A Randomized Trial of Probation Case Management for Drug-Involved Women Offenders

This paper reports findings from a clinical trial of a probation case management (PCM) intervention for drug-involved women offenders. Participants were randomly assigned to either PCM (n=92) or standard probation (n=91), and followed for 12 months using measures of substance abuse, psychiatric symptoms, social support and service utilization. Arrest data were collected from administrative datasets. The sample (N=183) included mostly African American (57%) and White (20%) women, with a mean age of 34.7 (SD = 9.2) and mean education of 11.6 years (SD = 2.1). Cocaine and heroin were the most frequently reported drugs of abuse, 86% reported prior history of incarceration, and 74% had children. Women assigned to both PCM and standard probation showed change over time in the direction of clinical improvement on 7 of 10 outcomes measured. However, changes observed for the PCM group were no different than those observed for the standard probation group. Higher levels of case management, drug abuse treatment, and probationary supervision may be required to achieve improved outcomes in this population.     

Multiplex short tandem repeat amplification of low template DNA samples with the addition of proofreading enzymes

Abstract:  With <100 pg of template DNA, routine short tandem repeat (STR) analysis often fails, resulting in no or partial profiles and increased stochastic effects. To overcome this, some have investigated preamplification methods that include the addition of proofreading enzymes to the PCR cocktail. This project sought to determine whether adding proofreading polymerases directly in the STR amplification mixture would improve the reaction when little template DNA is available. Platinum Taq High Fidelity and GeneAmp High Fidelity were tested in Profiler Plus? STR reactions alone and in combination with AmpliTaq^® Gold. All reactions included the additional step of a post‐PCR purification step. With both pristine low template DNA and casework samples, the addition of these polymerases resulted in comparable or no improvement in the STR amplification signal. Further, stochastic effects and artifacts were observed equally across all enzyme conditions. Based on these studies, the addition of these proofreading enzymes to a multiplex STR amplification is not recommended for low template DNA work.     

Violent criminals locked up: Examining the effect of incarceration on behavioral continuity

Purpose

The purpose of the current study was to determine whether, and the degree to which, inmates committing specific types of violent crimes in the community were prone to commit acts of violence while incarcerated.

Materials and methods

Data were collected from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice on the prison stock population and a restricted admissions cohort serving time during FY 2008.

Results

After controlling for pre-prison and post-conviction characteristics, crime of conviction retained a modest degree of influence on inmates’ propensity to commit dangerous rule violations in prison. Inmates convicted of assault, robbery and other miscellaneous violent crimes were more likely to commit dangerous rule infractions than inmates convicted of property crimes, supporting the behavioral continuity thesis. Inmates convicted of homicide were no more likely, and those convicted of sexual assault less likely, to commit dangerous rule violations in comparison to those convicted of property crimes.

Conclusions

The findings suggest that researchers and prison officials should not view all inmates convicted of one of a broad category of “violent crimes” in the community as being equivalent in their propensity for violence while incarcerated.     

The predictive value of history and scene investigation for toxicology results in a medical examiner population

Medical examiner offices vary in the extent to which they pursue postmortem toxicology. Our office routinely tests decedents for ethanol and drugs of abuse, and we decided to evaluate the usefulness of our practice. We reviewed 1180 medical examiner cases examined in 2002-2003. History and scene investigation indicated that alcohol or drugs of abuse were likely to be detected in 369 cases, yet toxicology testing revealed an intoxicating substance in 589 cases, a prevalence of 50%. Screening for toxicology testing based on investigative findings had a sensitivity of 0.47, a specificity of 0.84, and a positive predictive value of 0.74. Moreover, even in the 811 cases where initial investigation did not suggest substance abuse, toxicology testing revealed at least 1 substance that was pertinent to the subsequent investigation in one third of the cases (260), and the intoxicating substance was sufficiently important to merit inclusion as a cause of death or contributing factor in nearly half of those cases (113). We conclude that investigation alone is ineffective at predicting the presence of intoxicating substances within decedents.     

Giant berry aneurysms in a forensic setting: a series of 14 cases

This is a series reviewing 14 cases of giant saccular aneurysms diagnosed at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner of New York City collected over an 11-year period. Data collected on all 14 cases included neuropathological findings, comorbidities, and toxicological findings. Of these 14 cases, 8 were in women, and the ages ranged from 3 to 79 years, with a mean and a median of 50 years. Women were overrepresented in the sixth through eighth decades. Of the 14 cases described, 11 presented with a subarachnoid hemorrhage; 3, no hemorrhage; 2, subdural hemorrhage; 8, intraventricular hemorrhage; 2, intracerebral hemorrhage; and 8, more than 1 hemorrhage type. Location of the aneurysms varied with 6 in the left side of the brain, 6 present in the right side of the brain, and 2 at the midline. We described the clinical, pathological, and toxicological findings associated with these giant aneurysms.     

Correcting the Count: Improving Vital Statistics Data Regarding Deaths Related to Obesity

Obesity can involve any organ system and compromise the overall health of an individual, including premature death. Despite the increased risk of death associated with being obese, obesity itself is infrequently indicated on the death certificate. We performed an audit of our records to identify how often “obesity” was listed on the death certificate to determine how our practices affected national mortality data collection regarding obesity‐related mortality. During the span of nearly 25 years, 0.2% of deaths were attributed to or contributed by obesity. Over the course of 5 years, 96% of selected natural deaths were likely underreported as being associated with obesity. We present an algorithm for certifiers to use to determine whether obesity should be listed on the death certificate and guidelines for certifying cases in which this is appropriate. Use of this algorithm will improve vital statistics concerning the role of obesity in causing or contributing to death.     

Fisheries management in Jamaica,international perspectives

Abstract

This paper examines Jamaica's efforts to implement of the conservation and management provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), bearing in mind that prior to 1982 there was an existing legal framework that sought to address issues relating to fisheries management. More specifically, the paper looks at the issues related to the conservation and management of straddling and highly migratory fish stocks under UNCLOS and subsequent agreements negotiated under the auspices of UNCLOS. It also addresses the problems Jamaica faces with the conservation and management of Queen Conch (Strombus Gigas), in particular, the UNCLOS provisions regarding access to such resource, taking into account the limitations to such access as regulated by the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).     

Comment on Dennis P. Culhane et al.’s “public shelter admission rates in Philadelphia and New York City: The implications of turnover for sheltered population counts”

The article here extended reflects on the excessively narrow debate over the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs)' cost-benefit transfer balance which had been raging for a quarter-century before the 2007–2009 financial crisis. That crisis has cast a new light on the actual costs of GSE operations and exposed the unsustainability of some of their benefits for homeownership. After injecting afew new findings into the traditional debate, this comment adds some of what has transpired in recent years and what may be inferred from it so far. Doing so brings additional analysis to bear on the article's conclusion that “the GSEs might not be justified” and “Maybe it is time for them to exit” although most politicians in the past have been disinclined to show them the door.