Police discretion in rape cases

Although policing requires officers to follow policy guidelines when making decisions, these nevertheless leave room for discretion. We used a within-subjects experimental design and idiographic statistical analyses to examine the factors predicting 25 specialist police officers’ decisions to progress rape cases. We found little to no evidence of the influence of some factors (i.e., victim’s criminal history, victim-suspect relationship, time taken to report crime, victim’s prior reports of rape, victim’s alcohol/drug use during offence, and suspect’s previous convictions) on officers’ rape case progression decisions. However, 15 officers were less likely to progress cases involving victims who provided inconsistent accounts. Thus, some types of rape victims may not get access to the justice that they desire and deserve. Although officers also reported that consistency of the victim’s account was important to their decision-making, there was generally a lack of concordance between officers’ self-reported and applied decision-making policies. Thus, officers’ accounts of how they progressed a rape case may be unreliable and invalid

Factors predicting conviction in child stranger rape

Background. Public knowledge of child stranger rape is shaped largely by media portrayals of a small number of cases, often marked by sensational trials, which may result in juror misconceptions of this offense. It is important to understand the factors that may influence jury verdicts in order to maximize the chance of guilty defendants being convicted. Objective. The aim is to explore the factors that predict juries’ decisions to convict or acquit in child stranger rape cases. Participants and Setting. The study utilizes a police database of recorded child stranger rape cases from a UK urban force from 2001-2015. Seventy cases that were tried by jury were analyzed. We investigated the extent to which 19 child-, accused- and offense-related factors predict jury verdicts. Methods. A four stage analytic process was employed: (a) Kendall’s tau-b measured inter-correlations among the factors; (b) Chi-Square and Welch t-tests measured associations between factors and verdicts; (c) binary logistic regression measured the power of factors in predicting verdicts; and (d) Stein’s formula was used to cross-validate the model. Results. Verdicts were predicted by two offense-related factors. A weapon increased the odds of conviction by 412%. An outdoor location increased the odds by 360%. Conclusions. The findings have potential implications for prosecution case building and courtroom policy. Prosecutors could gather as much information as possible from victims about the factors found to be of importance to juries. Judges could challenge incorrect beliefs and stereotypes by instructing juries

Factors predicting jury convictions in stranger rape cases

Background: Despite there being no legal distinction between different types of rapes (e.g., those committed by strangers to the victim versus those committed by perpetrators known to the victim), stereotypical beliefs about rape have meant that these can be treated differently by the justice system. The aim is to explore the factors that predict juries’ decisions to convict or acquit in stranger rape cases. Methods: We measured the importance of a range of 20 perpetrator-, victim-, and offense-related factors in predicting outcomes for 394 stranger rape cases tried by a jury. A four-stage analytic process was employed: (a) Kendall’s tau-b measured intercorrelations among the factors (predictors); (b) Chi-square and Welch t-tests measured associations between factors and verdicts; (c) binary logistic regression measured the power of factors in predicting verdicts; and (d) Stein’s formula was used to cross-validate the model. Results: Jury verdicts were predicted by five offense-related factors and one victim-related factor. None of the perpetrator-related factors were significant predictors of convictions for stranger rape. Conclusion: The findings have potential implications for victims of stranger rape, as well as prosecution and courtroom policy. We show that if a perpetrator is identified and charged, the likelihood of securing a conviction by a jury is high for victims of stranger rape. We suggest that prosecutors could gather as much information as possible from victims about the factors found to be of importance to juries, and judges could instruct juries on assumptions about the characteristics of the offense in order to challenge incorrect beliefs and stereotypes. Ultimately, this could be used to encourage victims of stranger rape to report and testify in court

