Narrative Style and Witness Testimony

1991 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 281-293 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anita K. Barry

Abstract This article is concerned with the relationship between a witness' narrative style and judgments of jurors based on that style. It takes as its starting point the Duke University Law and Language Project results that a witness using a narrative style is judged more credible than a witness using a fragmented style. The main argument of this article is that it is not the use of narrative per se, but rather a particular narrative style that is valued in the courtroom. Data from a day of testimony in a murder trial is used to demonstrate two opposing narrative styles in testimony: that of the law enforcement officer and that of some nonexpert witnesses. It is shown first that the style of the law enforcement officers differs from ordinary conversation in its extreme explicitness. It is hypothesized that jurors will associate this style of delivery with credibility. It is further hypothe-sized that witnesses will lose credibility to the extent that they deviate from this style. After demonstrating the differences in the styles, the article draws on experimental work of other researchers to suggest that trial outcomes can be affected by the narrative style of the witness. (Linguistics)

Author(s):  
Michael Ashdown

The starting point for any consideration of the Re Hastings-Bass rule must now be the Pitt v Holt and Futter v Futter litigation, which culminated in the 2013 decision of the Supreme Court in both cases. The judgment of Lord Walker is the leading exposition of the rule, and is likely to remain so for some time. However, it is not helpful to read Lord Walker’s judgment in isolation. At first instance both Pitt v Holt and Futter v Futter were decided on the basis of law which seemed then to be well settled and entirely orthodox. However, unlike in any of the Re Hastings-Bass rule cases which preceded them, Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs played an active role in the proceedings, and after the taxpayer succeeded at first instance in each case, obtained permission to appeal to the Court of Appeal. The present state of the law owes its shape largely to the judgment in that court of Lloyd LJ, in the first appellate decision on the Re Hastings-Bass rule, which reformulated the rule so as to accord with important principles of English equity and trusts concerning the relationship between trustees and beneficiaries, and the supervision of the court.


2013 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 399-414 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Capone

The recent debate on pragmatics and the law has found ways to circumvent an important distinction, originally drawn by Dascal and Wróblewski (1991), between the historical law-maker, the current law-maker, and the ideal/rational law-maker.1 By insisting on the relationship between the rational law-maker and contextualism and textualism (see Manning 2005, 2006), I want to redress this fault in current discussions. In this paper, I start with general considerations on pragmatics, intentionality in ordinary conversation, and intentionality in the context of judiciary proceedings and legal texts. I then move on to considerations on rationality as a prerequisite for understanding the law and on the rational law-maker, an ideal construct proposed by Dascal and Wróblewski (1991). I argue that contextualism (of the moderate kind) is the best way to carry out the program by Dascal and Wróblewski on interpretation and the rational law-maker (also see considerations by Fish 2005); (on contextualism see Dascal and Weizman 1987). I argue that bearing in mind the rational law-maker postulated by Dascal and Wróblewski is a guidance to interpretation of statutes whose texts create interpretative difficulties. I conclude by saying that the considerations on the rational law-maker constitute a compromise between Scalia’s (1997) textualism and contextualism (see Manning 2005, 2006 on the divide between textualism and contextualism).


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Ermert

This thesis investigates how tax law can be used to fight corruption. The taxation procedure is particularly well-suited as a starting point for further criminal proceedings in cases involving corruption in the context of economic crime. However, the collaboration between law enforcement and tax authorities in this field is not without its difficulties, as it involves different areas of the law (tax law, criminal law, criminal tax law) and different types of proceedings (taxation proceedings, criminal investigations), whose interactions result in numerous problems. This work also finds that § 4 sec. 5 sentence 1 No. 10 of the EStG (Germany’s Income Tax Act) is insufficiently considered in practice. After analysing the norm and its various levels of impact (fiscal, general preventive and criminal tax law levels), the author concludes that the current rules have weaknesses that provoke avoidance behaviour among the tax authorities.


Author(s):  
Anushka Singh

The sixth chapter theorizes the patterns emerging in the working of the law of sedition in India by identifying specific themes along which the law has been used. It focuses on the quotidian life of the law in the hands of the state executives who have the power of law enforcement. It chronicles the various cases of sedition in contemporary times, its use against anti-nuclear movement, students’ organizations, communal politics, the dominant discourse of nation, and so on. Through these narratives, also emerges the idea of sedition in public imaginings and its identification with what is loosely termed as ‘anti-national’ or deshdroh. It also theorizes the relationship between the routine law of sedition and the exceptional or extraordinary counter terror laws. Through the patterns identified, this chapter identifies the Indian liberal democracy being characterized by a ‘moment of contradiction’ in relation to the offence of sedition.


