Identification Using Frontal Sinus by Three‐Dimensional Reconstruction from Computed Tomography*

Abstract: Radiographs and computed tomography (CT) images have been increasingly applied and accepted in forensic sciences. Along with radiographs and CT images, the frontal sinus is often used for the individual identification because of its unique and unchangeable characteristics. The purpose of this study is to define the usefulness of three‐dimensional (3‐D) images of the frontal sinus for identification. CT images from 119 Korean cadavers were built up for 3‐D reconstruction and surveyed with 15 measurements. The total volume of the sinus, some nonmetric characteristics, and the bilateral asymmetry index in men differed significantly from those in women (p < 0.05). The digit codes, six sections and 10‐digit number, were almost able to accurately identify individuals (98%). This study showed a statistical difference between the sexes and classified the fused and prominent middle sinuses for the first time. This proposed method for identification is more accurate than those used in other studies.     

Don't Mention the War: The Court of Appeal,the Criminal Cases Review Commission and Dealing with the Past in Northern Ireland

Despite the vast transitional justice scholarship relating to prisoner release, amnesties and prosecutions when conflicts end, there is a significant gap in practice and academic literature regarding wrongful convictions. Uniquely amongst post‐conflict societies, Northern Ireland has a body for investigating miscarriages of justice, albeit one designed for ‘ordinary’ appeals. In the absence of a formal truth‐recovery process, criminal appeals are becoming a proxy for addressing the role of the state during ‘The Troubles,’ as well as remedying individual injustices. This article examines the approach of the Northern Ireland Court of Appeal during the conflict. It charts the developments in its decision‐making following the cease‐fires and the establishment of the Criminal Cases Review Commission. It concludes that the current system is unsatisfactory as it ignores the effects of the conflict on the appeal process and offers no insights into the role of the Court during the conflict. Alternative models are suggested.     

The liability of website owners for defamation in Israel: A challenge yet to be solved?

From the end of the twentieth century to the present we have witnessed the effects of technology on the way we consume and distribute information. The print media, which in many ways was the natural product of the printing revolution, has given way to the electronic media with websites providing the new “town squares” in which the public discourse is held on political, economic and social issues among others. The Israeli legal system, like the legal systems in other countries, faces a variety of challenges and complex ethical and legal issues when required to regulate (often retrospectively) the manner and processes through which the discourse will be conducted in the virtual “town hall”. In essence, this article focuses on one of the many questions occupying the Israeli legal system and that is whether website owners should be liable in defamation for speech published by third parties on the Internet (through blogs, tweets on Twitter, posts on Facebook,¹ uploaded video clips on YouTube and the like) when no connection exists between the third party and the site owner apart from the fact that the third party has used the website as a platform to publish the offensive speech. The issue of the liability of the website owner has ramifications for the injured party's capacity to institute an action for defamation against the website owner, as often only the latter will be in a position to compensate the injured party (financially) for the offensive speech. The Israeli legal system, which in many ways furnishes a unique and interesting framework for examining the question posed above, as we explain in the body of the article, presents a fascinating example of how the Israeli legislature and the courts have dealt and continue to deal with claims filed against website owners for damage to reputation as a result of speech published by third parties. The article offers a comprehensive review of the status of the right to freedom of speech, anonymity and the right to reputation in Israel, the considerations for and against the imposition of liability on website owners and the latest case law on these questions.     

There's more to it than data protection – Fundamental rights,privacy and the personal/household exemption in the digital age

Heated debates triggered by the plans to introduce the “right to be forgotten” exposed problems the all-encompassing application of rules on data processing may cause in practice. The purpose of this article is to discuss the compatibility of these rules with the rapidly evolving online environment in the context of the need to guarantee human rights on the internet. The author argues that there is an imbalance in the protection of individual rights online. It results from the limited application of personal/household exception and, in general, the narrow understanding of the concept of online privacy. According to the author in order for data protection laws to flesh out not only the fundamental right of data protection, but also play a mediatory role in balancing other rights, the application of the personal/household exception should be extended to include private online activities. This would reflect the complex character of the very concept of online privacy, diversity of actors and activities shaping online “territories”, as well as the increasingly heterogeneous fabric of the Web.     

Anthropological Measurement of the Juvenile Clavicle Using Multi‐Detector Computed Tomography—Affirming Reliability

Currently, there is no standardized protocol for multi‐detector computed tomography (MDCT) measurement of juvenile remains. Using 33 juvenile clavicles, this paper investigates a protocol to allow MDCT measurements, comparable or supplemental with traditional osteometric measurements, to be acquired for application to previously published algorithms. The results illustrate that there is no significant difference between MDCT measurements and those taken by direct osteometric methods. By presenting such a protocol, this paper takes the first steps toward validation of the process of conversion from measurement of dry juvenile bone to MDCT compatibility and allows the forensic world to take a step forward in standardizing the way MDCT is used for forensic practice. This paper assesses the limitations and potential applications of this virtual approach and offers some suggestions for where further work might progress the conversion of these new approaches into legally admissible anthropological techniques of age estimation.     

