Beccaria Portal: Your directory and knowledge network in crime prevention and criminology in Europe and worldwide.
Daily PressTodays crime related press reports collected by Prof. Thomas Görgen, German Police University
guardian.co.uk, 01.02.2012
Social networking sites fuelling stalking, report warns
Social networking sites fuelling stalking, report warns
Smartphones and social networking sites are making it much easier for stalkers to target victims, say charities.
Alexandra Topping
, 01.02.2012
In times of scandal, corporations are likely to use others' misconduct to justify their behavior
David Ruth, Rice University
MarketWatch (press release), 01.02.2012
Morpho Detection's Solutions Help U.K. Police Forces Identify Cash from Illegal Drug Activity
BBC News, 02.02.2012
Call to scrap prison visiting committee change
The Scottish Government has been urged to scrap plans to replace independent prison visiting committees, which have been in place since the 19th Century.
Open Democracy, 02.02.2012
Mother’s boys: conversations with the parents of Russia’s neo-Nazis
Olesya Gerasimenko
MetroFocus (blog), 03.02.2012
In Policing the Police, How Does NYC Compare to Other Cities?
John Farley
SPIEGEL ONLINE, 03.02.2012
Politician Blasted for Support of Islamic Law
Does Sharia have a place in Germany? The interior minister of the state of Rhineland-Palatinate thinks it could, particularly in civil cases relating to marriage and divorce. But criticism of his comments has been fierce.
EurekAlert Public release, 03.02.2012
Making sense of addiction terminology
Journal of Psychopharmacology special issue on alcohol
Mithu Lucraft
Prevention Action, 03.02.2012
The research is fine, shame about the reporting
Academics and policy makers are increasingly calling for better evidence of what works in criminal justice. This has led to a focus on the randomized controlled trial (RCT).
Daily Beast, 03.02.2012
Why We Riot: How Fans Turned an Egypt Soccer Match into a Bloodbath
How does a nice day at the stadium turn into a run for your life in a riot? Psychologists believe sporting events provide the perfect storm for stampeding.
Jeff Wise
London Free Press, 04.02.2012
Police should collect race-based data: Study
Canadian police departments should collect race-based crime data, two Ontario criminologists say.
Sydney Morning Herald, 04.02.2012
Police use disruption to keep lone wolves from the door
Strategies are changing because of difficulties in gathering evidence, writes Debra Jopson.
Debra Jopson
Sydney Morning Herald, 04.02.2012
Australia raising its own jihadists
THE face of terrorism has shifted dramatically in Australia since the start of the Iraq war and is now dominated by locally born violent jihadists willing to attack their fellow citizens. This is in line with a worldwide trend towards ''homegrown'' extremism, say counter-terrorism analysts and agencies.
Debra Jopson
The Economist (UK),, 04.02.2012
Straight but narrow
A debate about homosexuality in Islam is beginning. But in Muslim lands persecution—and hypocrisy—are still rife
Fayetteville Observer, 05.02.2012
When war comes home: Crime surge among veterans suggest some didn't leave horrors behind
Greg Barnes; Staff writer
CounterPunch, 05.02.2012
The Drug Police
Tod Mikuriya, MD, once paid a printer to make up stickers that said “Drug Police: Armed Clergy.” The message came to mind Jan. 24 when the New York Times ran a piece about Joe Paterno’s education at Brooklyn Prep, a Jesuit high school in Crown Heights (the ‘hood where I grew up). The article named these distinguished alumni of Brooklyn Prep: Joseph Califano, John Lawn, and Robert Bennett.
FRED GARDNER
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, 05.02.2012
Effort seeks to avoid ID errors in criminal cases
Gary Craig
Appleton Post Crescent, 05.02.2012
In Wisconsin, crime doesn't pay - even for prosecutors
Jessie Van Berkel Post-Crescent staff writer
Fast Company, 05.02.2012
Google Maps Help Predict Meth Labs Before They Open
The same maps that can help you find your way to the mall can help the police predict where meth labs will pop up next. Here's a look inside the strange, fascinating world of geospatial predictive analysis.
