Refusers, dropouts, and completers: measuring sex offender treatment efficacy

A sex offender program delivered in a medium-security prison followed 109 treatment completers and 37 noncompleters for 2 years after release. Noncompleters, those who refused treatment or dropped out, had 6 times the rate of sexual and violent reoffending relative to completers. Among those who completed the program, however, positive evaluations of treatment change, such as quality of disclosure and enhanced victim empathy, found in posttreatment assessments did not correlate with recidivism. Furthermore, completers did not differ in their rates of recidivism from pretreatment rates predicted by the Static 99, an actuarial measure of anticipated sexual and violent recidivism. We conclude that the program did not influence propensities for sexual and violent recidivism but rather served as a prolonged screening instrument for sex offenders whose failure to comply with treatment attendance predicted higher rates of recidivism.     

Direct‐to‐Consumer Genetic Testing,Gamete Donation,and the Law

Once thousands of dollars, direct‐to‐consumer (DTC) genetic testing has become affordable and readily accessible in recent years. The technology can reveal a wealth of information to consumers: health risks, ancestry composition, and connections to genetic matches through relative databases. However, the law has not yet regulated many aspects of this new technology. This article analyzes how the law should regulate DTC genetic testing within the context of gamete donation. It will argue that gamete donors’ privacy interests warrant state regulation of DTC genetic testing kits and their associated genetic relative databases. It will also explore how state regulation should balance the competing interests of gamete donors and of donor‐conceived individuals.     

Novel O‐propyl,S‐propyl,and N‐propyl substituted 1,4‐naphthoquinones and 1,4‐anthraquinones as potential fingermark development reagents for porous surfaces

Lawsone is a 2‐substituted‐1,4‐naphthoquinone derivative, which has been proposed as an alternative to the reagents currently used for fingermark detection on porous surfaces. 2‐substituted‐anthraquinones, which contain an additional conjugated benzene ring, have a similar chemical structure to that of lawsone. In this study, a new series of 2‐substituted‐1,4‐naphthoquinones and 2‐substituted‐1,4‐anthraquinones were synthesized and completely characterized by¹H NMR,¹³C NMR, IR, and HPLC‐TOF/MS analyses. All newly synthesized 2‐substituted‐1,4‐quinones were investigated for their ability to develop latent fingermarks on porous surfaces, and this ability was compared with that of lawsone. Each fingermark developed was graded using an established method; thus, quantitative data were attributed to each fingermark. It has been demonstrated that the 1,4 ‐ quinones react with amino acids present in latent fingermarks on selected paper surfaces to produce faint yellow‐orange impressions, which exhibit strong photoluminescence when illuminated with a forensic light source at 440 nm and observed through a red filter. None of the compounds caused background darkening. The results obtained were generally similar to those of lawsone, however, 8‐dibromo‐2‐(propylamino)naphthalene‐1,4‐dione and 5,8‐dibromo‐2‐(propylthio)naphthalene‐1,4‐dione yielded better results for copier paper and colored (blue) copier paper used in this analysis. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to examine the role of 1,4‐anthraquinone derivatives as potential fingermark development reagents. The results indicate that 1,4‐quinones have a potential to be used as reagents for enhancement of latent fingermarks.     

Staff‐Prisoner Relationships,Staff Professionalism,and the Use of Authority in Public‐ and Private‐Sector Prisons

Prison privatization has generally been associated with developments in neoliberal punishment. However, relatively little is known about the specific impact of privatization on the daily life of prisoners, including areas that are particularly salient not just to debates about neoliberal penality, but the wider reconfiguration of public service provision and frontline work. Drawing on a study of values, practices, and quality of life in five private‐sector and two public‐sector prisons in England and Wales, this article seeks to compare and explain three key domains of prison culture and quality: relationships between frontline staff and prisoners, levels of staff professionalism (or jailcraft), and prisoners' experience of state authority. The study identifies some of the characteristic strengths and weaknesses of the public and private prison sectors, particularly in relation to staff professionalism and its impact on the prisoner experience. These findings have relevance beyond the sphere of prisons and punishment.     

