Legal Control on Social Control of Sex Offenders in the Community

This paper provides first of all the introduction to this special issue on ‘Legal constraints on the indeterminate control of “dangerous” sex offenders in the community: A European comparative and human rights perspective’. The issue is the outcome of a study that aims at finding the way legal con- trol can not only be an instrument but also be a controller of social control. It is explained what social control is and how the concept of moral panic plays a part in the fact that sex offenders seem to be the folk devils of our time and subsequently pre-eminently the target group of social control at its strongest. Further elaboration of the methodology reveals why focussing on post-sentence (indeterminate) supervision is relevant, as there are hardly any legal constraints in place in comparison with measures of preventive detention. Therefore, a comparative approach within Europe is taken on the basis of country reports from England and Wales, France, Germany, The Netherlands and Spain. In the second part of the paper, the comparative analysis is presented. Similar shifts in attitudes towards sex offenders have led to legislation concerning frameworks of supervision in all countries but in different ways. Legal constraints on these frameworks are searched for in legal (sentencing) theory, the principles of proportionality and least intrusive means, and human rights, mainly as provided in the European Convention on Human Rights to which all the studied countries are subject. Finally, it is discussed what legal constraints on the control of sex offenders in the community are (to be) in place in European jurisdictions, based on the analysis of commonalities and differences found in the comparison

In de war van verwarring: de (taak van de) forensische psychiatrie in deze tijd

Michiel van der Wolf Rede uitgesproken bij de aanvaarding van het ambt van hoogleraar Forensische Psychiatrie aan de Universiteit Leiden op 11 april 2022 Michiel van der Wolf Rede uitgesproken bij de aanvaarding van het ambt van hoogleraar Forensische Psychiatrie aan de Universiteit Leiden op 11 april 2022Criminal Justice: Legitimacy, accountability, and effectivit

Integrating Neuroscience in Criminal Law: The Dutch Situation as an Example

Empirical findings demonstrate that neuroscientific expertise is increasingly prevalent in courtrooms. This suggests that both “territorial conflicts” between law and neuroscience—- for example about how to conceptualize concepts like culpability—and questions regarding the integration of neuroscience and law, which both have long been present in theoretical discussions, are now finding their way to legal practice. As jurisdictions around the globe differ on multiple dimensions (e.g., on how concepts like culpability are conceptualized, embedded in legal doctrine, and how integration of neuroscience takes place within (procedural) legal frameworks) analyses on a national level are needed next to universal endeavors. In this article, the Dutch situation will be addressed. First, we will assess whether the theoretical notions underlying Dutch criminal law are compatible with the theore

De discussie over neurowetenschap en strafrecht: een overzicht en een richting

Criminal Justice: Legitimacy, accountability, and effectivit

Wet forensische zorg: doelen, middelen en verwachte knelpunten

Criminal Justice: Legitimacy, accountability, and effectivit