A NEW LEGAL SOLUTION ON RECIDIVISM IN SERBIАN CRIMINAL LEGISLATION

From the adoption of the Criminal Code in 2006 until the latest amendments of 2019, the Serbian criminal legislation treated recidivism as an optional aggravating circumstance, which had its specific legal status in comparison with other mitigating and aggravating circumstances. According to the new legal solution, instead of being optional, recidivism has become a mandatory aggravating circumstance, which together with clearly specified conditions for harsher penalties narrows down the possibility of free judicial decision-making when meting out punishment. The paper answers several questions: whether harsher penalties for recidivists are only the result of continuous tightening of repression at a normative level, whether and to what extent the criminal-law framework has been improved, and whether returning to some solutions, which were not normally applied in court practice, can be marked as approriate to achieve the desired degree of crime prevention. Final critical conculusion is that the new legal solution on recidivism appears regressive, given that the court is strictly bound by the law through oblitatory conditions regarding prior and persistent offending, which is in compliance with the general trend of tightening repression at the normative level and reducing the role of the court to the level of administrative application of the norm.

AUTOMATED DECISION MAKING IN ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE – MYTH OR REALITY?

In this paper the authors analyze the possibility of automated decision making in the administrative procedure, as one of the aspects of the development of e-administration. Services of e-administration are developing and expanding to numerous aspects of administrative work, with administrative decision-making being one of the most important and intriguing aspect. Having that in mind, the authors defined the term automated decision making and researched the question whether the legal framework of the Republic of Serbia enables the implementation of new, digital forms of administrative decision making. For that purpose, relevant provisions of the Law on General Administrative Procedure, the Law on Electronic Government and the Law on Personal Data Protection have been analyzed. The authors identified the situations of general administrative procedure within which it would be possible to consider practically, and in the near future normatively as well, the introduction of an automated decision making in the administrative procedure. A lesser portion of the paper is dedicated to the prerequisites and risks related to human rights and liberties when it comes to automated decision making in the administrative procedure.

NON-DISCLOSURE OF FINANCIAL STATEMENTS OF PUBLIC COMPANIES AS AN ECONOMIC OFFENSE IN THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA

The successful functioning and development of the capital market, along with the possibility of attracting new investments is largely contingent on the quality of financial reporting and the availability of the statements themselves. In view of the fact that the new Law on Accounting of the Republic of Serbia came into force, the question arises to what extent public companies respect legally prescribed deadlines for submitting their statements and by doing so do not commit an economic offense. The primary goal of this paper is to draw attention to the importance of a standardized and efficient legal framework that obliges public companies to publish financial statements in a timely manner. A survey was conducted that encompassed 416 public companies listed on the Belgrade Stock Exchange and their corresponding financialstatements for 2018, as the reporting period. We tried to establish whether the sampled companies disclosed their statements within the deadline prescribed by the Law on Accounting (Law on Accounting, Official Gazette of RS, 62/2013, 30/2018). The results show that most companies disclosed financial statements during the period when they are still considered useful to potential and existing investors. Nevertheless, practice showed that there was room for improvement, and this was achieved with the adoption of the new Law on Accounting, which took effect on January 1, 2020. It integrates the deadline for compiling and disclosing statements, which in fact shortens the time period during which information on the companies’ operations should be made available to the general public and potential investors.

Effect of grip size and grip strength on pistol marksmanship in police officers: A pilot study

Police officers may be required to use their firearms in self-defence. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationships between hand grip size and strength with pistol shooting accuracy in police officers. Twelve (age = 38.08 ± 6.24 years; height = 174.42 ± 7.33 cm) police officers had their hand sizes (palm width and hand span) and hand grip strength measured. Handgrip dynamometer was set at a Glock 17 pistol's grip width (50 mm). The officers fired 10 rounds from their service pistols at a stationary target. Independent samples t-tests were performed to identify differences between the sexes. Correlations were used to investigate relationships between measures of hand size, strength, and marksmanship. Alpha levels were set at p < 0.05. Male officers were significantly stronger (p = 0.01) and had a bigger hand width (p = 0.03), but not hand span. There were no significant differences in marksmanship between the sexes. Neither hand size nor grip strength had a significant impact on marksmanship even though there were strong and significant relationships between hand size (span and MCP) and grip strength. A V-shaped curve appears to exist between grip strength and marksmanship and hand span and marksmanship, with a potential influencing factor being the standard sizing of the pistol grip.

Instructor, trainer, sifu, coach or professor: Reflections on the use of terminology in police learning settings dealing with physical conflict management

Police training and learning settings focusing on physical conflict management skills regularly comprise at least two parties: on the one side the individuals learning and developing their conflict management skills and on the other side the individuals in charge of planning and delivering the training sessions. While the first category refers to learners, the latter category is referred to, among others, as instructor, trainer, coach, sifu or professor, depending on contextual constraints. While it seems arbitrary to use different terms for describing the learner's counterpart in a learning setting, we argue for a sensible consideration of manifest and latent implications of how these individuals are referred to - and how they perceive their role. Drawing from autoethnographic data in various conflict management training settings, we identify functional, dysfunctional and irritating aspects of different terms used. By reflecting through the lenses of functionality from a systemic perspective, we aim at providing insights towards a more nuanced understanding of contextual constraints and reflexive use of these terms.

Analysis of the frequency of verbal and vocal signs in true and false statements

The paper presents research aimed at analysing the frequency of verbal and vocal signs in a situation of false and true statements, by introducing a secondary task. The research involved 100 students (47 men and 53 women) of the master's studies of criminal investigation at the University of Criminal Investigation and Police Studies, aged 23-44. Students had the task, based on the observation of twenty selected videos (10 true statements and 10 false statements), to mark the frequency of each individual verbal and vocal sign, on a previously generated and prepared list. The results show that there is a statistically significant difference in terms of the frequency of all verbal and vocal signs in a false or true statement: response latency, speech hesitation, speech errors, speech rate, number of spoken words in the utterance, and length of utterance. Response latency, speech hesitation, and speech errors have higher median values in false utterances than in true ones, while speech rate, number of words spoken, and length of utterance show higher median values in true than false utterances.

Rehabilitation and reintegration policies of children victims of criminal action in the children's criminal jurisdiction system

Is research examines the rehabilitation and reintegration policies of child victims in criminal justice system in Indonesia. e methodology used in this research is a mix methodological approach between law and psychology with a conceptual approach and a Statute approach to analyse the deficiency of current legislation. Cost-benefit analysis (CBA) was also used in determining the calculation of the punishment for child victims by considering the national regulation. e results showed that legal system on social rehabilitation and reintegration of child victims is regulated in international instrument of Child Rights Convention, Beijing Rules, and Tokyo Rules, which are integrated within the national law of child's protection and child's criminal justice system. Moreover, the application of victim rehabilitation and reintegration within the perspective of cost-benefit analysis determines the punishment classification, such as the heavy punishment with small arrest probability, while the light punishment has bigger arrest probability.

Relationship of Anti-Money Laundering Index with GDP, financial market development, and Human Development Index

Money laundering has a direct impact, among other things, on the economic development of a country. The aim of this research is to determine the correlation between money laundering and economic development expressed through GDP, as well as between financial market development (FDI) and the Human Development Index (HDI). The results of the research show that there was a significant relationship between the observed variables, i.e. that there is a relation of the Anti-Money Laundering Index (AMLI) on GDP, financial market development and the HDI. Namely, given that medium-strong links between the observed variables have been established, it can be claimed that there is reason to believe that "copying the behaviour" of a certain country in the fight against money laundering can further develop the financial market, influence human development or an increase in GDP per capita. In particular, a decrease in the AMLI was expected to increase the FDI (R2 = 0.2601). A decrease in the AMLI was expected to increase the HDI (R2 = 0.5747). In that way, financial institutions are directly affected, which negatively relates to economic and political stability.

State capture: Case of South Africa

"Grand corruption" and "state capture" are two intertwined concepts of corruption that have become systemic and institutionalized in many transitional countries around the world. "State capture" can simply be defined as "the payment of bribes at high levels of government in order to extract or plunder significant amounts of money from the state". The following paper will argue that when state capture occurs in transitional countries, it runs the risk of becoming socially embedded and institutionalized, which in turn makes it difficult to maintain the principles of democracy and threatens the overall stability of a country in transition. South Africa makes for a useful case study because it clearly represents how corruption in the form of state capture has infiltrated the political landscape of a country in transition, thereby rendering all state institutions redundant and threatening the principles of democracy. The paper will research what the dangers of state capture means for the countries in transition with the aim of proposing recommendations of minimizing state capture in order to reduce the negative consequences for security, peace and democracy. One corruption scandal that occurred in South Africa will be described which became known as "state capture". The paper was prepared based on the analysis of documents, academic and media articles that focus on state capture and the corruption in transitional countries. The paper will conclude that governmental corruption has become socially embedded in the "logics" of negotiation and interaction, thereby indicating that it has become institutionalized and culturally embedded within South Africa.

Private security preparedness for disasters caused by fire

The subject of the research was the examination of the factors of influence on the preparedness of the private security for disasters caused by fire. In addition to determining the preparedness index, there are deeper insights into the interrelationships between various selected variables and the level of preparedness of members of the private security. Using the random sampling method, 300 adult members of the private security were selected, and they participated in the research. The results of the research indicate that members of private security were not sufficiently prepared to react to fires. The research results could be used as a starting point for conducting further research in this area since the improvement in training of security personnel plays an important role in disaster control and prevention, thereby producing safer and more secure work environment and society.