Pub Date : 2021-01-02DOI: 10.1080/00085030.2020.1869390
M. C. Tranchida, S. Pelizza, L. Elíades
Abstract Fungi are increasingly being used in criminal investigations as a source of data for crime scene and can be proposed as a forensic tool. There are very few forensic investigators trained in this discipline, which justifies the small amount of published data and most justice professionals are not aware of the contribution of fungi to these investigations. A wide variety of techniques derived from biology are used by forensic investigators to study the changes in the corpse and in the ground where the corpse decomposition occurs in order to solve a crime or find clandestine burials. We review the data available on the use of mycological evidence in criminal cases and as proofs before the justice. The first uses of fungi as evidence were restricted to cases associated with poisonous or psychotropic species. Currently, the objective of forensic mycology is to date the post-mortem and post-burial intervals using information from the fungal community found on the corpse surface or in the environment associated with a clandestine burial. The use of fungi as a forensic tool in different parts of the world has aroused the interest of forensic investigators, such as the members of the different Law Enforcements who deal with solving criminal cases.
{"title":"The use of fungi in forensic science, a brief overview","authors":"M. C. Tranchida, S. Pelizza, L. Elíades","doi":"10.1080/00085030.2020.1869390","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00085030.2020.1869390","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Fungi are increasingly being used in criminal investigations as a source of data for crime scene and can be proposed as a forensic tool. There are very few forensic investigators trained in this discipline, which justifies the small amount of published data and most justice professionals are not aware of the contribution of fungi to these investigations. A wide variety of techniques derived from biology are used by forensic investigators to study the changes in the corpse and in the ground where the corpse decomposition occurs in order to solve a crime or find clandestine burials. We review the data available on the use of mycological evidence in criminal cases and as proofs before the justice. The first uses of fungi as evidence were restricted to cases associated with poisonous or psychotropic species. Currently, the objective of forensic mycology is to date the post-mortem and post-burial intervals using information from the fungal community found on the corpse surface or in the environment associated with a clandestine burial. The use of fungi as a forensic tool in different parts of the world has aroused the interest of forensic investigators, such as the members of the different Law Enforcements who deal with solving criminal cases.","PeriodicalId":44383,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Society of Forensic Science Journal","volume":"54 1","pages":"35 - 48"},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2021-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/00085030.2020.1869390","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42695045","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-01-02DOI: 10.1080/00085030.2020.1858588
N. Garg, Abhinav Kathuria, Srikant N, Nandita Kp, Shweta Yellapurkar, N. Jose, J. Ahmed, V. Kulkarni
Abstract Willems gender-specific and non-specific maturity scores derive the age of the individual with acceptable error margins in the Belgian Population. This needs to be validated in various subpopulations to enable its use in age estimation. Our aim was to test the validity of both Willems’s I & II maturity scores to estimate dental age in children and adolescents (aged 5–20 yrs) in Dakshina Kannada population in India. Seven teeth of mandibular left quadrant from 800 Orthopantomograms (Male:Female::372:428) of individuals aged 5–20 years were staged using Demirjian’s method and substituted by the Willems maturity scores to derive the age. The chronological and the predicted age of the individuals were correlated to derive the mean absolute error of age estimation in male, female and total. The mean absolute error of estimation of age in males, females, and total of Willems I and II techniques were 1.11, 1.04, 1.07, 1.15, 1.04 and 1.09 years respectively. The gender nonspecific scores predominantly underestimated the age. The Willems I technique showed an underestimation of age in females and over-estimation of age in males (p < 0.001). The present study validates Willems method of age estimation in Dakshina Kannada population, showing a low error rate of ∼1 year.
