Interviewing

The first stages of an investigation will probably determine the last stages. The evidence may be preserved, or lost. Miranda warnings may be given at the right time, or not. The child may be further traumatized, or comforted. Her testimony may be taken in a way to save her frequent repetitions, or she may have to be questioned again and again. The family may accept the intervention of authority, or it may be ‘turned off’ by it. It may become possible to determine the credibility of the various witnesses, or it may not. Much can be done that is right, much can be done that is wrong.     

重庆市高校老年人权益保障中存在的问题及对策研究

重庆高校离退休教职工合法权益保障中存在许多问题:如养老金低下,共享社会发展成果方面的某种不公平、不公正和不合理;实行医保后,看病难、费用高和负担重,离退休教职工的某些宪法、法律上权利受到侵犯等。上述问题的产生有各种原因:如对养老金制度的性质、原则和特点缺乏深入研究和足够认识;对共享社会发展成果缺乏应有的机制保障;对医改实行“以药养医”的错误方式;对《老年人权益保障法》的认识不足,贯彻实施不力等。针对上述情况,我们必须采取相应对策和措施予以解决。     

论“房多多”事件的规制路径

“房多多家族”的连续出场不能引起我们感喟和思索，“房多多”的生成原因或是行政官员借助权力聚敛财富，或是一些暴发户余财投资房产，还有一些或许是行贿受贿的产物，其中也不乏社会监管不力的恶果。因而推进住房信息联网、加强户籍管理工作、提升治理打击力度是我们时下更应该关注和思考的焦点问题。     

Study on the microstructures of skull fracture

The authors observed the edges of skull fractures under the scanning electron microscope. Many microfractures can be found along the main fracture lines. The width of the microfractures varies from 5 to 100 microns. They may be located either in the external compact bone or between the outer compact bone and dipl?e, or in the dipl?e. Those within the dipl?e form transverse, longitudinal or spiral fractures of bony trabeculae. Collagenous fibre bunches in the bony matrix may be divided or broken and the different layers of collagenous fibre may be separated. The blood vessels inside the skull may be crosscut or longitudinally torn by the fracture lines. Sometimes the torn blood vessels may be drawn out of the Haversian canals. In antemortem fractures, the fibrin networks and red blood cells can be easily found in the depths of those cracks. The possible mechanism of formation of the microfractures and the possibility of differentiation between ante- and post-mortem fractures are discussed.     

RANDOM ASSIGNMENT IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE RESEARCH Some Ethical and Legal Issues

Randomization techniques entail sound methodological means to assign participants to groups for experimental purposes. However, prior to applying this technique to criminal justice research, several ethical and legal issues must be considered. For example, in a legal context, the objectivity afforded by the randomization process may be interpreted as “arbitrary.” Similarly, depriving control group participants of the presumed benefits of a newly launched program may be regarded as unethical. It may be possible to adapt the randomization procedure to experimental contingencies. However, caution must then be taken in carrying out the adaptation, as the methodological rigor and hence the interpretability of the results may be affected.     

Animal-related fatalities--part I: characteristic autopsy findings and variable causes of death associated with blunt and sharp trauma

Animals may be responsible for an array of potentially lethal injuries. Blunt force injuries characteristically involve larger animals such as cattle or horses that may kick, crush, or trample a victim causing head and facial injuries. Farm workers in particular are at high risk of lethal injuries involving the head and torso. Significant blunt trauma may be found in vehicle occupants after collisions with large animals such as camels or moose. Rarely, zookeepers may be crushed by particularly massive animals such as elephants. Sharp force injuries usually involve carnivore bites, most often from dogs with a "hole and tear" pattern of wounding. Injuries from animals such as alligators and sharks may have a significant component of crushing. Incised wounds may result in death from exsanguination and air embolism. On occasion, blunt or sharp trauma from animal activity may be confused with postmortem damage or with inflicted injury from an assault.     

Etiology of pulmonary thromboembolism in the absence of commonly recognized risk factors

Pulmonary thromboembolism is an often fatal complication of venous thrombosis. Any component or combination of the components composing Virchow's triad (venostasis, hypercoagulability, and endothelial damage) increases the propensity for a thrombophilic state. Hypercoagulable states may be inherited or acquired. While the etiology in many cases may be evident either on physical examination or on evaluation of the decedent's medical history, this is often not the case. We conducted a retrospective study of cases presenting to the Jefferson County Coroner/Medical Examiner's Office in Birmingham, Alabama, who were given a diagnosis of pulmonary embolism. A search of cases within the past 23 years yielded 81 cases. An underlying cause was determined in 70 cases (86%). The remaining 11 (14%) cases had no identifiable cause. We believe that a number of these cases may represent an underlying thrombophilic disorder. Since these disorders may be of an inherited or acquired nature, the determination of an etiology may be relevant to the decedent's family. Postmortem blood analyses may in selected cases be useful and appropriate for the detection of some of these disorders. However, such analyses are not practical in all cases, with each case having to be evaluated on its own merits.     

