Deaths in police custody in England and Wales

Worldwide deaths in police custody are causing public disquiet. An account is given of all the deaths occurring in police custody in England and Wales over a ten-year period from 1970 – 1979 with details of the causes of death and inquest verdicts.     

A comparative analysis of police vehicle pursuit policies

The written pursuit policies of 47 state law enforcement agencies and the nation's 25 largest cities were subjected to comparative analysis. Qualitative analysis of the policies focused on factors justifying pursuit, physical operation of the police vehicle, circumstances of operation, and external factors. The policies also were rated quantitatively on a continuum ranging from allowing officers a great deal of judgment in the conduct of a pursuit to discouraging all pursuits except as a last resort. Most policies were found to permit a great deal of judgment, although cities tended to be more likely than states to place restrictions on pursuits.     

A factorial analysis of police pursuit driving decisions: A research note

Police pursuit driving has become an important public policy concern and topic of research during the past few years. The present study reports the attitudes of police officers and supervisors from four different agencies concerning the continuation of a pursuit. Using logistic regression, it is reported that the most influential factor on the officers' opinions is the offense for which the suspect is wanted. This one factor is more than twice as important as the environmental factors such as chase area, traffic conditions and weather.     

Empathy from a police work perspective

The purpose of this paper is to identify an appropriate conceptual model of empathy from the perspective of police work. This paper draws on the existing literature from two areas of research: (a) the literature describing the characteristics of the ideal police officer from a general perspective, as well as in a specifically Swedish context and (b) the literature analysing empathy as a theoretical construct. It is found that theoretical interdisciplinary approaches in the fields of social psychology and social cognitive neuroscience are relevant. The suggested conceptual model of empathy appropriate for the policing profession incorporates the typically antagonistic nature of police–citizen contacts, personal traits as expressed in interpersonal relations, and the social and cultural context. Because of the diversity and multicultural nature of modern societies, the values guiding police–citizen encounters are given special attention and related to the empathy research tradition. The proposed conceptual model of empathy aims at guiding future research in police–citizen interaction and, ultimately, supporting police practices regarding recruitment, career advancement and fieldwork.     

警务保障视野下公安民警的伤亡问题

警察职业固然危险,但我国警察伤亡人数明显偏高.警务安全指的是公安民警在接处警、盘查留置、追缉堵截、检查危险物品、抓捕逃犯、押解犯罪嫌疑人等一系列警务活动中,有效地制服对方,保护自己.当前的公安工作,面临着严峻的治安形势,公安民警面对的斗争环境更为险恶,我们必须强调从实战出发提供警务保障.警务保障是指国家对公安机关和公安工作为实现国家赋予的使命和任务,依法履行职能所给予的条件和提供的保证.为了预防和减少公安民警伤亡,国家势必要为公安机关和公安民警提供必要的法律保障、社会保障和物质保障.     

Petechial Hemorrhages and Ethanol in Deaths from Intoxication

Petechiae in conjunctivae and in the palpebrae/skin of the eyelids are of particular interest for the forensic pathologist, because of their association with pressure on the neck. They have been described in the eyelids of intoxicated persons both in case reports and in text books of forensic pathology. We studied 590 deaths caused by intoxication, and 75 had petechiae either in the conjunctivae, the eyelids, or in both locations. We examined the influence of drugs and ethanol on the location of the petechial hemorrhages in these deaths. Deaths with ethanol in blood and in urine/vitreous humor more often had petechiae in both locations than those without. This association was statistically significant, independent of body position and livor mortis. No association between the location of petechiae, medicinal drugs, or narcotics was found. These results suggest that ethanol may contribute to the development of petechial hemorrhages in deaths from intoxication.     

Elevator-Related Deaths

Elevators are mechanical transportation devices used to move vertically between different levels of a building. When first developed, elevators lacked the safety features. When safety mechanisms were developed, elevators became a common feature of multistory buildings. Despite their well-regarded safety record, elevators are not without the potential for danger of injury or death. Persons at-risk for elevator-related death include maintenance and construction workers, other employees, and those who are prone to risky behavior. Deaths may be related to asphyxia, blunt force, avulsion injuries, and various forms of environmental trauma. In this review, we report on 48 elevator-related deaths that occurred in nine different medicolegal death investigation jurisdictions within the United States over an approximately 30-year period. The data represents a cross-section of the different types of elevator-related deaths that may be encountered. The review also presents an overview of preventive strategies for the purpose of avoiding future elevator-related fatalities.     