Neal Ungerleider
EurekAlert Public release, 06.02.2012
Children hospitalized at alarming rate due to abuse
Karen N. Peart
Sydney Morning Herald, 06.02.2012
Family links strong in Australian cells
FAMILY connections and friendships are at the core of the terrorist networks active in Australia over the past 12 years, a Monash University researcher has found.
Debra Jopson
Wall Street Journal, 06.02.2012
Earlier Nights in New Orleans?
With Nation's Highest Murder Rate, City May Expand Tighter Youth Curfew.
CAMERON MCWHIRTER
University of Texas at Dallas (press release), 06.02.2012
Prison Misconduct Findings Shed Light on Crowding Problem
Parolees Incarcerated for Technical Violations Found to Pose Low Safety Risk in UT Dallas Study
MedPage Today, 06.02.2012
Program Puts Smackdown on Bullying
Reviewed by Robert Jasmer, MD; Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco
John Gever
TIME, 06.02.2012
Why Spanking Doesn’t Work
A new analysis concludes that spanking fails to alter kids' behavior in the long term. What it does instead is amp up their aggression.
Bonnie Rochman
BBC News, 06.02.2012
Do cop shows tell the truth about policing?
Fictional TV cop shows are all many people know about the workings of policing. But how accurate are they
Giles Edwards
The New Yorker, 06.02.2012
The Story of a Suicide
Two college roommates, a webcam, and a tragedy.by Ian Parker
Tyler Clementi, a gay Rutgers student, was electronically spied on by his roommate, Dharun Ravi, and Ravi’s friend Molly Wei.
The Independent, 07.02.2012
Calls for new anti-stalking law:
Help victims of stalking before they are harmed, inquiry urges
Paul Peachey
guardian.co.uk, 07.02.2012
Speech therapy: When sorry seems to be the hardest word
Young offenders with communication problems and at risk of falling deeper into criminality are being given a voice
Rachel Pugh
Newswise — Released, 07.02.2012
Parents Blame Child Sex Abuse Victims More if Perpetrator is Another Youth
Parents are much more likely to blame and doubt their children when their child has been sexually abused by another adolescent instead of an adult, according to new research from the Crimes against Children Research Center at the University of New Hampshire
London Review of Books Vol. 34 No. 3, 07.02.2012
Europe at Bay
Jeremy Harding on migrants and the battle for borders
Science Network Western Australia, 07.02.2012
Nationwide study finds khat abuse within community
Chris Thomas
New York Times, 08.02.2012
Radical U.S. Muslims Little Threat, Study Says
WASHINGTON — A feared wave of homegrown terrorism by radicalized Muslim Americans has not materialized, with plots and arrests dropping sharply over the two years since an unusual peak in 2009, according to a new study by a North Carolina research group.
SCOTT SHANE
Prevention Action, 08.02.2012
Picking out the active ingredients
“Active ingredients” are the key elements of evidence-based programs. Without the active ingredients, the program may not deliver the same results in the real world as it did in the lab. But it’s not always easy to pick out which components are the essential ones.
Justice.gov.uk, 09.02.2012
Cheaper, quicker and less daunting’ justice
Ministry of Justice: Individuals and businesses will find it cheaper, quicker and less daunting to resolve their disputes in civil courts, through new measures announced today.
EurekAlert Public release, 09.02.2012
Potential for incorrect relationship identification in new forensic familial searching techniques
New research suggests that unrelated individuals may be mistakenly identified as genetic family members due to inaccurate genetic assumptions
EurekAlert Public release, 09.02.2012
Physically abused children report higher levels of psychosomatic symptoms
Researchers studied 2,510 children aged 10, 12 and 15
EurekAlert Public release, 09.02.2012
60 percent of Spanish adolescents state they do not take drugs and rarely drink alcohol
EurekAlert Public release, 09.02.2012
Digital photos could put kids at risk
Do geotagged photos posted online threaten children's safety?
