Forensic Investigation of a Shawl Linked to the “Jack the Ripper” Murders

A set of historic murders, known as the “Jack the Ripper murders,” started in London in August 1888. The killer's identity has remained a mystery to date. Here, we describe the investigation of, to our knowledge, the only remaining physical evidence linked to these murders, recovered from one of the victims at the scene of the crime. We applied novel, minimally destructive techniques for sample recovery from forensically relevant stains on the evidence and separated single cells linked to the suspect, followed by phenotypic analysis. The mtDNA profiles of both the victim and the suspect matched the corresponding reference samples, fortifying the link of the evidence to the crime scene. Genomic DNA from single cells recovered from the evidence was amplified, and the phenotypic information acquired matched the only witness statement regarded as reliable. To our knowledge, this is the most advanced study to date regarding this case.     

Forensic entomology exemplified by a homicide. A combined stain and postmortem time analysis]

The combined analysis of both ant and blow fly evidence recovered from a corpse, and from the boot of a suspect, suggested that an assumed scenario in a high profile murder case was likely to be true. The ants (Lasius fuliginous) were used as classical crime scene stains that linked the suspect to the scene. Blow fly maggots (Calliphora spec.) helped to determine the post mortem interval (PMI) with the calculated PMI overlapping with the assumed time of the killing. In the trial, the results of the medico-legal analysis of the insects was understood to be crucial scientific evidence, and the suspect was sentenced to 8 years in prison.     

Alpha-amylase kinetic test in bodily single and mixed stains

Recently, in Italy, a murder and a putative sexual violence was accomplished on a child. A bodily fluids mixture on the child's underwear between the victim (female) and the suspect (male) was ascertained by short tandem repeat (STR) DNA typing and, due to the absence of seminal fluid, saliva from the suspect and urine from the child was hypothesized. In order to investigate the possibility of specifically and rapidly detecting saliva stains both alone and mixed with other bodily fluids, we used a quantitative spectrophotometric technique, named Amylase test, for the detection of alpha-amylases. We determined alpha-amylase activity and reaction kinetic curves in several samples collected from the child's underwear. In order to confirm our intuition, we first tested saliva, perspiration, and urine, singularly and in mixtures; second, several forensic stains including saliva, perspiration, urine stains, saliva/perspiration, and saliva/urine mixture stains were tested. Evaluating alpha-amylase activity values and time-course curves' behavior of alpha-amylase reactions we were able to recognize successfully, in all cases, the presence of saliva and to distinguish it specifically from other bodily fluids containing alpha-amylase. A further confirmation of our result was provided by STR DNA typing on several areas of the underwear: a clear correlation between alpha-amylases activity and male DNA was detected on all the samples evaluated.     

Examples for use of the STR systems in stain assessment with special reference to Y chromosome systems

The authors describe 3 cases where Y-chromosomal systems were used for typing the biological traces. In the first case, a murder, for the major amount of cell material found on a dish towel (and analysed two years after the crime) female persons were excluded for the system amelogenin and Y-chromosomal systems. A brother of the victim could not be excluded for autosomal STR-systems. Upon confrontation with the results of the DNA-analysis (among other things), this brother confessed the murder of his sister some days later. He was found guilty by the court. In the second case described, a rape of two girls, many traces were analysed parallely with Y-chromosomal and autosomal PCR-systems. The objects where male DNA matching the suspect were found (a paper tissue, a sweat shirt and the knickers of the girls), also showed small amounts of alleles matching with the suspect for autosomal systems, while the major part in these systems was from the girls. The suspect was sentenced to many years imprisonment. In the third case, a possible rape of a young woman, a stained microscope slide of a vaginal swab had to be examined. Microscopically a few sperm heads could be seen in a surplus of leucocytes. The male proportion could be analysed only in the Y-chromosomal systems, not in the autosomal ones. For the frequency calculation of the Y-chromosomal allele combination the haplotype data bank of the Institute for Legal Medicine of the Humboldt university in Berlin was indispensable.     

