Science & Justice最新文献

{"title":"Evaluating the efficacy of three Y-STRs commercial kits in degraded skeletal remains","authors":"Christian Haarkötter,&nbsp;María Isabel Medina-Lozano,&nbsp;Diana C. Vinueza-Espinosa,&nbsp;María Saiz,&nbsp;Xiomara Gálvez,&nbsp;Juan Carlos Álvarez,&nbsp;José Antonio Lorente","doi":"10.1016/j.scijus.2024.07.007","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.scijus.2024.07.007","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Y chromosome short tandem repeats (Y-STRs) typing is a useful tool in scenarios such as mass graves analysis or disaster victim identification and has become a routine analysis in many laboratories. Not many comparisons have been performed with the currently available commercial kits, much less with degraded skeletal remains. This research aims to evaluate the performance of three commercial Y-STR kits: Yfiler™ Plus, PowerPlex® Y23, and Investigator® Argus Y-28 in 63 degraded skeletal remains from mass graves. PowerPlex® Y23 yields more reportable markers and twice the RFU on average, while Yfiler™ Plus and Investigator® Argus Y-28 exhibited a similar behaviour. Additionally, Argus Y-28, which has not been tested with this kind of samples in literature before, showed a good performance. Finally, a predictive model was attempted to be developed from quantification and autosomal STR data. However, no acceptable model could be obtained. Nevertheless, good Y-STR typing results may be expected if at least 50 pg DNA input is used or 13 autosomal markers were previously obtained.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49565,"journal":{"name":"Science & Justice","volume":"64 5","pages":"Pages 543-548"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-07-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1355030624000741/pdfft?md5=3753795dc5d56a8feeee8844376f9398&pid=1-s2.0-S1355030624000741-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141984890","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Discrimination of slight thermal damage to hair for arson investigation","authors":"Peibin Wang ,&nbsp;Jing Jin ,&nbsp;Zhengzhe Zang ,&nbsp;Zixin Li ,&nbsp;Chunyu Zhang ,&nbsp;Jinzhuan Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.scijus.2024.07.004","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.scijus.2024.07.004","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>To determine whether a suspect was in close contact with the fire source at a fire site through slight thermal damage to hair, a cone calorimeter was employed to simulate fire scene conditions as a standard radiant source. The research focused on analyzing the thermal behavior of black hair and delving into the morphological characteristics of hair exhibiting slight thermal damage. At temperatures exceeding 240 °C, the proteins within the hair began to degrade. This degradation, in conjunction with tension along the hair shaft resulting from water loss, led to the formation of microcracks that could be detected through scanning electron microscopy (SEM) but eluded observation with an optical microscope (OM). It is noteworthy that the initial slight thermal damage was regularly located at the hair shaft but not the hair tip, which should be the key parts when exanimating hairs without obvious thermal damage. Additionally, during very short exposure, the appearance of typical slight thermal damage on fire is probabilistic events. Along with the increase of temperature, the organic compounds in hair were thermally degraded into NH₃, SCO and carbon CO_2, resulting in the typical traces of discoloration, expansion, blistering, and cracking presented at hair shafts and tips. The probability of encountering both slight and obvious thermal damage on hair increased with rising temperatures. By observing the traces on the easily overlooked part of the hair shaft, the research established a method to analyze and discriminate the slight thermal damage to hair at fire scene, which provide valuable references for confirming arson suspects.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49565,"journal":{"name":"Science & Justice","volume":"64 5","pages":"Pages 477-484"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-07-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141960583","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Impact evidence and post-ricochet behaviour of shotgun pellets ricocheting off standard floor tiles","authors":"Bandula Nishshanka ,&nbsp;Chris Shepherd ,&nbsp;Damith Mohotti ,&nbsp;Randika Ariyarathna","doi":"10.1016/j.scijus.2024.07.003","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.scijus.2024.07.003","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Compared to popular handguns and rifle bullets, quantitative and empirical-based ricochet studies using shotgun pellet ricochets are observed to be far fewer. This empirical study examines the ricochet behaviour and impact evidence when shotgun pellets (Buckshot) ricochet off standard floor tiles, providing a series of novel findings related to the resultant ricochet marks. Among these findings, a novel and statistically significant relationship between the lengths and widths of individual ricochet marks and the shot impact angles is demonstrated, offering useful forensic application. Ricochet mark shapes and morphologies highlighted in this study at different impact angles demonstrate the interactions between the ricocheting spherical pellets and tile surfaces, and the effects of acting frictional forces and degree of energy transfer in the production of impact evidence on the tile surface. Relationships with high statistical significance were also reported between the shot spreads on the tile surfaces and the post-ricochet cardboard witness screens, with shot impact angles. Finally, this work reports on the first documented observations of ’Pinch Points’ and ’Nucleus’ ricochet marks with shotgun pellet ricochets as angle-specific phenomena.