Federal crime legislation through the eyes of Alexis de Tocquiville

The political process entailed in the passage of federal crime legislation in 1994 and the revisions of it being considered in 1995 are analyzed as a manifestation of three central themes about American politics articulated by Alexis de Tocqueville inDemocracy in America published in 1835. It is argued that crackdown measures of dubious value in fighting crime are the result of majoritarianism, a national consensus favoring very conservative crime policies. A second factor at work is pluralism, the strong role played by interest groups in American politics. Thirdly, the racial politics which De Tocqueville thought were destined to plague the United States indefinitely are shown to form a backdrop to the formulation of crime control measures. The article concludes with a discussion of a strategy for the development of more enlightened crime policies in the face of stark realities about the nature of the policy-making process.A version of this article was delivered at the 1994 Annual Meeting of the American Society of Criminology, Hyatt Regency Hotel, Miami, Florida, November 9–12, 1994.     

Screening postmortem blood and tissues for nine classes [correction of cases] of drugs of abuse using automated microplate immunoassay

A commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay (ELISA) was evaluated as a screening procedure for the detection of nine classes of abused drugs in postmortem blood and tissue specimens. Specifically, postmortem blood, fluid and/or tissue homogenates were screened for amphetamine (AMP), methamphetamine (MET), barbiturates (BARB), benzodiazepines (BZD), cannabinoids (CNB), cocaine (benzoylecgonine; BE), morphine-specific (MOR), opiates (class; OPI), phencyclidine (PCP) and lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) by ELISA and by coated tube radioimmunoassay (CTR) (BARB, BE, OPI, PCP, LSD) or double-antibody radioimmunoassay (DAR) (AMP/METH, BZD, CNB). Specimens that screened 'positive' by any method were confirmed and quantitated by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The only assay that appeared to perform less optimally than RIA was the MOR assay (five false negatives). However, this assay is very specific for free morphine while the GC/MS confirmation method provided a total morphine value. The OPI assay was more sensitive, producing fewer false negatives, and is recommended for broad class opiate screening. EIA is an adequate alternative to RIA for screening postmortem specimens, including blood and tissue, for nine major classes of drugs.     

Household structure as a response to economic adjustments: evidence from urban Mexico in the 1980s

"This paper presents the results of exploratory efforts to examine the determinants of the structure of households in urban areas of Mexico, focusing on those of women with young children.... The empirical analysis uses two cross-sectional national surveys of Mexico, the 'Encuesta Nacional Demografica' 1982 and the 'Encuesta Nacional de Fecundidad y Salud' 1987...." (SUMMARY IN ENG)     

An unusual drug death involving maggots

Toxicologic analysis of decomposed specimens provides greater analytical challenges than those encountered with fresh postmortem specimens. Despite the difficulties involved, in cases in which the cause of death is not determined at autopsy or when there is a strong indication of drug intoxication, all reasonable steps must be undertaken to perform as comprehensive a drug screen as possible. An unidentified white male was found in a field near a river. The body was decomposed and skeletonized, and 3- to 4-mm maggots were present on the body. Near the body was an empty bottle of secobarbital that had been prescribed to a female. There was no evidence of injury. Calf muscle and maggots were sent for toxicologic analysis. No volatile substances or drugs were detected in the calf muscle. Because intoxication due to secobarbital was strongly suggested from the scene investigation, the only other specimen available, the maggots, were tested for acid-neutral drugs. Secobarbital was identified by retention time and was confirmed by full-scan electron ionization gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Based on the available information, the medical examiner ruled that the cause of death was secobarbital intoxication and the manner of death was suicide.     

Relationship between type of trauma exposure and posttraumatic stress disorder among urban children and adolescents

This study examines the association between trauma exposure and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among 157 help-seeking children (aged 8-17). Structured clinical interviews are carried out, and linear and logistic regression analyses are conducted to examine the relationship between PTSD and type of trauma exposure controlling for age, gender, and ethnicity. Confrontation with traumatic news, witnessing domestic violence, physical abuse, and sexual abuse are each significantly associated with PTSD. Witnessing a crime, being the victim of a crime, and exposure to accidents, fire, or disaster are not associated with PTSD. These findings underscore the association between interpersonal violence and childhood PTSD.     

The interpretation of cocaine and benzoylecgonine concentrations in postmortem cases.

This study examined cocaine and benzoylecgonine concentrations in 100 consecutive deaths where either compound was identified in blood or urine specimens to determine whether any relationship between these concentrations and cause of death can be found. Forty-seven of the 100 cases were deaths attributed to cocaine, narcotic or combined cocaine and narcotic intoxication. There were 13 cases of cocaine intoxication where no psychoactive substance other than ethanol was detected. The mean cocaine concentration in these deaths was 908 ng/ml; three cases had cocaine concentrations greater than 2000 ng/ml, while the other ten cases had cocaine concentrations less than or equal to 700 ng/ml. The mean cocaine concentration in non-cocaine deaths where no psychoactive substance other than ethanol was detected was 146 ng/ml. This difference was not statistically significant. However, the average blood benzoylecgonine concentration in the 13 cocaine deaths was significantly higher than in the 19 non-cocaine deaths. A review of combined cocaine and narcotic deaths suggest that the narcotic is the main causative agent in these deaths.