Fatal Fentanyl Patch Misuse in a Hospitalized Patient with a Postmortem Increase in Fentanyl Blood Concentration

Opioid‐related mortality happens, even in healthcare settings. We describe serial postmortem fentanyl blood concentrations in a hospital inpatient who fatally abused transdermal fentanyl. This is a single‐patient case report. A 42‐year‐old man with lymphoma was started on transdermal fentanyl therapy while hospitalized for chronic abdominal pain. The patient was last seen awake 1.3 h prior to being found apneic and cyanotic. During the resuscitation attempt, a small square‐shaped film was removed from the patient's oropharynx. Femoral blood was collected 0.5 and 2 h postmortem, and the measured fentanyl concentration increased from 1.6 to 14 ng/mL. Study limitations include potential laboratory or collection errors and missing data. (i) Providers must be vigilant for signs of fentanyl patch abuse. (ii) Postmortem blood concentrations are not static postmortem, likely secondary to decreasing pH, increased aqueous solubility, and tissue redistribution, and are therefore unlikely to accurately represent antemortem blood concentrations.     

A New Anti‐forensic Scheme—Hiding the Single JPEG Compression Trace for Digital Image

To prevent image forgeries, a number of forensic techniques for digital image have been developed that can detect an image's origin, trace its processing history, and can also locate the position of tampering. Especially, the statistical footprint left by JPEG compression operation can be a valuable source of information for the forensic analyst, and some image forensic algorithm have been raised based on the image statistics in the DCT domain. Recently, it has been shown that footprints can be removed by adding a suitable anti‐forensic dithering signal to the image in the DCT domain, this results in invalid for some image forensic algorithms. In this paper, a novel anti‐forensic algorithm is proposed, which is capable of concealing the quantization artifacts that left in the single JPEG compressed image. In the scheme, a chaos‐based dither is added to an image's DCT coefficients to remove such artifacts. Effectiveness of both the scheme and the loss of image quality are evaluated through the experiments. The simulation results show that the proposed anti‐forensic scheme can verify the reliability of the JPEG forensic tools.     

Comparison of the Columnar‐Thin‐Film and Vacuum‐Metal‐Deposition Techniques to Develop Sebaceous Fingermarks on Nonporous Substrates,

Both the columnar‐thin‐film (CTF) and the vacuum‐metal‐deposition (VMD) techniques for visualizing sebaceous fingermarks require the deposition of a material thereon in a vacuum chamber. Despite that similarity, there are many differences between the two techniques. The film deposited with the CTF technique has a columnar morphology, but the film deposited with the VMD technique comprises discrete islands. A split‐print methodology on a variety of fingermarked substrates was used to determine that the CTF technique is superior for developing fingermarks on clear sandwich bags and partial bloody fingermarks on stainless steel. Both techniques are similar in their ability to develop fingermarks on glass but the CTF technique yields higher contrast. The VMD technique is superior for developing fingermarks on white grocery bags and the smooth side of Gloss Finish Scotch Multitask^? tape. Neither technique worked well for fingermarks on black garbage bags.     

The Accuracy of Handheld Pre‐Arrest Breath Test Instruments as a Predictor of the Evidential Breath Alcohol Test Results

Drunk driving is a serious threat to public safety. All available and appropriate tools for curbing this threat should be employed to their full extent. The handheld pre‐arrest breath test instrument (PBT) is one tool for identifying the alcohol‐impaired driver and enforcing drunk driving legislation. A set of data was evaluated (n = 1779) where the PBT instrument was employed in drunk driving arrests to develop a multivariate predictive model. When maintained and operated by trained personnel, the PBT provides a reasonable estimate of the evidential test result within the relevant forensic range (95% prediction interval:  ± 0.003 g/210 L). ROC analysis shows that a multivariate model for PBT prediction of the evidentiary alcohol concentration above versus below the legal limit of 0.08 g/210 L has excellent performance with an AUC of 0.96. These results would be of value in evidential hearings seeking to admit the PBT results in drunk driving trials.     

Failings of Trauma‐Specific and Related Psychological Tests in Detecting Post‐Traumatic Stress Disorder in Forensic Settings

Judges and juries tend to be particularly impressed by test data, especially quantitative test data. Psychometric tests specific for assessing the presence of post‐traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are commonly employed by forensic mental health evaluators. Most of these instruments, however, have been designed to detect PTSD in treatment or research, and not forensic, settings. Those who rely on these measures without adequate awareness of their often significant limits in correctly identifying malingering may induce finders of fact to inordinately confidently accept the presence of PTSD. This article reviews problematic structural and content components of trauma‐specific and related instruments used to evaluate PTSD and discusses the utility of specific techniques liable to be used in forensic settings to “fool” these measures.     