Rapid and nondestructive analysis of lipstick on different substrates using ATR-FTIR spectroscopy and chemometrics

Lipstick can be an important piece of evidence in crimes like murders, rapes, and suicides. Due to its prevalence, it can be an important corroborative evidence in crime reconstruction. The analysis of such evidence can provide an evidentiary link between the suspect, the victim, object, or the crime scene. We report the use of nondestructive ATR-FTIR spectroscopy combined with chemometrics for the classification of 10 brands of lipsticks with nine samples each. Chemometric method of partial least square-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) has been employed to interpret the data and classify the samples into their respective classes. The PLS-DA model provides an AUC figure above 0.99 in all brands except one; for which it is slightly less at 0.94. We have also tested the traces of these lipstick samples on different substrates treating them as unknowns in the already trained PLS-DA model. 100% of the samples on nine substrates viz. a cotton, nylon, plastic, dry tissue, denim (blue jeans), wet tissue, nitrile gloves, white paper, and polyester were correctly attributed to their source brand. In conclusion, the results suggest that ATR-FTIR combined with the chemometrics is a rapid, nondestructive, and accurate method for the discrimination and source attribution of lipstick. This study has potential for use in actual forensic casework conditions.     

The rarity of "unusual" [corrected] dispositions of victim bodies: staging and posing

The act of leaving a victim's body in an unusual position is a conscious criminal action by an offender to thwart an investigation, shock the finder and investigators of the crime scene, or give perverted pleasure to the killer. The unusual position concepts of posing and staging a murder victim have been documented thoroughly and have been accepted by the courts as a definable phenomenon. One staging case and one posing case are outlined and reveal characteristics of those homicides. From the Washington State Attorney General's Homicide Investigation and Tracking System's database on murder covering the years 1981-2000 (a total of 5,224 cases), the relative frequency of unusual body dispositions is revealed as a very rare occurrence. Only 1.3% of victims are left in an unusual position, with 0.3% being posed and 0.1% being staged. The characteristics of these types of murders also set them apart: compared to all other murders, in staged murders the victims and killers are, on average, older. All victims and offenders in the staged murders are white, with victims being disproportionately white in murders with any kind of unusual body disposition. Likewise, females stand out as victims when the body is posed, staged, or left in other unusual positions. Whereas posed bodies are more likely to include sexual assault, often in serial murders, there is no evidence of either in the staged cases. Lastly, when a body is left in an unusual position, binding is more likely, as well as the use of more "hands on" means of killing the victim, such as stabbing or cutting weapons, bludgeons, ligatures, or hands and feet.     

DNA forensics and the poaching of wildlife in Italy: a case study

DNA molecular techniques were used in a forensic investigation involving the poaching of wildlife in a national park of Italy. A poacher, after having snared a wild boar (Sus scrofa) sow, knifed it to death. The animal was retrieved by conservation officers at the scene before the poacher could remove the carcass. Subsequently, the suspect denied the charges. During a search of his home, a bloodstained knife was confiscated. A method to identify the species from the DNA extracted from the stains revealed the blood to be that of the non-domestic form of Sus scrofa. Further DNA typing for individual identity using species-specific single tandem repeats or microsatellites (STRs) showed that the DNA on the knife matched that of the poached boar. Based upon the forensic evidence obtained, the suspect was convicted of poaching and of cruelty to animals.     

植物DNA检验技术在命案现场重建中的应用策略

植物DNA检验技术是利用植物遗传性状的稳态性对关联植物物证进行检验鉴定的手段。将该技术应用于现场重建,应基于植物物证与犯罪嫌疑人、被害人及其活动环境具有＂重大关联性＂。从命案现场重建的需求上看,应围绕犯罪嫌疑人及其可控物品中附着植物与现场植物的种属同一性判断、被害人尸体（尸块或尸骸）及其随附物品中附着植物与中心现场植物的种属同一性判断、疑似侵害物及其附着植物与嫌疑人行为关联植物的种属同一性判断等三个角度或层次进行检验和综合分析。植物DNA检验技术可阐明物证的时空运行停顿规律,为命案现场重建工作提供一种参考性解决方案。     

Child abduction murder: the impact of forensic evidence on solvability

This study examined 733 child abduction murders (CAMs) occurring from 1968 to 2002 to explore the influence of forensic evidence on case solvability in CAM investigations. It was hypothesized that the presence of forensic evidence connecting the offender to the crime would enhance case solvability in murder investigations of abducted children. This study examined the impact of CAM of different types of forensic evidence and the impact of the summed total of forensic evidence items on case solvability by controlling for victim age, victim race, victim gender, and victim-offender relationship. Time and distance theoretical predictors were also included. Binomial logistic regression models were used to determine whether forensic evidence was a critical solvability factor in murder investigations of abducted children. This research indicated that, while forensic evidence increased case solvability, the impact of forensic evidence on solvability was not as important as other solvability factors examined.     