Author(s):  
Arif Purnama Oktora ◽  
Hilaire Tegnan

Narcotics abuse is closely related to illicit trafficking as part of trans national organized crime. People become dependent so that the supply continues to increase. The relationship between dealers and victims is solidly bonded. It is difficult for victims to escape from dealer/s, even though victims are not frequently involved. This solid relationship between dealer/s and victim/s put the police in difficulty overcoming the crime. However, the West Jakarta Metro Police successfully manages to tackle that challenge. This research takes place in the West Jakarta Police Station. This article aims to explain the strategy for handling the 120 kg narcotics crimes by the West Jakarta Metro Police. The results of this study indicate that the attainment of the West Jakarta Metro Police depends on four things: (1) the pungent substance of the law on narcotics; (2) adequate law enforcement; (3) strategic programs in improving the competence of components of investigators; and (4) the existence of institution facilities and structures that support the case handling process.


2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 223-242
Author(s):  
Nasrullah Rullah

The starting point of use between sadd and fatḥ is al-dzarī‘ah. In Madhab Mālik and Ḥanbālī, al-dzarī‘ah is prohibited and recommended. Al-Qarafī of Madhab Mālik and Ibn al-Qayyim of Madhab Hanbalī mention al-dzarī‘ah sometimes forbidden (called sadd al-dzarī‘ah) and are sometimes told (called fatḥ al-dzarī‘ah). In the study of fiqh jināyah (Islamic criminal law), the theory of sadd al-dzarī'ah and fatḥ al-dzarī'ahis still open to its development space, given the many ways in which criminal acts are carried out, such as corruption in Indonesia which has been rooted among officials. While the eradication is not maximal and requires a comprehensive set of regulations, so that various gaps in corruption in Indonesia can be indicated and all forms of disobedience to the state and people's welfare can be overcome because they contain greater values of maslahah. The two theories of Islamic criminal law, especially regarding sanctions for corruption, can be made possible in the law of eradicating corruption in Indonesia, thus creating anti-corruption laws in a stronger law enforcement process. 


2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-58
Author(s):  
D. V. Golenko

Justification of the study. the creation of a criminal law is a laborious and important process. When constructing articles of the criminal code, the legislator used various techniques and methods of presenting legislative material. One of the types of dispositions of an article is a simple disposition. Its application by the legislator raises questions among practitioners when qualifying crimes, and gives rise to discussions in the theory of criminal law. Methods. The methodological basis of the research was formed by general scientific and special methods of cognition: analysis, induction, systemic, comparative legal, formal legal methods and others. Results. The authors analysis of the simple disposition of the article, which provides for criminal liability for kidnapping, is carried out. The problems arising in the process of designing and applying Article 126 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation are investigated. As a starting point, the explanations contained in the acts of the highest judicial bodies, judicial statistics were taken. The ways of improving the norms on criminal liability for kidnapping, proposed in the theory of criminal law, have been studied. Recommendations for the legislator and law enforcement officers have been formed. Conclusion. A simple disposition should be applied in exceptional cases when describing crimes of small and medium severity. The signs of a crime described in a simple disposition should be clear to the law enforcement officer due to the established uniform practice of applying the law. The lack of a unified understanding of the signs of a crime that are not described in a simple disposition leads in practice to legal uncertainty. Explaining the application of articles from a simple disposition leads, in fact, to the construction of corpus delicti by the judiciary. However, the design of the corpus delicti is the prerogative of the legislator. Article 126 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation does not meet the criterion of clarity and gives rise to a different understanding in practice of the signs of the objective and subjective aspects of the composition of the abduction of a person. The solution to the emerging problems is to change the simple disposition of Article 126 to a descriptive disposition, including an indication of the signs of the objective and subjective side of the crime. The scientific novelty of the research lies in the fact that the simple disposition of the article for the first-time acts as an independent object of research and analysis on the example of the disposition of Article 126 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. The authors approach to assessing the applicability of a simple disposition, positive and negative trends in its application by the legislator and the judiciary is proposed.Key words: Simple disposition of an article in a special part of the Criminal law (on the example of kidnapping) Abstract: Justification of the study. the creation of a criminal law is a laborious and important process. When constructing articles of the criminal code, the legislator used various techniques and methods of presenting legislative material. One of the types of dispositions of an article is a simple disposition. Its application by the legislator raises questions among practitioners when qualifying crimes, and gives rise to discussions in the theory of criminal law. Methods. The methodological basis of the research was formed by general scientific and special methods of cognition: analysis, induction, systemic, comparative legal, formal legal methods and others. Results. The authors analysis of the simple disposition of the article, which provides for criminal liability for kidnapping, is carried out. The problems arising in the process of designing and applying Article 126 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation are investigated. As a starting point, the explanations contained in the acts of the highest judicial bodies, judicial statistics were taken. The ways of improving the norms on criminal liability for kidnapping, proposed in the theory of criminal law, have been studied. Recommendations for the legislator and law enforcement officers have been formed. Conclusion. A simple disposition should be applied in exceptional cases when describing crimes of small and medium severity. The signs of a crime described in a simple disposition should be clear to the law enforcement officer due to the established uniform practice of applying the law. The lack of a unified understanding of the signs of a crime that are not described in a simple disposition leads in practice to legal uncertainty. Explaining the application of articles from a simple disposition leads, in fact, to the construction of corpus delicti by the judiciary. However, the design of the corpus delicti is the prerogative of the legislator. Article 126 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation does not meet the criterion of clarity and gives rise to a different understanding in practice of the signs of the objective and subjective aspects of the composition of the abduction of a person. The solution to the emerging problems is to change the simple disposition of Article 126 to a descriptive disposition, including an indication of the signs of the objective and subjective side of the crime. The scientific novelty of the research lies in the fact that the simple disposition of the article for the first-time acts as an independent object of research and analysis on the example of the disposition of Article 126 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. The authors approach to assessing the applicability of a simple disposition, positive and negative trends in its application by the legislator and the judiciary is proposed.


