Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2008. / Title from title screen (site viewed Nov. 25, 2008). PDF text: 269 p. ; 1 Mb. UMI publication number: AAT 3315208. Includes bibliographical references. Also available in microfilm and microfiche formats.

Thesis (M.Soc.Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 1984. / Also available in print.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universiẗat Göttingen, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 309-327).

Text in Afrikaans / Beskermi ng van fundamente le mense- en konst itus i one le regte het moderne regstelsels tot herbesinning oor tradisionele bewysregreels rakende die toelaatbaarheid van getuienis aangaande verklarings van 'n beskuldigde en die privilegie teen selfinkriminasie gedwing. Om die omvang van die stroming op die kwessie van getuienis oor aanwysings wat op 'n onvrywillige of onbehoorlike wyse bekom is vas te stel, word 'n analise gedoen van artikel 218 van die Strafproseswet, wat fokus op die toelaatbaarheid van getuienis oor aanwysings en getuienis wat as gevolg van aanwysings verkry is. Die Appelhofbeslissing in S v Sheehama oor die toelaatbaarheid van getuienis omtrent gedwonge aanwysings, word gesien as die beliggaming van 'n nuwe filosofie rakende die beskuldigde se privilegie teen selfinkriminasie. Die gevolgtrekking word gemaak dat die bepalings van artikel 218(2) onbillik is, 'n skending van die beskuldigde se privilegie teen selfinkriminasie tot gevolg het en herroep moet word. Voorstelle vir regshervorming word in hierdie verband gemaak. / The protection of fundamenta 1 human and con st itut i ona 1 rights has caused modern legal systems to re-evaluate traditional rules of evidence regarding the admissibility of evidence concerning statements of an accused and the privilege against self-incrimination. To determine the extent of such a re-evaluation on evidence of paintings-out which are involuntarily or improperly obtained, an analysis of section 218 of the Criminal Procedure Act is undertaken. It focuses on the admissibility of evidence of paintings-out and evidence obtained in consequence of pointingsout. The decision of the Appellate Division in S v Sheehama on the admissibility of evidence of pointing-outs, obtained by means of compulsion, is seen as an embodiment of a new philosophy towards an accused's privilege against nondiscrimination. It is concluded that the provisions of section 218(2) are unfair, infringe on an accused's privilege against self-incrimination and should be repealed. Proposals for law reform are made in this regard. / Criminology and Security Science / LL.M.

La clandestinité en matière pénale est présente au stade de la réalisation de l'infraction ainsi qu'à celui de sa poursuite. Cette notion se révèle protéiforme et pose la question des places respectives du juge et de la loi comme reconnaissant la clandestinité. / The clandestinity in penal law can be found when the offence is commited and when the legal proceedings are started. This notion is protean and question about the places of the judge and the legislator in recognizing the clandestinity.

Act no. 218/2003 Coll. on liability of juveniles for illegal acts and on juvenile justice established new rules in criminal proceedings with juveniles and introduced brand new methods of sanctioning juvenile delinquents in criminal processes, specifically it introduced a number of new measures which can be administered as punishments for wrongdoings including the possibility of alternative solutions to committed wrongful acts. The degree work is divided into two parts. The theoretical portion provides information about potential solutions and approaches when measures are administered in criminal proceedings with juvenile offenders including the theoretical background. The empirical portion maps out the ratio of measures administered by prosecuting and adjudicating bodies in pre-trial proceedings and measures administered by juvenile courts; the degree work also summarizes all solutions to criminal matters related to juveniles; the quantitative research focused on the District Court in Strakonice during the period of 2004 and 2008. The objectives of the research correlated with hypotheses which the author based on her experience gained in her job as a juvenile social probation officer. The research showed that during the monitored period 64% of juvenile criminal issues were resolved directly by the juvenile court and only 36% of acts committed by juvenile delinquents were closed by prosecuting and adjudicating bodies during pre-trial proceedings. The second portion of the research proved that the most frequently utilized measures {--} 54% - were criminal sanctions; 44% of juvenile criminal cases were solved by means of alternative measures, while reformatory measures were administered only to 2% of juvenile delinquents and protective measures were not utilized at all. The degree work was intended to briefly demonstrate whether the purpose of the Act on juvenile justice is fulfilled. Its onclusions are intended for professional public and for all people who are interested in criminal law, criminal proceedings and juvenile delinquency.