Unexpected Serotonin Syndrome,Epileptic Seizures,and Cerebral Edema Following 2,5‐dimethoxy‐4‐bromophenethylamine Ingestion

4‐bromo‐2,5‐dimethoxyphenethylamine (2C‐B) is a designer drug. In Europe, 2C‐B is easily obtained and used for recreational purposes. It is known for its stimulating effects similar to those of 3,4‐methylenedioxymethamphetamine, although in higher doses it has more hallucinogenic effects. Here, we report a case of 2C‐B ingestion, confirmed by liquid chromatography‐tandem mass spectrometry, in an 18‐year‐old man. The neurological consequences were severe, including the development of serotonin syndrome and severe brain edema. Supportive therapy resulted in a stable condition, although, after several months, the patient still suffered from severe neurological impairment due to the drug‐induced toxicity. This case showed that 2C‐B could not be identified with the drugs of abuse screening routinely used in Dutch hospitals. The use of 2C‐B carries many risks, with potentially profound neurological damage, that both consumers and healthcare physicians are unaware of.     

Interrogative suggestibility,self‐esteem,and the influence of negative life‐events

Purpose. Past research has frequently demonstrated the impact of life adversity on the behaviour and mindset of individuals. In terms of the formal police interview, the experience of negative life‐events may have an effect upon interviewee performance. This study, therefore, aims to investigate how negative life‐events may influence interviewee performance on the Gudjonsson suggestibility scale (GSS). Moreover, self‐esteem will also be investigated in relation to both the experience of negative life‐events and interrogative suggestibility. Method. Sixty participants were administered the GSS1. In between the immediate and delayed recall phases, interviewees were asked to complete the culture‐free self‐esteem inventory, the life‐events questionnaire and the Eysenck personality questionnaire. Results. Negative life‐events (NLEs) were significantly correlated with all of the GSS suggestibility scores (yield 1, yield 2, shift and total Suggestibility). Contrary to past research, however, self‐esteem scores were not significantly related to any of the GSS components or to NLE scores. Conclusion. This paper is the first to show a link between the experience of NLEs and GSS scores. The findings suggest that interviewees reporting a high number of NLEs are significantly more susceptible to the leading questions, as well as to negative feedback, administered during the GSS interview. Erroneous reports and false confessions may thus be more likely with such interviewees, potentially classifying them as vulnerable witnesses.     

MARRIAGE,IN‐LAWS,AND CRIME: THE CASE OF DELINQUENT BROTHERS‐IN‐LAW*

With marriage comes in‐laws, and if the in‐laws include delinquent males, their delinquency could affect the prosocial effects of the given marriage. In this article, I focus on the effect of having a convicted brother‐in‐law as a general indicator of this broader phenomenon of family‐formation processes impairing the positive impact of marriage on crime desistance. I use registry data on all men from birth cohorts 1965–1975 in Denmark (N = 69,066) to show that when a man marries, his new family ties to delinquent brother(s)‐in‐law do indeed hinder his criminal desistance. The results that take into account the characteristics of husbands, wives, their shared family‐formation process, and the criminality of male family members suggest that 1) family dynamics tend to keep criminality within family networks and 2) influences from one's broader social network through marriage are important for the protective effects of marriage. Analyses of previous conviction, co‐offending between a man and his brother‐in‐law, as well as analyses of in‐laws who reside in close proximity confirm the two mentioned main findings. In all, the findings reported in this article add to our understanding of the processes by which families are tied, and how these family‐formation processes influence men's behavior.     

Comparison of the Columnar‐Thin‐Film and Vacuum‐Metal‐Deposition Techniques to Develop Sebaceous Fingermarks on Nonporous Substrates,

Both the columnar‐thin‐film (CTF) and the vacuum‐metal‐deposition (VMD) techniques for visualizing sebaceous fingermarks require the deposition of a material thereon in a vacuum chamber. Despite that similarity, there are many differences between the two techniques. The film deposited with the CTF technique has a columnar morphology, but the film deposited with the VMD technique comprises discrete islands. A split‐print methodology on a variety of fingermarked substrates was used to determine that the CTF technique is superior for developing fingermarks on clear sandwich bags and partial bloody fingermarks on stainless steel. Both techniques are similar in their ability to develop fingermarks on glass but the CTF technique yields higher contrast. The VMD technique is superior for developing fingermarks on white grocery bags and the smooth side of Gloss Finish Scotch Multitask^? tape. Neither technique worked well for fingermarks on black garbage bags.     

