Guardians Ad Litem and Children's Attorneys in Arizona: A Qualitative Examination of the Roles

An ongoing debate exists with little research support concerning the differences in the roles of guardians ad litem (GAL) and children's attorneys (CA) in dependency cases. Through qualitative interviews, this study examined GALs’ and CAs’ perceptions and execution of roles. Both executed their roles similarly and agreed the best interests of the child and the child's wishes are important. Shared goals included child safety, ensuring the child's voice is heard, keeping the family together, and minimizing the distress to the child. Challenges to executing their roles were often systemic, including overwhelmed courts and lack of community resources to serve clients’ needs.     

Offending behaviour programmes in the community: The effects on reconviction of three programmes with adult male offenders

Purpose . This study presents the findings of an evaluation of the effect on reconviction of three general offending behaviour programmes in the English and Welsh Probation Service with adult male offenders. Method . The study employed a quasi‐experimental design comparing the reconviction rates of three groups: offenders who were allocated to and completed a programme, offenders allocated to a programme but failed to complete, and a comparison group. Results . The main finding from the analyses indicated that, controlling for salient population factors, the offenders who had completed a programme had a lower rate of reconviction as compared with non‐completers and comparison groups. Additionally, the non‐completers had a higher rate of reconviction than the comparison group. Conclusions . The findings are discussed in light of the extant literature and a range of explanations is presented.     

Postmodern criminology in relation to radical and conflict criminology

The literature on postmodern criminology suggests that there is some relationship between it and radical criminology. This relationship apparently is based in part on the ract that both are further related to conflict theory. However, conceptual analyses on these types of theories have not fully explicated whatever similarities and differences exist among them. This essay identifies six core theoretical assertions in conflict criminology and compares them to parallel assertions in radical and postmodern criminology. Such comparison is followed by a discussion on the relevance of conflict and radical theory as conceptual backdrops from which to comprehend postmodern inquiry.     

PREVENTION PROGRAMS FOR DIVORCED NONRESIDENT FATHERS

Divorced nonresident fathers are a promising target for preventive efforts to assist families after divorce. The research literature suggests that such programs should focus both on the frequency and the quality of the child's contact with the father, as well as the quality of postdivorce mother–father relations. Dads For Life (DFL) is the program for this target group with the most convincing evidence of preventive effects. This eight-week program centers on professionally made videos. It was tested in a randomized trial with 214 families. In comparison to control families, children in families in which the father participated in DFL had significantly lower internalizing problems. The preventive impact of DFL was strongest for the most troubled youngsters.     

Risk-sharing agreements to cover environmental damage: theory and practice

Mordernization has witnessed increasingly new industrial sectors which have the potential to create environmental disasters. The insolvency of risk creators in case of such disasters may lead to insufficient compensation as well as to a dilution of preventive incentives. Insurance is a traditional instrument to address these problems, but is subject to limitations such as the lack of information by the insurers on the risk and limited insurance capacity. The risk-sharing agreement is an alternative which is widely used in high-risk sectors but it received relative little attention in academic literature. This paper analyses the potential of risk-sharing agreements in minimizing total social costs of environmental harmful activities, in comparison with insurance. The comparison shows the advantage of risk-sharing agreements in terms of less demanding information requirements, allowing for mutual monitoring and the potential to reduce administrative costs. However, the analysis also shows that a few conditions need to be met for such advantages to be materialized. This paper then discusses a typology of various risk-sharing agreements and illustrates the different categories with examples from the maritime and nuclear sectors. Based on these experiences, this paper explores the possibilities to expand risk-sharing agreements to other policy areas where environmental risks may emerge.     

Methadone and its role in drug-related fatalities in Cologne 1989-2000

All drug-associated deaths from 1989 to 2000 were analysed at the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Cologne. Information concerning sex, gender, drug consumption, time, place and circumstances of death were analysed. A number of 605 cases were recorded; in 518 cases a toxicological analysis was possible and in 171 an autopsy was performed. When it was possible to determine the cause of death form the information available, acute drug intoxication was recorded in 65%. Heroin head the list of identified substances. Sixty-three percent of the specimens showed a combination of several substances, especially a combination of morphine, benzodiazepines, other medications and alcohol. In comparison with other studies the percentage of methadone-positive specimens is low, even though the proportion of specimens positive for methadone increased from 1989 to 2000. This analysis is discussed using background information concerning the management of substitution therapy and the available literature.     