Real‐Time Detection of Concealed Chemical Hazards Under Ambient Light Conditions Using Raman Spectroscopy

Current concerns regarding terrorism and international crime highlight the need for new techniques for detecting unknown and hazardous substances. A novel Raman spectroscopy‐based technique, spatially offset Raman spectroscopy (SORS), was recently devised for noninvasively probing the contents of diffusely scattering and opaque containers. Here, we demonstrate a modified portable SORS sensor for detecting concealed substances in‐field under different background lighting conditions. Samples including explosive precursors, drugs, and an organophosphate insecticide (chemical warfare agent surrogate) were concealed inside diffusely scattering packaging including plastic, paper, and cloth. Measurements were carried out under incandescent and fluorescent light as well as under daylight to assess the suitability of the probe for different real‐life conditions. In each case, it was possible to identify the substances against their reference Raman spectra in less than 1 min. The developed sensor has potential for rapid detection of concealed hazardous substances in airports, mail distribution centers, and customs checkpoints.     

Alcohol‐Induced Osteopenia Among In‐Custody and Homicide Deaths from the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences

Four cases of in‐custody or unlawful death are presented as examples of increased bone fragility with an associated increase in fracture rates due to ethanol‐induced osteopenia. In addition, one of the individuals suffered fractures several weeks premortem, allowing some healing to take place. Using radiographs and physical examination, the ribs from these individuals are compared with those retained from three individuals with no history of alcoholism to illustrate diagnostic characteristics that will be notable using standard autopsy and anthropological procedures. Trabecular bone mass is notably decreased in the alcoholic group leading to a greater chance of fracture occurring during conflict, including arrest and in‐custody situations. The average number of perimortem fractures among the alcoholic individuals is 15, while the control group is six. In the case of the individual with healing, the degree of bone repair on the ribs was less than is expected considering the interval between injury and death.     

The Use of Scale‐Invariance Feature Transform Approach to Recognize and Retrieve Incomplete Shoeprints

Shoeprints left at the crime scene provide valuable information in criminal investigation due to the distinctive patterns in the sole. Those shoeprints are often incomplete and noisy. In this study, scale‐invariance feature transform is proposed and evaluated for recognition and retrieval of partial and noisy shoeprint images. The proposed method first constructs different scale spaces to detect local extrema in the underlying shoeprint images. Those local extrema are considered as useful key points in the image. Next, the features of those key points are extracted to represent their local patterns around key points. Then, the system computes the cross‐correlation between the query image and each shoeprint image in the database. Experimental results show that full‐size prints and prints from the toe area perform best among all shoeprints. Furthermore, this system also demonstrates its robustness against noise because there is a very slight difference in comparison between original shoeprints and noisy shoeprints.     

Topological Variability of Fingerprint Ridge Density in a Sub‐Saharan Population Sample for Application in Personal Identification

Variability in ridge density in a sub‐Saharan population sample was studied by counting ridges in three fingerprint areas (two distal regions, radial and ulnar, and one proximal region) on the epidermal surface of the distal phalanx. Study material was obtained from the fingerprint impressions of 100 male sub‐Saharan subjects aged between 18‐ and 48‐years old. The results were compared with those obtained from a Spanish population sample. Sub‐Saharan males presented lower ridge density than Spanish males in the distal regions (radial and ulnar) of all fingers, whereas differences in the proximal region were only observed on some fingers. Using the differences observed between these populations, the likelihood ratio for inferring membership of one of the populations from a fingerprint of unknown origin was calculated; therefore, a ridge density of 14 or less for both areas (ulnar and radial), support an origin sub‐Saharan versus Spanish population.     

An Unusual Case of Multiple‐Gunshot Suicide of an Alcohol‐Intoxicated Cancer Sufferer with Prolonged Physical Activity

Multishot firearm suicides are relatively rare and suggest the possibility of homicide. Physical activity following gunshots to the head, the neck, and the thorax does occur, and immediate incapacitation does not occur in every fatal gunshot wound that penetrates the head or perforates the heart. Cancer patients appear to be at increased suicide risk, but alcohol intoxication is less common in such cases. We present—to the best of our knowledge for the first time—a case of a 54‐year old, male, liver cancer sufferer, who under the influence of alcohol, discharged his revolver three times, suffered, among other wounds, a heart‐perforating wound, and died after c. 1.5 h, being able to talk until just before he died. Our case underlines the importance of keeping an open critical mind when dealing with multiple‐gunshot fatalities, especially when posttraumatic physical activity might be crucial in differentiating homicide from suicide.