Use of drugs of abuse in less than 30-year-old drivers killed in a road crash in France: A spectacular increase for cannabis, cocaine and amphetamines

A collaborative study was conducted in France in order to determine the prevalence of cannabinoids, opiates, cocaine metabolites and amphetamines in blood samples from drivers killed in road accidents in 2003 and 2004 and to compare these values with those of a previous study performed during the period 2000–2001 involving 900 drivers. Blood samples were provided from 2003 under 30-year-old drivers, killed in a traffic accident. Drugs of abuse were determined by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry using the same analytical procedures in all the 12 laboratories.The most frequently observed compounds were by far cannabinoids, that tested positive in 39.6% of the total number of samples. Δ⁹ tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the most active of the principle constituents in marijuana (cannabis sativa), was detected in the blood of 28.9% drivers and was the single drug of abuse in 80.2% of the positive cases. It was associated with amphetamines in 7.4% and with opiates and cocaine in 1.9 and 4.8%, respectively. Amphetamines were present in 3.1% of the total number of samples, cocaine metabolites in 3.0% and opiates in 3.5%.When comparing these results with those of a previous study performed 3 years before, a significant increase is observed for THC (28.9% versus 16.9%), cocaine metabolites (3.0% versus 0.2%) and amphetamines (3.1% versus 1.4%).This study demonstrates the critical necessity of implementing in France as soon as possible systematical roadside testing for drugs of abuse.     

Workplace drug testing in a military organization: Results and experiences from the testing program in the Finnish Defence Forces

In the military environment drug abuse is a particular risk for occupational safety. In the Finnish Defence Forces a drug testing program was conducted in 2002–2005; soldiers, professional civilians, and military students were tested when applying for a work or right to study; furthermore, annually 5% of the personnel were subjected to random testing. In total, over 2000 urine samples were analyzed in an accredited laboratory for cannabis, opiates, amphetamines, or cocaine. In this article, the drug testing program as a part of the anti-drug strategy of the Finnish Defence Forces is described, and the findings including practical experiences and financial expenses are reported. Only one person applying for a civilian post tested positive for amphetamine and cannabis. In seven other samples codeine and morphine were detected; these were, however, due to prescribed medication, not drug abuse. In the execution of the program, no particular difficulties were reported. In conclusion, it seems that the use of illicit drugs in the Finnish military is extremely rare, at least partly due to the successful anti-drug strategy. After an elaborate planning, even an extensive drug testing program can be executed without substantial setbacks. In the future, the effectiveness of drug testing programs as a means of improving occupational safety needs to be investigated in controlled studies using comparative design.     

Methamphetamine and alcohol detection in vehicle-driver fatalities in South Australia: A 10-year survey (2008–2018)

Motor vehicle driver fatalities (≥18 years) from the files at Forensic Science South Australia were reviewed from January 2008 to December 2018 for cases in which either positive blood sample for methamphetamine (MA) or an illegal blood alcohol concentration (BAC) >0.05g/100 ml were found. Three hundred driver deaths were found with MA detected in 28 cases (age range 21–62 years; ave. 37.8 years; M:F 23:5). Hundred and fifteen cases with a BAC > 0.05 g/100 ml were identified (age range 18–67 years; ave 35.7 years; M:F 95:20). No change was found in numbers of MA cases, although alcohol cases showed a significant decline (p < 0.001). Drunk driving-related fatal crashes tended to occur in the evening (5 p.m. to 11 p.m.), while MA-related fatal crashes had a longer peak extending from late evening until late morning (11 p.m. to 8 a.m.). This study has demonstrated that while roadside breath testing, legislative changes, and increased monitoring have resulted in reduced levels of drunk driving, similar safety countermeasures have had negligible effects on MA use in drivers. Continued monitoring of MA use by drivers will, therefore, be necessary to assess the possible effects, or not, of new countermeasures.     

Death Due to Decapitation in Two Motorcyclists: A Description of a Unique Case and a Brief Review of the Literature

Deaths due to decapitation, especially related to traffic accidents, are rarely found in forensic practice. The present case involves a man and a woman who died from decapitation due to an unusual mechanism while they were riding on a motorbike down a mountain road. The autopsy, which was completed as a physics study, allowed the accident to be reconstructed as follows: A plastic cable that had detached from a timber‐transporting machine whipped the road and hit the two motorcyclists. The impact resulted in the complete severing of both riders’ heads. Involving different scientists in this accident investigation was crucial to understanding the dynamics of the accident. In fact, in addition to scene inspection and autopsy, a physics study was carried out on the cable and the clamp involved, which led to an explanation for the abrupt movement of the cable and, thus, to a thorough reconstruction of the accident.     

