Journal of Criminology and Criminal Law is a scientific Journal aimed to promote theoretical and
practical experiences of criminology, criminal law, penology and similar scientific disciplines. It is the
only scientific journal of that kind in this region.
The Journal has been published continuously since 1962 and has the category of a top level journal of
national significance (M51).
Mass murderers often exhibit extreme violent behavior, prompting questions about the neurobiological factors contributing to such actions. This review examines the brain morphology of mass murderers, focusing on structural and functional abnormalities in brain regions involved in aggression, decision-making, and emotional regulation. Neuroimaging studies indicate that mass murderers commonly show dysfunction in key areas, including the prefrontal cortex (PFC), amygdala, orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), and hippocampus regions essential for impulse control, emotional processing, and moral decision-making. Reduced activity and structural abnormalities in the PFC and amygdala impair emotional regulation, empathy, and impulse control, while dysfunction in the OFC contributes to poor decision-making and risk assessment. Furthermore, imbalances in neurotransmitter systems, such as serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine, amplify aggression and impulsivity. These neurobiological factors, combined with environmental influences like trauma, suggest that mass murderers may be predisposed to violent behavior due to a complex interplay of brain abnormalities and life experiences. While no single factor can fully explain mass murder, this review highlights the importance of understanding the neuroanatomical underpinnings of violent behavior for developing effective prevention and intervention strategies. Such findings could be useful in the context of the etiology of crime, providing a better understanding of the biological roots of crime, which further influences the improvement of dealing with perpetrators of mass murders in the prison system through the rehabilitation process, despite numerous limitations. Understanding brain morphology in mass murderers is also important from the perspective of criminal law practice, which forms part of the broader connection between criminal law and neuroscience.
Criminal Law Protection of the Electoral Rights in the Contemporary Serbian Criminal Legislation
Bodrožić, P. Ivana,
pp: 21-36
Free and fair elections, as well as electoral rights which are closely related to them, are considered to be one of the keystone elements of the contemporary democratic societies. Democracy as a value is highly important to every national and EU legislation. It can be promoted and safeguarded through several mechanisms, but the most important parts of its protection undeniably are free elections and legality and transparency in the field of electoral rights as a part of a wider concept of political rights.
Electoral rights enjoy a complex system of protection that includes constitutional, administrative, misdemeanor and criminal law protection.
Due to its importance for the overall political system of the state, understood in the context of freedom of expression of citizens' will, freedom of activity and prevention of violations and abuses of electoral rights, the legal framework for the protection of electoral rights also includes their criminal law protection.
In the paper, the author tries to point out the general characteristics of the conception of the criminal law protection of electoral rights in the legislation of the Republic of Serbia by using dominantly the normative method, the method of generalizing abstraction and other methods of formal logic, accompanied by the classic analysis of certain criminal offences from this category.
In the conclusion, it is underlined that criminal law has to be regarded only as a last resort within the complete system of protection of electoral rights, but with the strong role in a processes of achieving the desired degree of crime prevention, as an overall objective of criminal law protection of democratic elections.
Cheiloscopy: Exploring the Gender and Age Patterns in Lip Prints
Mehmet Ali Tekiner, Simge Varlık, Aybüke Ayşe İşbir Turan,
pp: 37-57
Lip prints, like fingerprints, possess unique characteristics that can be utilized as biometric data for identification and gender determination. Using the forensic examination technique known as cheiloscopy, 23 distinctive features of lip prints have been identified. This study employs the Suzuki and Tsuchihashi classification system to investigate the correlation between five types of lip print patterns, gender, and age. The study's sample consists of 100 random and voluntary participants, equally divided into 50 women and 50 men. Feature extraction focused on seven distinctive characteristics and their frequencies. The study also explored the presence of any unique, previously undefined features. The findings indicate that lip print characteristics vary based on age and gender. While the study suggests that lip prints could be a useful tool in crime investigation, it highlights the need for further research with larger sample sizes.
Juvenile prison – convinced: perpetrator and victim of a criminal offense
Krstajić, Goran, Obradović, Dragan,
Krstajić Goran
pp: 59-77
The purpose of imposing criminal sanctions has been established by the most important regulations from the field of criminal law. In particular, the purpose of imposing or executing a prison sentence is defined as the most severe criminal sanction that can be imposed on the perpetrator of a certain criminal act. After starting to serve the sentence, the process of reintegration of persons sentenced to effective prison sentences begins. It is an extremely important issue, which, although there is an awareness of its importance, has not in practice been given enough attention for various reasons: a lack of qualified professional staff in institutions for the execution of prison sentences, the overcrowding of these institutions or limited material resources at the state level.