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49565,"journal":{"name":"Science & Justice","volume":"64 5","pages":"Pages 466-476"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-07-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141690045","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Fusing linguistic and acoustic information for automated forensic speaker comparison","authors":"E.K. Sergidou ,&nbsp;Rolf Ypma ,&nbsp;Johan Rohdin ,&nbsp;Marcel Worring ,&nbsp;Zeno Geradts ,&nbsp;Wauter Bosma","doi":"10.1016/j.scijus.2024.07.001","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.scijus.2024.07.001","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Verifying the speaker of a speech fragment can be crucial in attributing a crime to a suspect. The question can be addressed given disputed and reference speech material, adopting the recommended and scientifically accepted likelihood ratio framework for reporting evidential strength in court. In forensic practice, usually, auditory and acoustic analyses are performed to carry out such a verification task considering a diversity of features, such as language competence, pronunciation, or other linguistic features. Automated speaker comparison systems can also be used alongside those manual analyses. State-of-the-art automatic speaker comparison systems are based on deep neural networks that take acoustic features as input. Additional information, though, may be obtained from linguistic analysis. In this paper, we aim to answer if, when and how modern acoustic-based systems can be complemented by an authorship technique based on frequent words, within the likelihood ratio framework. We consider three different approaches to derive a combined likelihood ratio: using a support vector machine algorithm, fitting bivariate normal distributions, and passing the score of the acoustic system as additional input to the frequent-word analysis. We apply our method to the forensically relevant dataset FRIDA and the FISHER corpus, and we explore under which conditions fusion is valuable. We evaluate our results in terms of log likelihood ratio cost (<span><math><mrow><msub><mrow><mi>C</mi></mrow><mrow><mi>llr</mi></mrow></msub></mrow></math></span>) and equal error rate (<em>EER</em>). We show that fusion can be beneficial, especially in the case of intercepted phone calls with noise in the background.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49565,"journal":{"name":"Science & Justice","volume":"64 5","pages":"Pages 485-497"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-07-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141690369","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Evaluation of the effect of clonazepam and its metabolites on the life cycle of Megaselia scalaris (Loew) (Diptera: Phoridae)","authors":"Alejandra Quijano-Mateos,&nbsp;Alejandra Castillo-Alanis,&nbsp;Carlos Salvador Pedraza-Lara,&nbsp;María Elena Bravo-Gómez","doi":"10.1016/j.scijus.2024.07.002","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scijus.2024.07.002","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Fly colonization patterns and development are crucial in estimating the post-mortem interval (PMI) of decomposing corpses. Understanding the potential effects of xenobiotics on species development in cadaveric entomofauna is essential for accurate PMI estimation, given their presence in decomposing bodies. Benzodiazepines, commonly prescribed for their anxiolytic, hypnotic, and muscle relaxant effects, are of forensic interest due to their potential for abuse, dependence, intoxication, and overdose-related deaths. This study aimed to explore the effect of clonazepam and its metabolites on <em>Megaselia scalaris</em>, a species commonly used to estimate PMI, the alteration of which could impact the accuracy of said estimation. The S9 biotransformation fraction, an <em>in vitro</em> model consisting of an array of metabolic enzymes, was used to generate phase I and II metabolites for evaluating their effect on <em>M. scalaris</em> development, representing an innovative approach to this type of study. <em>Megaselia scalaris</em> larvae were reared in synthetic growth media under controlled conditions. The study compared different groups: control, clonazepam, and clonazepam with S9 fraction. Larvae were measured daily to determine growth rate, and clonazepam concentrations were analyzed using HPLC-DAD. Results showed that larvae grown in media containing clonazepam or clonazepam with S9 fraction developed faster than control larvae, reaching their pupal stage earlier. Growth rates were also altered in treated groups. In conclusion, the presence of clonazepam and its metabolites accelerated the life cycle of <em>M. scalaris</em>, potentially impacting the accuracy of PMI estimation. These findings underscore the importance of considering xenobiotics in forensic entomological studies for precise post-mortem interval determination.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49565,"journal":{"name":"Science & Justice","volume":"64 5","pages":"Pages 460-465"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-07-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1355030624000571/pdfft?md5=92748b5ca90ea71525bed2e2f399b14b&pid=1-s2.0-S1355030624000571-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141607458","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Bloodstain classification methods: A critical review and a look to the future","authors":"Emma Hook ,&nbsp;Sarah Fieldhouse ,&nbsp;David Flatman-Fairs ,&nbsp;Graham Williams","doi":"10.1016/j.scijus.2024.06.004","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scijus.2024.06.004","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Classifying bloodstains is an essential part of Bloodstain Pattern Analysis. Various experts have developed methods. Each method considers the same basic bloodstain pattern types. These use either terminology based on the observable characteristics or the mechanistic cause of the bloodstain patterns as part of the classification process. This review paper considers ten classification methods from fourteen sources, which are used to classify bloodstain patterns. There are fundamental differences in how the patterns are classified, how differentiated the classification is, and whether the classification process uses clear, unambiguous criteria, and is susceptible to contextual bias. Experts have also reported issues with classifying bloodstains that have indistinguishable features. These differences expose key limitations with current classification methods: mechanistic terminology is too heavily relied on, and the classification process is susceptible to contextual bias. The development of an unambiguous classification method, based on directly observable characteristics within bloodstain patterns is recommended for future work.