{"title":"Validity of Willems age estimation method in children’s & adolescents’ of Dakshina Kannada Region, India","authors":"N. Garg, Abhinav Kathuria, Srikant N, Nandita Kp, Shweta Yellapurkar, N. Jose, J. Ahmed, V. Kulkarni","doi":"10.1080/00085030.2020.1858588","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00085030.2020.1858588","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Willems gender-specific and non-specific maturity scores derive the age of the individual with acceptable error margins in the Belgian Population. This needs to be validated in various subpopulations to enable its use in age estimation. Our aim was to test the validity of both Willems’s I & II maturity scores to estimate dental age in children and adolescents (aged 5–20 yrs) in Dakshina Kannada population in India. Seven teeth of mandibular left quadrant from 800 Orthopantomograms (Male:Female::372:428) of individuals aged 5–20 years were staged using Demirjian’s method and substituted by the Willems maturity scores to derive the age. The chronological and the predicted age of the individuals were correlated to derive the mean absolute error of age estimation in male, female and total. The mean absolute error of estimation of age in males, females, and total of Willems I and II techniques were 1.11, 1.04, 1.07, 1.15, 1.04 and 1.09 years respectively. The gender nonspecific scores predominantly underestimated the age. The Willems I technique showed an underestimation of age in females and over-estimation of age in males (p < 0.001). The present study validates Willems method of age estimation in Dakshina Kannada population, showing a low error rate of ∼1 year.","PeriodicalId":44383,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Society of Forensic Science Journal","volume":"54 1","pages":"27 - 34"},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2021-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/00085030.2020.1858588","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41452395","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-10-06DOI: 10.1080/00085030.2020.1820799
Julie-Éléonore Maisonhaute, S. Forbes
Abstract Necrophagous arthropods are essential ecosystem decomposers and are important indicator species in the discipline of forensic entomology. Studies around the world have evaluated the succession of arthropods on animal carcasses, but no published data are available for the province of Quebec (Canada). The objective of this study was to evaluate the diversity of arthropods associated with pig carcasses in Quebec, and to determine the colonization sequence of the different families/species throughout the decomposition process. Three pig carcasses were deposited in a small woodland area in Trois-Rivières, in mid-June 2019. The decomposition process and the arthropod community were studied until the beginning of November (first snowfall) by visual observation, and sample collection on the carcasses, using an entomological net and pitfall traps. Five species of blow fly (Diptera: Calliphoridae) were found to lay eggs on the carcasses: Calliphora livida, C. vomitoria, Lucilia illustris, Phormia regina, and Protophormia terraenovae. Eggs/larvae of the first three species were recorded during the first week only (fresh stage-beginning of active decay), while the other two species were recorded throughout the decomposition process until the dry remains stage. Coleoptera were observed from day 0 to day 141 (end of experiment). Some families/species were associated with early stages of decomposition (e.g. Necrophila americana, Silphidae), while others were only found during the dry remains stage (e.g. Carnicops pumilio, Histeridae).
{"title":"Decomposition process and arthropod succession on pig carcasses in Quebec (Canada)","authors":"Julie-Éléonore Maisonhaute, S. Forbes","doi":"10.1080/00085030.2020.1820799","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00085030.2020.1820799","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Necrophagous arthropods are essential ecosystem decomposers and are important indicator species in the discipline of forensic entomology. Studies around the world have evaluated the succession of arthropods on animal carcasses, but no published data are available for the province of Quebec (Canada). The objective of this study was to evaluate the diversity of arthropods associated with pig carcasses in Quebec, and to determine the colonization sequence of the different families/species throughout the decomposition process. Three pig carcasses were deposited in a small woodland area in Trois-Rivières, in mid-June 2019. The decomposition process and the arthropod community were studied until the beginning of November (first snowfall) by visual observation, and sample collection on the carcasses, using an entomological net and pitfall traps. Five species of blow fly (Diptera: Calliphoridae) were found to lay eggs on the carcasses: Calliphora livida, C. vomitoria, Lucilia illustris, Phormia regina, and Protophormia terraenovae. Eggs/larvae of the first three species were recorded during the first week only (fresh stage-beginning of active decay), while the other two species were recorded throughout the decomposition process until the dry remains stage. Coleoptera were observed from day 0 to day 141 (end of experiment). Some families/species were associated with early stages of decomposition (e.g. Necrophila americana, Silphidae), while others were only found during the dry remains stage (e.g. Carnicops pumilio, Histeridae).","PeriodicalId":44383,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Society of Forensic Science Journal","volume":"54 1","pages":"1 - 26"},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2020-10-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/00085030.2020.1820799","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47295950","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-10-01DOI: 10.1080/10401334.2020.1838147
G. J. Davis
A confession: I wanted to like this text more than I did. I first encountered this book in its second edition while training in forensic pathology in the 80 s, and it was formative in my understand...