徐志摩比较研究述评

20世纪 (重点是近 2 0年 )徐志摩比较研究呈现这样的趋势 :从艺术派别上的宏观把握到具体作家、作品的微观区别 ;从外国诗歌艺术方法的影响研究到本国古今诗歌艺术的纵横度量 ;从单一的政治层面到哲学与艺术视角、从诗歌拓展到其它体裁等的多元化探讨 ;从仅局限于艺术品评扩展至民族文化心理的观照等。这标志着对徐志摩的研究既薪火相继 ,又有所纠偏补遗。     

Issues in the treatment of asian sexual offenders

Abstract

This aper considers the scant literature in the field of child sexual abuse in Asian families, and reports the authors' involvement with four male Asian sexual offenders. The therapeutic approach used with the offenders is described, and clinical themes arising from their treatment are identified. Issues and difficulties in therapy are discussed, in particular personal issues arising for the therapists. It is concluded that Asian sexual offenders are a group who have been neglected in the literature and in treatment, partly, perhaps, because they are infrequently referred to treatment services in comparison with non-Asian sexual offenders. Particular therapeutic issues relating to the treatment of immigrant Asians who do not speak English are raised and further research needs are identified in relation to this patient group.     

Dismemberment and Mutilation: A Data-Driven Exploration of Patterns,Motives, and Styles

Classification of violent behavior, including dismemberment and mutilation, has become increasingly more significant. This study uses a data-driven classification system based upon knowledge drawn from the pertinent literature, and examination of cases of offenders who have dismembered or mutilated their victims. The latter were extracted from the Serial Killer Database, as well as media sources, and assessed for characteristics of the perpetrators and victim(s). An informational form was developed and used to establish quantitative parameters and objectively extract pertinent information that could be used for comparison and pattern analysis. Motives and styles, as well as the organized/disorganized dichotomy for murder and dismemberment/mutilation, were examined for each case. The majority of cases demonstrated defensive styles (60%), with the second most common being offensive styles (26%), which differs from previous studies that do not exclude older cases. Additionally, 68% of cases reflected organized patterns for both murder and the acts of dismemberment or mutilation. The results support a data-driven classification system that may serve as a foundational model for the investigation of specific motives of this type of deviant behavior in future research.     

Tests of one Brazilian facial reconstruction method using three soft tissue depth sets and familiar assessors

Facial reconstruction is a method that seeks to recreate a person's facial appearance from his/her skull. This technique can be the last resource used in a forensic investigation, when identification techniques such as DNA analysis, dental records, fingerprints and radiographic comparison cannot be used to identify a body or skeletal remains. To perform facial reconstruction, the data of facial soft tissue thickness are necessary. Scientific literature has described differences in the thickness of facial soft tissue between ethnic groups. There are different databases of soft tissue thickness published in the scientific literature. There are no literature records of facial reconstruction works carried out with data of soft tissues obtained from samples of Brazilian subjects. There are also no reports of digital forensic facial reconstruction performed in Brazil. There are two databases of soft tissue thickness published for the Brazilian population: one obtained from measurements performed in fresh cadavers (fresh cadavers' pattern), and another from measurements using magnetic resonance imaging (Magnetic Resonance pattern). This study aims to perform three different characterized digital forensic facial reconstructions (with hair, eyelashes and eyebrows) of a Brazilian subject (based on an international pattern and two Brazilian patterns for soft facial tissue thickness), and evaluate the digital forensic facial reconstructions comparing them to photos of the individual and other nine subjects. The DICOM data of the Computed Tomography (CT) donated by a volunteer were converted into stereolitography (STL) files and used for the creation of the digital facial reconstructions. Once the three reconstructions were performed, they were compared to photographs of the subject who had the face reconstructed and nine other subjects. Thirty examiners participated in this recognition process. The target subject was recognized by 26.67% of the examiners in the reconstruction performed with the Brazilian Magnetic Resonance Pattern, 23.33% in the reconstruction performed with the Brazilian Fresh Cadavers Pattern and 20.00% in the reconstruction performed with the International Pattern, in which the target-subject was the most recognized subject in the first two patterns. The rate of correct recognitions of the target subject indicate that the digital forensic facial reconstruction, conducted with parameters used in this study, may be a useful tool.     

