The Portuguese Cortes during the reign of Ferdinand I (1367–83): the context of the Hundred Years War (1337–1453)

This article focuses on the study of the Cortes that convened during the reign of King Ferdinand I (1367–83), which took place in the context of the wars experienced in Europe, in the Iberian peninsula and in Portugal. First, it is shown how the Hundred Years War impacted on the Iberian peninsula from the moment when Henry of Trastámara, with the support of France, opposed the rule of his half-brother, Peter of Castile. At the same time, the Portuguese King Ferdinand I presented himself as a candidate to the Castilian throne, with the support of England. The three Fernandine Wars that took place in 1369–71, 1372–73 and 1381–82 are then briefly described. Next, this article examines the eight Cortes that met during the reign of Ferdinand I, showing how they were all summoned because of the war. Finally, this article analyses the appeals made by the municipalities in the Cortes of Lisbon of 1371, the Cortes of Oporto of 1372 and the Cortes of Leiria of 1372, with special attention given to the many military, economic, social, administrative and fiscal appeals and requests arising from the ills of war. Hence, it is concluded that the Cortes were unable to solve many of these problems, even though they contributed to restraining certain abuses. They were mostly an opportunity for dialogue between the king and the commoners, as well as a mitigating factor of greater tension and social conflict in this internal and external state of war. Within the context of war, the strength of the Cortes as a representative institution was reinforced, as well as the power and representativeness of the procurators of the commoners within the Cortes.     

Clinical change in psychopathic traits after the PSYCHOPATHY.COMP program: preliminary findings of a controlled trial with male detained youth

Journal of Experimental Criminology - To assess the preliminary efficacy of the PSYCHOPATHY.COMP in reducing psychopathic traits among male detained youth. In this controlled trial, a treatment...     

The temporal fate of drugs in decomposing porcine tissue

Drug levels in decomposed individuals are difficult to interpret. Concentrations of 16 drugs were monitored in tissues (blood, brain, liver, kidney, muscle, and soil) from decomposing pigs for 1 week. Pigs were divided into groups (n = 5) with each group receiving four drugs. Drug cocktails were prepared from pharmaceutical formulations. Intracardiac pentobarbital sacrifice was 4 h after dosing, with tissue collection at 4, 24, 48, 96, and 168 h postdosing. Samples were frozen until assay. Detection and quantitation of drugs were through solid phase extraction followed by gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer analysis. Brain and kidneys were not available after 48 h; liver and muscle persisted for 1 week. Concentration of drugs increased during decomposition. During 1 week of decomposition, muscle showed average levels increasing but concentrations in liver were increased many fold, compared to muscle. Attempting to interpret drug levels in decomposed bodies may lead to incorrect conclusions about cause and manner of death.     

Leadership in multiple perpetrator stranger rape

Sexual offences by multiple perpetrators are more violent and involve more severe forms of sexual violation than those perpetrated by a lone offender. Often a clear leader exists within these groups. Questions have been raised as to the relative risk of reoffending and the potentially differing criminogenic needs of leaders and followers. However, a recent study comparing leaders and followers in juvenile multiple perpetrator rapes (t'Hart-Kerkhoffs et al., 2011) failed to find some of the expected differences. It was proposed that this might be due, in part, to the way leaders and followers were classified in the study. Before work can progress in this area, it is important to devise reliable and valid means of identifying leaders and followers in multiple perpetrator rape. This article reports on a study which investigated the utility of two different methods of identifying leadership. The Scale of Influence (Porter & Alison, 2001) was applied to a sample of 256 offenders responsible for 95 multiple perpetrator rapes from the United Kingdom. Following this, the relative number of directives uttered by offenders was used to designate leadership. In 66% of the offences sampled, a leader was designated using the number of directives uttered compared with 80% when using the Scale of Influence. When combining both measures to form a composite measure of leadership, this percentage increased to 89%. Classifications of offenders as leaders, followers, and neither, according to the Scale of Influence, the count of directives, and the composite measure, were compared with classifications made by a practitioner to assess their concordance. The composite measure showed the greatest agreement with practitioner opinion. These findings suggest that the Scale of Influence could be developed to take account of other ways that leadership is displayed during multiple perpetrator rapes.     