{"title":"Spitz and fisher’s medicolegal investigation of death: Guidelines for the application of pathology to crime investigation, 5th ed","authors":"G. J. Davis","doi":"10.1080/10401334.2020.1838147","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10401334.2020.1838147","url":null,"abstract":"A confession: I wanted to like this text more than I did. I first encountered this book in its second edition while training in forensic pathology in the 80 s, and it was formative in my understand...","PeriodicalId":44383,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Society of Forensic Science Journal","volume":"53 1","pages":"210 - 211"},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2020-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/10401334.2020.1838147","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47627804","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-10-01DOI: 10.1080/00085030.2020.1834755
Della A. Wilkinson, S. Holowachuk, C. Corbett, K. Antonation, Lisa Rostek, A. Wotherspoon, K. Toole, Nathan B. Unsworth, J. Coumbaros, V. Rastogi, Brad Donais, Jackie Osmond, C. Baxter
Abstract Chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and explosive (CBRNE) response teams are responsible for mitigating and investigating events such as the distribution of anthrax letters throughout the US Postal Service in 2001. One consideration will be the examination of contaminated physical evidence to identify those responsible. Decontamination agents are often used to inactivate or neutralize chemical and/or biological warfare agents so that once-contaminated objects can be handled safely. The objective of this project was to determine the impact of different decontamination agents on physical evidence including DNA, documents, fingermark and footwear evidence. In Phase 1, vaporous hydrogen peroxide (VHP), gamma irradiation, dry fogging, chlorine dioxide, MODEC MDF-500, Bioxy-S, ozone and formaldehyde were tested. Promising decontamination agents were selected for Phase 2 when physical evidence was exposed to Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), an anthrax surrogate, prior to decontamination. VHP, gamma irradiation, dry fogging, formaldehyde and chlorine dioxide were tested in Phase 2. Results indicate that several forensic analyses were impacted. VHP and gamma irradiation were used across different laboratories with inconsistent results observed for some forensic protocols. Further investigation indicated that these results could be explained by variation in contamination protocols between laboratories. Les équipes d'intervention chimique, biologique, radiologique, nucléaire et explosive (CBRNE) sont chargées d'atténuer et d'enquêter sur des événements tels que la distribution de lettres d'anthrax dans l'ensemble du service postal américain en 2001. Une considération sera l'examen des preuves physiques contaminées pour identifier les responsables. Les agents de décontamination sont souvent utilisés pour inactiver ou neutraliser les agents de guerre chimiques et/ou biologiques afin que des objets autrefois contaminés puissent être manipulés en toute sécurité. L'objectif de ce projet était de déterminer l'impact de différents agents de décontamination sur les preuves physiques, y compris l'ADN, les documents, les traces de doigt et les chaussures. En phase 1, le peroxyde d'hydrogène vaporeux (VHP), l'irradiation gamma, la brumisation sèche, le dioxyde de chlore, le MODEC MDF-500, le Bioxy-S, l'ozone et le formaldéhyde ont été testés. Des agents de décontamination prometteurs ont été sélectionnés pour la phase 2 lorsque des preuves physiques ont été exposées à Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), un substitut de l'anthrax, avant la décontamination. Le VHP, l'irradiation gamma, la brumisation sèche, le formaldéhyde et le dioxyde de chlore ont été testés à la phase 2. Les résultats indiquent que plusieurs analyses médico-légales ont été touchées. VHP et l'irradiation gamma ont été utilisée dans différents laboratoires avec des résultats incohérents observés pour certains protocoles médico-légaux. Une enquête plus approfondie a indiqué que ces résultats pour
