Does incarceration-based drug treatment reduce recidivism? A meta-analytic synthesis of the research

This research synthesized results from 66 published and unpublished evaluations of incarceration-based drug treatment programs using meta-analysis. Incarceration-based drug treatment programs fell into five types: therapeutic communities (TCs), residential substance abuse treatment (RSAT), group counseling, boot camps specifically for drug offenders, and narcotic maintenance programs. We examined the effectiveness of each of these types of interventions in reducing post-release offending and drug use, and we also examined whether differences in research findings can be explained by variations in methodology, sample, or program features. Our results consistently found support for the effectiveness of TC programs on both outcome measures, and this finding was robust to variations in method, sample, and program features. We also found support for the effectiveness of RSAT and group counseling programs in reducing re-offending, but these programs’ effects on drug use were ambiguous. A limited number of evaluations assessed narcotic maintenance or boot camp programs; however, the existing evaluations found mixed support for maintenance programs and no support for boot camps.     

Youth Gangs: A 1990s Perspective

The juvenile gang in the 1990s differs in many significant ways from the gangs described in the “classical” gang studies of the 1950s and 1960s. Juvenile justice professionals should be aware of the changes in the nature, organization, motivation, and activities of gangs and plan intervention strategies accordingly. One important issue in gang research—one which has great implications for public policy—is defining “gang” and “gang-related crime.” The existence of a “gang problem” in a community may be more related to the definition of “gang” and “gang-related” than to the objective issue of whether, or not, a gang problem exists. Further issues relating to the gang of the 1990s involve changing age and sex distribution of gang members, increasing violence by gangs, and deeper involvement with drug distribution. Implications for public policy are discussed.     

Information transfer implications of development research administration in Nigeria

The study of research utilization and administration has been a growing field, but the emphasis in this field has been on industrialized countries. This article presents the results of a pioneering study of the use of research by senior officials in the Nigerian Federal Government. The article focuses first on Federal Government-sponsored research, it reviews how such research was initiated and conducted, how results were presented and what affected the use of the results. The article then describes expatriate-sponsored research, casts light on the conventional assumption about the amount of such research and points to the fact that there was comparatively less awareness of the results. The article not only provides significant information about the administration of research in Nigeria but emphasizes the need to give attention to this aspect of administration.     

Mitochondrial DNA sequencing of beetle larvae (Nitidulidae: Omosita) recovered from human bone

The isolation, amplification, and characterization of human DNA from hematophagous (blood feeding) and necrophagous (carrion feeding) arthropods have been advanced significantly by the development of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) DNA sequencing methodologies. Historically, DNA technology has been successfully utilized to identify individual hosts upon which species of hematophagous arthropods have fed. The analysis of hematophagous insects' gut content blood meals has led to major advances in medical entomology and vector-borne disease epidemiology. In the forensic arena, the ability to apply similar techniques to insects recovered from badly decomposed remains has been greatly enhanced through the advent of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) techniques. Mitochondrial DNA analyses have been utilized to identify both the human remains upon which fly larvae (maggots) have fed and the species of the larvae themselves. The preliminary work detailed here demonstrates, for the first time, the successful application of mtDNA sequencing techniques to the analysis of necrophagous beetle larvae. A small sample of sap beetle larvae, Omosita spp. (Coleoptera: Nitidulidae), was collected from human skeletal remains during anthropological examination and analyzed for human DNA using mtDNA sequencing. The beetle larvae yielded mtDNA matching that of the host human bone. The results detailed here further demonstrate the robust nature of human mtDNA and the ability to recover valuable mtDNA evidence from forensically important, late decompositional stage insect species.     

Forensic odontology lessons: multishooting incident at Port Arthur,Tasmania

On Sunday 28 April 1996 a lone gunman killed and injured many people at the historic penal settlement ruins at Port Arthur in South Eastern Tasmania, Australia. Thirty-two victims were shot dead and 19 were injured in a short time inside a cafe and along the roadway leading to the site entrance. The gunman then took one hostage to a nearby guest house which was occupied by a married couple. Police stood siege during the night. Early the next day the cottage began to burn and a man suspected to be the gunman eventually ran unarmed from the building with his clothes alight and was arrested. The house burned to the ground. Three bodies were later located in the burnt ruins. Forensic odontology played a role in the retrieval of evidence and identification of the incinerated victims. Lack of antemortem dental records for one victim necessitated the reliance on a single CT scan radiograph for matching with the remains. Fire scene procedures, evidence collection and other issues were reviewed. The overwhelming scale of this tragedy and its adverse effects on the Tasmanian community, especially the victims' families and survivors, cannot be overestimated. While acknowledging this, it is important that lessons are learnt from tragedies such as these. This paper is presented with a view to assisting forensic odontologists in the investigation of complex incidents.