Cadmium-free quantum dots in aqueous solution: Potential for fingermark detection,synthesis and an application to the detection of fingermarks in blood on non-porous surfaces

The use of quantum dots (QDs) in the area of fingermark detection is currently receiving a lot of attention in the forensic literature. Most of the research efforts have been devoted to cadmium telluride (CdTe) quantum dots often applied as powders to the surfaces of interests.Both the use of cadmium and the nano size of these particles raise important issues in terms of health and safety. This paper proposes to replace CdTe QDs by zinc sulphide QDs doped with copper (ZnS:Cu) to address these issues. Zinc sulphide–copper doped QDs were successfully synthesized, characterized in terms of size and optical properties and optimized to be applied for the detection of impressions left in blood, where CdTe QDs proved to be efficient. Effectiveness of detection was assessed in comparison with CdTe QDs and Acid Yellow 7 (AY7, an effective blood reagent), using two series of depletive blood fingermarks from four donors prepared on four non-porous substrates, i.e. glass, transparent polypropylene, black polyethylene and aluminium foil. The marks were cut in half and processed separately with both reagents, leading to two comparison series (ZnS:Cu vs. CdTe, and ZnS:Cu vs. AY7). ZnS:Cu proved to be better than AY7 and at least as efficient as CdTe on most substrates. Consequently, copper-doped ZnS QDs constitute a valid substitute for cadmium-based QDs to detect blood marks on non-porous substrates and offer a safer alternative for routine use.     

Methodological considerations in the evaluation of offender interventions: the problem of attrition

Attrition from offender interventions presents methodological problems when the effectiveness of the intervention is under evaluation. This article proposes a treatment-received (TR) design, which incorporates one-to-one matching on criminogenic variables. This design permits the comparison of completer, noncompleter, and nonstarter groups with their paired comparisons and, hence, allows a more accurate evaluation of program completion and noncompletion effects. A sample of 173 offenders, referred to one of two general offending behavior cognitive skills programs within community settings, was matched one-to-one by criminogenic variables to offenders from an appropriate comparison group. Reconviction analyses were undertaken using intention to treat (ITT) analysis, TR analysis using the full comparison group, and TR analysis using matched comparison groups. The ITT design found no impact of group membership on reconviction. The TR designs, however, provided evidence of moderate effects of completion: For every three completers, five of the matched comparison group members were reconvicted. The analysis also suggested a noncompletion effect: Noncompleters were twice as likely as their matched comparison group to be reconvicted.     

Are effective drug courts an urban phenomenon?: considering their impact on recidivism among a nonmetropolitan adult sample in Washington State

Drug courts represent a significant development in criminal justice during the past 15 years, and a small but growing literature suggests they are effective in reducing drug use and criminal behavior. Most of these studies evaluate the effects of drug courts in urban areas, however. This study adds to this literature by considering the effects of this intermediate sanction among adult offenders in a small, nonmetropolitan county of northwest Washington. Using a retrospective comparison group of matched control participants, these results show that the prevalence and incidence of rearrest is significantly lower among drug court graduates than probationers. These differences in recidivism persist even when the age, race, gender, and number of days at risk in the community are statistically controlled. Among those who did recidivate, drug court graduates did not significantly differ from controls in duration to first arrest and arrest incidence. Policy implications are discussed.     

The Development and Application of Random Match Probabilities to Firearm and Toolmark Identification

The field of firearms and toolmark analysis has encountered deep scrutiny of late, stemming from a handful of voices, primarily in the law and statistical communities. While strong scrutiny is a healthy and necessary part of any scientific endeavor, much of the current criticism leveled at firearm and toolmark analysis is, at best, misinformed and, at worst, punditry. One of the most persistent criticisms stems from the view that as the field lacks quantified random match probability data (or at least a firm statistical model) with which to calculate the probability of a false match, all expert testimony concerning firearm and toolmark identification or source attribution is unreliable and should be ruled inadmissible. However, this critique does not stem from the hard work of actually obtaining data and performing the scientific research required to support or reject current findings in the literature. Although there are sound reasons (described herein) why there is currently no unifying probabilistic model for the comparison of striated and impressed toolmarks as there is in the field of forensic DNA profiling, much statistical research has been, and continues to be, done to aid the criminal justice system. This research has thus far shown that error rate estimates for the field are very low, especially when compared to other forms of judicial error. The first purpose of this paper is to point out the logical fallacies in the arguments of a small group of pundits, who advocate a particular viewpoint but cloak it as fact and research. The second purpose is to give a balanced review of the literature regarding random match probability models and statistical applications that have been carried out in forensic firearm and toolmark analysis.     

