Development of rust stains on the skin due to contact with a gun

In order to study the conditions for the formation of so-called rustmarks on the skin after contact with weapon steel tests to provoke rustmarks were performed on corpses and living bodies. These tests were only successful under the condition of a firm contact with the weapon steel and a certain minimum contact time between the weapon and the skin. The experiments showed that the critical parameters for the appearance of rustmarks are, first, the humidity of the skin and the environment, respectively, as well as the contact time, and second, the state of the weapon surface (greased or ungreased). Both the ambient temperature and the pH value of the skin (alkaline or acid) are irrelevant to the formation of rust. The longest time period until rustmarks appeared was observed on dry skin in contact with a greased weapon, namely 22 hours on a corpse and 170 min on a living subject. When using a greased gun humidity accelerated the formation of rust. An ungreased surface of the weapon also resulted in faster rust formation. The minimum time necessary for the formation of rust determined under the most favourable circumstances was 135 min for a corpse and 27 min for a living person. During the early postmortal interval the rustmark may therefore be another piece in the jigsaw towards determining the time of death on suicides committed with firearms.     

Occupational injury and illness recording and reporting requirements. Final rule

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is delaying the effective date of three provisions of the Occupational Injury and Illness Recording and Reporting Requirements rule published January 19, 2001 (66 FR 5916-6135) and is establishing interim criteria for recording cases of work-related hearing loss. The provisions being delayed are sections 1904.10 (a) and (b), which specify recording criteria for cases involving occupational hearing loss, section 1904.12, which defines "musculoskeletal disorder (MSD)" and requires employers to check the MSD column on the OSHA Log if an employee experiences a work-related musculoskeletal disorder, and section 1904.29(b)(7)(vi), which states that MSDs are not considered privacy concern cases. The effective date of these provisions is delayed from January 1, 2002 until January 1, 2003. OSHA will continue to evaluate sections 1904.10 and 1904.12 over the next year. OSHA is also adding a new paragraph(c) to section 1904.10, establishing criteria for recording cases of work-related hearing loss during calendar year 2002. Section 1904.10(c) codifies the enforcement policy in effect since 1991, under which employers must record work related shifts in hearing of an average of 25 dB or more at 2000, 3000 and 4000 hertz in either ear.     

Online reference database of European Y-chromosomal short tandem repeat (STR) haplotypes

The reference database of highly informative Y-chromosomal short tandem repeat (STR) haplotypes (YHRD), available online at http://ystr.charite.de, represents the largest collection of male-specific genetic profiles currently available for European populations. By September 2000, YHRD contained 4688 9-locus (so-called "minimal") haplotypes, 40% of which have been extended further to include two additional loci. Establishment of YHRD has been facilitated by the joint efforts of 31 forensic and anthropological institutions. All contributing laboratories have agreed to standardize their Y-STR haplotyping protocols and to participate in a quality assurance exercise prior to the inclusion of any data. In view of its collaborative character, and in order to put YHRD to its intended use, viz. the support of forensic caseworkers in their routine decision-making process, the database has been made publicly available via the Internet in February 2000. Online searches for complete or partial Y-STR haplotypes from evidentiary or non-probative material can be performed on a non-commercial basis, and yield observed haplotype counts as well as extrapolated population frequency estimates. In addition, the YHRD website provides information about the quality control test, genotyping protocols, haplotype formats and informativity, population genetic analysis, literature references, and a list of contact addresses of the contributing laboratories.     

Evaluation of the correlation between time corpses spent in in-ground graves and findings at exhumation

To determine how long pathological findings persist after burial and which factors play a role in decomposition of a corpse, we evaluated all bodies exhumed under the auspices of the Institute of Legal Medicine at the Hannover Medical School between 1978 and 1997. A total of 87 exhumations (54 men, 33 women) were performed in this period. The time bodies remained buried varied between 5 days and 16.8 years (mean 1.5 years, median 2.3 months). Fifty-six percent of the bodies were exhumed after at most 3 months, 10% remained buried for greater than 3 years. Pathomorphological changes of the soft tissues and the internal organs remained evident after several months, in some cases after several years of burial. Overall, it was possible to evaluate internal organs after 5 years of burial. Bodies became mostly decomposed after approximately 8 years at the earliest, although it was still possible to evaluate some soft tissue remnants after 16.8 years. In stepwise logistic regression, both the length of time the body was buried (p < 0.00005) and the time of year (p < 0.0019) clearly affected the rate of physical change. The variables of sex (p = 0.33), age (p = 0.61) and changes in the integrity of the body before burial (trauma, autopsy before burial; p = 0.15) did not influence the physical state of the body after exhumation. Our data show that much information may be gained from an exhumation even after significant time has passed since burial.     

Turkish population data on nine short tandem repeat loci: HumCSF1PO,HumTHO1, HumTPOX,HumFES/FPS,HumF13B,HumVWA, D3S1358, D7S820, D16S539

Allele and genotype frequencies for the nine loci, HumCSF1PO, HumTHO1, HumTPOX, HumFES/FPS, HumF13B, HumVWA, D3S1358, D7S820 and D16S539 were determined using Silver STR III System on 223-598 unrelated Turkish individuals from different regions of the country.     

Gunshot residue patterns on skin in angled contact and near contact gunshot wounds

The goal of this study was the reproduction of shape and pattern of gunshot residues in near contact and contact gunshot wounds by a series of experimental gunshots on a skin and soft tissue model. The aim was to investigate the shape and direction of soot deposits with regard to the muzzle according to different muzzle-target angles, firing distances, type of ammunition and weapon and barrel length. Based on a review of the literature and on the results of the experiments the authors could make the following statements of gunshot residues in angled contact and close contact gunshot: (1) gunshot residues on the target surface can be differentiated in a "inner" and "outer powder soot zone"; (2) the outer powder soot zone is much less visible than the inner powder soot zone and may lack on human skin; (3) with increasing muzzle target distance both inner and outer powder soot halo increase in size and decrease in density; (4) in angled shots the inner powder soot halo shows an eccentric, elliptic shape which points towards the muzzle, regardless of ammunition, calibre and barrel length; (5) the outer powder soot points away from the muzzle in angled contact and close contact shots.     

Suicidal electrocution in a bathtub

A case of suicidal electrocution in a filled bathtub is presented with a discussion of the mechanism of electrocution in water. A modern safety device, the Ground Fault Interruptor Circuit, is also described.