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PubMed2001

Selecting lineup foils in eyewitness identification experiments: experimental control and real-world simulation.

Experimental research on eyewitness identification follows a standard principle of experimental design. Perpetrator-present and perpetrator-absent lineups are constructed with the same foils, so that the two conditions are identical except for the presence or absence ofthe trueperpetrator ofthe crime. However, this aspect of the design simulates conditions that do not correspond to those of real criminal investigations. Specifically, these conditions can create perp-absent lineups in which the foils are selected based on their similarity to an unknown person--the real perpetrator. Analysis of the similarity relations predicts that when foils for perp-absent lineups are selected based on their match to the perpetrator the false identification rate will be lower than if the foils are selected based on their match to the innocent suspect. This prediction was confirmed in an experiment that compared these two perp-absent lineup conditions. These results suggest that false identification rates in previous experiments would have been higher if the foils had been selected based on their match to the innocent suspect, rather than the absent perpetrator.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

[Anonymous birth and neonaticide in Tyrol].

BACKGROUND: In 2001 the Austrian government provided the legal means that formally enabled "anonymous birth": a woman can now give birth in any hospital in Austria without giving her name or insurance number, the baby is taken into care by social services and placed with adoptive parents. The cost of the hospital stay is covered from public funds. These measures were put into effect after some highly publicized cases of infant abandonment and neonaticide in Austria. METHODS: In the mostly rural and small-town province of Tyrol province in western Austria (687,000 inhabitants, 7000 births per year) four cases of neonaticide were discovered in the years from 1996 to 2004. One child was abandoned inside a hospital. Since 2001 two women have made use of the "anonymous birth" option. Neither had had any pregnancy controls, both showed up at or near term with contractions. They delivered healthy infants that were then taken into care by local adoption services. Both women were extensively counselled by psychologists, social workers, medical and midwifery staff and both insisted on their original decision to remain anonymous. A few weeks later one of the women found herself at the centre of a criminal investigation for infanticide after anonymous letters were sent to family members insinuating she had done away with the child. Police stopped that investigation when hospital staff confirmed that the woman had had an "anonymous" delivery. RESULTS: Despite the option of legal "anonymous" birth free of charge in modern hospitals there are still cases of infant abandonment and neonaticide in Austria. It is proposed that the women who opt for anonymous birth may not be the women who would otherwise kill their babies. Instead, it appears that the women opted for anonymity to escape the probably well-intentioned but overbearing attention of their families and of social services. It is doubtful that the option of anonymous birth will lead to a complete disappearance of infanticide and infant abandonment in Austria.

Adoption↗

PubMed2003

The impact of methadone treatment on registered convictions and arrests in HIV-positive and HIV-negative men and women with one or more treatment periods.

This study investigates criminality among 331 opiate abusers admitted to Stockholm's methadone maintenance programme (SMMP) between 1988 and 1992, and a comparison group of 1483 untreated opiate abusers. Information on arrests, criminal convictions, and intravenous drug abuse was obtained from official records. For both genders the annual rate of convictions decreased from 2.2 convictions per year during the 4 years prior to the first treatment, to 0.5 convictions during treatment, compared to 2.0 convictions for the comparison group. There was an even greater decrease in the rate of arrests for patients on methadone treatment. The decline was observed for both genders and in both HIV-positive and HIV-negative patients. Rates of convictions among patients who had more than one treatment period were clearly reduced during each treatment period, and while the rate increased after they were expelled from treatment it remained at a lower level than during the 4 years prior to treatment. Thus, the methadone treatment is shown to have a profound positive effect on arrests and convictions, not only for patients remaining in treatment but also for those patients who were expelled from treatment involuntarily.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2025

clusIBD: Robust Detection of Identity-by-descent Segments Using Unphased Genetic Data from Poor-quality Samples.

