The enhancement effect of social and employment integration on the delay of recidivism of released offenders trained with the R & R programme

Abstract

The aim of this study is to assess the extent to which social and employment integration enhances the efficacy of social–cognitive training carried out in prison through a Spanish adaptation of the Reasoning & Rehabilitation (R & R) programme. A quasi-experimental design was used to compare a group of inmates who received only social–cognitive training with a group of inmates who also received social and employment integration and with a comparison group who received neither of these interventions. The total sample was composed of 117 repeat offenders, serving sentence for property offences, drug dealing and offences against the person. The results obtained through a Kaplan–Meier survival analysis after a 6-year follow-up indicate that both intervention groups are significantly different from the comparison group. The group that received social and employment integration had the highest level of delayed recidivism, but the difference with the group that only received social–cognitive training was not statistically significant. The results are discussed in relation to the Good Lives Model and to the Risk–Needs–Responsivity Model of offender rehabilitation.     

X-linked microsatellites in two Northern Spain populations

The X-chromosomal microsatellites HPRTB, DXS101, ARA, DXS7423, and DXS8377 were analysed by a pentaplex PCR in an expanded population sample from Cantabria and an independent sample of unrelated individuals from the Basque Country. Allele frequencies showed similar distributions, but minor variations were found for some loci.     

Optimized Development of Sebaceous Fingermarks on Nonporous Substrates with Conformal Columnar Thin Films

A form of physical vapor deposition, called the conformal‐evaporated‐film‐by‐rotation (CEFR) method, was optimized for the conformal deposition of columnar thin films (CTFs) on sebaceous fingermarks. Relying on the surface topology of the fingermark, the CTF development technique is different from traditional development techniques. After the optimization of the development conditions, the CTF development technique was found to be superior to traditional development methods on several nonporous substrates: the smooth side of Scotch^® Multitask, Gorilla^®, and Scotch^® Duct tapes; clear and black soft plastics; stained and sealed walnut and cherry woods; partial bloody fingermarks on stainless steel; and discharged cartridge casings. It was equally as good as other development techniques on other substrates, but worse on a few. The optimization study is expected to assist in designing a mobile CEFR apparatus capable of on‐scene development of fingermarks.     

Solid-state acquisition of fingermark topology using dense columnar thin films

Various vacuum techniques are employed to develop fingermarks on evidentiary items. In this work, a vacuum was used to deposit columnar thin films (CTFs) on untreated, cyanoacrylate-fumed or dusted fingermarks on a limited selection of nonporous surfaces (microscope glass slides and evidence tape). CTF deposition was not attempted on fingermarks deposited on porous surfaces. The fingermarks were placed in a vacuum chamber with the fingermark side facing an evaporating source boat containing either chalcogenide glass or MgF(2). Thermal evaporation of chalcogenide glass or MgF(2) under a 1 μTorr vacuum for 30 min formed dense CTFs on fingermark ridges, capturing the topographical features. The results show that it is possible to capture fingermark topology using CTFs on selected untreated, vacuumed cyanoacrylate-fumed or black powder-dusted nonporous surfaces. Additionally, the results suggested this might be a mechanism to help elucidate the sequence of deposition.     

First record of Hermetia illucens (Diptera: Stratiomyidae) on human corpses in Iberian Peninsula

This article presents the first record of Hermetia illucens larvae on a human corpse in Spain (the second case report in Europe). Prepupae of H. illucens, and other insects, were recovered from the dead body of a 72-year-old man in an advanced stage of decomposition. The body was located in Reus (NE Spain), in October 1998. This article provides additional biological data on experimental studies and an update on the geographic distribution of this species in the Iberian Peninsula.     

Development Cooperation and Dependency: An Analysis of Brazilian-Spanish Cooperation in Latin America Between 2010 and 2018

Based on analysis of Brazilian-Spanish cooperation in Latin America, this article aims to contribute to the discussion on whether South–South Cooperation (SSC) represents an alternative model with specific and differentiated objectives, or if it largely reproduces the constraints and interests traditionally associated with the North–South model, but with new institutions and actors. We start by analysing the main criticisms levelled at cooperation in the literature, emphasising the identification, review and comparison of the mechanisms of domination and dependency that derive from the bilateral and multilateral practices of traditional development cooperation. We then construct a synthetic dependency index to measure the ability of Spain and Brazil – as representative cases of North–South Cooperation (NSC) and SSC with Latin America – to influence the foreign trade, investment and foreign policy decisions of aid recipients, and to empirically contrast the lower level of verticality that much of the available literature assumes about SSC schemes. The empirical analysis suggests significant differences between NSC and SSC in terms of their ability to reproduce dependency patterns and validate the discourse that tends to identify the latter as an alternative cooperation model.