Illegal abortion and reproductive injustice in the Pacific Islands: A qualitative analysis of court data

The Oceania region is home to some of the world's most restrictive abortion laws, and there is evidence of Pacific Island women's reproductive oppression across several aspects of their reproductive lives, including in relation to contraceptive decision-making, birthing, and fertility. In this paper we analyse documents from court cases in the Pacific Islands regarding the illegal procurement of abortion. We undertook inductive thematic analysis of documents from eighteen illegal abortion court cases from Pacific Island countries. Using the lens of reproductive justice, we discuss the methods of abortion, the reported context of these abortions, and the ways in which these women and abortion were constructed in judges' summing up, judgements, or sentencing. Our analysis of these cases reveals layers of sexual and reproductive oppression experienced by these women that are related to colonialism, women's socioeconomic disadvantage, gendered violence, limited reproductive control, and the punitive consequences related to not performing gender appropriately.

IPV in Rural Pennsylvania and Magisterial Courts: Case Study

Research on the criminal justice system's response to the problem of intimate partner violence (IPV) largely focuses on police and prosecutorial decision making. Fewer studies are dedicated to exploring how IPV cases are processed by the courts. This study examines the perspectives of judges in the Magisterial Courts in rural counties of Pennsylvania. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 27 magisterial court judges. The findings shed light on magisterial court judges' experiences with IPV cases, the challenges that they face and the factors that influence their determination whether the cases will be prosecuted, dismissed, or proceed to the Court of Common Pleas.

See you in court: obstacles to enforcing the ban on electronic cigarette flavours and marketing in Finland

The aim of Finnish tobacco policy is to end the use of tobacco and other nicotine-containing products by 2030. Towards that end, the regulation of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) in Finland is stricter than that in other European Union (EU) countries, including a ban on characterising flavours in e-cigarette liquids as well as on marketing e-cigarettes. This article describes the e-cigarette market, its regulation and the challenges faced in enforcing regulations in Finland. The materials used for this study include data from tobacco control authorities on retail licences, product notifications, and guidance and decisions concerning enforcing regulations, as well as public documents from the courts concerning e-cigarette-linked appeals on selling flavours and marketing e-cigarettes. Legislation and documents produced during legislative processes are also used. Access to e-cigarettes is limited, as only 5% of retailers for tobacco or nicotine products have a licence for retailing nicotine liquids. Liquids containing flavours but without nicotine are commonly sold by specialised e-cigarette shops and websites as foodstuffs. Effective regulation is hampered by the enormous number and variety of e-cigarette products notified for potential market access, limited resources for tobacco control to expand in scope and reluctance of the e-cigarette business to comply with the stricter regulations in Finland, resulting in court cases filed by e-cigarette businesses. Mounting evidence suggests that regulating flavours in e-cigarettes to protect youth is wise although not easy. Many counties are currently considering further regulations on e-cigarettes and so should the EU.

"Unnatural Fornication" Cases Under State-Socialism: A Hungarian-Slovenian Comparative Social-Historical Approach

This comparative social-historical study examines different versions of state-socialist body politics manifested in Hungary and Slovenia mainly during the 1950s by using archive material of "unnatural fornication" court cases. By analyzing the available Hungarian "természet elleni fajtalanság" and Slovenian "nenaravno občevanje" court cases, we can shed light on how the defendants were treated by the police and the judiciary. On the basis of these archive data that have never been examined before from these angles, we can construct an at least partial picture of the practices and consequences of state surveillance of same-sex-attracted men during state-socialism. The article explores the functioning of state-socialist social control mechanisms directed at nonnormative sexualities that had long-lasting consequences on the social representation of homosexuality in both countries.

Judicial Reliance on Parental IQ in Appellate-Level Child Welfare Cases Involving Parents with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

BACKGROUND

Parents with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs) are over-represented in child welfare cases. Although IQ per se is an invalid indicator of parenting abilities, this study examined the prevalence of judicial consideration of parental IQ test evidence in US appellate cases.

METHODS

The present authors conducted Boolean searches of Westlaw Corporation's case database since 1999. The present authors used a six-question checklist to survey the 42 most recent American appellate cases involving termination of parental rights (TPR) decisions that included evidence of parental intellectual and developmental disabilities based on IQ.

RESULTS

In 86% of cases, parental low IQ was presented as a barrier to parenting competence. Higher courts uphold TPR decision in 81% of cases involving parents with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

CONCLUSIONS

Parental IQ scores are routinely relied upon to judge parenting capacity in custody cases where parents have intellectual and developmental disabilities. The present authors recommend more comprehensive assessments examining a broader range of contextual variable that may impact on parenting abilities.