Sudden death after release from police detention]

3 fatalities shortly after discharge from police custody are reported. Case 1: A 55-year old alcoholic was discharged from police custody after taking a blood sample under violent conditions and found dead in his flat 2 days later. Cause of death: arrhythmia due to acute coronary insufficiency or alcoholic cardiomyopathy. Case 2: A 27-year-old alcoholic was met highly intoxicated twice in the course of one day, was put in the family's care and was found dead the next morning. Cause of death: alcohol/drug intoxication with agonal aspiration. Case 3: A 32-year-old man known to be prone to seizures and to become aggressive under the influence of alcohol was left by the police in medical care confined to a litter in a "hog-tied" fashion with the help of 3 belts. Cause of death: cerebral hypoxia after respiratory and cardiac arrest of unknown reason. A causal relationship with positional restraint is discussed. The cases reported underline the duty of the police to examine prior to discharge from custody with the appropriate lot of care whether the person held in custody has recovered from the helpless state due to disease, injury or intoxication or if medical treatment is required.     

A death resulting from trichlorotrifluoroethane poisoning

Fatalities due to accidental exposure to chlorinated hydrocarbon in an industrial setting have been infrequently reported. The deaths in these cases have occurred within poorly ventilated, enclosed compartments or areas. A case is presented of a 16-year-old male who died as a result of exposure to trichlorotrifluoroethane while working in an open pit. Chromatographic results and tissue concentrations are presented.     

Exhibitionism: findings from a Midwestern police contact sample

This study used a police sample to examine offense characteristics, recidivism rates, and other types of sexual offending among individuals suspected of exhibitionism. The sample consisted of 202 incidents of indecent exposure perpetrated by 106 identified individuals. Demographic information showed that one quarter of the sample had symptoms of a mental illness and one quarter had a history of substance abuse. More than 84% of the sample had other nonsexual criminal charges. Approximately 30% of the perpetrators were charged for more than one exposure incident. Masturbating during the offense, exposing to child victims, and speaking to the victim did not show any relationship to the occurrence of more sexually aggressive behaviors. However, individuals who had subsequent rape or molestation charges (16.9%) were more likely than those who did not to have had multiple exposure incidents and a history of physical assault charges.     

船舶油污损害数额的诉讼认定

船舶油污损害数额的认定存在困难,对此可以损害额酌定制度来解决.从比较法的视角并结合中国现行相关立法、制度及司法实践,对损害额酌定制度如何应用于船舶油污损害赔偿诉讼做了探讨.认为:损害额酌定兼具证明标准降低和自由裁量双重性质,能适用于诸多船舶油污损害赔偿请求权;法院在酌定损害数额时应当综合考虑所排放油类的数量及品质、受污染的海域范围及其污染程度、油污事故与损害之间的因果关系、责任人的偿付能力等因素,并注意规约法院的诉讼行为和切实保障当事人的程序利益,以使酌定的损害数额尽量客观化、合理化.     

Sudden unexpected death resulting from hypothalamic sarcoidosis

The authors report a case of sudden death in a 23-year-old woman in whom autopsy by the medical examiner revealed hypothalamic sarcoidosis. The decedent had experienced 6 months of amenorrhea and a 50-pound weight gain. She sought medical attention when she experienced headache, and after imaging and laboratory studies, she was suspected of having neurosarcoidosis. She appeared to respond well to corticosteroid therapy. However, 6 weeks after the beginning of therapy, she was found dead on the floor of her residence. Autopsy showed extensive granulomatous inflammation of the hypothalamus and adjacent structures. Previously reported cases of hypothalamic sarcoidosis are reviewed. A hypothesis for the mechanism of sudden death is presented.     

Accidental death resulting from acetylene cylinder impact

Acetylene is an inflammable gas commonly used for welding in small-scale industries. We present a case of a 34-year-old male welder who died following injuries sustained from explosion of an acetylene gas-welding cylinder. In this case report, we discuss the circumstances leading to the explosion of the welding cylinder, the autopsy findings, and a brief review of the literature on deaths resulting from blasts of acetylene cylinders.     

Deaths during recreational activity

This study of recreational deaths in the "land of sun and fun" has pointed out several useful factors. Firstly, accidental deaths are more common than naturals. Secondly, the most common accidental death is drowning while swimming. The latter is not usually at public facilities, but rather at unsupervised uninstitutionalized surroundings. Finally, a younger population is involved with a frequent number of them with alcohol detected and/or drugs.     

Deaths following wasp stings

Two cases of death have been reported following a wasp sting. In both cases an anaphylactic reaction after sensitization can be assumed (positive RAST result). In one case an expert witness report was required because of questions concerning insurance law (accident at work?) in addition to the cause of death. The stinger of the wasp was examined from the zoological aspect and is compared with that of the honeybee and hornet.