Joanne Kuzma
guardian.co.uk, 09.02.2012
The Met's gang raids are a PR stunt. Better the carrot than the stick
The police arresting 200 people will have less effect than their preventative and community work. But it spins so much better
Alan White
Guardian Professional, 09.02.2012
Crime prediction pilot to forecast Birmingham's burglary hot spots
West Midlands police to test modelling system designed to help force target burglars
Gill Hitchcock
Justice.gov.uk, 10.02.2012
Ministry of Justice reforms praised by leading think tank
The Ministry of Justice has been named as one of the top reforming government departments in 2011 according to a new analysis by the independent think tank Reform.
The Crime Report, 10.02.2012
Move Over, Police?
Do private security forces hired by business owners and technologies such as anti-car theft Lojack systems have as much to do with America’s falling crime rates as “hot spot” policing?
John Sodaro
Juvenile Justice Information Exchange, 10.02.2012
Communities are Critical in Aiding Criminal Justice System, Experts Say
Ryan Schill
Telegraph.co.uk, 10.02.2012
Where do all the stolen motorcycles go?
Bike thefts have dropped to about 22,000 per year, but at least half are never recovered.
Dr Ken German
guardian.co.uk, 10.02.2012
All together now: Montaigne and the art of co-operation
Economic insecurity has rendered our social life brutally simple: 'us-against-them' coupled with 'you-are-on-your-own'. But the French essayist can inspire radical new forms of co-operation
Richard Sennett
Montreal Gazette, 11.02.2012
And justice for youth … ?
ANALYSIS: Federal crime bill, C-10, will affect Quebec’s distinct approach to young offenders
JANET BAGNALL
The Observer, 12.02.2012
Axing of Forensic Science Service may lead to rise in miscarriages of justice, scientists warn
Conviction of David Bryant for child sex assault will be pioneering forensics team's last success
Robin McKie
msnbc.com, 12.02.2012
Witness error: How mind tricks can put the innocent behind bars
Miranda Leitsinger
The Observer, 12.02.2012
Legal highs evade being banned as scientists run out of cash to test them
Funding cuts mean crime networks can flood Britain with new drugs
Jamie Doward
New York Times (blog), 12.02.2012
Inside China’s Greatest Mystery
If a novelist had made up Wang Lijun — a man described by acquaintances and the Chinese media as a charming, fedora-wearing, autopsy-performing, action-loving former head of police in the giant southwestern municipality of Chongqing — the writer might be accused of resorting to the worst kind of melodrama.
DIDI KIRSTEN TATLOW
guardian.co.uk, 13.02.2012
Childhood abuse may stunt growth of part of brain involved in emotions
Three key areas of the hippocampus in the brain were smaller in people who reported maltreatment in childhood
Alok Jha
MarketWatch (press release), 13.02.2012
New Crime Management System for the Norwegian National Police Directorate Being Developed by Accenture
guardian.co.uk, 14.02.2012
'Losing' the world: American decline in perspective, part 1
US foreign policy 'experts' only ever provide an echo chamber for American imperial power. A longer, broader view is necessary
Noam Chomsky
Medical Xpress, 14.02.2012
Violent radicalisation better tackled with public health measures, say researchers
With a growing number of terrorist attacks being committed by ‘home-grown’ radicals, researchers at Queen Mary, University of London are proposing a totally new approach to preventing terrorism
Houston Chronicle (blog), 14.02.2012
Teen victims of dating violence often also victims of other kinds of abuse
HealthCanal.com, 14.02.2012
Less prison, better prevention of crime
Spending money on crime prevention might prove a wiser investment than building more prisons, writes Australian Research Council Federation Fellow JOHN BRAITHWAITE.
rabble.ca, 14.02.2012
'Nobody cared, nobody did anything': The normalization of violence against Indigenous women
Audrey Huntley
Prevention Action, 14.02.2012
Gun crime: Disarming perceptions
Over eighty years ago, the American sociologist W I Thomas stated that “if men [sic] define a situation as real, it is real in its consequences.” The fact that belief in something has as much effect as if it were true has since become a cornerstone of much social psychology and has been confirmed in numerous studies ranging from topics as different as the fear of crime to self-esteem and emotional relationships.
EurekAlert Public release date, 15.02.2012
Neighborhood bar density linked to intimate partner violence-related visits to emergency department
Intimate partner violence (IPV) has been linked to heavy drinking, and alcohol outlet density to violence.