Allelic frequencies and statistical data obtained from 48 AIM INDEL loci in an admixed population from the Brazilian Amazon

Allelic frequencies of 48 informative insert-delete (INDEL) loci were obtained from a sample set of 130 unrelated individuals living in Macapá, a city located in the northern Amazon region, in Brazil. The values of heterozygosity (H), polymorphic information content (PIC), power of discrimination (PD), power of exclusion (PE), matching probability (MP) and typical paternity index (TPI) were calculated and showed the forensic efficiency of these genetic markers. Based on the allele frequency obtained for the population of Macapá, we estimated an interethnic admixture for the three parental groups (European, Native American and African) of, respectively, 50%, 21% and 29%. Comparing these allele frequencies with those of other Brazilian populations and the parental populations, statistically significant distances were found. The interpopulation genetic distance (F_ST coefficients) to the present database ranged from F_ST = 0.0431 (p < 0.00001) between Macapá and Belém to F_ST = 0.266 (p < 0.00001) between Macapá and the Native American group.     

Integrative and Distributive Bargaining Situations in the European Union: What Difference Does It Make?

Despite the distinction made between integrative and distributive bargaining situations in European studies literature, few studies have focused specifically on how these two situations differ. This article attempts to close this gap by examining two key bargaining situations involving fisheries that led to the Europeanization of this policy field. The integrative bargaining situation dealt with the negotiations about the structural policy and common organization of the market for fish products. In contrast, the distributive bargaining case focused on the protracted negotiations over resource conservation and management policies. The article focuses primarily on how the unanimity decision rule may affect negotiation patterns in the European Union and on how the specific type of bargaining situation affects policy outcomes. The thesis is that different bargaining tools are used to reach an agreement.     

Recovering obliterated laser engraved serial numbers in firearms

An easy procedure for recovering obliterated firearms serial numbers, which are laser engraved is presented in this case report. For these serial numbers, the traditional recovering method using acid etching generally fails, once marking the serial number does not necessarily imply a deep permanent deformation of the crystalline array. The standard required mirror-like finish of the surface commonly can destroy any evidence of the original serial number, i.e., can destroy the heat affected zone (HAZ) of only few micra, if it is still present. It is shown in this report that relief polishing and reflected light stereomicroscopy can, in certain cases, successfully reveal obliterated serial numbers, originally marked by laser. The use of this procedure for recovering this type of obliterated serial number is illustrated and discussed with an example we have dealt with.     

The analysis of biological samples from crime scene for a future human DNA profile confrontation. Effects of presumptive test reagents on the ability to obtain STR profiles for human identification

Because of the increase of evidence of blood stains, that have been washed or cleaned in an attempt to mask the analysis of DNA profiles, there is also an increase in the use of presumptive tests on samples sent to laboratories. Some of the presumptive tests, used to identify blood and semen stains, could potentially affect the recovery of high molecular weight DNA from the samples, or extinguish them, especially those already present in small quantities. After the presumptive tests, often these samples are discarded. This study aimed to examine the possibility of obtaining a DNA profile from samples submitted for presumptive testing and cleaned with bleaches with and without chlorine. Two different protocols were conducted: (a) A unique sample of human blood in natura (5 μL), already typed through the DNA techniques with the genetic profile previously known (control), was distributed onto cotton fabrics and dried at room temperature. Four samples of fabric were macerated in saline solution and Coombs serum and then stored for three months (room temperature and freezer −20 °C). (b) Another sample of human blood, type A, in natura, already typed through the techniques of DNA (control) was used. Aliquots of 200 μL were distributed in: cotton, denim and synthetic fabric. The samples were dried at room temperature for 24 h. The blood stains in those fabrics (cotton, denim and synthetic) were then divided into three groups: unwashed, cleaned with chlorine bleach and cleaned with chlorine bleach and soap powder. The samples were again dried at room temperature for 24 h, before the use of luminol. The DNA were extracted with Chelex 100 and amplified with the Identifiler Kit (Applied Biosystems). The blood stains exposed to saline and Coombs serum had DNA profiles consistent with untreated samples (controls). This result shows that the experts should keep and store the samples treated with saline and Coombs serum for future DNA confrontation when necessary. Also discussed in this paper the pattern of blood stains after washing with bleaching solutions, as well as the quantity of DNA obtained from these samples.     

Comparison Among Manual Facial Approximations Conducted by Two Methodological Approaches of Face Prediction

This study verified the difference between two methods of forensic facial approximation (FFA) regarding recognition and resemblance rates. Three‐dimensional models of skulls were obtained from computerized tomography (CT) scans of two subjects (targets). Two manual FFAs were performed for each target, by applying two different guidelines for the facial structures (what we called “American method” (AM) and “Combined method” (CM)). Unfamiliar assessors evaluated the sculptures by recognition and resemblance tests. The AM was that which allowed more correct responses of recognition and higher resemblance's scores for the male target (p < 0.001). Regarding guidelines for modeling characteristics of the face, the ones that are practical and easily performed for sculptures, such as the length of the anterior nasal spine multiplied by 3 for nose prediction, may offer better results in terms of resemblance.