Profiling the scent of weathered training aids for blood-detection dogs

At outdoor crime scenes, cadaver-detection and blood-detection dogs may be tasked with locating blood that is days, weeks or months old. Although it is known that the odour profile of blood will change during this time, it is currently unknown how the profile changes when exposed to the environment. Such variables must be studied in order to understand when the odour profile is no longer detectable by the scent-detection dogs and other crime scene tools should be implemented. In this study, blood was deposited onto concrete and varnished wood surfaces and weathered in an outdoor environment over a three-month period. Headspace samples were collected using solid phase microextraction (SPME) and analysed using comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography – time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC×GC–TOFMS). The chemical odour profiles were compared with the behavioural responses of cadaver-detection and blood-detection dogs during training. Data interpretation using principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) established that the blood odour could no longer be detected using SPME–GC×GC–TOFMS after two months of weathering on both surfaces. Conversely, the blood-detection dogs had difficulty locating the blood samples after one month of weathering on concrete and after one week of weathering on varnished wood. The scent-detection dogs evaluated herein had not been previously exposed to environmentally weathered blood samples during training. Given that this study was conducted to test the dogs' baseline abilities, it is expected that with repeated exposure, the dogs' capabilities would likely improve. The knowledge gained from this study can assist in providing law enforcement with more accurate training aids for blood-detection dogs and can improve their efficiency when deployed to outdoor crime scenes.     

Erhöhung des Unterhaltsvorschusses nach Beendigung einstweiligen Unterhalts durch endgültige Bemessung

Die Aufhebung einer einstweiligen Verfügung infolge Zeitablaufs nach § 399 Abs 1 Z 2 EO wirkt im Regelfall nicht auf den Zeitpunkt ihrer Bewilligung, sondern lediglich auf den Zeitpunkt des Fristablaufs – etwa den Eintritt der Rechtskraft des im Hauptverfahren ergangenen Urteils – zurück. Der erkennende Senat tritt nicht der formalistischen Auffassung bei, eine Entscheidung, mit der ein vorl?ufiger Unterhalt gem § 382a EO durch einen "endgültigen" ersetzt werde, sei keine taugliche Grundlage für eine (rückwirkende) Erh?hung des Unterhaltsbeitrags iSd § 19 Abs 2 UVG. Vielmehr schlie?t er sich der in 3 Ob 147/00i ge?u?erten Ansicht an, wonach aus den ma?gebenden gesetzlichen Bestimmungen nicht ableitbar ist, dass ein Exekutionstitel gem § 382a EO, der einer Vorschussgew?hrung zugrunde gelegt worden sei, "mit der endgültigen Unterhaltsfestsetzung … beseitigt" werde. Demnach kann ein aufgrund einstweiliger Verfügung nach § 382a EO gew?hrter Unterhaltsvorschuss erh?ht werden, wenn sp?ter ein erh?hter Unterhalt im ordentlichen Bemessungsverfahren festgesetzt wurde. Das gilt jedenfalls für Vorschüsse nach §§ 3, 4 Z 1 UVG.     

The Revised German Raw Materials Strategy in the Light of Global Political and Market Developments

Raw material markets have proven to be challenging in recent years. The so‐called critical raw materials (CRMs), which are required for green technology, have particularly high environmental and supply risks. The revised German raw materials strategy attempts to address challenges of production and supply of CRMs and other mineral‐based raw materials. This contribution analyzes the motivation, measures, goals, and challenges of the German raw materials strategy in the light of global economic and political developments, applying the qualitative method GABEK®. Results show that the revised strategy is more ambitious and reaches farther than the initial strategy of 2010. Challenges that remain include the lack of willingness of the German industry to engage in mine production and the more pro‐active political approaches demonstrated elsewhere. As all major economic powerhouses outside of Europe pursue a hands‐on approach, it remains questionable if the revised German raw materials strategy will fundamentally be able to sustainably secure raw material supply for the German industry.     

(Kein) Optionsrecht zugunsten gemeinnütziger Sportvereine bei Vermietung

R?umen die Mitgliedstaaten ihren Steuerpflichtigen das in Artikel 13 Teil C der Sechsten Richtlinie 77/388/EWG vorgesehene Recht ein, für eine Besteuerung zu optieren, so k?nnen sie nach der Art der Ums?tze oder nach Gruppen von Steuerpflichtigen unterscheiden, sofern sie die Ziele und die allgemeinen Grunds?tze der Sechsten Richtlinie, insbesondere den Grundsatz der steuerlichen Neutralit?t und das Erfordernis einer korrekten, einfachen und einheitlichen Anwendung der vorgesehenen Befreiungen beachten. Es ist Sache des nationalen Gerichts, festzustellen, ob eine nationale Rechtsvorschrift, die die Ums?tze gemeinnütziger Sportvereine generell von der Steuer befreit und dabei das Recht dieser Sportvereine beschr?nkt, für eine Besteuerung der Vermietungs- und Verpachtungsums?tze zu optieren, das den Mitgliedstaaten einger?umte Ermessen unter Berücksichtigung insbesondere des Grundsatzes der steuerlichen Neutralit?t und des Erfordernisses einer korrekten, einfachen und einheitlichen Anwendung der vorgesehenen Steuerbefreiungen überschreitet.     