•A new study looks at links between alcohol outlet densities and IPV-related Emergency Department (ED) visits.
•Findings showed that bars are positively related to IPV-related ED visits, while there is no relationship between restaurant density and IPV-related ED visits.
Daily Northwestern - Published, 15.02.2012
Seniors work with police departments as a part of MMSS thesis
Police departments across the nation with more data than resources are reaching out to Northwestern students to help analyze crime statistics.
Stephanie Yang
Juvenile Justice Information Exchange, 15.02.2012
Studies the Impact of Emotion in the Juvenile Justice System
Ryan Schill
EurekAlert Public release, 15.02.2012
Strict parental rules about drinking can curb adolescent impulses to drink
Frequent drinking can establish changes in the processing of alcohol cues that can, in turn, facilitate renewed drinking unless the resulting impulse to drink is inhibited.
•A new study has looked at the interaction between automatically activated approach tendencies and adolescent ability and motivation to inhibit and reflect upon drinking behaviors.
•Results show that stricter parental rules about drinking are highly protective, especially for males.
National Academy of Sciences, 15.02.2012
Strained Relations Between NNSA and National Security Laboratories Threatens Quality of Science and Engineering Work, Says New Report
EurekAlert Public release, 15.02.2012
Mayo Clinic: Hospitalization of US underage drinkers common, costs $755 million a year
Prevention Action, 15.02.2012
Home-visitation programs can be an effective early-intervention strategy
Home visitation has become an increasingly popular prevention strategy due to its positive impact on a number of both child and parent outcomes. Furthermore, home-based interventions provide an opportunity to reach at-risk families.
Newswise, 15.02.2012
Study Posits a Theory of Moral Behavior
Why do some people behave morally while others do not? Sociologists at UC Riverside and CSU Northridge have developed a theory of the moral self that may help explain the ethical lapses in the banking, investment and mortgage-lending industries that nearly ruined the U.S. economy.
StarPhoenix, 16.02.2012
Researchers question effectiveness of high-tech police database of violence
Douglas Quan
University of Minnesota News Release, 16.02.2012
University of Minnesota researchers discover that cell phone hackers can track your physical location without your knowledge
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 16.02.2012
Policing Reform & Reforming Police
Andrew Exum & J. Dana Stuster
New York Times, 17.02.2012
For Punishment of Elder’s Misdeeds, Afghan Girl Pays the Price
ALISSA J. RUBIN
Eureka Street, 19.02.2012
In defence of 'adults only' video games
The Federal Government last week introduced legislation to create an R18+ classification for computer games from the beginning of 2013.
Michael Mullins
EurekAlert, 20.02.2012
1 in 10 children face elevated risk of abuse, future PTSD, due to gender nonconformity
Le Monde diplomatique, 20.02.2012
The pirate nobody wants
The idea seems good: try pirates where they’ve been taken after capture. But the trial of a group of Somalis brought in at the conclusion of an army raid was a political show
Rémi Carayol
Politics.co.uk -, 20.02.2012
Theresa May splits UK Border Agency in bid to kill immigration row
Ian Dunt
HealthCanal.com, 20.02.2012
'Peer contagion' influences criminal recidivism among youth, study finds
Kim Fischer
guardian.co.uk, 20.02.2012
It's official: crime is bad for your health
New findings highlight the health impacts of sustained criminality and could have urgent policy implications
Louise Tickle
BBC News, 21.02.2012
CCTV spending by councils 'was £515m in five years'
Councils across the UK spent more than £515m on CCTV systems between 2007 and 2011, according to campaign group Big Brother Watch.
Huffington Post, 21.02.2012
In Immigration Never Never Land; Anachronistic, Out of Touch
Marcelo M. Suarez-Orozco and Carola Suarez-OrozcoCo
BBC News, 21.02.2012
Muslim hate crime phone line aims to help victims
A first UK helpline for victims of Islamophobia is being set up amid concerns that incidents are not being reported or properly categorised.
