Further Pseudo-Operational Trials with the Lumicyano Double- and Co-Fuming Process for the Detection of Latent Fingermarks

This study presents a number of pseudo-operational trials on plastic bags investigating the double- and co-fuming process of a one-step fluorescent cyanoacrylate (Lumicyano^TM) in comparisons with the two-step process with basic yellow 40 (BY40) staining for the detection of latent fingermarks. The results demonstrate that both Lumicyano solution and dye contribute to the increased detection of latent fingermarks during the double-fuming process (trial 1). Co-fuming the Lumicyano solution and dye separately (at a concentration of 8%) but simultaneously was less effective than 8% Lumicyano (trial 2). Co-fuming Lumicyano 8% and an additional 8% Lumicyano dye by weight was more effective than Lumicyano 8% (trial 3), possibly due to increased fluorescent material deposition during co-fuming allowing for better visualization. The use of BY40 after Lumicyano resulted in a considerable increase in detected fingermarks.     

The effect of mark enhancement techniques on the presumptive and confirmatory tests for blood

An investigation into the effects of physical and chemical enhancement on subsequent presumptive and confirmatory tests for human blood is presented. Human blood was deposited onto porous (white 80 gsm paper and brown envelope) and non-porous (tile and linoleum) substrates in a depletion series (30 depletions on non-porous and 20 on porous) and subjected to three ageing periods; 1, 7 and 28?days. A number of enhancement techniques were tested [fluorescence, black magnetic powder (BMP), iron-oxide black powder suspension (PS), cyanoacrylate (CA) fuming, acid violet 17 (AV17), acid yellow 7 (AY7), ninhydrin, DFO and Bluestar Forensic Magnum (BFM) luminol] to evaluate their potential effects on subsequent presumptive and confirmatory tests. AV17 and Bluestar provided the best enhancement and fully enhanced all depletions in the series. The sensitivity of the Kastle-Meyer (KM) (presumptive), Takayama and RSID-Blood tests (confirmatory) was initially investigated to determine the range of detectable depletions. The KM test detected all depletions, whereas the Takayama test detected up to depletion 6 and RSID-Blood detected up to depletion 20 (paper), 10 (envelope), 15 (tile) and 9 (lino). The abilities of these tests to detect blood after enhancement were then observed.A number of techniques resulted in little to no effect on any of the blood tests, whereas adverse effects were observed for others. Ninhydrin and CA fuming caused weak but instantaneous positive KM results whereas methanol-based AV17 and AY7 delayed the reaction by as much as 1?min. The Takayama test was not very sensitive, therefore, its performance was easily affected by enhancement and negative results were often observed. RSID-Blood tests were largely unaffected by chemical enhancement although a drop in positive results was observed for some of the techniques when compared to positive controls.Using a standard procedure for DNA extraction, all the tested blood samples (before and after enhancement) gave a detectable quantity of DNA and were successfully profiled. Out of the 45 samples processed for DNA profiling, 41 gave full profiles, while the remaining showed allele drop out in one or two loci.     

Identifying the origins of welsh local government reform

Although those within Welsh local government circles were aware that the Welsh Office was considering restructuring local government as early as December 1990, the first the general population knew of the proposed changes was in June 1991. It was in that month that the Welsh Secretary produced a consultation paper entitled The Structure of Local Government in Wales. ¹ This advocated the introduction of unitary authorities throughout Wales. The publication of this consultation paper was at the same time as those for Scotland² and England.³ This gave the impression that Wales was merely following events in England and Scotland. Such an assumption remains widespread. In the first part of his article ‘Legislating for Wales ‐ Local Government (Wales) Act 1994’ Paul Griffiths indicated that the local government changes in Wales were unplanned and perhaps unintended and a reaction to changes occurring in England.⁴ This article aims to shed more light on the background behind Welsh local government reform. It indicates that the changes in Welsh local government were more a matter of coincidence than merely a mirror of those happening elsewhere. It also argues that the changes in Wales have their own unique Welsh origins, and that the changes may well have occurred, regardless of what happened in the rest of the United Kingdom.     

‘Pushing at a closed door’: The 1998 welsh local government review and its implications for electing welsh councils

In March 1998 the Welsh Office launched a Green Paper on ‘Local Democracy and Community Leadership’. After an extensive consultation period a White Paper (July 1998) was issued which appeared to leave the door open for further changes to the electoral system. Yet, since this date, the issue of reforming the Welsh electoral system has remained dormant. This paper examines the drive towards modernising electoral arrangements. It discusses the main problems associated with local government electoral system in Wales, what respondents to the Green Paper saw as solutions and how the White Paper sought to deal with them. It concludes by examining the reasons why electoral reform in Wales appears to have been put on the back‐burner.     

