Crime profiles and conditional release performance of psychopathic and non‐psychopathic sexual offenders

Purpose. This study investigated the influence of psychopathy and sex offender subtype on criminal history, probability of being granted conditional release, and performance while on conditional release in a diverse group of violent offenders. We predicted that psychopathic sexual offenders would be associated with relatively prolific violent and sexual offending, a high probability of successful conditional release applications despite their past behaviour (resulting from ‘putting on a good show’ in a parole hearing), and poor performance in the community. Methods. Information was gathered via a correctional file review of 310 Canadian male federal offenders. Offenders were categorized into groups based on their sexual offence history (non‐sex offender, rapist, child molester, or mixed rapist/molester) and Psychopathy Checklist – Revised (PCL‐R; Hare, 2003) ratings. Their offences (sexual, violent, or non‐violent) and their complete conditional release histories were coded. Results. Psychopathy was associated with more violent and non‐violent, but not sexual, offences. A significant interaction between psychopathy and offender subtype revealed that psychopathy was associated with a greater number of sex offences within child molesters. High‐psychopathy offenders (both sexual and non‐sexual offenders) were about 2.5 times more likely to be granted conditional release than non‐psychopathic offenders. Conclusions. Psychopathy is associated with more prolific sexual offending among child molesters and – despite their extensive criminal histories and high recidivism rate – a great proficiency in persuading parole boards to release them into the community. Specialized education and training in dealing with psychopathic offenders is urgently needed.     

A comparison of memory for homicide, non-homicidal violence, and positive life experiences

Defendants commonly claim amnesia for their criminal actions especially in cases involving extreme violence. While some claims are malingered or result from physiological factors, other cases may represent genuine partial or complete amnesia resulting from the psychological distress and/or extreme emotion associated with the perpetration of the crime. Fifty Canadian homicide offenders described their memories of their homicide, a non-homicide violent offense, and their most positive adulthood life experience. Self-reported and objective measures of memories for these events revealed that homicides were recalled with the greatest level of detail and sensory information. Although dissociative tendencies were associated with a self-reported memory loss, objective measures of memory quality did not reflect this perceived impairment, suggesting a failure of meta-memory. Recollections of positive life events were superior to those of non-homicidal violence, possibly due to greater impact and meaning attached to such experiences. Findings suggest that memory for homicide typically is enhanced by the powerful emotion associated with its perpetration.     

Investigating Differences in Truthful and Fabricated Symptoms of Traumatic Stress over Time

False allegations of victimization typically are accompanied by malingered emotional symptomology to corroborate claims. This analog study was designed to compare truthful and fabricated symptom profiles on measures of post-traumatic stress (i.e., Revised Impact of Event Scale, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Checklist, Trauma Symptom Inventory) and levels of symptom consistency over time. Participants (undergraduate students) described their mental health symptoms for both traumas at time 1 (N?=?291), time 2 (N?=?252, 3 month), and time 3 (N?=?181, 6 months). Results indicated that fabricated traumas were associated with inflated symptom profiles. Validity scales were not effective at discerning symptom veracity, although reports could be discriminated somewhat by atypical responding and clinical scales. PTSD symptoms in malingerers also were reported more consistently over time. This research offers applicable information for identifying feigned traumatic stress.     

Framing participation

Major efforts have been made bydevelopment organisations tomake their systems ofproject and programme management more participatory, in order to be accountable to local participants (or beneficiaries), while also creating opportunities for them to shape their own processes. These measures may look participatory, but have in effect become new (and often costly) forms of management and control, which do not result in great benefits for project participants. The authors argue that the dominance of three components- projects, professionals, and organisations-has beentaken for granted; andthat theyinvolve practices and processes which are primarily instruments of control, rather than of participation. Attempts to generate participation will thus require a fundamental change in the way in which these components operate. Inthe meantime, the authors call for attentiontobe paidtothe ways inwhichthe current tools of participatory development, including PRA, can be used to promote either participation or control, depending on how they are used.     

A Novel Method for the Photographic Recovery of Fingermark Impressions from Ammunition Cases Using Digital Imaging

The photographic preservation of fingermark impression evidence found on ammunition cases remains problematic due to the cylindrical shape of the deposition substrate preventing complete capture of the impression in a single image. A novel method was developed for the photographic recovery of fingermarks from curved surfaces using digital imaging. The process involves the digital construction of a complete impression image made from several different images captured from multiple camera perspectives. Fingermark impressions deposited onto 9‐mm and 0.22‐caliber brass cartridge cases and a plastic 12‐gauge shotgun shell were tested using various image parameters, including digital stitching method, number of images per 360° rotation of shell, image cropping, and overlap. The results suggest that this method may be successfully used to recover fingermark impression evidence from the surfaces of ammunition cases or other similar cylindrical surfaces.