The random presence of glass and paint on the clothing and footwear of members of the general population: A US baseline survey at various seasons

This study assists the interpretation of glass and paint evidence by filling an existing gap in the background occurrence that reflects the socioeconomic and demographic circumstances in the United States. The collection was performed in a college US city (Morgantown, West Virginia) to determine the effect of the type of clothing worn at different seasons on the presence of glass and paint. Tape lifts and sole scrapings (1038) were collected from 210 participants and up to six clothing and footwear areas per individual. Glass fragments were analyzed via polarized light microscopy (PLM), refractive index (RI), micro-X-Ray fluorescence (μXRF), and scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), while paint specimens were examined by light microscopy and infrared spectroscopy (μFTIR). Higher occurrences of glass and paint were found in the winter season. The winter collection yielded 10 glass fragments and 68 paint particles, whereas the summer collection resulted in one glass fragment and 23 paint particles. The percentage of individuals with traces varied between seasons; 7% of individuals in the winter and 0.9% in the summer had glass, whereas 36% of individuals in the winter and 19% in the summer bore paint. Lastly, when considering the overall garment and footwear areas, glass was detected in 1.4% of the winter set, compared to 0.2% in the summer collection; paint was found in 9.2% of the winter collection, whereas only 4.2% was found in the summer set. There were no instances where both glass and paint were detected on the clothing and footwear of the same individual.     

Disclosure of child sexual abuse: expressed emotions and credibility judgments of a child mock victim

Both lay persons and professionals believe that the emotions displayed by a child witness during disclosure of sexual abuse are a factor of importance when judging the child's credibility. Unfortunately, not all children display emotions according to expectations, leading to misjudgments, and possible miscarriage of justice. In the present study, we examined how lay people's credibility judgments were influenced by a child's displayed emotions during the disclosure of sexual abuse. Participants (n?=?119), viewed video recordings of a mock police interview of an 11-year-old child actor disclosing sexual abuse, displaying one of four emotional expressions (angry, sad, neutral, and positive). Results showed that participants were strongly influenced by the emotions displayed; in particular, the display of strong negative emotions (anger) or positive emotions during disclosure significantly reduced judged credibility. The credibility ratings predicted the participant? judgments of the defendant's guilt and the willingness to pass a guilty vote in a hypothetical trial.     

法律与医学的纠缠——一例因输血感染丙型肝炎案件的证据认知问题

丙肝是一种经血液传播的传染性疾病。输血与感染两者是否存在因果关系必须由医院来承担举证责任。这是因为:第一,医院的行为涉及他人的生命与健康,因此,医生负有比其他行业须更谨慎的义务。第二,医院的行为是一种技术行为,资料与信息均在医院的掌控中。因此,医院在无法证明血源合格的情况下,仅以另一被输血者未感染丙肝的事实,不足以推翻因果关系的推定。"医疗事故技术鉴定"也未排除两者的因果关系,且不符合法定的形式要件,所以医院应承担举证不能的法律后果。     

海洋石油开发与污染：兼评美国墨西哥湾溢油事故的海事赔偿责任限制问题

从美国墨西哥湾＂深水地平线＂溢油事故以及＂深水地平线＂所有人海事赔偿责任限制出发,简要介绍海洋石油开发装置及其技术特点,分析美国有关海洋石油开发装置的司法实践,并通过阐述国际油污损害赔偿基金的研究报告和希腊最高法院的裁决,提出有必要就海洋石油开发油污责任问题建立统一的国际公约,或者将海洋石油开发装置解释为船舶,以使其可以享受责任限制。     

Violence,Guns, and Suicide in New Orleans: Results from a Qualitative Study of Recent Suicide Decedents

Many Americans own guns to protect themselves against other people, but there is evidence that both victimization and gun access increase suicide risk. We conducted qualitative interviews with informants of 17 suicide cases in New Orleans of the 60 who died between January 2015 and April 2016 to understand the relationship between past trauma, gun access and storage, and suicide. Nine cases had experienced a past trauma, including three who had recently had a family member killed by homicide. Eight died via firearm; of those, seven owned the guns they used to take their lives and stored them locked (but loaded) at home or in their cars. Preventing community violence and addressing its sequelae may be important for reducing suicides. A multi‐pronged strategy consisting of policies, education, and marketing will likely be needed to address the risk of suicide conferred by gun access.     

