Collembola of the grave: a cold case history involving arthropods 28 years after death

This report describes a cold case in which a cadaver of a 28-year-old female was exhumed in February 2005 from a cemetery in Battle Creek, Michigan. She had sustained a gunshot wound to the head and was found dead in her home on November 15, 1977. The body of the victim was subsequently embalmed and then buried at a depth of 1.8 m in an unsealed casket that was placed inside an unsealed cement vault. The exhumation yielded thousands of live specimens of a single species of the order Collembola or spring tails, Sinella (Coecobrya) tenebricosa (Entomobryidae). This species is considered to be a "tramp" species, cosmopolitan in the United States and Canada. Due to the ideal environmental conditions at the site, the population of this species underwent growth and development inside the casket for a number of years. Collected with the Collembola were large numbers of Acarina (mites) of the Family Glycyphagidae, and fly puparia, Conicera tibialis Schmitz (Order: Diptera, Family: Phoridae), also known as coffin flies. These invertebrates are sometimes mentioned by forensic investigators as occurring on corpses in graves, but aspects of their life history are rarely described. The species of Collembola that was found surviving and reproducing on this corpse in a casket exhumed after 28 years was the oldest reported grave site occurrence for any collembolan species based on a survey of the literature back to 1898.     

Infrared spectroscopic imaging for noninvasive detection of latent fingerprints

The capability of Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopic imaging to provide detailed images of unprocessed latent fingerprints while also preserving important trace evidence is demonstrated. Unprocessed fingerprints were developed on various porous and nonporous substrates. Data-processing methods used to extract the latent fingerprint ridge pattern from the background material included basic infrared spectroscopic band intensities, addition and subtraction of band intensity measurements, principal components analysis (PCA) and calculation of second derivative band intensities, as well as combinations of these various techniques. Additionally, trace evidence within the fingerprints was recovered and identified.     

DNA identification of "Earthquake McGoon" 50 years postmortem

This report describes the genetic identification of James "Earthquake McGoon" McGovern, a WWII fighter ace who perished in Laos while providing supplies to French troops during the French Indochina war. Because reference samples were unavailable for all of the potential casualties, testing of the entire mitochondrial genome, autosomal STRs and Y-chromosomal STRs was performed to increase the genetic information available for analysis. Kinship analyses performed on the evidentiary data and numerous indirect family references for McGovern excluded other possible casualties and definitively established McGovern's identity. This particular case demonstrates the practical utility of novel research technologies and aggressive genetic typing protocols in the identification of aged, degraded remains.     

Diagnostic and risk profiles among civilly committed sex offenders in Washington State

Since 1990, 17 states have passed legislation allowing for the civil commitment of a small number of sex offenders who are deemed at a particularly high risk for reoffense. Despite the very public and controversial nature of these laws, little is known about the individuals who are detained pursuant to them. The current article presents data on 190 civilly committed and detained sexually violent predators in Washington State. These sexual offenders suffer from a variety of mental illnesses. The modal offender is diagnosed with both an Axis I and an Axis II disorder. Furthermore, these offenders are at moderate to high risk for reoffense and present with a significant degree of psychopathy.     

How ‘Vulnerable’ young people describe their interactions with police: building positive pathways to drug diversion and treatment in Sydney and Melbourne,Australia

This article describes findings from an Australian mixed method study, and explores young people’s perceptions of police. We focus on the nature of positive experiences, and the potential for positive encounters to improve outcomes for young offenders affected by problematic alcohol and other drug use. Buber’s concept of dialogical interaction is used to articulate the components of a positive experience and how this increases police legitimacy. In doing so, we demonstrate that, despite negative experiences, young people can be sympathetic to the tensions of modern policing, and can envisage police as positive role models. As such, police can enhance outcomes for ‘vulnerable’ young people through more respectful interactions.     