计算被征收不动产价值的时间标准——美国法上的情形及其对解决“潘蓉案”的启示

被征收不动产的价值是变动的,征收补偿时,必须确定计算被征收不动产价值的时间标准。上海"潘蓉案"的重要争点之一就是应以潘蓉房产在何时的价值为补偿标准。美国法典没有对该问题的规定,部分州立法规定了计算被征收不动产价值的时间标准。美国法院一般尊重这些成文法,但如果在个案中适用成文法导致明显不公正,会援引《美国宪法第五修正案》中的公平补偿条款对时间标准做出微调。美国法的做法对我们解决"潘蓉案"有较大的启示意义。     

Feigning Hand Preference? A Case Report Preliminary Data

Hand preference may be crucial in the forensic domain, notably in cases where the assailant is known to be left‐handed and the defendant claims to be right‐handed (or vice versa). In such cases, forensic psychologists or physicians may be asked to test the hand preference of the defendant. However, hand preference may be faked. The case described here illustrates this problem and addresses potential solutions. We also present preliminary data showing that a standard instrument for measuring handedness is sensitive to feigning. We conclude that when hand preference is determined, multiple sources of information should be assessed in order to identify possible feigning.     

论科学证据的三大基本理论问题

科学证据可以定义为运用具有可检验特征的普遍定理、规律和原理,解释案件事实构成的变化发展及其内在联系的专家意见,其主要理由在于可以科学原理在科学证据生成过程中所起的作用与功能,将科学证据分为"科学描述型"与"科学检验型"两类,"科学描述型"不是典型意义上的科学证据。从定位来看,科学证据应属于言词证据、间接证据。可以按照不同的标准对科学证据进行分类,以此加深对科学证据的认识。     

Unexpected childhood death due to hemolytic uremic syndrome

Two cases of unexpected childhood death due to hemolytic uremic syndrome are reported. A 21-month-old girl who was discovered dead in bed following a short illness was found at autopsy to have overwhelming sepsis resulting from transmural colitis. Escherichia coli serotype 0157A was isolated from the intestine, and renal changes of hemolytic uremic syndrome were found. A 4-year-old girl died suddenly in hospital from intracranial hemorrhage while being treated for hemolytic uremic syndrome-related renal failure. Culture of urine and feces grew verocytotoxin producing E. coli. These cases demonstrate that hemolytic uremic syndrome may be a rare cause of unexpected childhood death and that the diagnosis may not be established prior to autopsy. Postmortem culture of tissues and fluids in cases of suspected sepsis in children may be essential in establishing this diagnosis, because histologic evaluation may be compromised by profound sepsis and tissue putrefaction. Accuracy in diagnosis may have significant public health and medicolegal consequences.     

Teacher induction appeals

The system of teacher induction appeals as introduced by the Teaching and Higher Education Act 1998 is yet to be fully implemented. The appeals system envisaged by both the Act and subsequent regulations is still evolving and matters are made more complex by the fact that the appeals will be part of the General Teaching Council's (GTC) functions in due course. The Department for Education and Employment has had the unenviable task of drafting detailed procedures which may, or may not, be adopted by the GTC. The department's system of appeals may only apply for six months before the GTC review which may not be time enough to properly evaluate the various procedures. This article attempts to set out the current procedure and to offer some thoughts on areas which may need to be carefully monitored by both the department and the GTC.     

Analysis of DNA multilocus profiles in a paternity case in which the child's profile may be partial

This report describes a simple approach to multilocus paternity analysis for cases where the child's sample may be inadequate leading to a partial profile. A specimen calculation is given. A previous paper described how the various band sharing configurations in the DNA multilocus profiles of a mother-child-putative father trio could be combined in a comprehensive mathematical analysis to give an overall Bayesian likelihood ratio. In that paper, it was assumed that all three members of the trio gave full DNA profiles. In some cases that assumption may not be valid but it is possible to extend the analysis to allow for partial profiles. This paper demonstrates how this may be done by considering the case where the child's profile may be partial for one reason or another. A specimen calculation is given.     

