Ears of the Deaf: The Theory and Reality of Lay Judges in Mixed Tribunals

This paper explores mixed tribunals, a unique form of lay participation in which lay and professional judges make legal decisions jointly. A short overview of different types and sizes of mixed tribunals around the world will be discussed first. Then, the paper will elaborate on the theoretical arguments that hypothesize about the nature and extent of interaction in mixed tribunals. These theoretical arguments, developed using the status characteristics theory, will be assessed using the evidence obtained in empirical studies of mixed tribunals. In addition, the paper will discuss other potential challenges faced by mixed tribunals. In the end, the paper will provide recommendations for further research

Tryptophan metabolites in depression: Modulation by gut microbiota

Clinical depression is a multifactorial disorder and one of the leading causes of disability worldwide. The alterations in tryptophan metabolism such as changes in the levels of serotonin, kynurenine, and kynurenine acid have been implicated in the etiology of depression for more than 50 years. In recent years, accumulated evidence has revealed that gut microbial communities, besides being essential players in various aspects of host physiology and brain functioning are also implicated in the etiology of depression, particularly through modulation of tryptophan metabolism. Therefore, the aim of this review is to summarize the evidence of the role of gut bacteria in disturbed tryptophan metabolism in depression. We summed up the effects of microbiota on serotonin, kynurenine, and indole pathway of tryptophan conversion relevant for understanding the pathogenesis of depressive behavior. Moreover, we reviewed data regarding the therapeutic effects of probiotics, particularly through the regulation of tryptophan metabolites. Taken together, these findings can open new possibilities for further improvement of treatments for depression based on the microbiota-mediated modulation of the tryptophan pathway

Police Code of Silence in Times of Change

This book explores the contours of the code of silence and provides policy recommendations geared toward creating an environment less conducive for police misconduct. It responds to the recent calls for police reform, in the wake of the perceived illegitimacy of police actions and the protection that the code of silence seems to provide to the police officers who violate the official rules. Using a case study of a medium-sized U.S. police agency, this book employs the lens of police integrity theory to provide empirically grounded explanations of the code of silence. It examines the potential effects of organizational factors and the attitudes of individual police officers on their willingness to adhere to the code of silence in cases of police corruption, the use of excessive force, interpersonal deviance, and organizational deviance. The book focuses on the following factors that could influence the police code of silence in the times of change: The impact of organizational rule dissemination, discipline, and disciplinary fairness on the scope of the code of silence The role organizational justice plays in shaping police officer willingness to report misconduct The effect that police officers’ self-legitimacy has on their decisions to adhere to the code The influence of peer culture on individual police officer amenability to maintain the code The relationship between officers’ views of themselves, the organization, and the community on their willingness to report misconduc

Land Consolidation and Rural Development

Unapređenje sela i poljoprivredne proizvodnje nužan je proces u očuvanju ruralnog prostora za koji se deklarativno u Republici Hrvatskoj svi zalažu. Postojeće stanje sela i ruralnog prostora nije privlačno za mlade ljude i oni uglavnom napuštaju ta područja. Na selu prevladavaju staračka domaćinstva koja nisu u stanju unaprijediti poljoprivrednu proizvodnju, a povratak onih koji su ga napustili, u sadašnjim uvjetima, nije vjerojatan. Stoga je potrebno mladim ljudima koji se još uvijek bave poljoprivredom i žele se njome i dalje baviti omogućiti takve uvjete da od svoga rada mogu sigurno i pristojno živjeti. Određena tijela državne, odnosno lokalne vlasti dužna su organizirati i realizirati konkretne projekte za unapređenje različitih oblika poljoprivredne proizvodnje u svakoj regiji, županiji i općini. U našoj državi u ruralnim sredinama prevladavaju veoma mali obiteljski posjedi koji ne mogu osigurati njihovim vlasnicima pristojna primanja, odnosno standard života kakav mladi ljudi očekuju ili, bolje reći, zaslužuju. Osim toga, sve su učestalije pojave suša, a poplave su česte u područjima uz brojne riječne tokove, što dodatno ugrožava skromna primanja seoskih obitelji. Mjera kojom bi se smanjili ili potpuno eliminirali ti problemi je komasacija zemljišta. Intenzivno se provodila na teritoriju Republike Hrvatske u razdoblju nakon 2. svjetskog rata pa sve do njezina osamostaljenja 1991. godine. Razlozi zbog kojih se već dugi niz godina ne provodi komasacija zemljišta nisu poznati, a jedini poznati razlog je nedostatak zakonske regulative. Međutim, činjenica je da bi se stari Zakon o komasaciji zemljišta vrlo lako mogao prilagoditi novim društveno-političkim prilikama, a to ujedno znači da za njegovu izradu i donošenje, zasigurno, ne trebaju proći desetci godina. Ako takvo stanje potraje, u sadašnjim okolnostima, naša ruralna područja bit će sve zapuštenija i siromašnija, a poljoprivredna će proizvodnja sve više zaostajati za onom u zemljama Europske Unije.Rural and agricultural production development is an inevitable process in preserving rural area that everyone in the Republic of Croatia is pleading for. The existing situation in the rural area is not attractive for your people and they mostly abandon these areas. There are old-people households prevailing in the Republic of Croatia that surely cannot improve agricultural production, and the return of those who have abandoned it is hardly to expect. It is therefore inevitable to provide for your people who still want to be active in agriculture further on the conditions that would make it possible for them to live securely and adequately. Certain state bodies, i.e. local authorities are obliged to organise and realise concrete projects for the advance of various types of agricultural production in each region, county and municipality. In our state there are small family estates prevailing in rural regions that cannot secure decent income for their owners, i.e. the life standard that your people expect, or better to say, deserve. Apart from that, droughts and floods appear more and more frequently, and the floods also appear very often in the areas along numerous river courses, which additionally threatens modest incomes in rural families. The measure that would reduce or completely eliminate these problems is land consolidation. Land consolidations have been carried out intensively at the territory of the Republic of Croatia in the period after the 2. Word War and until Croatia became independent in 1991. The reasons for land consolidation not being carried out for such a long time are not known and one of them that can be heard is the lack of legal regulations. The fact is, however, that the old law could easily be adjust to new social and political circumstances, and for the preparation of the new one it would also not be needed the next ten years. In such circumstances our rural areas become more and more neglected and poor, and the agricultural production is falling behind the one in the countries of the European Union