Demographic and offence characteristics: a comparison of sex offenders convicted of possessing indecent images of children,committing contact sex offences or both offences

This paper reports the findings of a study evaluating demographic and offence characteristics of 230 offenders who had been convicted either of possessing indecent images (Internet offenders n?=?74) or committing actual direct abuse of children (contact offenders n?=?118) or committing both offences (Internet-contact offenders n?=?38). All data were collected in the Greater London Offender Management Service. The group of Internet-contact offenders exhibited more diverse characteristics than the Internet and contact sex offenders and they were more likely to have been accused of a prior contact offence without being charged. The majority of the Internet offenders were white male, younger than the contact child sex offenders, more likely to be single and to have never been married, were better educated and more likely to have stable employment. They were also less likely to have had previous convictions. Contact offenders were more likely to report childhood difficulties including sexual abuse; there were no group differences in mental health contact or history of substance abuse. Future research should take into account the heterogeneity of Internet sex offenders to enable the development and delivery of appropriate services for this group so that preventative and therapeutic approaches can be developed.     

Comparing Standard and Selective Degradation DNA Extraction Methods: Results from a Field Experiment with Sexual Assault Kits,

A growing number of U.S. cities have large numbers of untested sexual assault kits (SAKs) in police property facilities. Testing older kits and maintaining current case work will be challenging for forensic laboratories, creating a need for more efficient testing methods. Methods: We evaluated selective degradation methods for DNA extraction using actual case work from a sample of previously unsubmitted SAKs in Detroit, Michigan. We randomly assigned 350 kits to either standard or selective degradation testing methods and then compared DNA testing rates and CODIS entry rates between the two groups. Results and conclusions: Continuation‐ratio modeling showed no significant differences, indicating that the selective degradation method had no decrement in performance relative to customary methods. Follow‐up equivalence tests indicated that CODIS entry rates for the two methods could differ by more than ±5%. Selective degradation methods required less personnel time for testing and scientific review than standard testing.     

Global functioning and suicide among Chinese rural population aged 15-34 years: a psychological autopsy case-control study

As the relationship between global functioning and young suicide remains unclear in rural China, this study was aimed to explore the relationship between them. Data of 391 rural suicides and 416 controls, all aged 15-34 years in three provinces in China were used for this study. The Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) scale was adopted to assess global functioning of suicides and controls. The results showed that GAF score was stronger than mental illness in predicting suicide in China. Different correlates of GAF score were found between suicides and controls. Unsurprisingly, GAF score was significantly correlated with mental illness in both suicides and controls. Different characteristics were also found among three types of suicide which were classified using GAF score. Assessing global functioning is useful and GAF scale should be regularly used in suicide prevention practice.     

“牢头狱霸”问题与我国囚犯管理的制度选择——基于博弈论的法经济学分析

牢头狱霸现象在我国的监狱和看守所中长期存在，国家机关希望通过法律和政策对其进行打击，但这种现象却屡禁不止。对于牢头狱霸的产生原因和解决方式，相关的法律经济学分析尚属空白。本文通过非合作的完全信息静态博弈理论对新老囚犯的行为进行分析，揭示了在管制资源不足的状况下，管理者在制度选择时宁可冒着承担法律责任的风险，依然选择产生牢头狱霸制度的深层原因和动机。在此基础上，本文还进一步分析了这种非正式制度的优势和不足，并对我国的狱政管理提出相应的立法和政策建议。     

On building a sovereign state from scratch: The law and economics of Theodor Herzl's programmatic work

Rarely has one book had the impact of Herzl's Der Judenstaat. To which other book can we points as having led to the creation of an entire state? In looking at the slim volume today, we are struck by its freshness of insight and its strict adherence to trying to find institutional solutions that would allow people to establish the new state and then conduct their lives according to what Herzl conceived as modern Jewish principles. This study is exemplary not only for its success. In a time of great economic and legal change, scholars particularly in the transitional economies are looking for analyses that help them create the functioning institutions that need to be built, often quite literally, from scratch. Herzl, who wrote his book not as a contribution to law and economics but as a contribution to furthering his cause, nevertheless left a remarkable exercise in applied law and economics.