Removal of a PCR inhibitor and resolution of DNA STR types in mixed human-canine stains from a five year old case.

The analysis of biological trace evidence from a reopened investigation into a 1991 murder from Vernon, B.C. revealed mixed human and dog bloodstains on blue jean pants that contained a PCR inhibitory substance. The presence of the inhibitory substance was detected by the inhibition caused from adding a small aliquot of the test DNA extract into a PCR reaction designed to produce a known standard product. The removal of the PCR inhibitory substance was accomplished by treating the extracted DNA with Thiopropyl Sepharose 6B beads. DNA profiles from two human contributors and a canine were obtained using species specific polymorphic STR markers. The two human DNA profiles obtained from blue jean pants were resolved, one matched the suspect and the other matched the victim. The DNA profile from the canine component matched that obtained from the known sample of the victim's dog who was also slain during the assault. This evidence along with other DNA typing evidence was critical in obtaining a resolution of the case.     

Murder in south London: a novel use of DNA profiling.

Lorraine Benson's body was found beaten and strangled at Raynes Park, Surrey, in December 1988. Considering the possibility of linked offences, a murder squad was set up to work alongside a team already investigating a rape series in the Kingston area. A man's handkerchief left at a site a quarter of a mile from the murder scene was found to be stained with blood and saliva matching that of the victim. A DNA profile was obtained from a stain of nasal mucus on this handkerchief and found to match a suspect later arrested for an attempted rape in the same locality. Also of forensic interest were dust marks made by the zips of the victim's and defendant's coats and identification of the rope used for strangulation.     

Male DNA typing from 25-year-old vaginal swabs using Y chromosomal STR polymorphisms in a retrial request case.

We report here the application of Y chromosomal DNA analysis in a retrial request case, raised officially by Sapporo High Court, Japan, of a condemned criminal whose capital punishment has been suspended. DNA was extracted from mixed seminal/vaginal secretion stains collected 25 years ago from two raped and murdered victims, and Y chromosome STR loci (DYS19, 390, 393, YCAII) were amplified and sequenced to clarify the DNA type of the rapist. Alkaline proteinase and sodium hydroxide were used before phenol/chloroform extraction to achieve high quality DNA from very old samples. In addition, amplified fragments of DYS19, DYS390, and DYS393 were sequenced using an automated DNA sequencer. Four Y STR DNA types detected from vaginal swabs were found identical to those of the accused criminal and confirmed that the two rape and murder cases had been committed by the same person. Sapporo High Court accepted the results and rejected the retrial request in February 1998.     

Rethinking Community Organization and Robbery: Considering Illicit Market Dynamics

In this investigation we examine the relationship between the certainty of execution and murder in the District of Columbia, 1890–1970. By examining a small political/geographic unit like the District, we avoid the aggregation problems of previous time-series analyses at the national level, and time-series and cross-sectional investigations of states as the unit of analysis. At odds with the deterrence argument, we find no evidence of a substantial and/or statistically significant inverse relationship between the certainty of execution and murder rates when multiple execution and murder rate variables are considered, when various time lags are examined, and when five time periods are examined between 1890 and 1970. In contrast, there is some suggestion that the immediate effect of executions may be to increase, not decrease, murders. This possible effect is extremely slight and short-term, however, with murder and executions being largely independent factors in the District.     

Evidence of DNA from epithelial cells of the hand of the suspect found on the tool of the crime

A young woman was found unconscious in her flat strangulated with a children's scarf and was at first thought to be dead. The victim survived but is disabled for life. Neither bloodstaines nor sperm were found at the scene. Swebs of fleece were prepared from two fingers of a one-way glove which were found at the scene and from each end of the scarf in order to find some epithelial cells from the criminal. DNA was extracted and amplified by the polymerase-chain-reaction (PCR). The DNA-profile of the victim as well as that of the suspected apart living husband were found in these mixed stains. The suspect was severely incriminated by these findings and other evidence. Consequently the court convicted him to eleven years of inprisonment because of attempted manslaughter.     

Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification and human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-DQ alpha oligonucleotide typing on biological evidence samples: casework experience.

