Measurement of Uncertainty for Aqueous Ethanol Wet‐Bath Simulator Solutions Used with Evidential Breath Testing Instruments

Aqueous ethanol wet‐bath simulator solutions are used to perform calibration adjustments, calibration checks, proficiency testing, and inspection of breath alcohol instruments. The Toxicology Bureau of the New Mexico Department of Health has conducted a study to estimate a measurement of uncertainty for the preparation and testing of these wet‐bath simulator solutions. The measurand is identified as the mass concentration of ethanol (g/100 mL) determined through dual capillary column headspace gas chromatography with flame ionization detector analysis. Three groups were used in the estimation of the aqueous ethanol wet‐bath simulator solutions uncertainty: GC calibration adjustment, GC analytical, and certified reference material. The standard uncertainties for these uncertainty sources were combined using the method of root‐sum‐squares to give u_c = 0.8598%. The combined standard uncertainty was expanded to U = 1.7% to reflect a confidence level of 95% using a coverage factor of 2. This estimation applies to all aqueous ethanol wet‐bath simulator solution concentrations produced by this laboratory.     

Problems in the measurement of dynamic risk factors in sexual offenders

ABSTRACT

Having valid and reliable tools to measure ‘dynamic’ risk factors and minimising assessor bias is said to be critical in helping to make decisions regarding how individuals convicted of committing crime should be managed and treated, and how resources within the Justice System should be prioritised. This article outlines the problems and issues associated with the measurement of such putative dynamic risk factors (see Ward, 2015 Ward, T. (2015). Dynamic risk factors: Scientific kinds or predictive constructs. Psychology, Crime and Law, 22(01-02), 2–16. [Google Scholar] [Dynamic risk factors: Scientific kinds or predictive constructs. Psychology, Crime and Law.], 22(1–2), 2–16], this volume for a critique of current conceptions of these), and suggests ways of ensuring that measurement is conducted in the most appropriate way for the population being dealt with. Specifically, we would note that the evidence suggests that psychometric analysis, and structured professional judgment can be used to measure dynamic psychological problems using some tools within some samples. However, their use can be hindered by a number of conceptual factors including how the tests are designed and used, their reliability and validity, the context in which they are used, and the samples used. Finally, we would note that interviews are also an important part in the process of dynamic assessment.     

Public Financial Management Reform in South African Provincial Basic Education Departments

Since the transition to democracy in 1994, the South African government has engaged in a sustained programme of public financial management (PFM) reform across the national, provincial and local spheres of government. This study evaluates the progress of the nine provincial education departments (PEDs) in implementing the Public Finance Management Act of 1999 and explores the factors that facilitated or impeded reform. A PFM progress (PFMP) index is constructed to track each PED's performance from 1997/1998 to 2013/2014 and then used to benchmark its progress over time and relative to the education sector as a whole. The indicators comprising the PFMP index assess key PFM functions (budgeting, accounting, financial auditing and audits of performance information), financial leadership and the effectiveness of governance institutions such as audit committees. While there has been considerable progress in PFM, distinct differences in the quality and effectiveness of PFM practices across the nine PEDs remain. Stable top administrative leadership, availability of PFM skills, varying degrees of accountability and departmental capacity to establish PFM systems that conform to new accounting standards drive variances in reform outcomes. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

How High Should They Jump? An Empirical Method for Setting Municipal Financial Ratio Performance Benchmarks

Heightened concerns regarding the financial sustainability of local councils have resulted in an increasing reliance by municipal regulators on financial ratio performance benchmarking. However, these benchmarks are often assigned without explicit justification and despite a paucity of empirical evidence. Furthermore, regulators typically allocate a single performance benchmark across an entire local government system despite the fact that individual councils may face entirely different operating environments. Failure to take account of the environmental challenges facing councils can result in inappropriate or unattainable performance benchmarks that may give rise to unintended consequences, such as the well‐documented threshold effects. To address this problem, we develop an empirical method for allocating performance benchmarks with respect to the current level of performance and environmental constraints facing individual local authorities. We demonstrate this technique in a case study using data drawn from New South Wales local authority operating ratios.     

Veldt fires in South Africa: Implications on osteometry and the biological profile

Standard operating procedures for forensic anthropological analyses dictate that thermally altered remains should not be measured, hindering the creation of a biological profile. Few studies have addressed estimating biological parameters from burned remains, with the greatest focus of this research area being on cremated remains. However, veldt fires are more common than cremation in the South African forensic context. The aim of this study was to explore the degree of structural changes observed in domestic pig (Sus scrofa) bones associated with thermal destruction and the potential impact on the estimation of a biological profile using standard osteometric methods. A total of 96 pig femora were divided equally into two categories: fresh and dry. Within each category, equal samples were exposed to different durations of burning, namely, 5, 10, and 20 min. Ten standard femoral anthropological measurements were collected before and after burning. Technical error of measurement and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests were used to assess changes in the femoral dimensions before and after burning. Most measurements were significantly different after burning, with the fresh bones decreasing in size by up to 7.8% and the dry bones decreasing in size by up to 4.0%. The magnitude of post-burning measurement changes for both burn conditions was similar to, or smaller than has previously been reported for observer measurement errors of commonly used variables investigated for standard osteometric studies. Veldt fires are less intense than cremation, thus causing less shrinkage.     

