How well established is research on organised crime in Germany?

Lampe, Klaus von How well established is research on organised crime in Germany? / Klaus von Lampe, Susanne Knickmeier // Constructing and organising crime in Europe / Petrus C. van Duyne, Alexey Serdyuk, Georgios A. Antonopoulos, Jackie H. Harvey, Klaus von Lampe (Eds.); Kharkiv National University of Internal Affairs, Northumbria University, Teesside University, Utrecht University. – Chicago-Kharkiv : Eleven International Publishing, Kharkiv National University of Internal Affairs, 2019. - P. 179-203. - DOI: https://doi.org/10.32631/ccc19.08.Цей розділ складається з двох основних частин. У першій частині подано короткий огляд ситуації з організованою злочинністю в Німеччині, представленої в офіційних звітах і ЗМІ. Друга частина описує результати систематичного аналізу результатів роботи дослідників з Німеччини, що займаються організованою злочинністю.This chapter is divided into two main parts. The first part provides a brief overview of the situation of organised crime in Germany as it presents itself in official and media accounts. The second part describes findings of a systematic analysis of the output of researchers based in Germany who study organised crime.Эта глава состоит из двух основных частей. В первой части представлен краткий обзор ситуации с организованной преступностью в Германии, представленной в официальных отчетах и СМИ. Вторая часть описывает результаты систематического анализа результатов работы исследователей из Германии, занимающихся организованной преступностью

“I\u27m gonna get me a loosie” Understanding single cigarette purchases by adult smokers in a disadvantaged section of New York City

This study seeks to update and expand our understanding of the perceptions and purchasing patterns of smokers of single cigarettes (‘loosies’) in disadvantaged urban areas. Semi-structured guides were used in thirteen focus groups with 67 self-identified adult smokers from the South Bronx section of New York City in summer 2013. There is wideavailability ofsingle cigarettes inthe South Bronx, withlegitimate stores overwhelmingly being the preferred venue for purchases. Single cigarettes are sold at higher per-unit prices than illicit packs. However, buyers of single cigarettes can achieve cost savings compared to legal, fully taxed cigarette packs. Apart from cost-savings, smokers opt for single cigarettes to reduce their personal cigarette consumption. There is a general perception of market resilience despite law enforcement intervention. However, law enforcement has a limiting effect on access to single cigarettes outside of an individual smoker\u27s immediate neighborhood. The findings suggest that single cigarette sales are an important element of the illicit cigarette market in disadvantaged communities which should not be ignored in future research on the nature and extent of cigarette tax avoidance and evasion

The Janus-Faces of Cross-Border Crime in Europe

Europe is changing rapidly, which may also have a bearing on its criminal landscape. This does not mean that all sorts of new crime are emerging: a large part of the crimes remains profit-oriented and is committed by known modus operandi. That is the old face of crime. Amidst the traditional landscape new faces of crime can be identified. The internet is such a new face which emerges among others in the sex industry. This is as old as the human race, with all the related abuses and exploitation. But the internet gives it also a new face because of its broad reach and related opportunities, negative as well as positive. This volume provides other examples of this two-faced Janus head of crime. Old criminal trades, such as the illegal cigarette market, synthetic drugs and criminal exploitation of human labour, but also new criminal specialisations, new professional and industrial skills developed by ‘old’ ethnic minorities on various crime markets in central Europe. Meanwhile, the on-going illegal migrations continue to exert their influence on the perception of crime: while the actual prevalence of most types of crime decreases, fear of crime continues to increase. The flow of migrants is unrelated to this outcome but it impacts nevertheless on the perception of crime. This volume of the 18th Cross-border Crime Colloquium, held in Bratislava in the spring of 2017, contains the peer-reviewed contributions of 22 European experts and up-and-coming researchers. Their chapters cover a broad field of crime in which the double faced Janus head can be discerned: illegal migrants, criminal markets, corruption, money laundering and organised crime, highlighting many new aspects

Mythical numbers and the proceeds of organised crime: estimating mafia proceeds in Italy

Organised crime is a field vulnerable to mythical numbers, i.e. exaggerated estimates lacking empirical support, but acquiring acceptance through repetition. The figures on mafia proceeds in Italy are a striking example of this problem. This study proposes an estimation of mafia proceeds in Italy from nine criminal activities (sexual exploitation of women, illicit firearms trafficking, drug trafficking, counterfeiting, the illicit cigarette trade, illicit gambling, illicit waste disposal, loan sharking, and extortion racketeering) by region and type of mafia (Cosa Nostra, Camorra,\u2018Ndrangheta, Apulian mafias, and other mafias). The results estimate yearly mafia proceeds at approximately \u20ac10.7 bn (0.7% of the Italian GDP), discussing the impact on the regional and national economies and the differences among the types of mafias as to their geographical sources of revenue

The changing role of china in the global illegal cigarette trade

This study explores the history of the illegal production, distribution, and smuggling of cigarettes in mainland China. Data were obtained from a content analysis of 931 media reports retrieved from LexisNexis for the time period 1975 until 2010, and from other open sources. The illegal cigarette trade first emerged in the form of violations of state tobacco monopoly regulations. In the course of the restructuring of the legal tobacco sector, which occurred under external political pressure to open the Chinese market to foreign competition, an illegal cigarette industry emerged which at first primarily produced fake Chinese brand cigarettes for the domestic black market. At the same time, China became a destination country for smuggled genuine Western brand cigarettes. It was only after effective crackdowns against cigarette smuggling and domestic distribution channels in the late 1990s that the Chinese illegal cigarette industry shifted to exporting large numbers of counterfeit Western brand cigarettes to black markets abroad. China’s current role as a leading supplier of counterfeit cigarettes is a result of the contradictions of the economic reform process and of external licit and illicit forces that worked toward opening up the Chinese tobacco sector to the outside world

