SWGDAM developmental validation of a 19-locus Y-STR system for forensic casework

A Scientific Working Group on DNA Analysis Methods (SWGDAM) developmental validation study was carried out on two Y-STR multiplex systems (MPI and MPII) that collectively permit the co-amplification of 19 Y-STR markers, including DYS393, DYS392, DYS391, DYS389I, DYS389II, Y-GATA-A7.2 (DYS461), DYS438, DYS385a and DYS385b (MPI); DYS425, DYS388, DYS390, DYS439, DYS434, DYS437, Y-GATA-C.4, Y-GATA-A7.1 (DYS460), Y-GATA-H.4, and DYS 19 (MPII). Performance checks subsequent to PCR parameter optimization indicated that MPI and MPII were suitably reproducible, precise and accurate for forensic use. The sensitivity of the systems was such that a full 19-locus Y-STR profile was obtainable with 150-200 pg of male DNA, and some loci were detectable even with as little as 20-30 pg of input DNA. Primate specificity was demonstrated by the lack of cross-reactivity with a variety of commonly encountered bacterial and animal species, with the single exception of a monomorphic canine product that was outside of the size range of human alleles from any of the 19 loci. Not surprisingly, cross-reactivity was observed with a number of male and female nonhuman primates. Environmentally compromised samples produced full or partial Y-STR profiles. For example, a semen stain exposed to the outdoor elements for six months still gave a 13-locus Y-STR profile. Although a limited number of female DNA artifacts were observed in mixed stains in which the male DNA comprised 1/300 of the total, the full 19-locus male profile was easily discernible. Even at a 1500-to-2000-fold dilution of male DNA with female DNA partial Y-STR profiles were obtained. Furthermore, the potential utility of MPI and MPII for forensic casework is exemplified by their ability to dissect out the male haplotype in a variety of case-type samples, including, inter alia, post-coital vaginal swabs, admixed male and female bloodstains, the nonsperm fraction from a differentially extracted semen stain, and determination of the number of male donors in mixed semen stains.     

Disability, disparate impact, and class actions

Following Title VII's enactment, group-based employment discrimination actions flourished due to disparate impact theory and the class action device. Courts recognized that subordination that defined a group's social identity was also sufficient legally to bind members together, even when relief had to be issued individually. Woven through these cases was a notion of panethnicity that united inherently unrelated groups into a common identity, for example, Asian Americans. Stringent judicial interpretation subsequently eroded both legal frameworks and it has become increasingly difficult to assert collective employment actions, even against discriminatory practices affecting an entire group. This deconstruction has immensely disadvantaged persons with disabilities. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), individual employee claims to accommodate specific impairments, such as whether to install ramps or replace computer screens, have all but eclipsed a coherent theory of disability-based disparate impact law. Moreover, the class action device has been virtually nonexistent in disability discrimination employment cases. The absence of collective action has been especially harmful because the realm of the workplace is precisely where group-based remedies are needed most. Specifically, a crucial but overlooked issue in disability integration is the harder-to-reach embedded norms that require job and policy modifications. The Article argues that pandisability theory serves as an analogue to earlier notions of panethnicity and provides an equally compelling heuristic for determining class identity. It shows that pandisability undergirds ADA public service and public accommodation class actions in which individualized remedy assessments have been accepted as part of group-based challenges to social exclusion. The Article also demonstrates that this broader vision of collective action is consistent with the history underlying the class action device. Taking advantage of the relatively blank slate of writing on group-based disability discrimination, it offers an intrepid vision of the ADA's potential for transforming workplace environments. In advocating for a return to an earlier paradigm of collective action in the disability context, the Article also provides some thoughts on challenging race- and sex-based discrimination. Future workplace policies should plan for "all jobs to include some physical activity" unrelated to job qualifications in order to "dissuade unhealthy people from coming to work at Wal-Mart."     

GC-MS of ignitable liquids using solvent-desorbed SPME for automated analysis

Solid-phase microextraction (SPME) is well documented with respect to its convenience and applicability to sampling volatiles. Nonetheless, fire debris analysts have yet to widely adopt SPME as a viable extraction technique, although several fire debris studies have demonstrated the utility of SPME coupled with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to identify ignitable liquids. This work considers the expansion of SPME sampling from the customary thermal desorption mode to solvent-based analyte desorption for the analysis of ignitable residues. SPME extraction fibers are desorbed in 30 microL of nonaqueous solvent to yield a solution amenable to conventional GC-MS analysis with standard autosampler apparatus. This approach retains the advantages of convenience and sampling time associated with thermal desorption while simultaneously improving the flexibility and throughput of the method. Based on sampling results for three ignitable liquids (gasoline, kerosene, anddiesel fuel) in direct comparisons with the widely used activated charcoal strip (ACS) method this methodology appears to be a viable alternative to the routinely used ACS method.     

Effects of victim's and defendant's physical attractiveness on the perception of responsibility in an ambiguous domestic violence case

A 2 × 4 × 4 factorial design was used to assess the effects of physical attractiveness in a domestic violence case. The attractiveness of both the defendant and victim were varied along four levels. Subjects were asked to read a domestic violence scenario where pictures of the defendant and victim were varied according their physical attractiveness. Results showed no significant effect of physical attractiveness in a juridic decision-making process in domestic violence. However, there were significant differences between male and female subjects in the sentencing of the defendant. This difference did not hold true for finding the defendant guilty or not guilty.     

Investigating Residential History Using Stable Hydrogen and Oxygen Isotopes of Human Hair and Drinking Water

The relationship between isotopic signals in human hair and geographic region has potential forensic applications for identifying unknown individuals' place of recent residence. This study analyzes δ²H and δ¹⁸O isotopes in residential tap water and bulk hair samples from 17 volunteers representing 12 locations in Ontario, Canada. There is a strong correlation (R² = 0.9) between δ²H and δ¹⁸O values of the water samples. In contrast, the δ²H and δ¹⁸O values of the hair samples are weakly correlated (R² = 0.3), and the greater variability in the data is linked to dietary factors. This study demonstrates that the δ²H and δ¹⁸O values of hair and drinking water can be used to help identify potential place of residence in forensic cases, particularly in relation to proximity to large bodies of water such as the Great Lakes, but interpretations are complicated by the contribution of both water and diet to δ²H and δ¹⁸O values in hair.     

Critical Punishment Memorialization in Canada

Recent criminological scholarship on penal history museums has shown how sites of popular culture tend to silence the voices of prisoners and present them in ways that legitimate the deprivation of their liberty. While representations that reinforce the penal status quo are observable at most Canadian penal history sites, there are outliers that situate imprisonment as a form of oppression, and account for prisoners’ struggles and resistance. Drawing on three case studies from a 5-year qualitative research project on Canadian lock-up, jail, prison and penitentiary museums, we discuss what critical punishment memorialization looks like in a context of penal intensification in Canada. We show how such critical representations depend on the historical contextualization of penality as a manifestation of colonialism and/or the incorporation of prisoners’ voices and standpoint. We argue that the critical representations and narratives at these museum sites open up possibilities for the social distance between penal spectators and the incarcerated to be diminished by bringing humanizing prisoner narratives into focus in an otherwise dark tourist space.     

Routine Activities Theory as a Formula for Systematic Sexual Abuse: A Content Analysis of Survivors’ Testimony Against Larry Nassar

American Journal of Criminal Justice - Larry Nassar, a once world renowned Olympic doctor, was arrested and charged with child abuse and child pornography in 2016, becoming one of the most prolific...