Political competition and politician quality: evidence from Italian municipalities

We use data from Italian local level governments for the years 1985?C2008 to investigate whether political competition affects the quality of politicians, as measured by some ex-ante characteristics such as educational level and type of job held. We handle endogeneity problems through an instrumental variable approach using as an instrument for political competition a variable taking into account whether the previous Municipal Council survived until the end of its legislative term. Two Stage Least Square estimates support the view that political competition positively affects politician quality. Results are robust to different measures of political competition and to different estimation strategies.     

Explaining the unpopularity of public funding for congressional elections

This article uses data from the 2008 Cooperative Congressional Election Study to explain weak support for public financing of congressional campaigns. Previous studies lack theory to explain variation in support and use a flawed measure of the dependent variable. We argue that low support reflects a failure resulting from a collective action dilemma. Citizens desire a campaign finance system that weans politicians from private donors, but are unwilling to pay a small amount in taxes to support public financing. In contrast to conventional wisdom, we show that support for public financing is highest among those perceived to benefit the most from the current system. Our results suggest that most Americans would rather not pay for politics, and that reform proposals must avoid incurring transparent costs on individual citizens to pay for reform.     

Forensic drug intelligence: an important tool in law enforcement

Organised criminality is a great concern for national/international security. The demonstration of complex crimes is increasingly dependant on knowledge distributed within law-enforcement agencies and scientific disciplines. This separation of knowledge creates difficulties in reconstructing and prosecuting such crimes. Basic interdisciplinary research in drug intelligence combined with crime analysis, forensic intelligence, and traditional law enforcement investigation is leading to important advances in crime investigation support. Laboratory results constitute one highly dependable source of information that is both reliable and testable. Their operational use can support investigation and even provide undetected connections or organisation of structure. The foremost difficulties encountered by drug analysts are not principally of a chemical or analytical nature, but methodologies to extract parameters or features that are deemed to be crucial for handling and contextualising drug profiling data. An organised memory has been developed in order to provide accurate, timely, useful and meaningful information for linking spatially and temporally distinct events on a national and international level (including cross-border phenomena). Literature has already pointed out that forensic case data are amenable for use in an intelligence perspective if data and knowledge of specialised actors are appropriately organised, shared and processed. As a particular form of forensic case data, the authors' research focuses on parameters obtained through the systematic physical and chemical profiling of samples of illicit drugs. The procedure is used to infer and characterise links between samples that originate from the same and different seizures. The discussion will not, however, focus on how samples are actually analysed and compared as substantial literature on this topic already exists. Rather, attention is primarily drawn to an active and close collaboration between magistrates, forensic scientists, law enforcement investigators and crime analysts from different institutions with the aim of generating, using and validating relevant profiling case data as integral part of investigative and crime analysis processes. Original advances are highlighted through experiences from criminal investigations of offences related to the unlawful importation, exportation, supply and possession of illicit drugs.     

Allele frequencies for nine STR loci (D3S1358, vWA, FGA, D8S1179, D21S11, D18S51, D5S818, D13S317, D7S820) in the Italian population

Genotype and allele frequencies for STR loci D3S1358, vWA, FGA, D8S1179, D21S11, D18S51, D5S818, D13S317, D7S820 were investigated in 289 unrelated Italian Caucasian individuals from the North and South regions. After co-amplification by polymerase chain reaction, automatic DNA profiling of these nine STR loci was performed by ABI PRISM((R)) 310 DNA Genetic Analyzer. For each locus, statistical parameters for forensic and paternity purposes were then calculated; the combined power of discrimination and the combined power of exclusion of all nine loci were 0.9999999999917 and 0.99992 for the Northern population and 0.9999999999921 and 0.99991 for the Southern population.     

