Use of liquid nitrogen to remove duct tape from a homicide victim.

Removal of duct tape or similar adhesive products from a homicide victim may be facilitated by rapidly chilling the tape surface with liquid nitrogen. Physical separation of tape layers can be performed using the same technique. Cyanoacrylate glue (i.e., "super-glue") may be used to preserve fingerprints on the outer surface of the tape for recovery, or other techniques may be used to recover fingerprints from the outer surface prior to tape removal.     

High cyanide level in a homicide victim burned after death: evidence of post-mortem diffusion.

Elevated levels of carbon monoxide and cyanide serve as evidence of intravital burning in fire victims. Hydrogen cyanide is released by combustion of nitrogen-containing organic material such as plastics and wool. We present a case of a man who died of haemopneumothorax caused by a stab wound. According to several eye witnesses the body was wrapped in a plastic sheet and burned 2 days after death with the aid of gasoline. No coal pigment was observed in the mucosa of the upper airways at autopsy. The blood sample taken from the pulmonary vessels 6 days after death disclosed a level of blood carboxyhaemoglobin of 4% and of blood cyanide of 10 mg/l. The low carboxy-haemoglobin level was consistent with the smoking habits of the victim. The thoracic cavity had been opened by burning of the intercostal soft tissue. This allowed hydrogen cyanide gas to enter the thoracic cavity and diffuse into the blood probably causing the high blood-cyanide level.     

Assessing the interaction between offender and victim criminal lifestyles & homicide type

Purpose

This study examined the interaction between homicide victim and offender criminal lifestyles and the situational characteristics of homicides that occurred in the city of Newark, New Jersey from 1997 through 2007. Three research questions were explored: (1) what are the lifestyles exhibited by homicide victims and offenders; (2) are there different types of homicide actors (i.e., victim and/or offender) based on their criminal lifestyle; (3) do varying homicide actor (i.e., victim and/or offender) types influence the characteristics of homicide incidents?

Methods

Five hundred and thirteen homicide incidents was used to answer the three research questions. Hierarchical Agglomerative Cluster and Logistic Regression Analyses were employed to answer the research questions.

Findings

The findings showed that criminal lifestyles were indeed very common among homicide victims and offenders, and that they resemble each other. The findings also showed that there were two types of homicide victims and offenders, and that these types influenced the etiology of homicide incidents.

Conclusion

Overall, the results suggest that researchers and practitioners should take into account the criminal lifestyles of potential victims and offenders when tailoring homicide prevention strategies.     

A fatal interaction: The role of the victim and function of aggression in intrafamilial homicide

Abstract

This study examines the interaction between the victim and offender during intrafamilial homicide. It is hypothesised that in order to understand the fatal consequences of the interaction, a psychological model must take into account both the role of the victim, as either a significant person or non-significant object, and the function of the aggression, as either instrumental or expressive. The combination of these two proposed facets gives rise to four hypothesised styles of intrafamilial homicide. This hypothesis was tested by analysing 191 intrafamilial homicide cases from the Chicago HITS database. Fifty two crime-scene actions were analysed using Smallest Space Analysis which revealed four distinct thematic clusters of variables. These themes corresponded to the hypothesised facets of victim role and function of aggression. Two related to expressive acts, (a) those murders where the offender kills multiple members of his family and subsequently takes his own life, and (b) cases where the victim is not treated as a significant person in the interaction but is simply used as a target for the offender's rage. The other two relate to instrumental acts, (c) those murders that are a culmination of years of abuse in which the offender sees the killing as the only means of escape, and (d) homicides where the victim is seen as an obstacle to the offender achieving a goal and is removed.

A further test of the validity of these four themes in describing distinct forms of interaction within intrafamilial homicide was to examine the proportion of cases which could be classified according to the framework. The hypothesis that each relationship would map onto just one of the interactional styles was tested by χ² which confirmed that such exclusive relationships existed at the p < .001 level of significance. This has theoretical as well as practical implications in that in using this method of classification it may be possible to infer which family member is responsible for killing their relative.     

