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Crime Scene (crime + scene)
Selected AbstractsAn Unusual Zip Gun Suicide,Medicolegal and Ballistic ExaminationJOURNAL OF FORENSIC SCIENCES, Issue 1 2010Petr Hejna M.D., Ph.D. Abstract:, Home-made guns are imitations of typical firearms and usually have handgun characteristics. This article presents an unusual case of a suicide carried out by means of a fatal gunshot wound to the head using a home-made zip gun. A 49-year-old male, with a history of paranoid psychosis was found dead in the dwelling place of a family house. The investigation at the crime scene did not lead to suspicion of a gunshot wound because of the unusual nature of the firearm used. A medical examiner diagnosed an opened head injury as the primary cause of the victim's death. The autopsy findings provided immediate grounds for further inspection of the crime scene. Subsequently, a simple zip gun, which had been overlooked during the scene investigation, was discovered. An undeformed projectile recovered from the victim's head was consistent with the use of the home-made firearm. Following the completion of the investigations and autopsy, the death was classified as a suicide. [source] The Stability of Collected Human Scent Under Various Environmental Conditions,JOURNAL OF FORENSIC SCIENCES, Issue 6 2009Davia T. Hudson Ph.D. Abstract:, Human scent evidence collected from objects at a crime scene is used for scent discrimination with specially trained canines. Storage of the scent evidence is usually required yet no optimized storage protocol has been determined. Storage containers including glass, polyethylene, and aluminized pouches were evaluated to determine the optimal medium for storing human scent evidence of which glass was determined to be the optimal storage matrix. Hand odor samples were collected on three different sorbent materials, sealed in glass vials and subjected to different storage environments including room temperature, ,80°C conditions, dark storage, and UVA/UVB light exposure over a 7-week period. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the headspace of the samples were extracted and identified using solid-phase micro-extraction,gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (SPME,GC/MS). Three-dimensional covariance mapping showed that glass containers subjected to minimal UVA/UVB light exposure provide the most stable environment for stored human scent samples. [source] .177 Caliber Pellet Classification System and Identification Key,JOURNAL OF FORENSIC SCIENCES, Issue 6 2007James A. Bailey Ph.D. Abstract:, A classification system and identification key for .177 caliber air gun pellets was developed based on a five-class characteristic criterion. Sixty-eight pellet types from 15 companies were examined and compared. A classification system was developed based on the pellets' head shapes, skirt types, lengths, weights, and other markings or observations. In some cases, when a pellet is recovered from a crime scene, product brand identification may aid the investigation. Even though all product brands cannot be identified, various brands of pellets can be eliminated based on a pellet's class characteristics. The pellet producers in this study were located in the following countries: China, Czech Republic, England, Korea, Spain, and the United States. An identification key can be used for possible pellet identification or elimination. [source] Investigating the nature of expressiveness in stranger, acquaintance and intrafamilial homicidesJOURNAL OF INVESTIGATIVE PSYCHOLOGY AND OFFENDER PROFILING, Issue 3 2005Stephanie K. Last Abstract This study explores the role of the victim,offender relationship in the dynamics of homicide, by examining the crime scene behaviour of 25 intrafamilial, 30 acquaintance and 27 stranger homicide offenders (n = 82). Six crime scene variables were examined: ,Weapon from the scene', ,Excessive wounding', ,Facial trauma', ,Multiple wounds to a single area', ,Post-mortem activity' and ,Manual violence'. The first objective was to identify whether these variables could be combined to form a partially ordered scale of expressiveness. The second was to examine whether the nature of this expressive crime scene varied according to the victim and offender relationship. It was hypothesised that the intrafamilial homicides would be characterised by a more expressive crime scene. This was examined by Partial Order Scalogram Analysis which supported the hypothesised link between the level of expressed emotion evident in the crime scene and the nature of the victim,offender relationship. Further analysis on the individual variables revealed that the best single predictor of the relationship between victim and offender was the presence of multiple wounding. These findings are discussed both as contributing to a theoretical understanding of the emotional salience of crime scene actions when killing a family member, and in practical terms in relation to the significance of these variables for both police investigations and clinical interventions with homicide perpetrators. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Stable isotope analysis of safety matches using isotope ratio mass spectrometry,a forensic case study,RAPID COMMUNICATIONS IN MASS SPECTROMETRY, Issue 22 2005N. L. Farmer Isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) was used to assess what contribution the technique could make towards the comparative analysis of matchstick samples within the ,normal' framework of a forensic investigation. A method was developed to allow the comparison of samples submitted as a result of an investigation, with the added advantage of rapid sample turn-around expected within this field. To the best of our knowledge this is the first time that wooden safety matches have been analysed using IRMS. In this particular case, bulk stable isotope analysis carrried out on a ,like-for-like' basis could demonstrate conclusively that matches seized from a suspect were different from those collected at the scene of crime. The maximum ,13C variability observed within one box was 2.5,, which, in conjunction with the error of measurement, was regarded to yield too wide an error margin as to permit differentiation of matchsticks based on 13C isotopic composition alone given that the ,natural' 13C abundance in wood ranges from ,20 to ,30,. However, from the ,2H values obtained for crime scene matches and seized matches of ,114.5, and ,65,, respectively, it was concluded that the matches seized were distinctly different from those collected at the crime scene. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Crime scene investigation: An exercise in generating and analyzing DNA evidence,BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY EDUCATION, Issue 1 2003Karen M. Lounsbury Abstract The goal of this project is to introduce students to molecular biology techniques using an experimental setting that inspires both scientific and personal interest. The project is designed as a small group apprenticeship for gifted high school juniors or seniors who can spend full time in a sponsor's laboratory for at least 1 week. The students begin by examining evidence from a mock crime scene that consists of hair samples from the crime scene and from five potential suspects. Students extract DNA from the hair samples and amplify a hypervariable region within the mitochondrial genome using the polymerase chain reaction. Amplified products are then sequenced and compared with the crime scene sequence using DNA alignment software. In consecutive projects, students from four different schools successfully identified the suspect who matched the crime scene evidence. This project is a valuable learning tool not only due to the comprehensive introduction to molecular biology techniques but also because it helps the students to connect scientific exploration with well publicized media events and provides a window into potential career opportunities in the field of molecular biology. [source] Variability of Bodily Measures of Normally Dressed People Using PhotoModeler® Pro 5,JOURNAL OF FORENSIC SCIENCES, Issue 6 2008Peter K. Larsen M.Sc. Abstract:, Photogrammetry is used in forensic science to help identify perpetrators from crime scenes by way of surveillance video, but the reproducibility of manually locating hidden body-points such as the joints remains to be established. In this study, we quantified the inter- and intra-observer variability of bodily measures of clothed individuals in two different poses and examined whether body segment lengths could be used to distinguish between people of similar stature. Stature was reproduced within ±1.5 cm in both the intra- and inter-observer study. Segment lengths were best reproduced when flexion in the joints was present in the intra-observer study, but only the length of the trunk could be used to distinguish between people of similar height. The reproducibility between the two poses was low. Other measures than stature should be used with caution and with the perpetrator and suspect in the same pose. Consistent guidelines for locating body-points should be developed. [source] |