Automation of the UNICARagil Vehicles

The German research project UNICARagil is a collaboration between eight universities and six industrial partners funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research. It aims to develop innovative modular architectures and methods for new agile, automated vehicle concepts. This paper summarizes the automation approach of the driverless vehicle concept and its modular realization within the four demonstration vehicles to be built by the consortium. On-board each vehicle, this comprises sensor modules for environment perception and modelling, motion planning for normal driving and safe halts, as well as the respective control algorithms and base functionalities like precise localization. A control room and cloud functionalities provide off-board support to the vehicles, which are additionally addressed in this paper

Development and Validation of a Risk Score for Chronic Kidney Disease in HIV Infection Using Prospective Cohort Data from the D:A:D Study

Ristola M. on työryhmien DAD Study Grp ; Royal Free Hosp Clin Cohort ; INSIGHT Study Grp ; SMART Study Grp ; ESPRIT Study Grp jäsen.Background Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a major health issue for HIV-positive individuals, associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Development and implementation of a risk score model for CKD would allow comparison of the risks and benefits of adding potentially nephrotoxic antiretrovirals to a treatment regimen and would identify those at greatest risk of CKD. The aims of this study were to develop a simple, externally validated, and widely applicable long-term risk score model for CKD in HIV-positive individuals that can guide decision making in clinical practice. Methods and Findings A total of 17,954 HIV-positive individuals from the Data Collection on Adverse Events of Anti-HIV Drugs (D:A:D) study with >= 3 estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) values after 1 January 2004 were included. Baseline was defined as the first eGFR > 60 ml/min/1.73 m2 after 1 January 2004; individuals with exposure to tenofovir, atazanavir, atazanavir/ritonavir, lopinavir/ritonavir, other boosted protease inhibitors before baseline were excluded. CKD was defined as confirmed (>3 mo apart) eGFR In the D:A:D study, 641 individuals developed CKD during 103,185 person-years of follow-up (PYFU; incidence 6.2/1,000 PYFU, 95% CI 5.7-6.7; median follow-up 6.1 y, range 0.3-9.1 y). Older age, intravenous drug use, hepatitis C coinfection, lower baseline eGFR, female gender, lower CD4 count nadir, hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease (CVD) predicted CKD. The adjusted incidence rate ratios of these nine categorical variables were scaled and summed to create the risk score. The median risk score at baseline was -2 (interquartile range -4 to 2). There was a 1: 393 chance of developing CKD in the next 5 y in the low risk group (risk score = 5, 505 events), respectively. Number needed to harm (NNTH) at 5 y when starting unboosted atazanavir or lopinavir/ritonavir among those with a low risk score was 1,702 (95% CI 1,166-3,367); NNTH was 202 (95% CI 159-278) and 21 (95% CI 19-23), respectively, for those with a medium and high risk score. NNTH was 739 (95% CI 506-1462), 88 (95% CI 69-121), and 9 (95% CI 8-10) for those with a low, medium, and high risk score, respectively, starting tenofovir, atazanavir/ritonavir, or another boosted protease inhibitor. The Royal Free Hospital Clinic Cohort included 2,548 individuals, of whom 94 individuals developed CKD (3.7%) during 18,376 PYFU (median follow-up 7.4 y, range 0.3-12.7 y). Of 2,013 individuals included from the SMART/ESPRIT control arms, 32 individuals developed CKD (1.6%) during 8,452 PYFU (median follow-up 4.1 y, range 0.6-8.1 y). External validation showed that the risk score predicted well in these cohorts. Limitations of this study included limited data on race and no information on proteinuria. Conclusions Both traditional and HIV-related risk factors were predictive of CKD. These factors were used to develop a risk score for CKD in HIV infection, externally validated, that has direct clinical relevance for patients and clinicians to weigh the benefits of certain antiretrovirals against the risk of CKD and to identify those at greatest risk of CKD.Peer reviewe

As dimensões interdisciplinares do estudo do crime organizado

This essay and review systematically charts the various influences from other areas of scientific research, including economy, psychology, and neurobiology, on the study of organized crime. Drawing on an analysis of American and international literature, metaphorical, and substantive references to other disciplines are highlighted on five levels of observation: the individual organized criminal, the activities these individuals are involved in, the associational patterns through which they are connected, the power structures that subordinate these individuals and collectives to common or particular interests, and the relations between these individuals, structures and activities on the one hand, and the legal spheres of society on the other. It is argued that a research program aiming at building up a cumulative body of knowledge is needed to overcome the shortcomings of the current eclectic use of concepts and theories from other disciplines.Este ensaio-resenha mapeia sistematicamente as várias influências de outras áreas de pesquisa científica, incluindo a economia, a psicologia e a neurobiologia, no estudo do crime organizado. Apoiando-se na análise da literatura norte-americana e internacional, referências metafóricas e substantivas a outras disciplinas são tematizadas em cinco planos de consideração: o crime organizado individual, as atividades em que estes indivíduos estão envolvidos, os padrões de associação por meio dos quais eles estão conectados, as estruturas de poder que subordinam estes indivíduos e grupos a interesses comuns ou a interesses particulares, e as relações entre estes indivíduos, estruturas e atividades, por um lado, e as esferas legais da sociedade, por outro. Argumentase que é necessário um programa de pesquisa visando constituir um corpo de conhecimento para superar as deficiências do atual uso eclético de conceitos e teorias de outras disciplinas