Toxicological findings in military aircraft fatalities from 1986-1990.

Toxicological findings in all military aircraft fatalities investigated by the Division of Forensic Toxicology at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology from 1986-1990 are presented. Carbon monoxide saturation levels greater than 10% were found in 4% of the 535 cases where appropriate specimens were collected. Positive ethanol findings were more indicative of postmortem formation than antemortem consumption. In only 1 case were abused drugs (cannabinoids in a passenger) detected. Other drugs identified included nicotine, chloroquine and over-the-counter analgesic agents, antihistamines and sympathomimetic drugs.     

Forensic archaeology.

This presentation attempts to demonstrate the value of the use of improved methods in the excavation of buried bodies involved in a criminal investigation. Care in the removal of the skeleton and proper recording will document the interrelationship of all objects found in and around the grave and can, to a certain extent, recreate the event. Carelessness will result in evidence being irretrievably lost. The crime scene investigator's problem, arachaeologically, includes the nature of the remains, dating the time of burial, and techniques of excavation. Archaeological recovery techniques should be adopted in homicide investigation involving buried bodies.     

Federal Intervention in the Management of Groundwater Resources: Past Efforts and Future Prospects

The role of the federal government in groundwater regulationis likely to increase over the next few decades. A combinationof events—including recent federal court decisions, pastfederal intervention in state groundwater utilization, the publicpronouncements by a variety of federal actors, and increasingconcern over the inability of states to control overdrafting—allsuggest that the federal role in groundwater management maybe increasing. These events are examined here, and it is arguedthat, without change in state groundwater management practicesto mitigate the negative effects of state competition for groundwater,federal intervention in groundwater management seems likely.     

Aberrant radioimmunoassay results for cannabinoids in urine

False negative and false positive radioimmunoassay results for cannabinoids in urine are reported. Such results occur infrequently and appear to be due to non-specific binding of the radiolabel by interfering substances, possibly proteins, in the specimens. False negatives arise when these substances and the non-specifically bound radiolabel are precipitated by polyethylene glycol in the separation stage of the assay, increasing the radioactivity in the bound fraction and thus lowering the assay result. False positives occur when the interfering substances and non-specifically bound radiolabel remain in solution during the separation stage, increasing the radioactivity in the free fraction and giving an erroneously high result. False positives could also occur in assays involving solid-phase antibodies or second-antibody separations. Methanol treatment of the samples prior to analysis precipitates the interfering substances and eliminates the aberrant effect. The interfering substances have not been identified through common serum proteins and semen have been excluded. No common factor in the circumstances of the cases that can account for the results has been identified.     

Constitutional,legal and political problems of local government in Nigeria

The new Nigerian local government system was clearly intended by its creators to be a representative and democractic system of devolution. The speed with which elected councils have been dissolved and replaced by caretaker committees and state appointees contrasts strangely with the constitutional provision that there should be a system of local government by democratically elected local councils. The constitutionality of dissolution has been confused with the constitutionality of further local government reform. Dissolution should be seen as an emergency measure to be used rarely in cases of proven maladministration by a local government. Further reform and reorganization of a state's system of local government should be regarded as a legitimate power of the state legislature. The role given by the Constitution to local government should not be interpreted as entrenching the system. Constitutional amendment is not required should further reform be necessary.     

Drug use and pretrial misconduct in New York city

Is recent drug use significantly associated with pretrial misconduct? Does consideration of recent drug use enhance risk classification among a sample of persons who have time free pending the disposition of their cases? Using data on arrestees in Manhattan, this paper examines these issues and some related questions. To measure recent drug use, urine samples were collected from persons shortly after their arrest and tested for four drugs: heroin, cocaine, PCP, and methadone. Two measures of pretrial misconduct are considered: whether a defendant fails to appear for a scheduled court date (FTA) and whether a defendant is rearrested prior to case disposition. Censored probit models are used to estimate the statistical association between drug test results and pretrial misconduct. Results show that drug test results are significantly associated with pretrial misconduct over and above the information typically available to judges at the time release decisions are made. Some implications of these findings for pretrial decision making are discussed.