The International Criminal Court and the Control of State Crime: Prospects and Problems

Over the past two decades, crimes committed by nation states has received strong theoretical and empirical attention from critical criminologists. Much of this work has highlighted the lack of internal and external mechanisms to control such injurious behavior. Potentially, this has now changed. In the summer of 1998, delegates from nearly 140 countries created the Rome Statute establishing the International Criminal Court (ICC). Entering into force in the summer of 2002, the ICC has unprecedented international jurisdiction over the crimes of genocide, war, aggression, and those against humanity. This paper provides a brief history of international law and attempts to develop an ICC. It then examines the functioning and structure of the ICC as established in the Rome Statute. We then proceed to analyze the potential which the ICC posses to control state criminality. Our analysis concludes with discussions of how the ICC might be modified to better act as a deterrent to such offending.     

Reliable, sensitive, rapid and quantitative enzyme-based assay for gamma-hydroxybutyric acid (GHB)

Several assays for gamma-hydroxybutyrate (4-hydroxybutyrate, GHB) have been developed based on the enzyme gamma-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase (GHB-DH). Enzymatic oxidation of GHB by NAD+ is coupled to diaphorase-mediated reduction of pro-dye to yield colored product. GHB-DH from Ralstonia eutropha was cloned and expressed as a stable fusion protein easily purified by affinity chromatography. Quantitative initial velocity and endpoint versions of the assay in solution are described. Michaelis-Menten parameters for oxidation of GHB and ethanol were estimated. A semi-quantitative "dipstick" version of the assay on paper also is described. Both solution endpoint and "dipstick" assays are sensitive to about 0.05 mg GHB/mL using 10 microL of sample. Ethanol at concentrations possible in urine and agents used to stabilize physiological fluids for forensics analysis do not interfere significantly. The "dipstick" assay also allows detection of GHB in alcoholic beverages after evaporation of about one-fourth drop of beverage before testing. The enzymatic assay for GHB is reliable, sensitive, inexpensive and rapid.     

A potential metallographic technique for the investigation of pipe bombings

This study was conducted in an attempt to develop a metallographic method for the investigation of pipe bombings. Three common pipe materials, ASTM A53 steel, AISI 304L stainless steel, and 6061-T6 aluminum, were shock-loaded using five high explosives and three propellants. The explosives used were ANFO, Composition C4, C6 detasheet, nitroglycerine-based dynamite, and flake TNT. The propellants used were FFFFg black powder. Red Dot smokeless powder, and Turbo Fuel A. The post-blast microstructure, hardness, and, in the case of 304L, transformed martensite content were examined for each test. The damage done to the microstructure was found to increase with increasing detonation velocity of the explosives and increase in pressure generated by the shock-metal interaction. Material hardness and, in the case of 304L, martensite content showed a sharp increase followed by a plateau as the shock pressure and detonation velocity increased.     

Competence to Stand Trial: A Neuropsychological Inquiry

Law and Human Behavior - How might the deconstruction of the legal theory of competence be related to modern neuropsychological models of cognition? To address this question, we examined...     

Use of subpopulation data in Australian forensic DNA casework

DNA profiling evidence presented in court should be accompanied by a reliable estimate of its evidential weight. In calculating such statistics, allele frequencies from commonly employed autosomal microsatellite loci are required. These allele frequencies should be collected at a level that appropriately represents the genetic diversity that exists in the population. Typically this occurs at broadly defined bio-geographic categories, such as Caucasian or Asian. Datasets are commonly administered at the jurisdictional level. This paper focuses on Australian jurisdictions and assesses whether this current practice is appropriate for Aboriginal Australian and Caucasian populations alike. In keeping with other studies we observe negligible differences between Caucasian populations within Australia when segregated geographically. However segregation of Aboriginal Australian population data along contemporary State and Territory lines appears to mask the diversity that exists within this subpopulation. For this reason datasets collated along more traditional lines may be more appropriate, particularly to distinguish the most genetically differentiated populations residing in the north of the continent.     

Report of a fatal, acute tripelennamine intoxication.

A death resulting from tripelennamine overdose in a 19-year-old male Caucasian is reported. The patient died 7 h after ingesting approximately twenty 50-mg tripelennamine tablets. A concentration of 1.0 mg/100 ml was found in the blood. All tissue concentrations were measured by ultraviolet spectroscopy and verified by gas-liquid chromatography. Significant findings included pulmonary edema and multiple small petechial hemorrhages in the soft tissue of the scalp.     

Post-injection hybridization of complementary DNA strands on capillary electrophoresis platforms: A novel solution for dsDNA artifacts

Several laboratories have reported the occurrence of a split or n − 1 peak at the vWA locus in PowerPlex^® 16 and PowerPlex^® ES amplification products separated on 4- and 16-capillary electrophoresis instruments. The root cause of this artifact is post-PCR reannealing of the unlabeled, unincorporated vWA primer to the 3′-end of the tetramethylrhodamine (TMR)-labeled strand of the vWA amplicon. This reannealing occurs in the capillary post-electrokinetic injection. The split peak is eliminated by incorporation into the loading cocktail of a sacrificial hybridization sequence (SHS) oligonucleotide that is complementary to the vWA primer. The SHS preferentially anneals to the primer instead of the TMR-labeled strand of the vWA amplicon. In addition, the n − 10/n − 18 artifact that may be seen at the vWA locus was determined to be due to double-stranded amplicon formed post-electrokinetic injection into the capillary. This was also eliminated by adding in two Complementary Oligo Targets (COT1 and COT2) in addition to the SHS oligonucleotide into the loading cocktail. These three oligonucleotides are complementary to the 33 bases at the 5′-end of the unlabeled vWA amplicon strand and the 60 bases at its 3′-end and therefore compete for hybridization to the TMR-labeled amplicon strand. Incorporation of these three oligonucleotides in the Internal Lane Standard 600 (ILS600) eliminate both the split peak and n − 10/n − 18 artifact in PowerPlex^® 16 and PowerPlex^® ES amplification products without affecting sizing of alleles at the vWA locus or any locus in the PowerPlex^® 16, PowerPlex^® Y, PowerPlex^® ES, AmpFlSTR^® Profiler Plus^® ID, AmpFlSTR^® Cofiler^®, and AmpFlSTR^® SGM Plus^® kits.