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 37-53
Author(s):  
Béla Blaskó ◽  
Anikó Pallagi

The authors examine the connection between law enforcement activities, law enforcement science and the scientific system of criminal policy, their mutual presumption and interaction. The law enforcement activities serve to uphold law, order and public security against unlawful human behaviours. The criminalisation of certain types of behaviour is a quasi fundamental resultant of law enforcement activity, which may provide criminal policy with a guideline by realising activities dangerous to society, or antisocial during its operation. In addition to the above, however, the relationship is multi-directional as the state receives information on the current status of crimes in the course of the completion of law enforcement tasks, and the quality of the completion of law enforcement tasks fundamentally influences the course of crimes.


2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sumiaty Adelina Hutabarat

<p>There are two law enforcement agencies combating corruption, namely the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and the Police, having the same authority, but in implementing authority there are differences, for example in the application of laws that govern the two institutions.The problem that becomes the study of this research is how the problem of the existence of the KPK as an institution to eradicate corruption has the authority regulated in RI Law No. 30 of 2002 concerning the Corruption Eradication Commission, whose authority lies with the Police regulated in RI Law No. 2 of 2002 concerning the National Police of the Republic of Indonesia which refers to the Criminal Code The results of the study showed that the resolution of the dispute between the Police and the Corruption Eradication Commission in the investigation of corruption was carried out by coordinating the Corruption Eradication Commission and the Police in Corruption Criminal Investigations. Law number 30 of 2002 concerning the Corruption Eradication Commission regulates the relationship between the performance of the KPK and the Police regarding investigations, investigations and prosecutions.Settlement of authority disputes between the Police and the KPK should be the authority of the Supreme Court, due to judicial review under the Supreme Court Law. The right to test the law is the application of a balanced and balanced government. The Corruption Eradication Commission was formed by the Law 30/2002 whereas the Indonesian Police was formed by the 1945 Constitution, article 30 paragraph 4.</p><p><strong>Keywords : <em>Authority, investigation, KPK</em></strong></p><p><strong> </strong></p>


Author(s):  
Nazarii Volosheniuk

Purpose. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between election campaigning and political and social advertising, namely to define the criteria for the separation of political advertising and election campaigning, to improve the definition of political and social advertising, and so on. Methodology. The methodology involves a comprehensive analysis and generalization of available scientific and theoretical material and the formulation of relevant conclusions and recommendations. During the research the following methods of scientific knowledge were used: terminological, logical-semantic, functional, system-structural, logical-normative. Results. In the course of the research, the criteria for demarcation of political advertising and election campaigning were determined, the definition of political and social advertising was improved, the amendments to the Law on Advertising on political and social advertising were proposed, the features of the distribution of political advertising during the election campaign were defined in the Law of Ukraine; definition in the Law of Ukraine "On Advertising" of the mechanism of payment for political advertising, which should have features in comparison with commercial, as well as in the period of election campaigning. Originality. The study found that the ratio of election campaigning to political and social advertising requires significant improvements in their use and legislative regulation. Electoral law scientists are working to improve these shortcomings. Practical significance. The results of the research can be used in legislation and law-enforcement activities.


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