{"title":"Effect of decontamination agents following biological contamination on fingermarks, footwear, documents and DNA","authors":"Della A. Wilkinson, S. Holowachuk, C. Corbett, K. Antonation, Lisa Rostek, A. Wotherspoon, K. Toole, Nathan B. Unsworth, J. Coumbaros, V. Rastogi, Brad Donais, Jackie Osmond, C. Baxter","doi":"10.1080/00085030.2020.1834755","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00085030.2020.1834755","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and explosive (CBRNE) response teams are responsible for mitigating and investigating events such as the distribution of anthrax letters throughout the US Postal Service in 2001. One consideration will be the examination of contaminated physical evidence to identify those responsible. Decontamination agents are often used to inactivate or neutralize chemical and/or biological warfare agents so that once-contaminated objects can be handled safely. The objective of this project was to determine the impact of different decontamination agents on physical evidence including DNA, documents, fingermark and footwear evidence. In Phase 1, vaporous hydrogen peroxide (VHP), gamma irradiation, dry fogging, chlorine dioxide, MODEC MDF-500, Bioxy-S, ozone and formaldehyde were tested. Promising decontamination agents were selected for Phase 2 when physical evidence was exposed to Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), an anthrax surrogate, prior to decontamination. VHP, gamma irradiation, dry fogging, formaldehyde and chlorine dioxide were tested in Phase 2. Results indicate that several forensic analyses were impacted. VHP and gamma irradiation were used across different laboratories with inconsistent results observed for some forensic protocols. Further investigation indicated that these results could be explained by variation in contamination protocols between laboratories. Les équipes d'intervention chimique, biologique, radiologique, nucléaire et explosive (CBRNE) sont chargées d'atténuer et d'enquêter sur des événements tels que la distribution de lettres d'anthrax dans l'ensemble du service postal américain en 2001. Une considération sera l'examen des preuves physiques contaminées pour identifier les responsables. Les agents de décontamination sont souvent utilisés pour inactiver ou neutraliser les agents de guerre chimiques et/ou biologiques afin que des objets autrefois contaminés puissent être manipulés en toute sécurité. L'objectif de ce projet était de déterminer l'impact de différents agents de décontamination sur les preuves physiques, y compris l'ADN, les documents, les traces de doigt et les chaussures. En phase 1, le peroxyde d'hydrogène vaporeux (VHP), l'irradiation gamma, la brumisation sèche, le dioxyde de chlore, le MODEC MDF-500, le Bioxy-S, l'ozone et le formaldéhyde ont été testés. Des agents de décontamination prometteurs ont été sélectionnés pour la phase 2 lorsque des preuves physiques ont été exposées à Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), un substitut de l'anthrax, avant la décontamination. Le VHP, l'irradiation gamma, la brumisation sèche, le formaldéhyde et le dioxyde de chlore ont été testés à la phase 2. Les résultats indiquent que plusieurs analyses médico-légales ont été touchées. VHP et l'irradiation gamma ont été utilisée dans différents laboratoires avec des résultats incohérents observés pour certains protocoles médico-légaux. Une enquête plus approfondie a indiqué que ces résultats pour","PeriodicalId":44383,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Society of Forensic Science Journal","volume":"53 1","pages":"173 - 209"},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2020-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/00085030.2020.1834755","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44921287","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-08-11DOI: 10.1080/00085030.2020.1799658
N. Nagachar, T. Tiedge, A. Lakhtakia, M. N. McCormick, R. Roy
Abstract A systematic study was undertaken on the influence of environmental insult on the efficacy of developing a latent fingermark on a nonporous substrate by the deposition of a conformal nanoscale columnar thin film (CTF) on it. Four warm-weather and one cold-weather environmental conditions were chosen as representative for Pennsylvania. Three durations of environmental insult were selected: a day, seven days, and 30 days. Fingermarks were collected from one male donor and one female donor on five different types of substrates. The evaporant material for the deposition of a CTF on a specific fingermark sample was specifically chosen based on a prior study. Photographs of every fingermark were graded for quality after collection, after enduring the chosen environmental insult for a particular duration, and after CTF development. The results of the study on 750 fingermark samples indicate that environmental insult does not always degrade and can even improve the quality of fingermarks, and CTF deposition thereafter may considerably enhance the insulted fingermarks for visualization.