The detection of identity-by-descent (IBD) segments is widely used to infer relatedness in many fields, including forensics and ancient DNA analysis. However, existing methods are often ineffective for poor-quality DNA samples. Here, we propose a method, clusIBD, which can robustly detect IBD segments using unphased genetic data with a high rate of genotyping error. We evaluated and compared the performance of clusIBD with that of IBIS, TRUFFLE, and IBDseq using simulated data, artificial poor-quality materials, and ancient DNA samples. The results show that clusIBD outperforms these existing tools and could be used for kinship inference in fields such as ancient DNA analysis and criminal investigation. clusIBD is publicly available at GitHub (https://github.com/Ryan620/clusIBD/) and BioCode (https://ngdc.cncb.ac.cn/biocode/tool/BT007882).

Humans↗

PubMed2001

Urine concentrations of ketamine and norketamine following illegal consumption.

Ketamine, an anesthetic agent primarily used in veterinary medicine and pediatrics, continues to gain in popularity in the drug abuse scene or 'Rave Wave' of all-night dance clubs. The Division of Forensic Toxicology Laboratory (Office of the Armed Forces Medical Examiner) at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, as the primary analytical laboratory for criminal investigative agencies in the Department of Defense (DOD), has seen requests for ketamine analysis rise from 1 in 1997 to 116 in 2000. This increasing abuse has led the DOD Urine Drug Testing Laboratories to consider adding ketamine screening to their random urinalysis program. However, before ketamine testing can be implemented as standard policy, concentrations of ketamine and metabolites in urine need to be evaluated after actual drug use. There is very little information regarding the pharmacokinetics of ketamine, especially concentrations of the drug or its two major metabolites, norketamine and dehydronorketamine, that can be expected in urine. In fact, dehydronorketamine has been believed to be an analytical artifact caused by the high temperatures of gas chromatography. In this paper, we attempt to resolve this issue with the development of a liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) method. The urine concentrations of ketamine, norketamine and dehydronorketamine (presumptive) detected in 33 "positive" cases received in our laboratory since 1998 are reported. Quantitations were accomplished with LC-MS. Ketamine concentrations ranged from 6 to 7744 ng/mL. Norketamine concentrations ranged from 7 to 7986 ng/mL and dehydronorketamine (presumptive) concentrations ranged from 37 to 23,239 ng/mL.

Anesthetics, Dissociative↗

PubMed2006

Occupational exposure to methamphetamine in workers preparing training AIDS for drug detection dogs.

As a part of ongoing testing of personnel preparing training aids for drug detection dogs at the Naval Criminal Investigative Service Regional Forensic Laboratory, personnel handling methamphetamine (MTH) were subject to voluntary urine drug testing. This provided a model of potential unwitting or environmental exposure contribution to MTH concentrations in urine. Urine samples were collected from multiple individuals on the day before, the day of, and the day after the individuals had handled up to 500-g quantities of MTH during the assembly of training aids. Personnel wore gloves, dust masks, and lab coats during the preparation of training aids. A total of 101 urine samples were analyzed for the presence of MTH and amphetamine (AMP) by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry after solid-phase extraction and derivatization. Urine samples collected during and after personnel handled drug yielded a mean MTH concentration of 48 ng/mL with a maximum concentration of 262 ng/mL and a minimum detected concentration of approximately 1.6 ng/mL. Thirty-five of the 52 post drug-handling samples had detectable MTH. Ten of the samples had MTH concentrations above the method limit of quantitation of 15 ng/mL. Only one sample had a concentration greater than 50 ng/mL. None of the samples had detectable AMP. From this limited study, it was evident that handling of MTH under these conditions resulted in minimal exposure and small but detectable concentrations of MTH in urine.

Air Pollutants, Occupational↗

PubMed1981

Advances in American forensic sciences. California's role.