Determination of Acetamiprid and IM‐1‐2 in PostMortem Human Blood,Liver, Stomach Contents by HPLC‐DAD

An HPLC‐DAD method was developed to detect and quantify a neonicotinoid insecticide acetamiprid (ATP) and its metabolite IM‐1‐2 in autopsy samples of a fatal intoxication case. The postmortem blood and tissue distribution of ATP and IM‐1‐2 was determined for the first time. The method showed acceptable precisions and recoveries with relative standard deviations of <10% for ATP level and 1.38 % for IM‐1‐2. The detection and quantification limits for ATP were 0.015 μg/mL and 0.030 μg/mL for blood and were 0.035 μg/g and 0.050 μg/g for liver samples, respectively. The mean contents of ATP were 0.79 μg/g in the liver, 47.35 μg/g in the stomach contents and 2.7 μg/mL in the blood. IM‐1‐2 content was 17.0 μg/g in the stomach contents. ATP and IM‐1‐2 were not detected in the urine. The presence of ATP and IM‐1‐2 in the samples was confirmed by GC‐MS. The method can be exploited in future forensic casework.     

Co‐Parent Court: A Problem‐Solving,Community‐Based Model for Serving Low‐Income Unmarried Co‐Parents

The Hennepin County Co‐Parent Court Project was a 3‐year demonstration project for unmarried co‐parents. The goal of the project was to remove barriers to co‐parenting in low‐income, unmarried parents. The Co‐Parent Court Project encompassed a number of services, including educational workshops, individual case management, parenting plans, legal mediation, and, if needed, supports and treatment for domestic violence. There are published articles that highlight the participant outcomes of the Co‐Parent Project. This article, however, focuses on the background for why this project was developed, components of this project, and lessons learned from implementation.     

Non‐Individualism,Rights, and Practical Reason

Abstract. The paper looks at an impasse with respect to the role of rights as reasons for action which afflicts contemporary legal and political debates. Adopting a meta‐ethical approach, it moves on to argue that the impasse arises from a philosophical confusion surrounding the role of rights as normative reasons. In dispelling the confusion, an account of reasons is put forward that attempts to capture their normativity by relating them to a reflexive public practice. Two key outcomes are identified as a result of this explication: first, that normative practices are instances of rule‐following; and second, that agents partaking of normative practices possess absolute value (i.e., acquire the status of persons). In light of this explication, rights acquire the status of the most general reasons that purport to guarantee the content of personhood by specifying and safeguarding conditions which enable agents to participate in public practices of universalisation.     

CT‐Guided,Minimally Invasive,Postmortem Needle Biopsy Using the B‐Rob II Needle‐Positioning Robot

CT‐guided, minimally invasive needle biopsy techniques can be used to retrieve tissue or body fluid samples for histologic tissue diagnoses in forensic investigations. The purpose of this study was an evaluation of CT‐guided needle‐positioning robot B‐Rob II. To operate under CT guidance, we adopted the B‐Rob II robotic needle placement system and its workflow. The accuracy and speed of the procedure were tested on a gelatin phantom in a series of 21 biopsies. We achieved an average needle placement accuracy of 1.8 mm (±1.1 mm) using robotic assistance. The procedure required an average of 2 min 21 s. The needle placement accuracy for minimally invasive needle biopsies using the B‐Rob II biopsy robot is sufficiently accurate and fast for forensic postmortem examinations of focal organ changes. Further tests will be performed to test the feasibility of the robot for performing biopsies of focal organ changes in human bodies.     

Z‐Transform Method for Pairwise Osteometric Pair‐matching,

A new pairwise osteometric pair‐matching approach based on the Z‐transform method is presented. In contrast to previous methods that perform a global t‐test on the summed skeletal element pair measurement distances, this approach performs t‐tests on each individual distance, facilitating the capture of measurement‐specific variation. This new approach is compared to published pairwise sorting methods using a standard reference dataset of postcranial remains maintained by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis indicates significantly improved performance for the clavicle and radius over all previous methods (p < 0.01). The z‐transform method weighted by the effect size outperformed the t‐test (Byrd and Adams) and the mean t‐test (Lynch) for all elements (p < 0.01). The method performed better than the absolute value t‐test (Lynch) for five elements (p < 0.01) and performed at least as well for the remainder. To facilitate usability all methods are available at: https://github.com/spawaskar-cora/z-transform-method .     