The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method of specific gene amplification was used in casework to synthesize millions of copies of the polymorphic second exon of the human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-DQ alpha (or DQA1) locus from a variety of evidence samples. The HLA-DQ alpha allelic variants in the amplified deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) were determined in a rapid non-radioactive test by hybridization to sequence-specific oligonucleotide probes in both the dot-blot and reverse dot-blot formats. This genetic typing system has been subjected to blind proficiency testing; the performance of this test in the analysis of experimentally mixed samples was also evaluated. As of August 1990, over 250 cases have been tested and more than 2000 individual evidence (bloodstains, semen stains, individual hairs, bone fragments, and tissue sections) and reference samples have been analyzed. The first 198 of these cases are summarized in this paper; in 65% of the cases with conclusive results a suspect was included, and in 35%, all suspects were excluded. Individual cases as well as some of the general issues relating to forensic science analysis and this genetic typing system are discussed. The high rate of exclusion reported here combined with the ability of PCR to type old evidence samples suggests the relevance of this genetic test for postconviction review; two cases in which the convicted suspect was excluded are discussed.     

DNA指纹图在法医学鉴定中应用的研究(Ⅱ)——应用‘Myo’小卫星探针进行血斑、精斑、个体组织的个体认定

应用‘Myo’小卫星 DNA 探针,Southern 印迹杂交技术,对血斑、精斑、同一个体不同组织进行 DNA 指纹图分析,均获得清晰的图谱。同一个体的血斑与血液、精斑与精液以及不同的组织其 DNA 指纹图谱完全相同。可以根据斑痕或组织与嫌疑个体的血液或某一组织 DNA 的指纹图谱比对以做出同一认定。50μl 血液量的血斑、5μl 精液量的精斑可以获得清晰易辨的指纹图谱。五年的精斑、两年的血斑亦可做出与同源个体新鲜精液、血液完全一致的 DNA 指纹图谱。对杀人、强奸杀人、碎尸等不同案件的血痕、精斑、不同组织碎块进行了 DNA 指纹图检验,均做出了正确的个体认定。本方法的应用为我国法医物证检验提供了新的分析手段,使个体认定得以实现。     

The Effect of Police Use of Lethal Force on Murder Levels in American Cities Before and After Ferguson

We assess the effects of police use of lethal force on subsequent murders by victim race and armed status before and after the August 2014 death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO. We regress monthly murder levels on instances of police use of lethal force by race and armed status controlling for fixed effects, population, unemployment, and murders in the prior month using city-level data for 93 cities from 2013 to 2015. For 2013–2015, we find that a police lethal force incident predicts a 1.8% increase in murders 2 months following the incident. However, prior to Ferguson, a police lethal force incident increases murders by 4.5% (after 2 months) and we are unable to find any evidence of differential responses to police use of lethal force based on victim race. However, we find evidence of differential responses to police use of lethal force based on victim armed status. Post-Ferguson, police use of lethal force is associated with significant differential responses based on victim race. In addition, we see a shift in the aggregate-level response to police use of lethal force. Post-Ferguson, a police lethal force incident decreases the murder level by 3.8% 3 months following the incident. In addition, lethal force incident involving a non-black victim decreases the number of murders by 4.3% while an incident involving a black victim increases the number of murders by 2.1% (after a 2-month lag). Changes in policing following the events of Ferguson had a generally positive but uneven effect.     

Signature murders: a report of the 1984 Cranbrook, British Columbia cases

Two females, Denean Worms and Brenda Hughes, were murdered in separate events in Cranbrook, British Columbia in 1984 within three months of each other. Terrence Wayne Burlingham was found guilty of both murders and he appealed. The Supreme Court of Canada granted Burlingham a new trial in the Worms case, but no evidence from Burlingham's confession nor the murder weapon could be used. The Crown counsel requested an evaluation of the two murders to determine if they were committed by the same person. The analyses of those murders revealed that they were linked by a personal "signature" of the killer. The murder cases reported here demonstrate a control-oriented signature. The killer used a .410 shotgun as his method of control and death, engaged in overkill of each victim by shooting them twice in the head, and left the victims in sexually degrading positions. Another signature feature was the absence of typical wounds to the victims which would be expected from a serial sex offender. All of these characteristics, in combination, accounted for this killer's personal expression.