Police Interviewing and Interrogation: A Self-Report Survey of Police Practices and Beliefs

By questionnaire, 631 police investigators reported on their interrogation beliefs and practices-the first such survey ever conducted. Overall, participants estimated that they were 77% accurate at truth and lie detection, that 81% of suspects waive Miranda rights, that the mean length of interrogation is 1.6 hours, and that they elicit self-incriminating statements from 68% of suspects, 4.78% from innocents. Overall, 81% felt that interrogations should be recorded. As for self-reported usage of various interrogation tactics, the most common were to physically isolate suspects, identify contradictions in suspects' accounts, establish rapport, confront suspects with evidence of their guilt, and appeal to self-interests. Results were discussed for their consistency with prior research, policy implications, and methodological shortcomings.     

Suicide by multidrug ingestion: hypothesis on the role played by the self-administration of activated charcoal

A fatal suicidal ingestion of drugs, together with activated charcoal, is reported. The death occurred 31 hours after the self-administration. The autopsy revealed a large amount of gastric content that appeared to be a compact mass of black color. Toxicologic analyses showed the presence of toxic levels of desalkylflurazepam and trazodone; metamizole and pridinol were also detected. The obtained results supported the hypothesis of a death due to acute intoxication delayed by the self-administration of activated charcoal, which elimination was probably hindered by the action of pridinol.     

Intentional mixed buccal cell reference sample in a paternity case

We report a case where an alleged father (AF) attempted to substitute someone else's saliva sample for his reference sample in a paternity analysis. Buccal cells were collected from the AF and the child, and DNA analysis was performed using an autosomal STR loci (Identifiler). The profile from the AF showed extra peaks in some loci, as well as a much higher "X" allele peak relative to the "Y" allele peak at the amelogenin locus. After conducting reanalysis by another technician with another set of positive and negative controls, it was concluded that the only source of the mixed profile was by intentional introduction by the AF, at the time of sampling, of some foreign human biological material, most likely saliva from a woman. Owing to the inconclusive results, when the AF was called back to the lab and the peculiar results were explained to him, he admitted that he had introduced into his mouth saliva from another person in an attempt to be excluded as the father of the child. Although tampering with DNA reference samples is not common, some individuals may attempt to contaminate or otherwise adulterate specimens before DNA tests. Personnel responsible for sampling should be aware of this possibility and should try to establish procedures to avoid the problem.     

Machinery‐Related Deaths: Relevance of Workplace Investigation and Antemortem Radiological Data in Reconstructing the Fatality

Abstract: Machinery‐related fatalities are one of the leading causes of traumatic occupational deaths. In our report, we present the case of a 40‐year‐old male who suffered a severe head trauma while working in a cut‐foam industry and died despite an early craniectomy. The radiological reconstruction of the skull based on preoperative computed tomography scans disclosed a large depressed conical fracture of the left parietal bone. The 3D‐reconstruction of the work area, combined with a fit‐matching analysis between the machinery and the depressed skull fracture allowed us to conclude that the head was crushed between the sliding bar of the cutting device and the metallic protuberance on the opposite side. The case underlines the importance of a detailed workplace investigation and of a thorough evaluation of all circumstantial, clinical, radiological, and autopsy data in the reconstruction of machinery‐related fatalities to identify any possible legal responsibilities of the worker and/or the employer.     

Validation of Ultrastructural Analysis of Mitochondrial Deposits in Cardiomyocytes as a Method of Detecting Early Acute Myocardial Infarction in Humans*

Abstract: In the present study, ultrastructural analysis of mitochondrial deposits (black dots within mitochondria) as a method for the detection of early acute myocardial infarction (AMI) was evaluated. In 24 patients with AMI and six controls, analysis was performed in the heart of infarcted patients and noninfarcted controls. In the infarction area in lactate dehydrogenase (LDH)‐diagnosed AMI, the percentage of positive mitochondria was significantly higher compared to corresponding heart tissue in control patients and compared to noninfarcted areas within these patients. Also in patients with a clinically diagnosed AMI but no LDH decoloration, a significant higher percentage of positive mitochondria was found in the left ventricle compared to controls and noninfarcted areas. In patients with AMI, an increase in mitochondria with deposits was found in the infarction area compared to controls and noninfarcted tissue within the same patient, suggesting that electron microscopical changes in mitochondria can be used for the diagnosis of AMI less than 3 h old.