Methadone‐Related Deaths – Epidemiological,Pathohistological, and Toxicological Traits in 10‐year Retrospective Study in Vojvodina,Serbia

The number of methadone‐related deaths (MRDs) during a 10‐year period (2002–2011) in the region of Vojvodina, Serbia, was increased. The cases were evaluated according to epidemiological parameters, pathohistological findings, and toxicological screening. The majority of victims were men, aged from 20 to 38. Pathohistologically, the signs of acute focal myocardial damage were present in the heart of victims with drug abuse history shorter than 2 years, while both signs of recent and chronic focal myocardial damage were developed among victims with longer drug abuse history (2–5 years). In postmortem blood samples of 54.84% of victims, methadone was detected in combination with diazepam, both in therapeutic range. Alcohol was absent in most cases. Other detected drugs were antipsychotics and antidepressants in therapeutic concentrations. These findings raise the attention to the concomitant use of methadone and benzodiazepines with the need for further studies to clarify the mechanism of death in such cases.     

Effects of High‐g Impact on Physical,Electrical, and Optical Characteristics of Light‐Emitting Diodes

Previously, one of the tools available in automotive or aircraft accident analysis was the examination of the indicator bulbs. Currently, indicator bulbs have been largely replaced by light‐emitting diodes (LEDs). Here a series of studies was carried out on impact effects on LEDs to determine whether their properties change after impact, and whether it is related to its working status (lit or unlit). The LEDs were measured before mechanical shock with a series of tests, including current–voltage, current–light, bandwidth, subject to impact ranging from 450 g to 2000 g, and then retested. The tests showed consistent slight but statistically significant increases in forward voltages at a given current after impact, which could be used to estimate the impact. Some LEDS were imaged before and after impact with thermal and X‐ray imaging, but no mechanical changes were seen. It was not possible to determine the LED's working status from these test results.     

Identification of Eight Synthetic Cannabinoids,Including 5F‐AKB48 in Seized Herbal Products Using DART‐TOF‐MS and LC‐QTOF‐MS as Nontargeted Screening Methods

Synthetic cannabinoids are sprayed onto plant material and smoked for their marijuana‐like effects. Clandestine manufacturers modify synthetic cannabinoid structures by creating closely related analogs. Forensic laboratories are tasked with detection of these analog compounds, but targeted analytical methods are often thwarted by the structural modifications. Here, direct analysis in real time coupled to accurate mass time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry (DART‐TOF‐MS) in combination with liquid chromatography quadruple time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry (LC‐QTOF‐MS) are presented as a screening and nontargeted confirmation method, respectively. Methanol extracts of herbal material were run using both methods. Spectral data from four different herbal products were evaluated by comparing fragmentation pattern, accurate mass and retention time to available reference standards. JWH‐018, JWH‐019, AM2201, JWH‐122, 5F‐AKB48, AKB48‐N‐(4‐pentenyl) analog, UR144, and XLR11 were identified in the products. Results demonstrate that DART‐TOF‐MS affords a useful approach for rapid screening of herbal products for the presence and identification of synthetic cannabinoids.     

Locating,Identifying, and Comparing Sub‐visible Paint Particles

Forensic paint comparisons are generally conducted on samples which, while small relative to their source, are still visible to the unaided eye and are thus located and analyzed without great difficulty. Here we demonstrate that a more detailed examination of candidate transfer surfaces can capture materials (questioned samples), even when such traces are invisible to the unaided eye. While certain analytical details (such as layer sequence or a pure FTIR spectrum) may not be obtainable from such traces due to their size and condition, a detailed analysis of the sample characteristics that are analytically accessible may still provide sufficient analytical data to arrive at a probative result. Here we present the application of this approach to a suspected paint transfer case, involving particles of paint as small as 40 μm in size. Using a combination of stereomicroscopy, polarized light microscopy, infrared microspectroscopy, Raman microspectroscopy, and SEM/EDS, all performed on a single, subsample of the original minute particle, it was possible to demonstrate evidence of a two‐way transfer between the suspected sources. Furthermore, the transferred paint particle in one direction could be classified as automotive in nature based on a combination of polymer composition, microscopic texture, and pigment package (which included three specifically identified pigments). This work demonstrates (i) the potential for improving detection limits when searching for a questioned sample, (ii) the potential benefits of higher resolution analyses on samples that would be traditionally labeled as “sample‐size limited,” and (iii) the value of case‐specific interpretation over standardized, one‐size fits all report templates.