Criminal procedure, the public and media - abstract In the information period when classical traditional media must adapt to new manners of dissemination of information, there arises a conflict between freedom of expression enshrined by the constitution and the right to information, which the media use as a shield in their actions, and an increased emphasis on individual rights, protection of the individuality and personal integrity against external interventions. It is also demonstrated in the field of informing the public about criminal procedures. The initial thought to make the procedures before the court accessible to the public, in order to eliminate the risk of the so-called cabinet justice, aimed at the control of justice and protection of the right of parties to a fair procedure. The principle of the public procedure before the court had besides the control and guarantee role also the role of the means of prevention and education of the public. A publicly accessible procedure before the court should therefore lead the public to the respect for a valid legal system and its regulations, and also to enhance the trust in the function of judiciary and justice. With the expansion of media participation in the procedures before the court, especially in criminal matters, another dimension is currently...

M.A. (Philosophy) / Usually when we think of law, we think of rationality and outcomes that are not swayed by emotion. Modern Western society tends to think of emotion and rationality as incompatible. It is a widely-held belief that it is more morally desirable for people to make ‘rational’ decisions rather than ‘emotional’ decisions in life in general. Perhaps in no other area is this distinction between the two more pronounced as in criminal law, where judges who society considers to be making ‘rational’ judicial decisions are revered, and those who society at large considers to be making ‘emotional’ judicial decisions are distrusted. As Terry Maroney (2006: 120) says, “[a] core presumption underlying modern legality is that reason and emotion are different beasts entirely…the sphere of law admits only of reason; and vigilant policing is required to keep emotion from creeping in where it does not belong”. In this dissertation, I propose to look at the virtue of mercy, where mercy is understood to have a significant emotional component, and to answer the question: Should a judge in a criminal trial employ mercy? If so, under what conditions? The importance of the question of whether a judge should employ mercy in a criminal case is that it addresses one part of the larger enquiry into how the state should respond to offenders. As moral beings, our emotional responses to criminals and their crimes are varied. Sometimes we feel anger, at other times disgust, and at other times mercy, grief and sadness.

LL.D. / Please refer to full text to view abstract

Juvenile Offending is widely believed to be on the increase judging by the growing number of convictions of young offenders in Gauteng Province. Policy and legislation has been renewed to uphold the rights of the child and to provide more humane intervention plans for children in conflict with the law. Appropriate sentencing of young people in conflict with the law remains a significant challenge in the South African Criminal Justice System. The Probation Services Act (Act 116 of 1991) provides for the appointment of probation officers who are responsible for screening, assessing and referring persons awaiting trial. After young offenders are convicted of a crime, a probation officer is required to conduct a pre-sentence investigation and write a pre-sentence report to assist the Magistrates and Judges in making appropriate sentencing decisions. This study aims to assess the usefulness of probation officers / pre-sentence reports in sentencing decisions concerning young offenders in the Criminal Justice System. Probation services are overloaded and understaffed and many social workers have not had adequate training in working in this field. These factors may compromise the quality of the pre-sentence investigation and the consideration of sentencing options. The aim of this study was to assess the usefulness of probation officers’ reports in sentencing young offenders in the Criminal Justice System. A representative sample of fifteen magistrates from Johannesburg Courts and the surrounding areas including a judge from the High Court was used for this study. The findings indicated that all the respondents were involved and experienced in sentencing young offenders. ii From the findings of the study, it can be concluded that most of the respondents found the probation officer’s reports useful in terms of the purpose of the pre-sentence investigations, understanding the young offender in his / her family, community and socio-economic and cultural context; the criminal history and profile of the young offender; the probation officer’s evaluation and assessment; and the consideration of appropriate sentencing options. With regard to suggestions to improve the probation officers’ reports the following was suggested by some of the respondents: - - Reports should be compiled and presented to court in time. - A workshop involving probation officers, prosecutors, magistrates and other service providers for young offenders needs to be done. - Probation officers should communicate with the prosecutors so that they get knowledge of the court proceedings regarding the trial. - Probation officers should look at the docket that carries the information regarding the young offender. - If a young offender is detained in a detention centre, probation officers should visit them frequently in order to evaluate the effectiveness of the programs they are exposed to, for sentencing purposes. The research design was qualitative in nature and an interview schedule was completed for the purpose of data collection. iii The results of this study indicated that the probation officer’s report is useful. The majority of the respondents stated that the probation officer’s report met their expectations. However, not all of them had suggestions regarding guidelines to improve pre-sentence reports, as the existing one covers all the necessary aspects. / Prof. L. Patel