The future of homicide offenders. Results from a homicide project in Copenhagen

As a part of a Copenhagen homicide project, 52 released homicide offenders were followed during a mean period of 9 years. Pessimistic expectations were confirmed as post-release rates of criminality, psychiatric admission, and suicide were all very high. By logistic regression analyses, young age by release, and long stay in prison were found to increase the risk of further criminality, and previous psychiatric admission was found predictive of future admission. The problems in using logistic regression analysis on variables--all of whom may be viewed as "parallel" indicators of a common tendency to adverse behaviors--are discussed. In conclusion, the results have been used for a tentative division of homicide according to the offender-victim relationship into intra-family homicide and extra-family homicide. In intra-family homicide the most important dimension seems to be the psychic state of the offender, in extra-family homicide more impact should be attributed to the social dimension.     

Incidental cardiac rhabdomyomas: a significant finding necessitating additional investigation at the time of autopsy

Cardiac rhabdomyomas are rare lesions forming part of the tuberous sclerosis complex that may be responsible for sudden death. As well as remaining clinically occult for variable periods of time, they may, along with other manifestations of tuberous sclerosis, be quite difficult to detect clinically and pathologically. A patient is described in whom multiple cardiac rhabdomyomas were an incidental finding at autopsy following fatal potassium fluoride poisoning. Other gross pathological lesions typical of tuberous sclerosis were present but were quite subtle in appearance. Awareness of the association of cardiac rhabdomyomas with tuberous sclerosis is important so that full examination of organ systems for characteristic lesions can be undertaken during the autopsy, and so that fresh and frozen tissue can be obtained at the time of dissection for further investigation.     

Aggression homicide and rejection homicide: a communicative classification of homicide

Based on a 10-year sample of homicides (n = 50), the hypothesis was tested that it is possible to differentiate between aggression and rejection homicide. The aggression homicide results from the offender/victim relationship, which is no longer accepted for some reason. In contrast, in the rejection homicide the offender radically strives for a goal which can only be reached if the victim is eliminated. Based on forensic-psychiatric expert opinions (n = 50), the case analyses yielded 31 aggression homicides and 18 rejection homicides, one case could not be classified. Aggression homicides differed significantly from the rejection homicides with regard to their main motives. Hate in quarrel (n = 8), violent occupation of the victim (n = 7), delusions (n = 5), revenge (n = 3), self-defence (n = 2), and jealousy (n = 1) characterized the aggression homicides, whereas rejection homicides were dominated by economic motives (n = 14). Two offenders intended to get rid of the victim and one offender wanted to rescue a third person. From a forensic-psychiatric point of view, the pertinent statistical data (social data, diagnosis, criminal responsibility) are reported and the significance of the differentiation between aggression homicide and rejection homicide for medico-legal or criminological case profiling and for the prognosis of the risk potential is discussed.     

Multivariate analysis ('forensiometrics')--a new tool in forensic medicine. Findings on the victim of sharp-force homicide can predict the inter-relationship with the perpetrator.

A multivariate 'forensiometric' technique (PLS-DA) was used to create a model to predict the relationship between homicide victim and perpetrator on a five-level scale: strangers, acquaintances, drinking companions, relatives and spouses. The model is based on findings on the victim and at the venue, and uses the following ten variables as 'predictors', listed in falling order of covariation with instances of close relationship between victim and perpetrator: Victim found in home, female victim, a single sharp injury, injuries to the upper extremity, superficial sharp injuries to the chest ('scratches'), ten or more sharp injuries, presence of defence injuries, total number of sharp injuries, male victim, and victim found outdoors. The model was based on 87 sharp-force homicides (the model-set) and was validated on another set of 43 sharp-force homicides (the test-set). In this test-set validation, 17 of 39 cases (44%) were correctly predicted according to the results of earlier combined forensic and police investigations, and a prediction one step away from the correct level was given in another 17 cases. These results were significantly better than would have been obtained by chance.     