The forensic sciences in the United States, specifically forensic medicine, have benefited primarily from the advances made by the New York Medical Examiner Office pioneers and the philosophy developed in the Massachusetts medicolegal structure as begun in 1877. California's pioneering role is directly related to the development of criminalistics which in turn served as a stimulus for the improvement and development of forensic medicine in that state. Historically many private practitioners were involved in general criminalistics in California before the system of state criminalistic laboratories and criminal investigations was well established. Any report on the growth of the forensic sciences must include mention of the earlier pioneers including Heinrich, Kirk, Kytka, Crossman, Abernethy, Pinker, Helsel, and Noxley. A review of the current state of the art in the forensic sciences is presented, as is a review of the contributions of California to the development of American forensic sciences.

California↗

PubMed1996

Homicidal poisoning in the United States: an analysis of the Uniform Crime Reports from 1980 through 1989.

We performed analyses of data on 292 homicides by poisoning in the United States. The data from the Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) 1980 through 1989, involved cases of one poisoned victim and one poisoning offender. Demographic factors analyzed for each victim and offender include age, gender, race, relationship of victim to offender, major category of poison, month, year, geographic location, and crime classification. The goal of this study is to identify homicidal poisoner demographics that could assist forensic scientists and law enforcement personnel in their criminal investigations and to serve as the foundation for a more formal investigative analysis of this kind of subtle killer.

Arsenic Poisoning↗

PubMed1998

Forensic applications of DNA typing: part 2: collection and preservation of DNA evidence.

The initial stages of physical evidence examination are pivotal to the successful resolution of criminal investigations. Recent cases clearly reinforce the notion that methods of evidence collection and preservation will continue to be rigorously scrutinized and challenged in court. This article reviews forensic applications of DNA typing, focusing on the collection and preservation of biological evidence. Topics addressed include physical evidence collection at the crime scene, the forensic laboratory, and the autopsy room. Specific concerns pertaining to different sources of DNA evidence are discussed, as are special collection methods associated with various substrates on which the evidence is deposited.

Body Fluids↗

PubMed2001

Diving-related fatalities caused by underwater explosions: a report of two cases.

The authors report two cases of diving-related water blast with fatal outcome resulting from nearby underwater explosions. Water blast with fatal outcome almost exclusively occurs in wars at sea. Underwater explosions are extremely rare in diving because of the limited exposure. Forensic findings in both cases reported included expected injuries to gas-filled organs such as the middle ear, lungs, and intestine; some rarely described injuries such as rupture of the liver, spleen, and kidneys; and also some lesions that were not found in a search of the literature: rupture of the heart and contusion of the hypophysis. Injuries caused by fatal underwater explosions should be carefully evaluated in forensic medicine to provide data that may support a criminal investigation.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Child abuse in the pediatric intensive care unit.

Critically ill and injured children due to abusive or inflicted injury represent a growing challenge for pediatric intensive care unit personnel in terms of the number of patients seen each year in the United States and the intellectual and emotional response required to deal with this tragic problem. We present a distillation of the current knowledge of childhood physical abuse with a focus on the child with inflicted injury who is admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit. In addition to a discussion of the epidemiology, clinical presentation, an approach to diagnosis, and treatment strategies, we also explore the legal issues that confront pediatric intensive care unit physicians in relation to determination of brain death, suitability of victims for organ donation, and the physician's role in the criminal investigation of child abuse and as a witness for court proceedings.

Adult↗

PubMed1993

Relating blood concentrations of tetrahydrocannabinol and metabolites to pharmacologic effects and time of marijuana usage.

Pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic analyses of marijuana data have provided new insights into the relationship of blood concentrations of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and metabolites to drug-induced effects. THC is rapidly absorbed and distributed to tissues; initial changes in blood concentrations are out of phase (hysteresis) with physiological and behavioral changes. Once blood/tissue equilibrium is established, a direct correlation of THC blood concentration and effect is observed. Various pharmacodynamic models provide concentration estimates in the range of 7-29 ng/ml for amount of THC in blood necessary for production of 50% of maximal subjective high effect. Also, models have been proposed for predicting the time of marijuana exposure from plasma concentrations of THC and THC-carboxy acid metabolite (THCCOOH). These models were based on data from a controlled clinical study of marijuana smoking. Such models allow prediction of the elapsed time since marijuana use based on analysis for cannabinoids from a single plasma sample and provide accompanying 95% confidence intervals around the prediction. These models may be beneficial to forensic scientists in their interpretation of cannabinoid blood data associated with accidents, criminal investigations, and traffic violations.

Dronabinol↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Critical issues in bioterrorism preparedness: before and after September 2001.

The Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Survey (BPRS) was a survey of Ohio local health departments' capacity to respond to bioterrorism. Soon after completion of the BPRS, the events of September 11 occurred, followed by the human cases of anthrax. The Ohio Response to Bioterrorism 2001 Survey (ORB) identified bioterrorism preparedness issues related to the suspected anthrax incidents. The BPRS measured capacity before September 11, 2001, and the ORB measured Ohio communities' response to white powder incidents. The BPRS and ORB provided independent and outcome measures related to the 2001-bioterrorism events. The significant bioterrorism response issues were: monitoring critical or unexplained deaths and clusters or symptoms; training on bioterrorism agents; integration of medical and criminal investigations of bioterrorism incidents; development of bioterrorism emergency response plans to include agencies to be contacted, management strategies for implementing mass vaccination, prophylaxis, treatment distribution and administration; and participation in a bioterrorism field or tabletop exercise. These results are confirmed and extended by studies by the US General Accounting Office, the Rand Corporation, Trust in the Future of America's Health foundation, and a follow-up survey of issues during a simulated covert smallpox attack.

Bioterrorism↗

PubMed2026

Atypical short tandem repeat allelic patterns in a sexual assault case involving hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

Short tandem repeat (STR) profiling is a cornerstone of forensic DNA analysis, particularly during criminal investigations. However, certain clinical conditions, such as bone marrow transplantation, can complicate interpretation. To illustrate the impact of allogeneic bone marrow transplantation on forensic STR analysis, this case report details a sexual assault investigation involving a female victim who had previously received a bone marrow transplant from a female donor. A female sexual assault victim underwent forensic examination, during which multiple biological swabs were collected. STR profiling was conducted on the victim's blood, fingernail, buccal, breast, hip, vulvar, vaginal, cervical samples, panty, and brassiere. As conflicting profiles were found, a detailed medical history was collected, and hair follicle analysis was performed to confirm the origin of the STR profiles. Blood STR profiling revealed a single female genotype, while multiple swabs, including vaginal and cervical samples, showed a second female STR profile alongside the first. Notably, the consistency and distribution of the mixed profile across samples reduced the likelihood of laboratory contamination. The medical history of the victim revealed a prior history of allogeneic bone marrow transplant. Hair follicle analysis identified the recipient's original genotype, confirming that the secondary STR profile originated from the donor. Bone marrow transplantation may result in a mixed STR profile, potentially leading to misidentification or misinterpretation of forensic evidence. Awareness of transplant history is crucial during forensic evaluations. However, such clinical history is currently not included in standard sexual-assault evidence forms, underscoring the need for procedural updates.

Female↗

PubMed2006

A motion detection-based framework for improving image quality of CCTV security systems.

Closed-circuit television (CCTV) security systems have been widely used in banks, convenience stores, and other facilities. They are useful to deter crime and depict criminal activity. However, CCTV cameras that provide an overview of a monitored region can be useful for criminal investigation but sometimes can also be used for object identification (e.g., vehicle numbers, persons, etc.). In this paper, we propose a framework for improving the image quality of CCTV security systems. This framework is based upon motion detection technology. There are two cameras in the framework: one camera (camera A) is fixed focus with a zoom lens for moving-object detection, and the other one (camera B) is variable focus with an auto-zoom lens to capture higher resolution images of the objects of interest. When camera A detects a moving object in the monitored area, camera B, driven by an auto-zoom focus control algorithm, will take a higher resolution image of the object of interest. Experimental results show that the proposed framework can improve the likelihood that images obtained from stationary unattended CCTV cameras are sufficient to enable law enforcement officials to identify suspects and other objects of interest.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1997

Ethical aspects of workplace urine screening for drug abuse.

