Effects of Cyanoacrylate Fuming,Time After Recovery,and Location of Biological Material on the Recovery and Analysis of DNA from Post‐Blast Pipe Bomb Fragments*

Abstract: This study investigated the effects of time, cyanoacrylate fuming, and location of the biological material on DNA analysis of post‐blast pipe bomb fragments. Multiple aliquots of a cell suspension (prepared by soaking buccal swabs in water) were deposited on components of the devices prior to assembly. The pipe bombs were then deflagrated and the fragments recovered. Fragments from half of the devices were cyanoacrylate fumed. The cell spots on the fragments were swabbed and polymerase chain reaction/short tandem repeat analysis was performed 1 week and 3 months after deflagration. A significant decrease in the amount of DNA recovered was observed between samples collected and analyzed within 1 week compared with the samples collected and analyzed 3 months after deflagration. Cyanoacrylate fuming did not have a measurable effect on the success of the DNA analysis at either time point. Greater quantities of DNA were recovered from the pipe nipples than the end caps. Undeflagrated controls showed that the majority (>95%) of the DNA deposited on the devices was not recovered at a week or 3 months.     

Attitudes about electronic monitoring: Minority and majority racial group differences

Past public opinion research routinely uncovered significant variation in attitudes toward justice system policies among different racial groups. The bulk of punishment attitudinal research, for the most part, focused on more severe sanctions, namely, incarceration and the death penalty. More recent research investigated the perspectives and experiences associated with intermediate sanctions. There are few intermediate sanctions receiving more attention than the use of electronic monitoring, especially with sex offenders. In this article, it is demonstrated that non-White college students have significantly different attitudes about the punitiveness and inequality of electronic monitoring. These findings were uncovered through 599 completed surveys from two universities, and using factor analysis and least-squares regression analysis. Theoretical and practical implications for continued use of this sanction are discussed.     

Multiple murder and criminal careers: A latent class analysis of multiple homicide offenders

PurposeTo construct an empirically rigorous typology of multiple homicide offenders (MHOs).MethodThe current study conducted latent class analysis of the official records of 160 MHOs sampled from eight states to evaluate their criminal careers.ResultsA 3-class solution best fit the data (?2LL = ?1123.61, Bayesian Information Criterion (BIC) = 2648.15, df = 81, L² = 1179.77). Class 1 (n = 64, class assignment probability = .999) was the low-offending group marked by little criminal record and delayed arrest onset. Class 2 (n = 51, class assignment probability = .957) was the severe group that represents the most violent and habitual criminals. Class 3 (n = 45, class assignment probability = .959) was the moderate group whose offending careers were similar to Class 2.ConclusionA sustained criminal career with involvement in versatile forms of crime was observed for two of three classes of MHOs. Linkages to extant typologies and recommendations for additional research that incorporates clinical constructs are proffered.     

A test of methodology intended to assist detection of aggressive offence paralleling behaviour within secure settings

Purpose. Treatments and risk assessments determined by the offence paralleling behaviour (OPB) framework appear to have found a place in practice well ahead of empirical support and conceptual clarity. Although the framework is intuitively appealing its inappropriate use may have profound negative implications for patients. Incapacitation and unnecessary treatments may be demanded when observed behaviours are interpreted as evidence of persistent pathology related to previous patterns of criminal offending. Conversely, behaviours occurring within institutions that are not topographically similar but that fall within the same response class and do represent the continuation of problematic patterns of behaviour may be ignored if observers are not sensitive to the possibility that problem behaviours, albeit muted, may persist within institutions. Methods. This paper presents a study examining the similarity of personality disordered patients' violent index acts with their aggressive behaviour during hospitalization. Results. Results revealed evidence of cross situational similarity for some but not all aggressive behaviours. Conclusion. These results provide support for the OPB framework. However, the lack of similarity on a significant number of incidents indicates a need for thorough, structured analysis to determine whether an aggressive behaviour observed in an institution parallels violent acts preceding incarceration.     

Universal Cash Transfers and Labor Market Outcomes

One major criticism of Universal Basic Income is that unconditional cash transfers discourage recipients from working. Evidence to date has largely relied on targeted and/or conditional transfer programs. However, it is difficult to draw conclusions from such programs because universal transfers may induce a positive demand shock by distributing cash to a large portion of the population, which may in turn offset any negative labor supply responses. We estimate the causal effects of universal cash transfers on short-run labor market activity by exploiting the timing and variation in size of a long-running unconditional and universal transfer: Alaska's Permanent Fund Dividend. We find evidence of both a positive labor demand and negative labor supply response to the transfers. Small negative effects on the number of hours worked are found for women, especially those with young children. In contrast, we find an increase in the probability of employment for males in the months following the distribution. Altogether, a $1,000 increase in the per-person disbursement leads to a 0.8 percent labor market contraction on an annual basis.     

Homicidal Ideation and Forensic Psychopathology: Evidence From the 2016 Nationwide Emergency Department Sample (NEDS)

Homicide is the most serious and costly criminal offense and better forensic and criminological understanding of homicidal ideation as a potential psychobehavioral precursor to homicidal conduct is critical. Using data from the 2016 Nationwide Emergency Department Sample (NEDS) from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) distributed by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), we found 64,910 cases of homicidal ideation among a sample of 25.6 + million—a prevalence of 0.25%. Numerous conditions conferred increased substantially the likelihood of homicidal ideation including antisocial personality disorder (2406%), schizoaffective disorder (1821%), borderline personality disorder (1557%), paranoid personality disorder (1,504%), schizophrenia (1,143%), obsessive–compulsive personality disorder (921%), brief psychotic disorder (771%), unspecified psychosis (737%), avoidant personality disorder (596%), and schizoid personality disorder (571%), delusional disorder (546%), and other psychotic disorder (504%). Homicidal ideation is comorbid with serious psychiatric and behavioral problems and has important implications for offender typologies and homicidality.     

Editorial Access and Allocation in Earth System Governance

International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics -