: This article examines the opportunities and obstacles facing the possible extension of legal and social rights for users of probation services. It is argued that the notion of users' rights in the community punishment context promotes a view of users as citizens with responsibilities rather than feckless offenders. It is further argued that extended user rights should act as a check against forms of new managerialism which now permeate the probation service, providing a means whereby users of the probation service could be treated more openly and equitably. The article concludes with some preliminary proposals for a service users' charter, making reference to the victims' and prisoners' rights movement.

Juvenile-Adult Differences in Criminal Justice: Evidence from the United Nations Crime Survey

Abstract: This analysis is concerned with juvenile/adult ratios of males and females at different stages of the criminal justice system, that is, apprehension, prosecution, conviction and imprisonment for the year 1975 and suspicion, prosecution, conviction, admission to prison and prison population in 1980 and 1986. Data from the Second and Third United Nations Crime Surveys, which covered about 90 countries, are employed. To counteract national age and gender population differences, in addition to raw ones, weighted ratios are examined. The study addresses three questions: (i) Is there any national distinctiveness in filtering out juveniles at different stages of the criminal justice system? (ii) Does a worldwide tendency exist in filtering out juveniles? and (iii) Is the gender of juveniles an influencing factor of the general practice for filtering out and, if so, at which particular stages of the system? A non-parametric statistical method, the sign test, is used to check upon the validity of the results.

Democracy and Minority Rights1

Abstract: This article attempts to deal with the problems related to the presence of ethniccultural minority groups within a predominantly white Dutch society. Even though rightextremism has not as yet reached the level of support it has in some other countries, in the Netherlands there seems to be a growing tendency towards discrimination and racism. In this respect it seems of great importance to try and find ways to turn these developments round. Two ways are discussed here which might contribute to a more positive development. On the one hand it is argued that more room for different kind of cultures, also within the legal culture, could result in a better understanding and acceptance of different cultural groups within society. On the other hand the question is posed whether or not a political party that does not show any respect for important material features of democracy (including minority rights) and intentionally tries to disturb the public order and aims at destroying democracy itself, should ultimately be banned from the political platform.

Prisons in Eastern Europe: Some Reflections on Prison Reform in Romania

Abstract: This paper explores some of the similarities and differences between the prison systems of eastern Europe since the collapse of the former Soviet Union, and then considers in more detail the process of prison reform in Romania. Two projects carried out under the auspices of the Netherlands Helsinki Committee and Penal Reform International working in cooperation with the Romanian Penitentiary Administration, are considered: a training seminar for prison governors and the planning of the regime for the new penitentiary in Bucharest.

Prison Privateers: Neo‐Colonialists in NSW

Abstract: Private for-projit prison corporations are expanding in Australia faster than in any ,other country. These corporations are based in the USA and form part of the corrections- commercial complex. it is the contention of this paper, from observations in NSW, Australia, that the nature of these newly internationalised private prison corporations is neo-colonialist, both economically and culturally. It can be compared with the expansion of the nuclear power industry by transnational US corporations in the 1960s and 1970s and other transnationals more recently. Using this perspective, the appropriateness of transnational private for-profit prison corporations running prisons in Australia is severely questioned. Transnational corporations are commonplace, reaching into markets in the most inaccessible parts of the world. They sell everything from cola to computers to security and attempt to create markets for their products where they are non-existent. These corporations have their bases in the UK, Japan, the USA and continental Europe. There has been strong debate about the harmful effects of their domination of world markets and their marketing of consumer items particularly in 'developing' countries. The marketing of sensitive human services by transnationals in the politically favoured climate of privatisation in many countries of the world should thus be vigorously questioned and scrutinised. The current contracting of prisons to private corporations' most with their bases in the USA, is only the most recent in the saga of US transnational corporations selling products and services which may well have been detrimental to the receiving nations. It can be contextualised in the international correc- tions-commercial complex identified by Lilly and Knepper (1991, 1992) and it can be paralleled with the export of nuclear power, health care systems and toxic chemicals by large US transnational corporations for profit and the attempted 'colonisation' of those industries in countries outside the US. Each of these exercises has concealed vital information and evidence from the receiving country, and has been accompanied by extravagant claims concerning the benefits of the commodity being 'sold'. Each has necessitated the introduction of culturally foreign attitudes and personnel and used the discourse of the market, economic rationalism and efficiency as the dominant discourse, whilst dismissing that of social

Diversion of Neighbourhood Disputes to Community Mediation

Abstract: This article reports some findings from a wider study of decision making about neighbourhood disputes by criminal justice personnel and considers the potential for the diversion to community mediation of such cases (Mackay and Moody 1994). The study was carried out in one Scottish city for the Scottish Office. We focus on that part of the study which analyses prosecutors' approaches to neighbourhood disputes and their views about diversion. We describe how prosecutors currently make decisions about neighbourhood disputes, their perceptions of these cases and their assessment of alternative ways in which such cases might be managed by the criminal justice system.

Lost in the Myths of Crime: The Use of Penal Custody for Male Juveniles, 1969 to 1993

Abstract: This paper considers published material on the use of penal custody for male offenders aged 14 to 16 years in the period from implementation of the 1969 Children and Young Persons Act until the Home Secretary's 1993 announcement of a new provision of secure training orders. It is shown that the decline of residential care in the 1970s contributed to a dramatic increase in the use of penal custody, despite growing criticism of both the level of incarceration and the institutional regimes provided. The ‘tough’ approach of the incoming government in 1979 is shown to have led to a trend away from the use of detention centres, and subsequently to a more general decarceration, both of which were entirely contrary to expectations. The conclusion is offered that a ‘liberal’ policy may be possible only when governments are confident in their own strength and have no need to demonstrate their ‘toughness’.

An Evaluation of the Craigmillar Youth Challenge

Abstract: This paper offers an evaluation of a youth diversion project which ran during the 1994 Easter vacation for young people on one of Edinburgh's partly run-down model housing estates. Through reference to detailed field observation, it offers an overview of the process of multi-agency co-ordination. The evaluation is made by reference to competing professional discourses employed by the representatives of the various involved agencies. The emergence of a ‘hybrid discourse’, a shared vocabulary, is postulated and tested for. The authors conclude that, within the context of this particular programme, the linguistic practices of various different professionals did not constitute an insurmountable barrier to co-operation.