However, there are also less researched aspects of this problem, such as the different types of deprivation that convicts are exposed to while serving their sentences. This is a particularly sensitive issue in the case of a juvenile prison sentence, which is served in the Penitentiary for Juveniles in Valjevo. Juvenile convicts, in addition to committing the crimes for which they were convicted, are often exposed to the risk of becoming victims of various crimes themselves, including violence, abuse and other forms of victimization by other convicts or even individual staff members. The aim of this paper is to point out the above-mentioned phenomenon, which is further complicated by a lack of mechanism for the protection of victims in the prison system, as well as the fear of reporting abuse due to possible consequences. The paper states specific views that are the result of research carried out in this institution, and which may be of importance for other institutions where prison sentences are carried out in Serbia.
Use of force by police officers in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Šetka Gojko,
Jovičić Dragomir
pp: 79-94
Policija je nesporno jedan od najvažnijih, a za građane najvidljiviji državni organ. Priroda djelatnosti policije je takva da je ona u sferi interesovanja svakog građanina bez obzira na sve razlike između njih. Osnovni razlog tome svakako su ovlaštenja koja je država kroz zakonodavni okvir povjerila policiji kao specijalizovanom državnom organu, a koji služi za uspješno obavljanje poslova policije. Policija je posebno interesantan državni organ s obzirom da ima i ovlašćenje da primjenjuje silu prema građanima, naravno u slučajevima propisanim zakonskim i podzakonskim aktima. Naravno, policijski službenici mogu silu primjenjivati isključivo u skladu sa predviđenim procedurama. S obzirom da primjena sile proizvodi posljedice koje se naknadno ne mogu otkloniti, neophodno je da policijski službenici poznaju pravni osnov za upotrebu sredstava sile, kao i način upotrebe. U ovom radu smo pokušali, korišćenjem metoda naučnog saznanja, prikupljajući podatke kroz intervjuisanje policijskih službenika sa svih nivoa policijskog sistema, doći do spoznaje stanja u oblasti primjene sile od strane policijskih službenika u Bosni i Hercegovini.
The police indisputably represent one of the most important and, for citizens, the most visible state body. The nature of police activities places it within the realm of concern for every citizen, regardless of their differences. The main reason for this is certainly the powers that the state, through the legislative framework, has conferred upon the police as a specialized state body, enabling the police to effectively carry out their duties. The police are a particularly interesting state body given their authority to apply force against citizens, but strictly in cases prescribed by laws and regulations. It is imperative that police officers can apply force solely in accordance with the prescribed procedures. Since the application of force produces consequences that cannot be subsequently eliminated, it is crucial for police officers to know the legal basis for the use of force, as well as the methods for its use. In this work, by employing scientific methods and collecting data through interviews with police officers from all levels of the police system, we aimed to attain insights into the situation in the area of the application of force by police officers in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The Problem of Prison Overcrowding with a Focus on the Situation in the Republic of Serbia
Milica Simović,
pp: 95-118
In recent years of the 21st century, prison systems have faced an enormous increase in the
number of inmates worldwide. Whether overcrowding has always been a problem or is a
result of modern times is an interesting question that numerous theorists have attempted to
answer by explaining this phenomenon from various aspects, pointing out possible causes,
consequences, certain solutions, and characteristics of the population that characterize many
prisons. There is also a significant social impact, as every society, regardless of social class,
has its own opinion on the purpose of prisons and the population housed within them. How
the prison population changes, what transformations it brings, and what possible ways exist to
overcome prison overcrowding are key questions that the author addresses in the paper,
emphasizing that overcrowding as a trend, judging by statistical data and numerous literature,
threatens to exceed all capacities and inflict severe social, physical, and psychological
consequences on the incarcerated.
Problem prenaseljenosti zatvora sa osvrtom na stanje u Republici Srbiji
Poslednjih godina 21. veka zatvorski sistemi suočeni su sa enormnim porastom zatvorenika
širom sveta. Da li je oduvek postojao problem prenatrpanosti zatvora ili je rezultat modernog
doba, zanimljivo je pitanje na koje su pokušali dati odgovore brojni teoretičari kroz
objašnjenje ovog fenomena sa različitih aspekata ukazujući na moguće uzročnike, posledice,
određena rešenja kao i karakteristike populacije koja karakteriše mnoge zatvore. Prisutan je
takođe i veliki društveni uticaj, s obzirom da svako društvo bilo kog društvenog sloja ima
sopstveno mišljenje o svrsi zatvora i populaciji smeštenoj u njih. Kako se kreće zatvorska
populacija, koje promene donosi sa sobom, kao i koji su mogući načini prevazilaženja
prenaseljenosti zatvora ključna su pitanja na koja se autor osvrće u radu, kroz isticanje da
prenatrpanost zatvora kao trend, sudeći na osnovu statističkih podataka i brojne literature,
preti da prevaziđe sve kapacitete i nanese velike društvene, fizičke i psihičke posledice po
osuđenike.
Reviews
Škulić, M., Kolaković-Bojović, M. & Matić-Bošković, M. (2024) The Role of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Serbia in Penal Proceedings
Aleksa Škundrić,
pp: 119-121