{"title":"Development of environmentally insulted fingermarks on nonporous forensically relevant substrates with conformal columnar thin films","authors":"N. Nagachar, T. Tiedge, A. Lakhtakia, M. N. McCormick, R. Roy","doi":"10.1080/00085030.2020.1799658","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00085030.2020.1799658","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract A systematic study was undertaken on the influence of environmental insult on the efficacy of developing a latent fingermark on a nonporous substrate by the deposition of a conformal nanoscale columnar thin film (CTF) on it. Four warm-weather and one cold-weather environmental conditions were chosen as representative for Pennsylvania. Three durations of environmental insult were selected: a day, seven days, and 30 days. Fingermarks were collected from one male donor and one female donor on five different types of substrates. The evaporant material for the deposition of a CTF on a specific fingermark sample was specifically chosen based on a prior study. Photographs of every fingermark were graded for quality after collection, after enduring the chosen environmental insult for a particular duration, and after CTF development. The results of the study on 750 fingermark samples indicate that environmental insult does not always degrade and can even improve the quality of fingermarks, and CTF deposition thereafter may considerably enhance the insulted fingermarks for visualization.","PeriodicalId":44383,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Society of Forensic Science Journal","volume":"53 1","pages":"149 - 172"},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2020-08-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/00085030.2020.1799658","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49343730","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-07-02DOI: 10.1080/00085030.2020.1803030
A. Braga, W. Knaap, R. Summerbell
Abstract The purpose of this study was to examine growth rates for the filamentous fungus Scopulariopsis brevicaulis on decomposing porcine remains in relation to three controlled temperatures. This study was performed by inoculating porcine tissue samples retrieved from the same source. These samples were placed into three controlled environments to examine changes over a month. This study was intended to develop a photographic and quantifiable chronology of fungal growth that can be used as a reference by investigative personnel interested in utilizing mycological evidence in death investigations. Providing this novel information to the inadequately studied discipline of forensic mycology is intended to help establish the credibility of this field. These efforts will aid in interpreting post-mortem intervals for cadavers experiencing fungal growth in controlled indoor environments.
{"title":"Examining growth rates of Scopulariopsis brevicaulis on decomposing porcine remains","authors":"A. Braga, W. Knaap, R. Summerbell","doi":"10.1080/00085030.2020.1803030","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00085030.2020.1803030","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The purpose of this study was to examine growth rates for the filamentous fungus Scopulariopsis brevicaulis on decomposing porcine remains in relation to three controlled temperatures. This study was performed by inoculating porcine tissue samples retrieved from the same source. These samples were placed into three controlled environments to examine changes over a month. This study was intended to develop a photographic and quantifiable chronology of fungal growth that can be used as a reference by investigative personnel interested in utilizing mycological evidence in death investigations. Providing this novel information to the inadequately studied discipline of forensic mycology is intended to help establish the credibility of this field. These efforts will aid in interpreting post-mortem intervals for cadavers experiencing fungal growth in controlled indoor environments.","PeriodicalId":44383,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Society of Forensic Science Journal","volume":"53 1","pages":"130 - 148"},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2020-07-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/00085030.2020.1803030","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45168665","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-05-31DOI: 10.1080/00085030.2020.1756117
Trevor I. Stamper, L. Pharr, G. Anderson, Carleen Gondor, Alex C Dedmon, R. Kimsey
Abstract We describe how an unusual facultative scavenger, the black-billed magpie (Pica hudsonia (Sabine)), took advantage of the compromised nature of burnt skin to scavenge porcine remains with extensive, and hitherto unreported, efficiency. Scavenging appears to be minimally reported for this species. We serendipitously made these observations while conducting a workshop on forensic entomology in Missoula, Montana, in 2015. We also illustrate how excluding larger vertebrate scavengers may reveal and highlight the taphonomic effects of smaller facultative scavengers not so excluded. Such observations could be important to forensic investigators in wildlife or homicide investigations of burnt remains.