Land Consolidation and Rural Development

Unapređenje sela i poljoprivredne proizvodnje nužan je proces u očuvanju ruralnog prostora za koji se deklarativno u Republici Hrvatskoj svi zalažu. Postojeće stanje sela i ruralnog prostora nije privlačno za mlade ljude i oni uglavnom napuštaju ta područja. Na selu prevladavaju staračka domaćinstva koja nisu u stanju unaprijediti poljoprivrednu proizvodnju, a povratak onih koji su ga napustili, u sadašnjim uvjetima, nije vjerojatan. Stoga je potrebno mladim ljudima koji se još uvijek bave poljoprivredom i žele se njome i dalje baviti omogućiti takve uvjete da od svoga rada mogu sigurno i pristojno živjeti. Određena tijela državne, odnosno lokalne vlasti dužna su organizirati i realizirati konkretne projekte za unapređenje različitih oblika poljoprivredne proizvodnje u svakoj regiji, županiji i općini. U našoj državi u ruralnim sredinama prevladavaju veoma mali obiteljski posjedi koji ne mogu osigurati njihovim vlasnicima pristojna primanja, odnosno standard života kakav mladi ljudi očekuju ili, bolje reći, zaslužuju. Osim toga, sve su učestalije pojave suša, a poplave su česte u područjima uz brojne riječne tokove, što dodatno ugrožava skromna primanja seoskih obitelji. Mjera kojom bi se smanjili ili potpuno eliminirali ti problemi je komasacija zemljišta. Intenzivno se provodila na teritoriju Republike Hrvatske u razdoblju nakon 2. svjetskog rata pa sve do njezina osamostaljenja 1991. godine. Razlozi zbog kojih se već dugi niz godina ne provodi komasacija zemljišta nisu poznati, a jedini poznati razlog je nedostatak zakonske regulative. Međutim, činjenica je da bi se stari Zakon o komasaciji zemljišta vrlo lako mogao prilagoditi novim društveno-političkim prilikama, a to ujedno znači da za njegovu izradu i donošenje, zasigurno, ne trebaju proći desetci godina. Ako takvo stanje potraje, u sadašnjim okolnostima, naša ruralna područja bit će sve zapuštenija i siromašnija, a poljoprivredna će proizvodnja sve više zaostajati za onom u zemljama Europske Unije.Rural and agricultural production development is an inevitable process in preserving rural area that everyone in the Republic of Croatia is pleading for. The existing situation in the rural area is not attractive for your people and they mostly abandon these areas. There are old-people households prevailing in the Republic of Croatia that surely cannot improve agricultural production, and the return of those who have abandoned it is hardly to expect. It is therefore inevitable to provide for your people who still want to be active in agriculture further on the conditions that would make it possible for them to live securely and adequately. Certain state bodies, i.e. local authorities are obliged to organise and realise concrete projects for the advance of various types of agricultural production in each region, county and municipality. In our state there are small family estates prevailing in rural regions that cannot secure decent income for their owners, i.e. the life standard that your people expect, or better to say, deserve. Apart from that, droughts and floods appear more and more frequently, and the floods also appear very often in the areas along numerous river courses, which additionally threatens modest incomes in rural families. The measure that would reduce or completely eliminate these problems is land consolidation. Land consolidations have been carried out intensively at the territory of the Republic of Croatia in the period after the 2. Word War and until Croatia became independent in 1991. The reasons for land consolidation not being carried out for such a long time are not known and one of them that can be heard is the lack of legal regulations. The fact is, however, that the old law could easily be adjust to new social and political circumstances, and for the preparation of the new one it would also not be needed the next ten years. In such circumstances our rural areas become more and more neglected and poor, and the agricultural production is falling behind the one in the countries of the European Union

Police Code of Silence in Times of Change

This book explores the contours of the code of silence and provides policy recommendations geared toward creating an environment less conducive for police misconduct. It responds to the recent calls for police reform, in the wake of the perceived illegitimacy of police actions and the protection that the code of silence seems to provide to the police officers who violate the official rules. Using a case study of a medium-sized U.S. police agency, this book employs the lens of police integrity theory to provide empirically grounded explanations of the code of silence. It examines the potential effects of organizational factors and the attitudes of individual police officers on their willingness to adhere to the code of silence in cases of police corruption, the use of excessive force, interpersonal deviance, and organizational deviance. The book focuses on the following factors that could influence the police code of silence in the times of change: The impact of organizational rule dissemination, discipline, and disciplinary fairness on the scope of the code of silence The role organizational justice plays in shaping police officer willingness to report misconduct The effect that police officers’ self-legitimacy has on their decisions to adhere to the code The influence of peer culture on individual police officer amenability to maintain the code The relationship between officers’ views of themselves, the organization, and the community on their willingness to report misconduc