A re-examination of the acquittal biasing effect of offence seriousness

The justice system should operate free of any bias, and jurors’ judgments of a defendant’s guilt should be based on evidential factors alone. However, research suggests that this does not always occur. We aimed to investigate the biasing effect of offence seriousness, a case-related, extra-legal factor, on juror decision-making. In an experiment, we examined the effect of this extra-legal factor on 118 members of the jury eligible publics’ interpretations of Beyond Reasonable Doubt (BRD), probability of commission, verdict, and confidence in verdict. We found that defendants charged with more serious offences were judged to be less likely to have committed the crime. However, offence seriousness did not have a significant effect on interpretations of BRD or verdict. The present findings suggest a need to instruct jurors on the application of legal (probative) factors alone

Instructions on reasonable doubt: defining the standard of proof and the juror's task

[see journal for abstract] summary provided here: In the present paper, we measure the effectiveness of two specific instructions on RD that have been used and challenged in the US. These are described in more detail below. We examine the effect of the two instructions on people’s quantitative interpretations of the standard, as well as the degree of inter- and intra-individual variability in interpretations. In addition, we attempt to explain the effectiveness of these instructions by examining the effect of their precise wording on interpretations of RD

Effects of judicial instructions and juror characteristics on interpretations of beyond reasonable doubt

Purpose and Methods: The standard of proof, beyond reasonable doubt (BRD), serves as a threshold for reaching verdicts in criminal cases. Past research has demonstrated that factors such as the wording of judicial instructions defining the standard can influence people’s interpretation of it. In addition, there is some concern that instructions may not be effective for the wider jury-eligible population. In an experimental study involving members of the general public, we examined the effect of two commonly used judicial instructions (i.e., sure and firmly convinced) against a situation when BRD was undefined, on people’s quantitative interpretations of BRD as well as on their self-reported understanding of the standard and confidence in applying it. We also explored the effect of juror characteristics (i.e., gender, age and education). Results: Compared to when the standard was undefined, the sure instruction helped to reduce inter-individual variability in interpretations of BRD and the firmly convinced instruction increased people’s understanding of the standard. However, neither instruction was effective in increasing confidence in applying the standard or in reducing observed individual differences. Conclusion: These findings underscore the importance of developing evidence-based judicial instructions that can benefit the broad jury-eligible population equally and in a variety of ways

Patterns and predictors of stranger rape locations

This paper examines the spatial, environmental, and temporal patterns of 10,488 stranger rapes committed over a 15-year period in Greater London, UK. We distinguished between two types of stranger rapes according to perpetrator method of approach, i.e. absent/fleeting interaction with victim on approach (S1) or extended interaction with victim on approach (S2). There were a range of locational settings in which perpetrators both encountered their victims and where the offence took place, and these differed by method of approach. The highest number of S1 offences occurred outdoors, with 74% of approaches and 55% of offences located recorded as outside. For S2 rapes, there was more variety in approach locations with only 32% outside. The level of locational correspondence between approach and offence location was 71% for S1 rapes and 28% for S2 rapes. A series of negative binomial regression models identified variables predictive of stranger rape offence location. There were significant associations with transport connections and the night-time economy for both S1 and S2 rapes. Other significant predictors were deprivation score, the percentage of one person properties, and the percentage of private rented properties in a location. The percentage of green space was a significant predictor for S1 rapes only. The current findings challenge the popular narrative that stranger rape occurs in a specific setting (i.e. outside in a secluded location at night) and have implications for place-based crime prevention policy

A mouse Y Chromosome pseudogene is related to human ubiquitin activating enzyme E1

A 2041 bp DNA fragment isolated from the Sxr (sex reversed) region of the mouse Y Chromosome (Chr) was sequenced and characterized. The sequence, pY8/b, contains four exons that are highly similar to 525 contiguous bases from the cDNA of human ubiquitin activating enzyme El . Two of the exons contain stop codons, indicating that pY8/b is not part of a functional gene. Sequences related to pY8/b were amplified from the Y Chr of the inbred mouse strain, C57BL/6J. These sequences may be portions of the recently discovered functional equivalent of pY8/b. Despite a high degree of similarity with the human El gene, the functional equivalent of pY8/b is not the mouse El gene, because unlike El , the functional equivalent of pY8/b is expressed in a tissue-specific manner. These data are discussed with respect to theory on the evolution of the mammalian Y Chr, and in particular, to the prediction that functional genes on the Y Chr have a male-specific function.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/46990/1/335_2004_Article_BF00355838.pd

