The Concept of Consent under the Sexual Offences Act 2003

This article examines the provisions relating to consent under the Sexual Offences Act 2003. It considers whether the law in this area now possesses a satisfactory level of clarity following a number of recent Court of Appeal decisions, and concludes that there may be a need for further legislative reform in this respect

The Public-Private Divide in Prosecutions and Obtaining of Evidence: Towards a Code?

In English law, in spite of the existence of the Crown Prosecution Service, every person still has the right to bring a criminal prosecution. Nowadays, this right is little used by individuals acting in a personal capacity, but private prosecutions have become much more common in recent years as corporations have attempted to use them to protect their commercial interests, and as some law firms have encouraged individuals and corporations to bring them as a means of obtaining redress. In 1977, Lord Diplock stated that the right to bring a private prosecution is ‘a useful constitutional safeguard against capricious, corrupt or biased failure or refusal of [the relevant state] authorities to prosecute offenders against the criminal law.’1 However, there is more recent judicial authority for the view that the right to prosecute privately is a historical anomaly of little worth, and potentially dangerous.2 It is with both of these judicial views in mind that we examine the relationship between certain organisations which exist solely to protect the commercial interests of particular corporations, and English and Welsh state agencies such as police authorities and local councils, which have a duty to consider the public interest but which sometimes work in partnership with such organisations.We argue that this relationship raises serious concerns about the potential abuse of state power by private organisations, and that a specific code of conduct may be required to guard against such abuse

Private prosecution: a useful constitutional safeguard or potentially dangerous historical anomaly?

In the light of recent English cases concerning the right of individuals to bring private prosecutions, this article argues that this right should be removed or circumscribed more closely. In particular, we advocate three reforms here if the power to launch private prosecutions is to remain

The Kanyakla study: Randomized controlled trial of a microclinic social network intervention for promoting engagement and retention in HIV care in rural western Kenya

BACKGROUND: Existing social relationships are a potential source of social capital that can enhance support for sustained retention in HIV care. A previous pilot study of a social network-based \u27microclinic\u27 intervention, including group health education and facilitated HIV status disclosure, reduced disengagement from HIV care. We conducted a pragmatic randomized trial to evaluate microclinic effectiveness. METHODS: In nine rural health facilities in western Kenya, we randomized HIV-positive adults with a recent missed clinic visit to either participation in a microclinic or usual care (NCT02474992). We collected visit data at all clinics where participants accessed care and evaluated intervention effect on disengagement from care (≥90-day absence from care after a missed visit) and the proportion of time patients were adherent to clinic visits (\u27time-in-care\u27). We also evaluated changes in social support, HIV status disclosure, and HIV-associated stigma. RESULTS: Of 350 eligible patients, 304 (87%) enrolled, with 154 randomized to intervention and 150 to control. Over one year of follow-up, disengagement from care was similar in intervention and control (18% vs 17%, hazard ratio 1.03, 95% CI 0.61-1.75), as was time-in-care (risk difference -2.8%, 95% CI -10.0% to +4.5%). The intervention improved social support for attending clinic appointments (+0.4 units on 5-point scale, 95% CI 0.08-0.63), HIV status disclosure to close social supports (+0.3 persons, 95% CI 0.2-0.5), and reduced stigma (-0.3 units on 5-point scale, 95% CI -0.40 to -0.17). CONCLUSIONS: The data from our pragmatic randomized trial in rural western Kenya are compatible with the null hypothesis of no difference in HIV care engagement between those who participated in a microclinic intervention and those who did not, despite improvements in proposed intervention mechanisms of action. However, some benefit or harm cannot be ruled out because the confidence intervals were wide. Results differ from a prior quasi-experimental pilot study, highlighting important implementation considerations when evaluating complex social interventions for HIV care. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Clinical trial number: NCT02474992

Shrinkage of Outerwood, Middlewood, and Corewood of Two Sweetgum Trees

Two sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua L.) trees were used to determine the shrinkage properties of green outerwood, middlewood, and corewood. Samples were taken at various heights along the boles from each side of a disk. Shrinkage displayed the following general pattern: corewood > middlewood > outerwood. This pattern was reversed for the specific gravity of samples from each of these wood types from tree 1, but tree 2 maintained a relatively uniform specific gravity among wood types