The Independent, 22.02.2012
Young disabled stay silent over hate crimes
Two in three physically or verbally abused, while 80 per cent lack faith in police to act
Sarah Cassidy
Newswise, 22.02.2012
No Link Between the Death Penalty and Capital Crimes, Sociologists Find in Study of Trinidad and Tobago
PsychCentral.com, 22.02.2012
Digging Into Biological, Environmental Roots of Antisocial Behavior
Rick Nauert PhDSenior News Editor Reviewed by John M. Grohol, Psy.D.
BBC News, 22.02.2012
Germany urged to end sex offender castration
German law sets out stringent conditions for carrying out surgical castration Continue reading the main story
Spiked, 22.02.2012
Who’s afraid of the big bad ‘lone wolf’?
ESSAY: Frank Furedi on how Western society’s panic about ‘lone-wolf terrorists’ ends up empowering sad individuals who want to do harm.
EurekAlert Public release, 22.02.2012
News coverage of alcohol's harm may sway support for liquor-control laws
EurekAlert Public, 22.02.2012
Fake drug sales are increasing on the Internet and turning up in legitimate supply
Major review contains wealth of international facts and figures
EurekAlert Public release, 22.02.2012
A new link between traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder
Philadelphia, PA, February 22, 2012 – Mild traumatic brain injury (TBI) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are cardinal injuries associated with combat stress, and TBI increases the risk of PTSD development. The reasons for this correlation have been unknown, in part because physical traumas often occur in highly emotional situations.
Prevention Action, 22.02.2012
The fidelity patchwork
Researchers and practitioners can do more to ensure that psychosocial interventions are put into practice exactly as intended and without bias, a recent review claims.
It highlights a “fidelity patchwork”: while most studies succeeded on several dimensions of fidelity and bias, almost none succeeded on all. In an investigation of 10 studies of interventions for youth with multiple mental health conditions, only one study was found to meet the measure of “high” fidelity.
EurekAlert Public, 23.02.2012
Sam Houston State professor examines race and sentencing
HUNTSVILLE, TX (2/23/12) – A Sam Houston State University professor is working on a series of studies that examine the effects of race and ethnicity on state and federal sentencing outcomes, including incarceration and sentence length decisions.
News-Medical.net, 23.02.2012
Underreporting of alcohol's role in crime and accidents decreases public support for liquor laws
EurekAlert Public release, 23.02.2012
Experts recommend measures to reduce human error in fingerprint analysis
Surrey Now, 23.02.2012
Tories’ Crime Act deemed 'pure political theatre'
Head of criminology school says Tories used Act to 'herd electorate' in last election
Tom Zytaruk, Surrey Now
Prevention Action, 23.02.2012
Who benefits from “universal” programs?
Universal programs sound like a great idea. Make an intervention available to all, and you increase the political base to support it, make it simpler to implement, and remove the stigma of participation. So the argument goes. But despite their many advantages, universal programs may fail to reach the more disadvantaged – and may actually widen the gap between the haves and have-nots.
Sydney Morning Herald, 24.02.2012
Seeking to understand the inexplicable
Inexplicable. Shocking. Inconceivable. When a parent kills their child, the same adjectives are used again and again.
New York Times, 24.02.2012
Germany’s Leader Apologizes for Police Handling of Neo-Nazi Killings
MELISSA EDDY
EurekAlert Public, 24.02.2012
In the genes, but which ones?
Earlier studies that linked specific genes to intelligence were largely wrong, Harvard researchers find
Prevention Action, 24.02.2012
Stuck in the middle
The plight of the “squeezed middle” – those on low and middle incomes who have been particularly hit by stagnant wages, rising prices and public spending cuts – was high on the agenda of the media and politicians last year. New research indicates, moreover, that this recent phenomenon may be set to have far-reaching consequences.
The Economist, 25.02.2012
Bobbies on the ballot
The most radical transformation of policing in decades has begun
The Economist, 25.02.2012
The Chicago way
Capital of corruption
CHICAGO | ON MARCH 15th the former governor of Illinois, Rod Blagojevich, will start to serve a 14-year sentence for corruption in a federal low-security prison. In this part of America, he is treading a well-worn path. Over four decades, four governors (out of seven) have been convicted of corruption.