Spousal homicide and the subsequent staging of a sexual homicide at a distant location

The case of a 63-year-old man who killed his 52-year-old wife and then staged a sexual homicide at a distant location is reported. A review of all evidence, a forensic psychological interview, and psychological testing indicated that the murder was the result of a narcissistic rage reaction during which the subject beat his wife to death with a paint can, a clothing iron, and a rock. He then drove her body to a field 87.3 miles away, and positioned it in a manner that exposed her breasts and her underwear. He turned himself into the police two days later. There is no controlled empirical research on staging, although this single case supports the criminal investigative theory that staging exists, and is done to deliberately mislead homicide investigations (Douglas et al., 1992).     

Sudden unexpected infant death due to fibroma of the heart

A 7-month-old previously healthy female infant was found dead in her crib by her mother shortly after having been laid down to sleep following the noontime feeding. Because the child did not suffer from an acute illness and no other evidence pointed to a cause of death, it was initially assumed by the police that she had died of sudden infant death syndrome. At autopsy, however, the cause of death was determined to be cardiac arrhythmia secondary to fibroma of the heart.     

Cross-national comparison of homicide: Age/sex-adjusted rates using the 1980 U.S. homicide experience as a standard

Cross-sectional studies of crime have typically relied on crude crime rates when making comparisons between countries. Crude rates control for population size but implicitly assume that all members of the population are equally at risk. Empirical studies have shown that, cross-nationally, risk varies by age and sex. Standardization of crime rates removes the confounding effects of variable age and sex population distributions. Since age/sex-specific crime rates are generally unavailable for many countries, the method of indirect standardization is the most desirable technique. Age/sex-adjusted homicide rates for 76 countries are presented, and two comparative measures are suggested. It is shown that while the United States has a higher homicide rate than all but 15 countries; in most cases, the magnitude of the difference, not controlling for age/sex differences, is overestimated. Crude rates underestimate differences between the United States and countries with higher rates of homicide.     

Dementia as a risk factor for homicide.

We report a patient with dementia due to B-12 deficiency and syphilis who presented to a forensic hospital after killing his ex-wife with a gun. Despite current awareness on the occurrence of aggression and violence in patients with dementia, there has been no report discussing dementia secondary to an infectious or nutritional origin causing homicide or severe violent behavior. We discuss possible mechanisms and several predisposing factors for violent behavior in the elderly. We also discuss use and access of a gun in demented patients and its complications. We recommend availability of neuropsychiatric assessments in the elderly, limitation of gun access to demented patients and inquiry about weapon possession in the elderly.     

Tentative injuries to exposed skin in a homicide case.

A 28-year-old man stabbed both his wife and his 3-year-old son to death, before unsuccessfully attempting to commit suicide. The incident occurred against a background of marital conflict. The child's body exhibited six tentative wounds to the skin in the area of the heart, with no corresponding defects in the overlying clothing, a pattern normally seen only in suicide. Their presence can be explained by the fact that this can be considered an extended suicide, the father's motivation for the killing being comparable to that for true suicide. However, wounds of this nature can be produced in such cases only if the victim is severely limited in his ability to defend himself, here due to the superior physical strength of the father.     

Post-mortem finding of a non-fatal left heart ventricle perforation by a pleural drain. A case report

A 76-year-old male with a previous history of heart arrhythmia and decompensation was treated for a complicated thoraco-abdominal trauma. Accidentally, a pleural drain was inserted in his heart through the ventricular septum, perforating the left ventricle, the drain tip being buried in its posterior wall. This injury was not recognized until autopsy. The patient died 7 days after insertion of the drain of lung emboli, which were related to his primary trauma and not to the heart perforation.     