Potentially lethal complications of tracheostomy: autopsy considerations

Tracheostomy is widely used to facilitate respiration by protecting the airways. It may be performed to relieve upper airway obstruction from congenital stenoses or from acquired conditions such as foreign body impaction, swelling from neck trauma or anaphylaxis, benign or malignant tumors, and infection. Tracheostomy may also be performed in individuals with respiratory impairment who require suctioning for accumulated mucoid secretions and in those with obstructive sleep apnea. Review of autopsy files and the literature was undertaken to demonstrate the range of lethal circumstances that may involve tracheostomy. Unexpected death may result from incorrect positioning of an endotracheal tube with failure of oxygenation, tracheal perforation with pneumothorax, mucus plugging, accidental extubation, and hemorrhage from tracheovascular fistulas. Lethal tracheovascular fistulas usually involve the innominate artery and result from mural perforation by the tip of a tracheostomy tube, mural necrosis from a high-pressure cuff, prolonged intubation, radiotherapy, and low tracheal incisions. Increased movement of tubes in patients with impaired consciousness and excessive head movements may also increase the chances of hemorrhage, as may infiltrating tumors. Given the wide range of potential fatal mechanisms that may be found in such cases, careful autopsy evaluation and dissection will be required to demonstrate the exact nature and site of the lethal lesion in individuals who underwent tracheostomy and die unexpectedly.     

ACCESS TO JUSTICE AND THE LIMITS OF LAW

This article examines the relationship between persistent demands for "access to justice" and the relatively low yield of court-oriented social reform strategies. Access to justice has a symbolic attraction which is impossible to deny. Access may not insure justice or social reform, but it is an important political resource from which strategic bargaining advantages may flow. But the importance of the right to participate may be inversely related to its utilization. Beyond a certain level, expanded access may be costly. Its deterrent qualities may be diminished, and the legal system, when overloaded, may be unable to insure delivery of justice.     

Ethics and legal education

ABSTRACT

This article explores how theatre, particularly forum theatre, may be used as a means of testing new legislation. This article documents a workshop involving a theatricalised bilingual Tribunal and uses this as a case study of how theatre may be used to explore the implications of new legislation in order to gain an understanding of its potential problems and weaknesses. The article concludes by exploring other ways in which theatre may be used to explore new legislation.     

《合同法》预期违约阻却机制之建构评析

预期违约成立后,可因法定事由而发生违约属性的消解,从而构成预期违约的违约阻却。我国《合同法》在经由不安抗辩权机制发生的特殊预期违约制度中设定了预期违约阻却机制,其机制设定模式缺乏严谨,体系亦欠完备,有待补充与完善。     

Forensic issues in cases of Diogenes syndrome

Diogenes syndrome is a syndrome described in the clinical literature in elderly individuals characterized by social isolation and extreme squalor. A number of typical features are found in the forensic evaluation of these deaths as the cases usually initiate medicolegal investigations due to the circumstances and the lack of recorded medical histories. Examinations of the death scenes are often difficult as victim's houses are in a state of disrepair, with filth and clutter, and pet dogs may resent the intrusion of strangers. Bodies are often filthy, with parasitic infestations, and are often putrefied due to the social isolation of the deceased and the delay in the finding of the corpse. Bodies may be traumatized from postmortem animal depredation by rodents or pets (eg, cats, dogs), and injuries such as bruises and lacerations may be present from falls associated with terminal illnesses or alcoholism. Blood or putrefactive fluids may be spread throughout the house by pets. Treatable medical conditions are often present in advanced stages, and features of hypothermia may be found. Attending police may suspect robbery due to disarray of the house and homicide due to apparent "bleeding" around the body from purging of putrefactive fluids, injuries from falls, or postmortem animal activity and "blood stains" throughout the house from antemortem injuries and/or fluid spread by animals. Finally, the identification of the deceased may be compromised by decay and/or postmortem animal activity. Thus, in addition to having typical clinical manifestations, such individuals appear to form a distinct subset of forensic cases having characteristic death scene and autopsy features and presenting particular difficulties in postmortem evaluations.     

Promoting the quality of life in nursing homes: can regulation succeed?

It has been assumed that the best policy for promoting quality of life in nursing homes is direct regulation. In this paper it is argued that if our experience in regulating quality of care is any indication, we may not possess the political will to successfully regulate quality of life. Moreover, from a legal perspective, the less concrete nature of the concept of quality of life may make it more difficult to regulate than quality of care. Finally, although regulation would probably be necessary if potential nursing home residents (and their agents) lacked the information or rationality to make choices that promoted their interests, this has never been shown to be the case empirically. Therefore, we may not be forced to choose regulation to achieve an adequate quality of life. Alternative--and perhaps better--policies may be available.