OBJECTIVE: To review the ethical and legal implications of the involvement of medical practitioners in workplace screening for drug misuse. CONCLUSIONS: Workplace screening for drugs of abuse raises many ethical issues. If screening is considered as being part of medical practice with the involvement of occupational health physicians, as suggested by the Faculty of Occupational Medicine, then the ethical requirements of a normal medical consultation are fully applicable. The employee's full and informed consent to the process must be obtained and the employee should have an unfettered right of access to all the relevant records and to the urine sample he/she has provided in the event that he/she wishes to challenge the opinion expressed by the physician. If the process is not part of medical practice then employees should have the same rights as they would have if required to provide intimate body samples in the course of a criminal investigation, given the potentially serious consequences of an erroneous positive finding for their livelihood.

Ethics, Medical↗

PubMed2005

Software for optimization of SNP and PCR-RFLP genotyping to discriminate many genomes with the fewest assays.

BACKGROUND: Microbial forensics is important in tracking the source of a pathogen, whether the disease is a naturally occurring outbreak or part of a criminal investigation. RESULTS: A method and SPR Opt (SNP and PCR-RFLP Optimization) software to perform a comprehensive, whole-genome analysis to forensically discriminate multiple sequences is presented. Tools for the optimization of forensic typing using Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) and PCR-Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) analyses across multiple isolate sequences of a species are described. The PCR-RFLP analysis includes prediction and selection of optimal primers and restriction enzymes to enable maximum isolate discrimination based on sequence information. SPR Opt calculates all SNP or PCR-RFLP variations present in the sequences, groups them into haplotypes according to their co-segregation across those sequences, and performs combinatoric analyses to determine which sets of haplotypes provide maximal discrimination among all the input sequences. Those set combinations requiring that membership in the fewest haplotypes be queried (i.e. the fewest assays be performed) are found. These analyses highlight variable regions based on existing sequence data. These markers may be heterogeneous among unsequenced isolates as well, and thus may be useful for characterizing the relationships among unsequenced as well as sequenced isolates. The predictions are multi-locus. Analyses of mumps and SARS viruses are summarized. Phylogenetic trees created based on SNPs, PCR-RFLPs, and full genomes are compared for SARS virus, illustrating that purported phylogenies based only on SNP or PCR-RFLP variations do not match those based on multiple sequence alignment of the full genomes. CONCLUSION: This is the first software to optimize the selection of forensic markers to maximize information gained from the fewest assays, accepting whole or partial genome sequence data as input. As more sequence data becomes available for multiple strains and isolates of a species, automated, computational approaches such as those described here will be essential to make sense of large amounts of information, and to guide and optimize efforts in the laboratory. The software and source code for SPR Opt is publicly available and free for non-profit use at http://www.llnl.gov/IPandC/technology/software/softwaretitles/spropt.php.

Cluster Analysis↗

PubMed1997

Rohypnol misuse in the United States.

Rohypnol, a potent sedative-hypnotic drug prescribed extensively throughout the world, is illicit in the United States. Recently, this drug has gained popularity among United States youths as a cheap means of intoxication and subsequently has become the focus of numerous criminal investigations. College men are alleged to slip Rohypnol tablets into unsuspecting women's drinks and then sexually abuse their sedated victims. Although law enforcement agencies and drug policy groups consider Rohypnol to be an "imminent problem," little is actually known about patterns of misuse. Presented here is a brief overview of Rohypnol's contemporary appearance in the United States.

Adolescent↗