{"title":"First observation of burnt vertebrate carrion scavenging by black-billed magpies (Pica hudsonia (Sabine)) highlights the need to evaluate all possible scavengers at a site","authors":"Trevor I. Stamper, L. Pharr, G. Anderson, Carleen Gondor, Alex C Dedmon, R. Kimsey","doi":"10.1080/00085030.2020.1756117","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00085030.2020.1756117","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract We describe how an unusual facultative scavenger, the black-billed magpie (Pica hudsonia (Sabine)), took advantage of the compromised nature of burnt skin to scavenge porcine remains with extensive, and hitherto unreported, efficiency. Scavenging appears to be minimally reported for this species. We serendipitously made these observations while conducting a workshop on forensic entomology in Missoula, Montana, in 2015. We also illustrate how excluding larger vertebrate scavengers may reveal and highlight the taphonomic effects of smaller facultative scavengers not so excluded. Such observations could be important to forensic investigators in wildlife or homicide investigations of burnt remains.","PeriodicalId":44383,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Society of Forensic Science Journal","volume":"53 1","pages":"108 - 95"},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2020-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/00085030.2020.1756117","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46996736","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-05-25DOI: 10.1080/00085030.2020.1767855
Lilian Skokan, Catherine Daigle, A. Tremblay, Cyril Muehlethaler
Abstract In Canada, the knife is amongst the stabbing weapons most frequently used in the commission of violent crimes, particularly homicides. Although under-exploited, the search for fibres resulting from contact between a textile material and a receiver surface can provide relevant information on the activity at their origin. Although cotton-polyester blended textiles are among the most commonly produced worldwide, no research seems to focus on studying the proportions of fibres transferred to the knife blade during such an attack which constitutes an important lack of information for practitioners in the field. This study involved the construction of a stabbing simulation device that performed perforations under controlled parameters (e.g. force, speed and orientation of perforation) with the use of two kitchen knives with straight and serrated blades. Simulations were conducted on a set of four blended textiles to further investigate the transfer of cotton and polyester fibres and the correlation to donor textile characteristics. The transfer mainly lies on the properties of the fibres. Since cotton fibres are shorter, less resistant and less elastic than polyester fibres, they are favoured during transfer and can be found in greater proportion. Finally, the study provides some guidelines, including the addition of a scraping step, for the recovery of fibres from knife blades.
{"title":"Le transfert différentiel des fibres de coton et de polyester lors d’agressions au couteau","authors":"Lilian Skokan, Catherine Daigle, A. Tremblay, Cyril Muehlethaler","doi":"10.1080/00085030.2020.1767855","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00085030.2020.1767855","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract In Canada, the knife is amongst the stabbing weapons most frequently used in the commission of violent crimes, particularly homicides. Although under-exploited, the search for fibres resulting from contact between a textile material and a receiver surface can provide relevant information on the activity at their origin. Although cotton-polyester blended textiles are among the most commonly produced worldwide, no research seems to focus on studying the proportions of fibres transferred to the knife blade during such an attack which constitutes an important lack of information for practitioners in the field. This study involved the construction of a stabbing simulation device that performed perforations under controlled parameters (e.g. force, speed and orientation of perforation) with the use of two kitchen knives with straight and serrated blades. Simulations were conducted on a set of four blended textiles to further investigate the transfer of cotton and polyester fibres and the correlation to donor textile characteristics. The transfer mainly lies on the properties of the fibres. Since cotton fibres are shorter, less resistant and less elastic than polyester fibres, they are favoured during transfer and can be found in greater proportion. Finally, the study provides some guidelines, including the addition of a scraping step, for the recovery of fibres from knife blades.","PeriodicalId":44383,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Society of Forensic Science Journal","volume":"53 1","pages":"109 - 129"},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2020-05-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/00085030.2020.1767855","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46600159","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-04-02DOI: 10.1080/00085030.2020.1757586
G. Yost
Abstract A previous article in this journal traced the evolution of the law from the first amendment to the Criminal Code related to breath testing for alcohol in 1951 to the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in November 2012 on the constitutionality of the 2008 Criminal Code amendments that eliminated the “two beer” defence. This article discusses the legal, scientific and parliamentary response to that decision leading up to the 2018 decision of the Supreme Court of Canada on whether maintenance records could constitute evidence that the approved instrument had malfunctioned.
{"title":"Evidential breath testing for alcohol, Parliament, the science and the courts (Part 2)","authors":"G. Yost","doi":"10.1080/00085030.2020.1757586","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00085030.2020.1757586","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract A previous article in this journal traced the evolution of the law from the first amendment to the Criminal Code related to breath testing for alcohol in 1951 to the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in November 2012 on the constitutionality of the 2008 Criminal Code amendments that eliminated the “two beer” defence. This article discusses the legal, scientific and parliamentary response to that decision leading up to the 2018 decision of the Supreme Court of Canada on whether maintenance records could constitute evidence that the approved instrument had malfunctioned.","PeriodicalId":44383,"journal":{"name":"Canadian Society of Forensic Science Journal","volume":"53 1","pages":"83 - 94"},"PeriodicalIF":0.4,"publicationDate":"2020-04-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/00085030.2020.1757586","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44303910","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
京公网安备 11010802042870号
京ICP备2023020795号-1
扫码关注我们
求助内容：
应助结果提醒方式：