BBC News, 26.02.2012
Afghan police officer sought over Kabul Nato killings
The shooting took place inside one of the highest security buildings in Kabul
Las Vegas Review - Journal, 26.02.2012
Review of Las Vegas police, shootings has begun
A team of consultants tasked with investigating Metropolitan Police Department shootings has paid its first visit to Las Vegas, met with officers and civilians , and received a slew of police reports.
Lawrence Mower
The Observer, 26.02.2012
Male rape charity's hard-hitting poster campaign targets Six Nations
Rugby-themed billboard urging victims to speak out given high profile at Twickenham
Survivors UK’s campaign was prompted by figures suggesting that 8,500 men a year may be raped in London alone every year.
Rugby fans heading through London's Waterloo station on their way to the England versus Wales game at Twickenham yesterday were the target of the first major advertising campaign by a male rape charity.
Boston Globe, 26.02.2012
Where American criminal justice went wrong
The book was written in a hurry. It had to be, because William Stuntz was dying, and the story he wanted to tell was long and complicated. It would be the Harvard Law School professor’s final major work, a sweeping indictment of the system he had been studying for 25 years.
Leon Neyfakh |
The Independent, 26.02.2012
Exclusive: A4e and a £200m back-to-work scandal
Accusations of fraud and widespread malpractice have prompted Commons watchdog to take tough action
Sarah Morrison, Jane Merrick
Eurasia Review -, 27.02.2012
Study Reveals “Suicide By Cop” Common Occurrence
A study in the Journal of Forensic Sciences examined the prevalence of the phenomenon of “Suicide by Cop” (SBC) among a large sample of officer-involved shootings. Results show that SBC occurs at extremely high rates, with 36 percent of all police shootings of suspects being categorized as SBC.
Jim Kouri
University of California - Riverside, 28.02.2012
Three-strikes Law Fails to Reduce Crime
UC Riverside analysis finds that decreased alcohol consumption is responsible for significant drop in crime nationwide, not tougher sentencing policies.
Bettye Miller
CorrectionsOne, 28.02.2012
Why we incarcerate: Punishment
In the first segment of this three part series, this article examines some of the research surrounding the primary reason we incarcerate those who violate our laws
Dr. Bruce Bayley
University of Warwick, 29.02.2012
Research finds bullies and victims three times more likely to have suicidal thoughts by age 11
Children involved in bullying – as both a victim and a bully – are three times more likely to have suicidal thoughts by the time they reach 11 years old, according to research from the University of Warwick.
Daily Dispatch Online, 29.02.2012
Germans shocked at E Cape police death rate
A GERMAN delegation of top police officers visiting the Eastern Cape said yesterday they were alarmed at the number of police officers dying while on duty in the province.
Ohio State University, 29.02.2012
Winning makes people more aggressive toward the defeated
COLUMBUS, Ohio – In this world, there are winners and losers – and, for your own safety, it is best to fear the winners.
MarketWatch (press release), 29.02.2012
Safer Way Award = Police Officer Recognition
National Organization Calls for 2012 Safer Way Award Nominees
CHICO, Calif., Feb 29, 2012 (GlobeNewswire via COMTEX) -- It is time--time to honor police officers and law enforcement leaders worldwide who strive to keep our roads safer.
Wall Street Journal (blog), 29.02.2012
Economics Journal: The Unexpected Results of Voting in an Alleged Criminal
Newswise Released, 29.02.2012
Peer Contagion in Neighborhood Impacts Criminal Recidivism Among Youth
New research from Temple University found that the rate of recidivism among youth living nearby a juvenile's residence not only increases the likelihood that youth will re-offend, it can also cause teenage boys to "specialize" in certain types of crime.
The Local - New York Times, 29.02.2012
Pot Busts Are Up — And Jeffries Pushes Decriminalization Bill
Low-level marijuana arrests in the 88th Precinct have nearly tripled — and fort Greene’s assemblyman said the numbers prove his point about the need for major drug reform.
KYLE THOMAS MCGOVERN