见义勇为的经济学分析——公安机关的视角

从经济学的角度看,理性公民在进行行为选择时都要考虑其行为成本和收益。见义勇为作为一种行为模式,也有其成本和收益。理性公民是否实施见义勇为,一般要视其对政府或社会关于见义勇为制度或非正式制度中隐含预期的合理性而定。同时,见义勇为作为一种行为选择模式,也有其外部效应,这种外部效应与为社会提供公安产品的公安机关的职能和目标密切相关。因此,作为专门生产公安产品的公安机关如何理性地对待见义勇为,不仅关系到见义勇为者个人的切身利益,而且还关系到公安机关使命与职能的实现程度。为此,本文借助经济学的相关理论,从公安机关的视角来分析见义勇为,以期对公安机关更好地处理见义勇为这一议题提供一个新的视角,最终提高公安机关的总体绩效。     

试论单位盗窃

单位盗窃是司法实践中一个长期争论的问题。但97刑法的修改却没有涉及单位盗窃罪的规定,这给司法实践带来了诸多不便。最高检于2002年颁布的司法解释规定单位盗窃按自然人盗窃处理。该司法解释的颁布,并没有解决原来争论的问题,而使争论更加激烈。因为,该司法解释的内容既违背了罪刑法定原则,又违背了罪刑相适应原则。因此,笔者认为单位盗窃罪的刑事责任问题,只能通过立法程序予以解决。     

由第三人履行的合同刍议

由第三人履行的合同以担保第三人的履行为合同标的,合同的当事人是债权人和债务人,而非第三人。债务人负担的是担保义务,第三人没有履行或履行不符合约定,即属债务人担保义务的违反,发生违约责任。其违约责任原则上为损害赔偿责任,所赔偿者为债权人的履行利益;个别场合也可以是代为实际履行责任。     

Examination of acetone findings in suspected drug-facilitated sexual assaults: A case series

Acetone presence in human biological specimens can result from exogenous administration or endogenous production, resulting from diabetes, dietary composition, alcoholism, and stress response. Victims of drug-facilitated sexual assaults (DFSA) are understood to experience enhanced stress. At the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences (HCIFS), DFSA drug testing includes analysis of volatile compounds, ethanol, methanol, isopropanol, and acetone, by headspace gas chromatography/flame ionization detection. The prevalence of acetone-positive specimens in DFSA casework has been observed to exceed that of other human performance case types. In this report, DFSA cases received between 2019 and 2021 (n = 393) were reviewed and 41 acetone-positive cases were detailed. Overall, nearly 11% of the DFSA cases had acetone-positive blood or urine specimens, where 3% identified acetone only, 6% identified acetone and other drug(s), and 2% identified acetone, ethanol, and other drug(s). Acetone concentrations ranged from 0.010 to 0.147 g/100 mL in urine. Other drugs such as nor-carboxy-Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol, amphetamine, methamphetamine, ethanol, and benzoylecgonine were commonly detected. Elevated stress response encountered during DFSAs may facilitate the mechanism behind enhanced acetone production leading to increased identification. Limited availability of victim medical history precludes understanding the contribution of other disease states or physiological conditions. Nonetheless, the identification of acetone in DFSA specimens supports its potential as a biomarker of trauma in forensic toxicology casework and warrants future research within the community.     

On the challenge of unambiguous identification of fentanyl analogs: Exploring measurement diversity using standard reference mass spectral libraries

Fentanyl analogs are a class of designer drugs that are particularly challenging to unambiguously identify due to the mass spectral and retention time similarities of unique compounds. In this paper, we use agglomerative hierarchical clustering to explore the measurement diversity of fentanyl analogs and better understand the challenge of unambiguous identifications using analytical techniques traditionally available to drug chemists. We consider four measurements in particular: gas chromatography retention indices, electron ionization mass spectra, electrospray ionization tandem mass spectra, and direct analysis in real time mass spectra. Our analysis demonstrates how simultaneously considering data from multiple measurement techniques increases the observable measurement diversity of fentanyl analogs, which can reduce identification ambiguity. This paper further supports the use of multiple analytical techniques to identify fentanyl analogs (among other substances), as is recommended by the Scientific Working Group for the Analysis of Seized Drugs (SWGDRUG).