Children's experiences of domestic violence: developing an integrated response from police and child protection services

Police notifications of incidents of domestic violence to child protection services constitute an acknowledgement of the harm that domestic violence inflicts on children. However, these notifications represent a substantial demand on child welfare services and the outcomes for children and victims of domestic violence have been questioned. This paper presents findings from the first UK study to examine these notifications in depth and examines the interface between the police and child protection services in responding to domestic violence incidents. The research reports on police interventions in 251 incidents of domestic violence involving children; the communication of information to child protection services and the subsequent filtering and service response. Social workers found that notifications conveyed little information on children's experiences of domestic violence. Forty per cent of families notified had had no previous contact with child protection services in that area, but those cases most likely to receive social work assessment or intervention were those where the case was already open. Notifications triggered a new social work intervention in only 5% of cases. The study also identified a range of innovative approaches for improving the co-ordination of police and child protective services in relation to children's exposure to domestic violence. Arrangements that maximized opportunities for police and social workers to share agency information appeared to offer the best option for achieving informed decisions about the appropriate level of service response to children and families experiencing domestic violence.     

Chemical enhancement of footwear impressions in blood on fabric — Part 2: Peroxidase reagents

This study investigates the optimisation of peroxidase based enhancement techniques for footwear impressions made in blood on various fabric surfaces. Four different haem reagents: leuco crystal violet (LCV), leuco malachite green (LMG), fluorescein and luminol were used to enhance the blood contaminated impressions.The enhancement techniques in this study were used successfully to enhance the impressions in blood on light coloured surfaces, however, only fluorescent and/or chemiluminescent techniques allowed visualisation on dark coloured fabrics, denim and leather. Luminol was the only technique to enhance footwear impressions made in blood on all the fabrics investigated in this study.     

EU update

This is the latest edition of Baker & McKenzie’s column on developments in EU law relating to IP, IT and telecommunications. This article summarises recent developments that are considered important for practitioners, students and academics in a wide range of information technology, e-commerce, telecommunications and intellectual property areas. It cannot be exhaustive but intends to address the important points. This is a hard copy reference guide, but links to outside websites are included where possible. No responsibility is assumed for the accuracy of information contained in these links.     

Chemical enhancement of footwear impressions in urine on fabric

A range of chemical techniques were utilised for the enhancement of footwear impressions deposited on a variety of fabric types of different colours with urine as a contaminant. A semi-automated stamping device was used to deliver test impressions at a set force to minimise the variability between impressions; multiple impressions were produced and enhanced by each reagent to determine the repeatability of the enhancement. Urine samples from different donors were analysed using a spectrofluorophotometer revealing differences between individuals. Results indicated that the enhancement of footwear impressions in urine was possible using amino acid staining techniques whereas protein stains failed to achieve successful enhancement.     

Controlling the variable of pressure in the production of test footwear impressions

Footwear impression lifting and enhancement techniques may be affected by several variables introduced during the production of test footwear impressions, thus limiting the usefulness of enhancement technique comparisons and the results obtained. One such variable is the force applied when the impressed mark is being made. Producing consistent test impressions for research into footwear enhancement techniques would therefore be beneficial. This study was designed to control pressure in the production of test footwear impressions when mimicking a stamping action. Twenty-seven volunteers were asked to stamp on two different surfaces and the average stamping force was recorded. Information from the data obtained was used to design and build a mechanical device which could be calibrated to consistently deliver footwear impressions with the same force onto a receiving surface. Preliminary experiments using this device and different contaminants on the footwear sole have yielded consistent and repeatable impressions. Controlling the variable of pressure for the production of test impressions in this study demonstrated that the differences observed were visual (due to the amount of contaminant transferred and subsequent enhancement) and did not affect the replication of outer sole characteristics. This paper reports the development of the device and illustrates the quality of the impressions produced.     

The economics of environmental law enforcement: end-of-life vehicles

Abandoned End-of-Life Vehicles (ELVs) have been an environmental concern for a long time in a number of countries. This article examines different ways to address the issue by changing the incentive structure for agents. Following (Polinsky A. M., & Shavell, S. (2000). The Economic theory of public enforcement of law. Journal of Economic Literature, 38, 45–76.) a model is used to compare a fine-based system with a deposit-refund system; a combination of the two is then considered. It is shown that when the environmental harm is relatively low and constant, a deposit-refund system is preferred. When cases of high environmental harm are included, the optimal choice would be a combined system.      

Second‐hand Emotion? Exploring the Contagion and Impact of Trauma and Distress in the Asylum Law Context

Applicants' accounts of experiences of fear, trauma, violence, and persecution are central to the process of claiming asylum. These narratives are, at a human level, primed to provoke emotional responses, not only in the narrator but also in those to whom the account is relayed. In this article, we explore the vectors of emotionality that permeate asylum decision‐making in the United Kingdom, focusing particularly on the risk faced by the professionals involved of suffering vicarious trauma. More specifically, based on a series of 104 semi‐structured interviews with asylum stakeholders and observation of 48 appeals to the Immigration and Asylum Chamber of the First‐tier Tribunal, this article identifies the adoption by legal and quasi‐legal professionals of emotional coping strategies – of detachment and denial of responsibility – that risk being deployed in maladaptive ways that jeopardize the prospects for justice.