Mystery shopping: demand-side phenomena in markets for personal plight legal services

ABSTRACT

“Personal plight” is the sector of the legal services industry in which the clients are individuals, and the legal needs arise from disputes. This article proposes that competition among personal plight law firms is suppressed by three demand-side phenomena. First, consumers confront high search costs. Identifying competing law firms willing and able to provide the needed services often requires significant expenditure of temporal and psychological resources. Second, comparable price and quality information about firms is scarce for consumers. Both of these factors impede comparison shopping and reduce competitive pressure on firms. A third competition-suppressing factor is observed in tort legal service markets, where offerings are typically priced on a contingency basis. Contingency fees have relatively low salience to consumers, and this reduces consumers’ willingness to negotiate and comparison-shop on the basis of price. This analysis is supported by the author’s empirical research with Ontario personal plight lawyers as well as the existing literature. The article concludes by suggesting possible consequences of this analysis for regulatory policy.     

Smoking trials with mercury contaminated cigarettes. Studies of attempted poisoning]

In the context with an attempted poisoning it was investigated, to which extent an intoxication can be caused by smoking cigarettes, which contain elementary mercury. With a smoking apparatus the effect of the amount (9 mg to 1.4 g) and of the distribution of the Hg within the cigarette on its concentration in the mainstream and sidestream smoke as well as in the ash and the filter was analytically determined. It follows from these experiments, that at a good distribution almost independently of the amount involved only up to 2 mg Hg per cigarette are inhalated with the mainstream smoke, whereas up to 97% are found in the sidestream smoke. In the ash and the filter only small amounts are detected. By comparison with cases described in literature it is shown, that a poisoning by such cigarettes is possible only after frequent smoking or by passive smoking via the sidestream smoke in small and badly aerated rooms.     

A post-processing technique for cranial CT image identification

Objective: A major challenge in radiographic identification is the inconsistent orientation between clinical (ante-mortem, AM) and post-mortem (PM) radiographs. The objectivity and accuracy of radiological identification would be greatly enhanced by post-processing techniques that allow quantitative comparison of PM CT data in the same orientation as the AM CT data. Methods: We applied a post-processing technique to reposition a multislice computed tomography (MSCT) scan for spatial registration with a CT radiograph from the same patient. A second set of MSCT images from different individuals served as the non-matched control group. The consistency in radiographic positioning eliminated subjectivity in the comparison and identification process because the radiograph superposition provided objective evidence that confirmed the identification with fine detail. Results: A quantitative comparison with statistical validation was achieved by measuring a set of 14 landmarks from the images. Discrimination of identity based on logistic regression analysis of the earlier CT patient scans (the AM group) versus subsequent MSCT scans (the PM group) was objective and reliable. Conclusion: This quantitative comparison depends less on subjective judgment and the experience of the examiner, and so may meet legal standards.     

Introducing Computed Tomography Standards for Age Estimation of Modern Australian Subadults Using Postnatal Ossification Timings of Select Cranial and Cervical Sites,

Contemporary, population‐specific ossification timings of the cranium are lacking in current literature due to challenges in obtaining large repositories of documented subadult material, forcing Australian practitioners to rely on North American, arguably antiquated reference standards for age estimation. This study assessed the temporal pattern of ossification of the cranium and provides recalibrated probabilistic information for age estimation of modern Australian children. Fusion status of the occipital and frontal bones, atlas, and axis was scored using a modified two‐ to four‐tier system from cranial/cervical DICOM datasets of 585 children aged birth to 10 years. Transition analysis was applied to elucidate maximum‐likelihood estimates between consecutive fusion stages, in conjunction with Bayesian statistics to calculate credible intervals for age estimation. Results demonstrate significant sex differences in skeletal maturation (p < 0.05) and earlier timings in comparison with major literary sources, underscoring the requisite of updated standards for age estimation of modern individuals.     

Identification by frontal sinus pattern in forensic anthropology

The authors report forensic cases from the literature, as well as two personal homicide cases, of identification through comparison of frontal sinus radiographs. A general discussion about identification using frontal sinus X-rays is presented, pointing out the reliability of the method, in reference to the uniqueness of the frontal sinus in humans, but also some difficulties, especially in reference to the distance, orientation and angle of the X-ray technique.