Color Separation in Forensic Image Processing Using Interactive Differential Evolution

Color separation is an image processing technique that has often been used in forensic applications to differentiate among variant colors and to remove unwanted image interference. This process can reveal important information such as covered text or fingerprints in forensic investigation procedures. However, several limitations prevent users from selecting the appropriate parameters pertaining to the desired and undesired colors. This study proposes the hybridization of an interactive differential evolution (IDE) and a color separation technique that no longer requires users to guess required control parameters. The IDE algorithm optimizes these parameters in an interactive manner by utilizing human visual judgment to uncover desired objects. A comprehensive experimental verification has been conducted on various sample test images, including heavily obscured texts, texts with subtle color variations, and fingerprint smudges. The advantage of IDE is apparent as it effectively optimizes the color separation parameters at a level indiscernible to the naked eyes.     

Sex Determination by Discriminant Function Analysis of Lumbar Vertebrae

Sex determination is critical for developing the biological profile of unidentified skeletal remains. When more commonly used elements (os coxa, cranium) for sexing are not available, methods utilizing other skeletal elements are needed. This study aims to assess the degree of sexual dimorphism of the lumbar vertebrae and develop discriminant functions for sex determination from them, using a sample of South African blacks from the Raymond A. Dart Collection (47 males, 51 females). Eleven variables at each lumbar level were subjected to univariate and multivariate discriminant function analyses. Univariate equations produced classification rates ranging from 57.7% to 83.5%, with the highest accuracies associated with dimensions of the vertebral body. Multivariate stepwise analysis generated classification rates ranging from 75.9% to 88.7%. These results are comparable to other methods for sexing the skeleton and indicate that measures of the lumbar vertebrae can be used as an effective tool for sex determination.     

Child Sexual Abuse in Turkey: An Analysis of 1002 Cases

This study investigated the characteristics of abuse suffered by children, the dimensions of the psychiatric effects associated with abuse, and the factors affecting these. One thousand two cases aged under 18, exposed to sexual abuse, and referred over a 7‐year period were assessed. Girls represented 80.8% of cases, and the numbers rose with age. The aggressors were all male, and 88.2% were known to their victim. Approximately half the children were exposed to sexual abuse involving penetration. Psychological pathology was identified in 62.1%. Female gender, the presence of penetration, physical violence, and incest significantly increased the development of psychological pathology. Levels of awareness in people close to and trusted by the child must be raised to minimize the adverse effects of trauma in the long term, preventive measures must be taken, and medical and social support units from which victims can receive assistance need to be established.     

Nondestructive Methods for Recovery of Biological Material from Human Teeth for DNA Extraction

The extraction of DNA from human skeletal remains applied to forensic, and evolutionary studies do not exclude risks, which are to be evaluated when working with unique specimens that could be damaged or even destroyed. In the present study were evaluated several nondestructive methods for recovering DNA instead of the most currently used pulverization method. Three different procedures to access inside the dental pieces (occlusal perforation, cervical perforation, and cervical cut) have been compared with the aim of recovering as many cell remains as possible to carry out a DNA extraction. Given the DNA quantitation results, a method was proposed that consists of a cervical cut to facilitate the access to the pulp cavity and a subsequent filing of the root canals down to the apex of the dental root. This methodology allows the recovery of both mitochondrial and nuclear DNA, with the minimum deterioration for the dental pieces.     

Characteristics of Backspatter on the Firearm and Shooting Hand—An Experimental Analysis of Close‐range Gunshots

Contact and close‐range gunshot injuries can produce bloodstains on the shooting hand and weapon. In this study, backspatter was analyzed in experimental horizontal pistol shots into blood‐filled sponges. The shooting distances were set between 0 and 45 cm. With increasing shooting distance, there was a significant decrease in the degree of backspatter. Microspatter could be detected on the weapon and shooting hand up to a shooting distance of 40 cm. They were predominantly located on thumb and index finger as well as the radial dorsal aspects of the hand. Fine spray of microspatter combined with elongated droplets in the shape of exclamation marks was found at contact and 2‐cm distance shots. An angular calculation based on the shape of the bloodstains was possible up to a shooting distance of 2 cm. No bloodstains were detected beyond 45 cm.