Visualisation of fingermarks and grab impressions on fabrics. Part 1: gold/zinc vacuum metal deposition

Vacuum metal deposition (VMD) is a highly sensitive technique originally introduced for detecting latent fingermarks on smooth non-porous surfaces such as carrier bags, plastics and glass. The current study explores whether VMD can be used in the examination of clothing from physical and sexual assault cases in order to visualise identifiable fingermark ridge detail and/or palmar flexion crease detail, thus allowing potential areas to be indicated for DNA swabbing and/or to determine the sequence of events. Four different fabrics were utilised during this study - nylon, polyester, polycotton and cotton, along with 15 donors who ranged in their age and propensity to leave fingermarks, from good to medium to poor as determined by results obtained from test runs using paper and plastic carrier bags processed with VMD. Once samples were collected they were kept for a determined time (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 14, 21 or 28 days) and then treated using the gold/zinc metal VMD process. From the results, it appears that greater ridge detail is visible on the smoother non-porous fabrics, such as nylon whereas on rougher porous fabrics, such as cotton, only empty prints and impressions, rather than any ridge details, were visible. All fabrics did however allow the development of touch marks that could be targeted for DNA taping thus potentially leading to a DNA profile and possible identification of a suspect.     

Reviews

Vexing questions: Women and philosophy

Moira Gatens, Feminism and Philosophy: Perspectives on Difference and Equality (Polity Press) Cambridge, 1991; Rosi Braidotti, Patterns of Dissonance (Polity Press) Cambridge, 1991.

Rethinking democracy, reaffirming equality

Ann Ferguson, Sexual Democracy: Women, Oppression, and Revolution (Allen & Unwin) Sydney, 1991; Anne Phillips, Engendering Democracy (Polity Press) Cambridge, 1991.

Women's health

Claudia Bepko (ed.), Feminism and Addiction (Haworth Press) Binghamton, 1991; Helen Roberts (ed.), Women's Health Matters (Routledge) London, 1992.

Distinguishing the Intertwined: Multiplicity as Methodology and Recent Studies of Gender, Class, Ethnicity and Culture

Gill Bottomley, Marie de Lepervanche and Jeannie Martin (eds), Intersexions: Gender/Class/Culture/Ethnicity (Allen & Unwin) Sydney, 1991; Kalpana Ram, Mukkuvar Women: Gender, Hegemony and Capitalist Transformation in a South Indian Fishing Community (Asian Studies Association of Australia Women in Asia Publication Series) (Allen & Unwin) Sydney, 1991; Shanti Rozario, Purity and Communal Boundaries: Women and Change in a Bangladeshi Village (Asian Studies Association of Australia Women in Asia Publication Series) (Allen & Unwin) Sydney, 1992; Ann Game, Undoing the Social: Towards a Deconstructive Sociology (Open University Press) Buckhingham, 1991

Writing through the body?

Judith A. Allen, Sex and Secrets: Crimes Involving Australian Women since 1880 (Oxford University Press) Melbourne, 1990.

Re‐mapping terrains

Carol Pateman, The Disorder of Women (Polity Press) Cambridge, 1989; Lorraine Code, What Can She Know? Feminist Theory and the Construction of Knowledge (Cornell University Press) Ithaca & London, 1991; Elisabeth J. Porter, Women and Moral Identity (Allen & Unwin) Sydney, 1991.

Inversions

Betsy Warland (ed), Inversions: Writing by Dykes, Queers and Lesbians (Press Gang) Vancouver, 1991.

Living laboratories

Robyn Rowland, Living Laboratories, (Sun) Melbourne, 1992.

Sharing household work

Janeen Baxter, Diane Gibson with Mark Lynch‐Blosse, Double Take: The Links Between Paid and Unpaid Work (Australian Government Publishing Service) Canberra, 1990; Michael Bittman, Juggling Time: How Australian Families Use Time (Office of the Status of Women, Department of Premier and Cabinet) 1991.

Feminist knowledge

Sneja Gunew (ed.), Feminist Knowledge: Critique and Construct and A Reader in Feminist Knowledge (Routledge) London, 1990.

Emotion and Gender

June Crawford, Susan Kippax, Jenny Onyx, Una Gault and Pam Benton, Emotion and Gender: Constructing Meaning from Memory (Sage) London, 1992.

As good as a yarn with you

Carole Ferner (ed.), As Good As A Yarn With You: Letters between Miles Franklin, Katharine Susannah Prichard, Jean Devanny, Marjorie Barnard, Flora Elder show and Eleanor Dark (Cambridge University Press) Oakleigh, 1992.

Women's rights

Elizabeth Kingdom, What's Wrong With Rights?: Problems for Feminist Politics of Law (Edinburgh University Press) Edinburgh, 1991; A‐J. Arnaud and E. Kingdom (eds), Women's Rights and the Rights of Man (Aberdeen University Press) Aberdeen, 1990.