Citrate Content of Bone as a Measure of Postmortem Interval: An External Validation Study

The postmortem interval (PMI) of skeletal remains is a crucial piece of information that can help establish the time dimension in criminal cases. Unfortunately, the accurate and reliable determination of PMI from bone continues to evade forensic investigators despite concerted efforts over the past decades to develop suitable qualitative and quantitative methods. A relatively new PMI method based on the analysis of citrate content of bone was developed by Schwarcz et al. The main objective of our research was to determine whether this work could be externally validated. Thirty‐one bone samples were obtained from the Forensic Anthropology Center, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and the Onondaga County Medical Examiner's Office. Results from analyzing samples with PMI greater than 2 years suggest that the hypothetical relationship between the citrate content of bone and PMI is much weaker than reported. It was also observed that the average absolute error between the PMI value estimated using the equation proposed by Schwarcz et al. and the actual (“true”) PMI of the sample was negative indicating an underestimation in PMI. These findings are identical to those reported by Kanz et al. Despite these results this method may still serve as a technique to sort ancient from more recent skeletal cases, after further, similar validation studies have been conducted.     

Why Police “Couldn't or Wouldn't” Submit Sexual Assault Kits for Forensic DNA Testing: A Focal Concerns Theory Analysis of Untested Rape Kits

In jurisdictions throughout United States, thousands of sexual assault kits (SAKs) (also termed “rape kits”) have not been submitted by the police for forensic DNA testing. DNA evidence may be helpful to sexual assault investigations and prosecutions by identifying offenders, revealing serial offenders through DNA matches across cases, and exonerating those who have been wrongly accused, so it is important to understand why police are not utilizing this evidence. In this study, we applied focal concerns theory to understand discretionary practices in rape kit testing. We conducted a three‐year ethnography in one city that had large numbers of untested SAKs—Detroit, Michigan—to understand why thousands of SAKs collected between 1980 and 2009 were never submitted by the police for forensic DNA testing. Drawing upon observational, interview, and archival data, we found that while practical concerns regarding resources available for forensic analysis were clearly a factor, as Detroit did not have the funding or staffing to test all SAKs and investigate all reported rapes, focal concerns regarding victim credibility and victim cooperation were more influential in explaining why rape kits were not tested. Implications for the criminal justice system response to sexual assault and rape kit testing legislation are examined.     

Bill of Sale Lending: Reforming a ‘Toxic’ Form of Credit

The Bills of Sale Acts were enacted in Victorian times as a form of secured credit whereby ‘goods’ owned by a borrower could be assigned under the bill of sale to a lender who would have title to the goods transferred to him. The lender would then allow the borrower to retain possession of the goods in exchange for instalment payments with interest. In the twenty‐first century these bills are most commonly used as ‘logbook loans’ for vehicles with extortionate interest rates and very little protection for individual consumers. This article examines the operational background to the Bill of Sale Acts. It focuses upon particular concerns for consumers and businesses and provides critique of the registration process before examining the proposals and consultations for reform currently before the Law Commission.     

Disparate reports of stress and family relations between youth who commit sexual crimes and their caregivers

Certain family factors, including dynamics, interactions and communication patterns, experiences of intra-familial victimisation, overall functioning and attachment can increase propensities for the commission of a sexual crime and may even be linked to recidivism. However, there is an absence of research that examines factors that contribute to problematic family relationships and how youth and caregivers vary in perceptions of family relationships. The current cross-sectional research study delivered the same validated instruments to youth (n?=?46) and their caregivers (n?=?46) to determine relative perceptions of family relationships and stress. Two multiple regression models were conducted to determine factors that contribute to problematic family relationships. Youth reported greater stress scores and more problems in family relationships relative to caregivers. Stress contributed to family relationship problems for youth and caregivers, but protective factors were associated with less family relationship problems for caregivers. Treatment and research implications are discussed.     

Systemic error: measuring gender in criminological research

This study examines how sex and gender are measured and operationalized in studies on criminology and criminal justice (CCJ) through content analysis of peer-reviewed journals. Despite that they are distinct and not always parallel, the terms sex and gender are often used interchangeably in CCJ research. Moreover, despite increasing recognition that gender-responsive practices are important at every stage of the criminal justice process, gender is almost exclusively measured as a male-female binary, miscategorizing and failing to properly account for those who do not fit in one of those gender identities. There are important implications for the safety of such individuals, as both victims and offenders throughout the criminal justice process, therefore it is essential that we more accurately measure gender in this field. Recommendations for improvement are addressed.