Criminological and Medico-legal Aspects in Homicidal and Suicidal Sharp Force Fatalities

The interpretation of sharp force fatality dynamics may be difficult in some cases, but a contribution to analysis of the phenomenon may be provided by case studies. Therefore, the purpose of our study is focused on identifying, in observed sharp force fatalities, reliable parameters that can differentiate a homicidal and suicidal manner of death, with particular reference to criminological parameters. Data derived from sharp force fatality cases in Padua and Venice from 1997 to 2019, anonymized and collected in Excel, included personal, circumstantial, clinical, and psychopathological–criminological data, as well as crime scene investigation, necroscopic, and toxicological data. Statistical analyses were performed using chi-square and Wilcoxon rank-sum tests. Possible predictors of homicide were analyzed by logistic regression. Six parameters (bloodstains distant from the body, clothing lacerations, hesitation/defense wounds, number of injuries, and potential motives) were significantly different in the two groups (p < 0.05). An independent statistical association between potential motives explaining the crime (p < 0.001; OR 27.533) and homicide on multiple logistic regression analysis was highlighted. The absence of clothing lacerations was inversely related to homicide (p = 0.002, OR 0.092). To the best of our knowledge, this is one of very few Italian studies concerning the differential diagnosis between homicidal and suicidal sharp force fatalities. The dynamics of the event is established in most cases by the integrated evaluation of data from crime scene investigation and the autopsy. Nevertheless, in an atypical scenario, a psychopathological–criminological analysis may provide essential elements, and particular attention should be given to the identification of potential explanatory motives.     

Multi-Rater Agreement Using the Adapted Fracture Healing Scale (AFHS) for the Assessment of Tubular Bones on Conventional Radiographs: Preliminary Study*

Better understanding of the timing of fracture healing may help in cases of interpersonal violence but also of personal identification. The intra- and inter-rater agreement for the adapted fracture healing scale (AFHS) assessing the post-traumatic time interval on radiographs were tested. This is a preliminary study, providing essential information on method reliability for upcoming studies using the AFHS. Five raters (two radiologists, a forensic pathologist, an orthopedist, and an anthropologist) were presented with a test in three parts consisting of 85 radiographs (from 30 adults) of fractures of tubular bones in different stages of healing purposefully selected from more than 1500 radiographs. The raters were firstly asked to assess 15 features describing fracture healing as present, absent, or not assessable. Thereafter, the raters were asked to choose from the AFHS a single-stage best representing the observed healing pattern. The intra- and inter-rater agreement were assessed using single-rating, absolute agreement, two-way mixed-effects intra-class correlation (ICC) coefficients. The intra-rater ICC of radiologist 1 ranged from 0.80 to 0.94. The radiologists’ inter-rater ICC ranged from 0.68 to 0.74, while it ranged from −0.01 to 0.90 for the other raters. The good to excellent ICC among the radiologists and forensic anthropologist provides good foundation for the use of the AFHS in forensic cases of trauma dating. The poor to good results for the other physicians indicate that using the AFHS requires training in skeletal anatomy and radiology.     

Family Functioning and Adolescent Internalizing and Externalizing Problems: Disentangling between-, and Within-Family Associations

Journal of Youth and Adolescence - Adolescence is often a period of onset for internalizing and externalizing problems. At the same time, adolescent maturation and increasing autonomy from parents...     

School predictors of alcohol use in high school Hispanic and non-Hispanic youth

Many youth alcohol prevention programs are not culturally sensitive and have focused on avoidance tactics. Given the differences in alcohol use and the possibly differing intervention strategies for Hispanic and non-Hispanic youth, this study aims to analyze the contributing factors of alcohol use within these two groups. Two hundred and one high school students participated in a survey. Findings indicate that prevention programs should focus on situational opportunities to use alcohol for both Hispanic and non-Hispanic youth. For Hispanic students, school management skills did not relate to less alcohol use, as expected. There should be less emphasis on how risky drinking can be, and more emphasis on the moral implications or “wrongness” of drinking, particularly for non-Hispanics. The discussion includes some possible interpretations of the relationship between skill management skills and heightened alcohol use for Hispanic students.     

Intimate Partner Homicide in Portugal: What Are the (As)Symmetries Between Men and Women?

European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research - There is consensus that intimate partner homicide (IPH) is a gender crime and that it is one of the most extreme forms of violence. This study...     

A new method of reproduction of fingerprints from corpses in a bad state of preservation using latex

In view of the problems arising while fingerprinting corpses in a bad state of preservation, especially in case of mummification and carbonization, the authors propose an innovative technique which uses latex film. To better illustrate the potential of the method, two cases where the latex technique was applied successfully are reported: the first one is a mummified body discovered in a shack on the outskirts of Milan and the second one is the case of a burnt corpse found in a car boot. Such a technique is versatile, easy to apply, and allows the operator to work quickly on cadavers without amputating parts, except in rare cases (i.e., burnt bodies with muscle retraction). By the latex technique, a perfect and enduring negative copy of the fingerprint is obtained, ready to be inked and photographed. The numerous copies produced this way can be inked several times allowing for the repeatability of the procedure and this is crucial in cases of problematic legal identification of corpses. In both the cases illustrated, the fingerprints obtained by the latex technique were useful for identification. The quality was good enough for the automatic fingerprint identification system research system to be applied.     

Waiver of the psychotherapist-patient privilege: implications for child custody litigation

The psychotherapist-patient privilege, rooted in both common and statutory law, is predicated upon the public policy goal of protecting the reasonable expectation of privacy of individuals seeking psychotherapy. The privilege is not absolute, however. State and federal courts are far from uniform in determining how and when the privilege should be waived, in whole or in part, through implication, inadvertence or the affirmative action of the parties. In the family law context, the law that has evolved around the exercise of this privilege is even more complex as the needs of children add another wrinkle to the goal of balancing the imperative of confidentiality with the need for useful information that may be provided.     

Distribution of Y chromosomal STRs loci in Mayan and Mestizo populations from Guatemala

In this study, a sample of 225 Guatemalan males, comprising 115 Mestizo-Guatemalan and 110 Mayan-Guatemalan, was typed for 17 Y-short tandem repeats (STRs) loci (DYS19, DYS389I, DYS389II, DYS390, DYS391, DYS392, DYS393, DYS437, DYS438, DYS439, DYS448, DYS456, DYS458, DYS635, YGATA_H4.1 and DYS385a/b). The haplotype diversity (H = 1) and discrimination capacity (96.86%) were calculated. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) demonstrated a low but significant interpopulation differentiation when compared with the results obtained when we confront the Mestizo and Mayan populations with the European populations.Furthermore, the genetic variability and differences among the American, African, Asian, and European populations were analyzed with the software Statistica 9.1. In addition, the genetic distances were also calculated using other published data. Reynolds and Slatkińs genetic distance was visualized using the multidimensional scaling (MDS) analysis. All the analysis performed locates the Mayan population next to the Native American population, while Guatemalan-Mestizo population was found to be between these populations and the European population, similar to other Mestizo one.The implementation of the estimation of individual ancestry proportions of the whole population sample showed the presence of two well-differentiated population groups.