Abwehr von Eingriffen in das Mietrecht – zulässige Verfahrensart

Bei der Abgrenzung des streitigen vom au?erstreitigen Rechtsweg k?nnen nur konkrete bindende Absprachen über die in den §§ 8 und 9 MRG angeführten Rechte und Pflichten die Zul?ssigkeit des Rechtsweges ausl?sen. Enth?lt der Mietvertrag keine über das Gesetz hinausgehenden Regelungen, ist der Anspruch im au?erstreitigen Verfahren durchzusetzen. Zwar ist eine Behandlung der Klage als Antrag im Verfahren au?er Streitsachen nicht m?glich, wenn eine Gemeindeschlichtungsstelle besteht und daher vor der Anrufung der Gemeinde das au?erstreitige Verfahren vor Gericht unzul?ssig ist. Wies aber die Gemeindeschlichtungsstelle den entsprechenden Antrag ab und erhob die Partei binnen 4 Wochen Klage, ist die Umdeutung zul?ssig.     

Governmental Mismanagement and Symbolic Violence: Discourses on Corruption in the Yucatán of the 1990s1

Abstract — Departing from a conceptualisation of corruption as a form of symbolic violence, this article analyses the character and impact of the discourses about corruption which were produced in Yucatán in the beginning of the 1990s. The discourses produced by official and oppositional forces are scrutinised against the background of the federal government's neoliberal policies and the sociopolitical situation in the region during 1992 and 1993. The analysis gives some insights into the character of Mexican's and Yucatecan's experiences with corruption in their own setting. It explores some of the conflictual processes involved when social forces turn this form of symbolic violence into the object of moral critique in public discourses, drawing in this way also attention to how the state is imagined by those who exercise state power and those who are subject to it.     

Genetics and genomics of core short tandem repeat loci used in human identity testing

Over the past decade, the human identity testing community has settled on a set of core short tandem repeat (STR) loci that are widely used for DNA typing applications. A variety of commercial kits enable robust amplification of these core STR loci. A brief history is presented regarding the selection of core autosomal and Y-chromosomal STR markers. The physical location of each STR locus in the human genome is delineated and allele ranges and variants observed in human populations are summarized as are mutation rates observed from parentage testing. Internet resources for additional information on core STR loci are reviewed. Additional topics are also discussed, including potential linkage of STR loci to genetic disease-causing genes, probabilistic predictions of sample ethnicity, and desirable characteristics for additional STR loci that may be added in the future to the current core loci. These core STR loci, which form the basis for DNA databases worldwide, will continue to play an important role in forensic science for many years to come.     

Immunohistochemical staining as a potential method for the identification of vaginal epithelial cells in forensic casework

There is currently no accurate method to identify vaginal epithelial cells uniquely. This study aimed to use a cell extraction procedure compatible with routine forensic sampling methods, and to investigate the expression of cytokeratin (CK), estrogen receptor-alpha (ERalpha), and phosphodiesterase 5 (PDE5) in order to distinguish between skin, buccal, vaginal, and external penile epithelial cells. Seminal fluid samples were also examined. Epithelial cell samples were fixed in formalin, embedded in agarose, and processed using histological methods. Antigen-antibody reactions were detected using the DAKO Envision+ detection system. CK was present in all cells from all five sources confirming the origin of cells as epithelial. Both ERalpha and PDE5 positively labeled vaginal, buccal, and skin epithelial cells. Although an antigen unique to vaginal epithelial cells was not identified, we have described a cell extraction procedure for use in the immunohistochemical detection of a wide range of antigens, an approach compatible with forensic diagnostics.     

Genetic analysis of 15 STR loci of Chinese Ewenki ethnic population

POPULATION: Almost all the Ewenki are found in HulunBuir Ewenki Autonomous Banner, Inner Mongolia province of China. Some Ewenki are nomads; others are farmers or farmer-hunters. A small number of them are hunters. Its national characters and languages belong to the Altai phylum.