Patterns and predictors of stranger rape locations

This paper examines the spatial, environmental, and temporal patterns of 10,488 stranger rapes committed over a 15-year period in Greater London, UK. We distinguished between two types of stranger rapes according to perpetrator method of approach, i.e. absent/fleeting interaction with victim on approach (S1) or extended interaction with victim on approach (S2). There were a range of locational settings in which perpetrators both encountered their victims and where the offence took place, and these differed by method of approach. The highest number of S1 offences occurred outdoors, with 74% of approaches and 55% of offences located recorded as outside. For S2 rapes, there was more variety in approach locations with only 32% outside. The level of locational correspondence between approach and offence location was 71% for S1 rapes and 28% for S2 rapes. A series of negative binomial regression models identified variables predictive of stranger rape offence location. There were significant associations with transport connections and the night-time economy for both S1 and S2 rapes. Other significant predictors were deprivation score, the percentage of one person properties, and the percentage of private rented properties in a location. The percentage of green space was a significant predictor for S1 rapes only. The current findings challenge the popular narrative that stranger rape occurs in a specific setting (i.e. outside in a secluded location at night) and have implications for place-based crime prevention policy

Genomic and expression analysis of multiple Sry loci from a single Rattus norvegicus Y chromosome

BACKGROUND: Sry is a gene known to be essential for testis determination but is also transcribed in adult male tissues. The laboratory rat, Rattus norvegicus, has multiple Y chromosome copies of Sry while most mammals have only a single copy. DNA sequence comparisons with other rodents with multiple Sry copies are inconsistent in divergence patterns and functionality of the multiple copies. To address hypotheses of divergence, gene conversion and functional constraints, we sequenced Sry loci from a single R. norvegicus Y chromosome from the Spontaneously Hypertensive Rat strain (SHR) and analyzed DNA sequences for homology among copies. Next, to determine whether all copies of Sry are expressed, we developed a modification of the fluorescent marked capillary electrophoresis method to generate three different sized amplification products to identify Sry copies. We applied this fragment analysis method to both genomic DNA and cDNA prepared from mRNA from testis and adrenal gland of adult male rats. RESULTS: Y chromosome fragments were amplified and sequenced using primers that included the entire Sry coding region and flanking sequences. The analysis of these sequences identified six Sry loci on the Y chromosome. These are paralogous copies consistent with a single phylogeny and the divergence between any two copies is less than 2%. All copies have a conserved reading frame and amino acid sequence consistent with function. Fragment analysis of genomic DNA showed close approximations of experimental with predicted values, validating the use of this method to identify proportions of each copy. Using the fragment analysis procedure with cDNA samples showed the Sry copies expressed were significantly different from the genomic distribution (testis p < 0.001, adrenal gland p < 0.001), and the testis and adrenal copy distribution in the transcripts were also significantly different from each other (p < 0.001). Total Sry transcript expression, analyzed by real-time PCR, showed significantly higher levels of Sry in testis than adrenal gland (p, 0.001). CONCLUSION: The SHR Y chromosome contains at least 6 full length copies of the Sry gene. These copies have a conserved coding region and conserved amino acid sequence. The pattern of divergence is not consistent with gene conversion as the mechanism for this conservation. Expression studies show multiple copies expressed in the adult male testis and adrenal glands, with tissue specific differences in expression patterns. Both the DNA sequence analysis and RNA transcript expression analysis are consistent with more than one copy having function and selection preventing divergence although we have no functional evidence