Julian Roberts – författare

Key reading for students in criminology, criminal justice, and media studies, this book is also of value to researchers and those with an interest in crime and the media.

First published in 1975, Opening the Door is a survey of policies and problems in services for the mentally handicapped. It describes the improvements which have taken place since 1969, when the inquiry into conditions of patients at Ely hospital in South Wales stimulated public concern into the quality of life of many mentally handicapped people in hospital. The authors discuss the continuing gap between the idea – as laid down in the 1971 Government White Paper, Better Services for the Mentally Handicapped, which set out a blueprint for development in the 1980s that was to make the antithesis of ‘hospital’ or ‘community’ obsolete – and the reality. The study is based on detailed work in one Region by a team of staff and postgraduate students in the Department of Social Administration and Social Work at the University of York. The survey covers hospital provisions, with special attention to nursing attitudes and to problems of the ‘back wards,’ the relationship between hospitals and their surrounding communities, and the development of local authority social work and residential care services. This book will be of interest to students of social administration, social policy and health.

First published in 1975, Opening the Door is a survey of policies and problems in services for the mentally handicapped. It describes the improvements which have taken place since 1969, when the inquiry into conditions of patients at Ely hospital in South Wales stimulated public concern into the quality of life of many mentally handicapped people in hospital. The authors discuss the continuing gap between the idea – as laid down in the 1971 Government White Paper, Better Services for the Mentally Handicapped, which set out a blueprint for development in the 1980s that was to make the antithesis of ‘hospital’ or ‘community’ obsolete – and the reality. The study is based on detailed work in one Region by a team of staff and postgraduate students in the Department of Social Administration and Social Work at the University of York. The survey covers hospital provisions, with special attention to nursing attitudes and to problems of the ‘back wards,’ the relationship between hospitals and their surrounding communities, and the development of local authority social work and residential care services. This book will be of interest to students of social administration, social policy and health.

Throughout the western world public opinion has played an important role in shaping criminal justice policy. At the same time opinion polls repeatedly demonstrate that the public knows little about crime and justice, and holds negative views of the criminal justice system. This book, consisting of chapters from leading authorities in the field, is concerned to address this problem, and draws upon research in a number of different countries to address the issues arising from this state of affairs. Its main aims are:

Throughout the western world public opinion has played an important role in shaping criminal justice policy. At the same time opinion polls repeatedly demonstrate that the public knows little about crime and justice, and holds negative views of the criminal justice system. This book, consisting of chapters from leading authorities in the field, is concerned to address this problem, and draws upon research in a number of different countries to address the issues arising from this state of affairs. Its main aims are:

In the decade since the passage of rape reform legislation in 1983, Canada has witnessed an extraordinary growth in public concern about the pervasive and painful issue of sexual assault. Despite this legislation, society continues to pay the price of coercive sexuality. The essays in this volume address the role that legislative reform can play in reducing and ultimately eliminating those costs.

The subjects explored include the origins of the 1983 legislation, recent national trends in criminal justice statistics relating to sexual assault, cultural bias, alternatives to sentencing, and the provision of civil compensation for the victims of sexual assault. Essays also analyse how cases are processed, how judges have constructed sexual assault, and how the level of harm caused is determined. The concluding chapters discuss the struggle between the Courts and Parliament in determining the admissibility of sexual history evidence (before and after the Seaboyer decision) and the consultation process that contributed to the 1992 legislative changes.

Several common themes emerge. One is that statutory revisions can effect changes in the behaviour of criminal justice personnel only to a limited extent. Another is the need for explicit guidance in - and perhaps limits on - the exercise of discretion by these personnel in their handling of sexual assault cases. Finally, almost every chapter in this volume stresses that the issue of criminal sexual aggression can be understood and dealt with effectively only with the help of an integrated approach which includes both sociological and legal perspectives.