Paternity analysis in deficiency cases with related putative fathers: simulation of a deficiency analysis in 27 families

During the last few years, the number of privately ordered paternity investigations has increased considerably. Probably due to financial reasons in more and more cases only the putative father and the child are investigated. Additionally, very often only one method, such as STR analysis, is employed. This raises the question whether such a reduced analysis leads to reliable and clear results when investigating cases with related putative fathers. We investigated 165 individuals from 27 families using the AmpFlSTRIdentifiler multiplex PCR and calculated the paternity probabilities of the children to their biological fathers, uncles, grand fathers and other relatives. In more than 30% less than three exclusions between child and relative were detected. In five cases no exclusions were found between child and uncle, always leading to paternity probabilities >99.9%. These results show that the calculation of high probabilities (>99.9%) does not necessarily lead to the accurate conclusion of fatherhood. In many of our cases misleadingly the brother of the real father or another close relative would have been declared to be the biological father.     

Parricide

Following a review of the literature on parricide, family violence theory is briefly explored regarding its applicability to understanding the parricidal family. Characteristics of the adult perpetrator, including the role of the victim, is discussed and two cases illustrating successful prevention are presented. Finally, two case illustrations are presented and the issue of preventive intervention based on the psychoeducation model is discussed.     

Anchoring in the Courtroom: The Effects of Caps on Punitive Damages

Responding to the perception that civil damage awards are out of control, courts and legislatures have pursued tort reform efforts largely aimed at reigning in damage awards by juries. One proposed method for reigning in civil juries is to limit, or cap, the amount that can be awarded for punitive damages. Despite significant controversy over damage awards and the civil litigation system, there has been little research focusing on the process by which juries determine damages. In particular, there is a paucity of research on the possible effects of placing caps on punitive damages. The present research examines punitive damage caps and reveals an anchoring effect of the caps on both compensatory and punitive damages. A second experiment replicates this effect and examines the moderating effect of bifurcating the compensatory and punitive damage decisions.     

Evaluation of the (hu)MANid program for sex and ancestry estimation in a diverse,contemporary CT scan-based sample

Human remains from forensic and bioarcheological contexts are often fragmentary, requiring methods for estimating a forensic profile that are based upon limited skeletal features. In 2017, Berg and Keryhercz created an online application, (hu)MANid, that provides sex and ancestry estimation from mandibular morphoscopic traits and linear measurements. In this study, we examine the utility of the (hu)MANid application in a diverse, urban US adult sample (aged 20–45; n = 143) derived from computed tomography (CT) scans. We secondarily conduct a preliminary analysis of the program's utility in a sample of adolescents (aged 15–17; n = 40). Six morphoscopic, and eleven morphometric traits were recorded as directed by the literature associated with the (hu)MANid program. Percent correct classification and posterior predictive values were calculated for the sex and ancestry estimations output by the program; chi-squared tests were employed to compare self-reported and predicted ancestry. In the adult sample, sex was accurately predicted for 75.52% of the sample. Ancestry prediction, however, was less favorable ranging from 19.3% to 50% correct. For the adolescent sample, correct sex estimation (45%) did not surpass what could occur by chance alone, though ancestry prediction fared better than in the larger adult sample (percent correct prediction overall average: 47.5%, range 35.71%–71.43%). The (hu)MANid application shows utility for use with CT scan-derived adult samples for sex estimation, but caution is warranted for ancestry estimation and use with samples that may not have reached full adult maturity.     

Sexual relationship power as a mediator between dating violence and sexually transmitted infections among college women

This study examined relationship power as a possible mediator of the relationship between dating violence and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The proposed mediation model was based on the theory of gender and power as well as previous research on intimate partner violence and STI risk. Survey results from a sample of 290 single, undergraduate women indicated that 85% experienced at least one form of dating violence victimization in the past year, 5.9% tested positive for an STI, and 5.2% received treatment for an STI. Results revealed that women with lower levels of sexual relationship power had higher rates of dating violence victimization and STIs; also, sexual relationship power partially mediated the relationship between dating violence victimization and STIs. Future dating violence and STI-prevention interventions targeting young women may want to use an empowerment approach to decrease their likelihood of dating violence victimization and STI risk.     

Policing Women’s Bodies in an Illiberal Society: The Case of Ireland

This journal article outlines the history of the policing women’s bodies in Ireland in the context of law, crime and reproduction. It does this by means of three case studies. The first case study explores the policing of women’s bodies in relation to sexuality. The second case study focuses on reproduction and the policing of women’s bodies in relation to reproduction. The third and final case study considers the policing of women’s bodies in relation to abortion. Taken together, these three case studies provide an overview of the capacity, and indeed the readiness, that exists in Irish society to police women’s bodies and to do so particularly in relation to sexuality and reproduction.     

To execute or not to execute? Examining public support for capital punishment of sex offenders

In the 1990s, states enacted a plethora of new “get tough” laws targeting sex crime. These included extending the death penalty—a punishment typically reserved for murderers—to convicted sex offenders. Little attention, however, has been given to explaining why these tougher responses emerged and, in particular, whether the public supported extending the use of the death penalty to sex offenders. The goal of this paper was to examine whether public perceptions about executing sex offenders accorded with the punitive shift in policy and, more broadly, to contribute to scholarship on the death penalty. To this end, this paper examined data from a 1991 national public opinion poll, conducted just prior to the punitive shift in sex crime policies. The study found that views about executing sex offenders depended heavily on whether the victim was a child, that support for executing sex offenders was substantially lower than for executing murderers, and that few social and demographic divides differentially predicted support for executing sex offenders versus murderers. Implications of the study are discussed.