Never say never. Negligible carboxyhemoglobin in the victim of a smoldering mattress fire

For many years, a high blood carboxyhemoglobin concentration has been used as a criterion for determining that a victim of conflagration was alive in the fire. We report a case in which a man died from the combined effects of burns and hypertensive cardiovascular disease. He had a negligible blood carboxyhemoglobin concentration, but the environmental evidence and autopsy findings are indicative of life in the fire, which arose in a smoldering mattress. We conclude that uncritical, rigid adherence to the requirement that fire victims have high carboxyhemoglobin concentrations can be misleading.     

Matching the lost skin of a homicide suspect

A case of matching a fragment of lost skin to a homicidal assailant's thumb is reported. The methods used included physical and photographic matching of corresponding configuration and skin ridges, serological blood grouping and enzymes typing. The conclusiveness of such a matching approach is self-evident.     

Effects of victim gender,victim sexual orientation,victim response and respondent gender on judgements of blame in a hypothetical adolescent rape

Objectives. Few studies have examined the judgements made towards adolescent rape victims, and none have investigated attributions towards gay male or lesbian adolescents. The current study examined the effects victim gender, victim sexual orientation, victim response, and respondent gender, on attributions of blame in the depicted rape of a 15‐year old adolescent. Methods. A total of 164 respondents read details of this assault before completing 15 attribution judgments. Results. Respondents were expected to attribute more blame to a victim who was male, gay, and who failed to resist the perpetrator. Male respondents were also expected to be more blaming of the victim than females. Overall these hypotheses were supported. Conclusion. Results are discussed in relation to the role gender stereotypes and homophobia play within attributions blame in sexual assault cases. Specifically, it seems male adolescent rape victims are subjected to the same negative stereotypes as male adult victims. Implications and ideas for future research are considered.     

Psychopathology and weapon choice: a study of 103 perpetrators of homicide or attempted homicide

Bone marrow (BM) analysis is of forensic interest in postmortem toxicological investigation in case of limited, unavailable or unusable blood samples. However, it remains difficult to determine whether a drug BM concentration is therapeutic or represents overdose, due to the lack of studies on this alternative matrix. Given the variations in BM composition in the body, sample location was suggested to be a relevant factor in assessing BM concentration. The aim of the present study was to compare postmortem caffeine concentrations in various BM sample locations and secondly to consider the correlation between BM and blood concentrations. Six BM samples (right and left side: proximal and medial femur and 5th rib) and a blood sample were collected from 21 forensic autopsies. Gas chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry was performed. Blood caffeine concentrations ranged from 60 to 7591ng/mL. Femoral and rib BM concentrations ranged from 51 to 6171ng/g and 66 to 7280ng/g, respectively. Blood concentrations were always higher than BM concentrations. As a good correlation was demonstrated between blood and rib BM and between blood and the average of the four femoral BM concentrations, blood caffeine concentrations could be correctly extrapolated from BM concentrations. BM caffeine concentration was found to depend on sample location. Rib BM caffeine concentrations appeared to be systematically greater than averaged femur values and concentrations were much more variable between the 4 femur BM samples than between the 2 ribs. From a practical point of view, for caffeine analysis, rib BM appeared more relevant than femoral BM, which requires multisampling to overcome the concentration variability problem.     

Correlates of the victim-offender relationship in homicide

Using a classification of homicides based on the victim-offender relationship, this research analyzes individual-level data from a local prosecutor's office in Taiwan with multinomial logistic regression to locate the more precise correlates of three different homicide relationship types. The results of the analyses provide further support for the hypothesis that such partitioning of homicides is fruitful in revealing the relationships otherwise obscured. They indicate that both sociodemographic variables and situational variables are important correlates of three different homicide relationships, but their strengths vary based on the particular homicide relationship type. Age and crime premises correlate with homicide differently based on the victim-offender relationship. Premeditation is related to acquaintance homicide but not to intimate homicide. In contrast, previous conviction is associated with intimate homicide but not with acquaintance homicide. The implication of the findings is discussed within the limitation of the data.