DNA analysis of abortion material assisted by histology screening.

In cases of rape leading to fertilization, paternity testing can retrospectively identify the assailant. Abortion material commonly represents a mixture of maternal and fetal tissue and blood, which cannot be differentiated with the naked eye. Consequently, DNA typing of abortion material may be complicated, including band overlap if maternal tissue predominates. Therefore, histology screening of the abortion content for typical fetal tissue components, such as chorionic villi, followed by selected DNA typing of this sample is suggested. This combined approach is illustrated by a selected case demonstrating the reliability and concurrence of the histology and genetic results.     

The Vocabulary of Progress in Interwar International Law: An Intellectual Portrait of Stelios Seferiades

The intellectual portrait of Stelios Seferiades sketched outin this article performs a dual function. While paying tributeto the work of a neglected, but fascinating, scholar, it servesas a heuristic device which allows us to examine the ‘vocabularyof progress’ in international law – the discursivestrategies used in legal argument to legitimize the transformationof the discipline. Crucial to the construction of such a vocabularyof progress in the international law writings of Seferiadesis the opposition between the notions of absolutism and democracy.The article situates this opposition in the political milieuof the interwar period and the life trajectory of Seferiades.Ultimately, it points to the closely-knit relationship between‘universalist’ vocabularies of progress, such asthe opposition between absolutism and democracy, and the personal-ideologicalpursuits of public international lawyers.     

Further Evidence on the Anatomical Placement of the Human Eyeball for Facial Approximation and Craniofacial Superimposition*

Abstract: Recently a small sampled cadaver study (n = 4) suggested that the human eyeballs are placed closer to the orbital roof and lateral orbital wall as first reported in the anatomical literature many years previously. This contrasts with central positioning of the eyeball within the orbit as advocated by the facial approximation literature. Given the limits of such small samples, this study re-examined globe position in nine new cadavers to help clarify which relationship is accurate. The results essentially confirm prior empirical findings except that the mean lateral divergences from the orbit center were found to be larger—the eyeball was found to be “displaced” 1.4 mm superiorly and 2.4 mm laterally. Medians calculated across all 13 cadavers from this study and the above-mentioned recent report refine these measurements to 1.4 and 2.3 mm respectively. Globe projection values were identical to those observed for living individuals (c. 16 mm).     

Courtroom testimony by psychologists on eyewitness identification issues

This article makes two major points in regard to expert psychological testimony on eyewitness identification. First, the attention devoted by psychologists to eyewitness identification issues is far out of proportion to the incidence of trials involving eyewitness identifications of criminal defendants; furthermore, the often-expressed concern over wrongful convictions is probably misplaced. Second, the experimental methods used in studies of eyewitness performance are fundamentally unsuited for drawing conclusions about actual witnesses. Hence, there is not an adequate scientific foundation for expert psychological testimony on eyewitness identification. Archival research is perhaps the most promising approach to the study of the criminal justice system.     

EEO issues in the health-care field: a roundup of recent developments.

The rapidly expanding health-care field, like other service areas, has experienced its share of controversy over employment discrimination issues. Recent cases fall into two categories: claims involving traditional EEO questions and claims that reflect the unique nature of the health-care institution. A survey of cases in an array of key areas offers guidance for health-care employers in handling common problems.