PUBLIC LAND POLICY EDUCATION

Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

Case attrition in rape cases: a comparative analysis

The past decade has seen a number of legal, practice and policy-based interventions made in order to ensure that the criminal justice system is more responsive to rape complaints. At their most instrumental, the aim of both shifts in practice and in the laws relating to sexual offences is to increase reporting and conviction rates in rape cases. One of the greatest problems with the criminal justice system's response to rape remains, however, that most reported cases do not in fact make it through the system to trial. This article reflects on two attrition studies conducted by the authors between 2003 and 2006, together examining the disposition of approximately 600 rape cases across six urban police stations. The objective of these studies was to examine the processing, investigation and prosecution of sexual offences cases and to analyse the possible reasons for high attrition. This paper raises the complexities of calculating attrition as well as the extent to which international experiences and perspectives on rape attrition converge and contrast with South African ones. We also set out to develop some of the insights that we have garnered from our own attrition studies and thereby to alert scholars working in this area to the key practical and theoretical issues that arise in conceptualising and conducting an attrition study

Analytical Bethe Ansatz for A2n−1(2),Bn(1),Cn(1),Dn(1)A^{(2)}_{2n-1}, B^{(1)}_n, C^{(1)}_n, D^{(1)}_n quantum-algebra-invariant open spin chains

We determine the eigenvalues of the transfer matrices for integrable open quantum spin chains which are associated with the affine Lie algebras $A^{(2)}_{2n-1}, B^{(1)}_n, C^{(1)}_n, D^{(1)}_n$, and which have the quantum-algebra invariance U_q(C_n), U_q(B_n), U_q(C_n), U_q(D_n)$, respectively.Comment: 14 pages, latex, no figures (a character causing latex problem is removed

The Prettiest Dam on the Maquoketa River : The Quaker Mill Dam at Machester, Iowa

https://ir.uiowa.edu/osa_pubs/1014/thumbnail.jp

The cooperative capital constraint revisited

Purpose – There is little reason a priori to expect that a cooperative firm’s capital needs are different from a non-cooperative firm’s needs if the two firms are otherwise similar in function and size and operate within similar market economies. However, the notion that cooperatives face capital constraints that investor-owned firms (IOFs) do not is a persistent theme in the literature. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – The authors revisit this hypothesis with an empirical examination of capital constraints in a panel data set of US agricultural supply and grain cooperatives and IOFs. Findings – The findings are mixed. While the authors find little to suggest that cooperatives face financial constraints on borrowing in the short run, relative to IOFs, the authors do find some evidence that for long-term investments, a capital constraint may exist. Originality/value – These short and long run differences have implications for the survival and growth of agricultural cooperatives. While in the short run, access to debt financing allows these firms to operative profitably, ultimately long-term large investments in technology and fixed assets will be required to maintain competitiveness in this industry

‘A stitch in time…may save nine’: A systematic synthesis of the evidence for domestic violence management and prevention in Emergency Care

The aim of this policy brief is to provide an evidence-informed answer to the question: ‘What is the role and scope of pre-hospital emergency care providers to domestic violence (DV) intervention as a form of gender-based violence prevention?’ The answer is intended to determine the theoretical and clinical best practice to inform the emergency care community and policy development by critically appraising the evidence that considers the responsiveness of Emergency Medical Services to the health needs of DV victims. Evidence-informed Decision Making methods are employed. The evidence appraised was based on electronic searchesusing the Cape Peninsula University of Technology database. Research and non-research publications were considered with publication dates mostly from 1999 to 2011. Upon screening 164 articles for content relevance, 53 were critically appraised against predetermined criteria for relevance of the evidence, robust nature of the evidence and presence of bias. A thematic/narrative analysis ensued in terms of strength of evidence and frequency of findings. Early recognition and intervention is seen as one of the most effective methods of DV prevention. This finding is nuanced if it is male caregivers doing so. There is an ethical obligation to implement a comprehensive health approach to manage domestic violence victims. The strong, majority findings are that educational intervention/s increases the health care provider’s understanding of DV and improves screening for DV. The research supports the development and use of screening tools/guidelines/ procedures for DV as they are found to improve DV intervention. The evidence supports an integrated effort of the health system in achieving its goal of DV prevention by promoting the participation of pre-hospital emergency care providers as critical stakeholders.Key words: Domestic Violence (DV) management and prevention, Emergency Care Providers (ECP’s), Gender-based violence (GBV) prevention, Evidence-informed Decision Making (EiDM), Emergency Medical Servic

The relative capital structure of agricultural grain and supply cooperatives and investor owned firms [The cooperative capital constraint revisited]

A recent set of articles in Choices identified some of the major issues facing agricultural cooperatives. Among these are the challenges related to identifying the financing activities and equity capital management strategies that will lead to growth and longevity of cooperatives (Barton, et al 2011). Like their investor-owned counterparts, cooperatives must be profitable and competitive in the markets they face. However, cooperatives face unique challenges in managing equity capital. Because they are limited in their access to outside investments and have nontradable stock, cooperatives rely on member-provided equity through voting shares and equity accumulation through the allocation of profits as retained patronage as the primary sources of equity. Thus, a number of theoretical and empirical investigations identify that cooperatives are constrained in their ability to access capital and, therefore, are limited and perhaps inefficient in their investment activities. This paper seeks to examine the issue of capital constraints on U.S. agricultural supply and grain cooperatives and investor-owned firms (IOFs). A variant of the DuPont model – a technique that breaks down a firm’s rate of return to equity into measures that relate to profitability, efficiency in asset use, and leverage – permits an empirical comparison between IOFs and cooperatives on their activities, debt structure, equity, and liquidity factors. Using firm-level panel data of financial information for cooperativeand IOF agricultural grain and supply firms in Iowa, the two ownership types are compared to identify whether significant differences exists in their investment activities and financial efficiency. Whether capital structure is impacted by firm type and the financial determinants which may contribute to such differences is highlighted

Influence of Honey Bee, Apis mellifera, Hives and Field Size on Foraging Activity of Native Bee Species in Pumpkin Fields

The purpose of this study was to identify bee species active in pumpkin fields in New York and to estimate their potential as pollinators by examining their foraging activity. In addition, we examined whether foraging activity was affected by either the addition of hives of the honey bee, Apis mellifera L., or by field size. Thirty-five pumpkin (Cucurbita spp.) fields ranging from 0.6 to 26.3 ha, 12 supplemented with A. mellifera hives and 23 not supplemented, were sampled during peak flowering over three successive weeks in 2008 and 2009. Flowers from 300 plants per field were visually sampled for bees on each sampling date. A. mellifera, Bombus impatiens Cresson, and Peponapis pruinosa (Say) accounted for 99% of all bee visits to flowers. A. mellifera and B. impatiens visited significantly more pistillate flowers than would be expected by chance, whereas P. pruinosa showed no preference for visiting pistillate flowers. There were significantly more A. mellifera visits per flower in fields supplemented with A. mellifera hives than in fields not supplemented, but there were significantly fewer P. pruinosa visits in supplemented fields. The number of B. impatiens visits was not affected by supplementation, but was affected by number of flowers per field. A. mellifera and P. pruinosa visits were not affected by field size, but B. impatiens visited fewer flowers as field size increased in fields that were not supplemented with A. mellifera hives. Declining A. mellifera populations may increase the relative importance of B. impatiens in pollinating pumpkins in New Yor