Parental Criminal Justice Involvement and Children's Involvement With Child Protective Services: Do Adult Drug Treatment Courts Prevent Child Maltreatment?

BACKGROUND: In light of evidence showing reduced criminal recidivism and cost savings, adult drug treatment courts have grown in popularity. However, the potential spillover benefits to family members are understudied. OBJECTIVES: To examine: (1) the overlap between parents who were convicted of a substance-related offense and their children's involvement with child protective services (CPS); and (2) whether parental participation in an adult drug treatment court program reduces children's risk for CPS involvement. METHODS: Administrative data from North Carolina courts, birth records, and social services were linked at the child level. First, children of parents convicted of a substance-related offense were matched to (a) children of parents convicted of a nonsubstance-related offense and (b) those not convicted of any offense. Second, we compared children of parents who completed a DTC program with children of parents who were referred but did not enroll, who enrolled for <90 days but did not complete, and who enrolled for 90+ days but did not complete. Multivariate logistic regression was used to model group differences in the odds of being reported to CPS in the 1 to 3 years following parental criminal conviction or, alternatively, being referred to a DTC program. RESULTS: Children of parents convicted of a substance-related offense were at greater risk of CPS involvement than children whose parents were not convicted of any charge, but DTC participation did not mitigate this risk. Conclusion/Importance: The role of specialty courts as a strategy for reducing children's risk of maltreatment should be further explored.

A Restorative Theory of Criminal Justice

In this project, I defend a restorative theory of criminal justice. I argue that the response to criminal wrongdoing in a just society should take the form of an attempt to heal the damage done to the community resulting from crime. I argue that the moral responsibilities of wrongdoers as wrongdoers ought to provide the framework for how a just society should respond to crime. Following the work of R.A. Duff, I argue that wrongdoers incur second-order duties of moral recognition. Wrongdoers owe it to others to recognize their wrongdoing for what it is, i.e. wrongdoing, and to shoulder certain burdens in order to express their repentant recognition to others via a meaningful apology. In short, wrongdoers owe it to their victims and others in the community to make amends. What I will deny, however, is the now familiar claim in the restorative justice literature that restoring the normative relationships in the community damaged by criminal forms of wrongdoing requires retributive punishment. In my view, how we choose to express the judgement that wrongdoers are blameworthy should flow from an all things considered judgment that is neither reducible to the judgement that the wrongdoer is culpably responsible for wronging others, nor the judgement that the wrongdoer in some basic sense “deserves to suffer” (or “deserves punishment,” etc.).

Nuevas tendencias de organización criminal y movilidad geográfica. Aproximación geopolítica en clave de inteligencia criminal

El artículo pretende ofrecer una introducción explicativa sobre la tipología de relaciones posibles en el ámbito criminal organizado, los modelos de organización y su movilidad geográfica, a través de la conjunción de las disciplinas de la criminología, la geopolítica y la inteligencia criminal. El estudio persigue un doble objetivo: por un lado, aportar una reflexión que favorezca la apertura de líneas de investigación sobre la diversidad morfológica de las organizaciones criminales, las alianzas forjadas entre ellas, así como su expansión territorial, por otro, maximizar el conocimiento obtenido para apoyar la adopción de decisiones estratégicas, de políticas públicas y la detección de vulnerabilidades explotables para el desarrollo de estrategias de intervención.

The pervasiveness and trajectory of methodological choices: A 20 year review of human resource management research

This paper examines the methodological choices of researchers studying the HR practices–outcome relationship via a content analysis of 281 studies published across the last twenty years. The prevalence and trajectory of change over time are reported for a wide range of methodological choices relevant to internal, external, construct, and statistical conclusion validity. While the results indicate a high incidence of potentially problematic cross-sectional, single informant, and single level designs, they also reveal significant improvements over time across many validity relevant methodological choices. This broad based improvement in the methodological underpinnings of HR research suggests that researchers and practitioners can view the findings reported in the HR literature with increasing confidence. Directions for future research are provided.

Predictors of caregiver burden across the home-based palliative care trajectory in Ontario, Canada

Family caregivers of patients enrolled in home-based palliative care programmes provide unpaid care and assistance with daily activities to terminally ill family members. Caregivers often experience caregiver burden, which is an important predictor of anxiety and depression that can extend into bereavement. We conducted a longitudinal, prospective cohort study to comprehensively assess modifiable and non-modifiable patient and caregiver factors that account for caregiver burden over the palliative care trajectory. Caregivers (n = 327) of patients with malignant neoplasm were recruited from two dedicated home-based palliative care programmes in Southern Ontario, Canada from 1 July 2010 to 31 August 2012. Data were obtained from bi-weekly telephone interviews with caregivers from study admission until death, and from palliative care programme and home-care agency databases. Information collected comprised patient and caregiver demographics, utilisation of privately and publicly financed resources, patient clinical status and caregiver burden. The average age of the caregivers was 59.0 years (SD: 13.2), and almost 70% were female. Caregiver burden increased over time in a non-linear fashion from study admission to patient death. Increased monthly unpaid care-giving time costs, monthly public personal support worker costs, emergency department visits and low patient functional status were associated with higher caregiver burden. Greater use of hospice care was associated with lower burden. Female caregivers tended to report more burden compared to men as death approached, and burden was higher when patients were male. Low patient functional status was the strongest predictor of burden. Understanding the influence of modifiable and non-modifiable factors on the experience of burden over the palliative trajectory is essential for the development and targeting of programmes and policies to support family caregivers and reduce burden. Supporting caregivers can have benefits such as improved caregiver health outcomes, and enhancing their ability to meet care-giving demands, thereby potentially allowing for longer patient care in the home setting.

Procedural Justice in International Criminal Courts: Assessing Civil Parties’ Perceptions of Justice at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia

Procedural justice advocates argue that fair procedures in decision making processes can increase participant satisfaction with legal institutions. Little critical work has been done however to explore the power of such claims in the context of mass violence and international criminal justice. This article critically examines some of the key claims of procedural justice by exploring the perceptions of justice held by victims participating as Civil Parties in the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC). The ECCC has created one of the most inclusive and extensive victim participation regimes within international criminal law. It therefore provides a unique case study to examine some of claims of ‘victim-centred’ transitional justice through a procedural justice lens. It finds that while procedural justice influenced civil parties’ overall perceptions of the Court, outcomes remained of primary importance. It concludes by analysing the possible reasons for this prioritisation.