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49565,"journal":{"name":"Science & Justice","volume":"64 4","pages":"Pages 408-420"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1355030624000546/pdfft?md5=fba6a9f3a73875090285c86567e64aa1&pid=1-s2.0-S1355030624000546-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141487063","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Optimization and standardization of procedures in Forensic Identification: A methodology for description and coding of tattoos in Mexico","authors":"Laura Corrales Blanco,&nbsp;Jorge Alfredo Gómez Valdés","doi":"10.1016/j.scijus.2024.06.001","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scijus.2024.06.001","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Tattoos serve as a valuable tool for identification. In the forensic context, it is vital to establish a systematic approach for documenting tattoo-related information to facilitate efficient and fast comparisons, especially in postmortem cases. Despite some countries failing to recognize the potential significance of tattoos, this study presents a methodological framework for gathering comprehensive data on this form of body modification. This article presents the results of an investigation made in Mexico during 2019–2022. The proposed methodology introduces a systematic and distinct classification system tailored to the country in which it will be implemented. The proposal is accompanied by applying the methodology in a Forensic Medical Service (SEMEFO) in Mexico for a week to test its effectiveness and speed under high workloads and stressful conditions. The novelty of this article lies in emphasizing the need for established, replicable, and homologous methodologies for tattoo codification. Additionally, it presents a more in-depth codification, where the details of the tattoos to be classified are thoroughly analyzed.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49565,"journal":{"name":"Science & Justice","volume":"64 4","pages":"Pages 397-407"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141487065","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"BM2: Council Information","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/S1355-0306(24)00065-0","DOIUrl":"10.1016/S1355-0306(24)00065-0","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":49565,"journal":{"name":"Science & Justice","volume":"64 4","pages":"Page II"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1355030624000650/pdfft?md5=58c66e9da24a084146bf28aabeb73365&pid=1-s2.0-S1355030624000650-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141630345","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The forensic potential of environmental DNA (eDNA) in freshwater wildlife crime investigations: From research to application","authors":"Matthew Lewis ,&nbsp;Katie Lainé ,&nbsp;Louise Dawnay ,&nbsp;David Lamont ,&nbsp;Kirstie Scott ,&nbsp;Stefano Mariani ,&nbsp;Bernd Hӓnfling ,&nbsp;Nick Dawnay","doi":"10.1016/j.scijus.2024.06.003","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scijus.2024.06.003","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Environmental DNA (eDNA) is widely used in biodiversity, conservation, and ecological studies but despite its successes, similar approaches have not yet been regularly applied to assist in wildlife crime investigations. The purpose of this paper is to review current eDNA methods and assess their potential forensic application in freshwater environments considering collection, transport and persistence, analysis, and interpretation, while identifying additional research required to present eDNA evidence in court. An extensive review of the literature suggests that commonly used collection methods can be easily adapted for forensic frameworks providing they address the appropriate investigative questions and take into consideration the uniqueness of the target species, its habitat, and the requirements of the end user. The use of eDNA methods to inform conservationists, monitor biodiversity and impacts of climate change, and detect invasive species and pathogens shows confidence within the scientific community, making the acceptance of these methods by the criminal justice system highly possible. To contextualise the potential application of eDNA on forensic investigations, two test cases are explored involving i) species detection and ii) species localisation. Recommendations for future work within the forensic eDNA discipline include development of suitable standardised collection methods, considered collection strategies, forensically validated assays and publication of procedures and empirical research studies to support implementation within the legal system.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":49565,"journal":{"name":"Science & Justice","volume":"64 4","pages":"Pages 443-454"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1355030624000534/pdfft?md5=38a9086159272abef151f7ec9d0b03d9&pid=1-s2.0-S1355030624000534-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141487064","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"BM1: Events Guide","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/S1355-0306(24)00064-9","DOIUrl":"10.1016/S1355-0306(24)00064-9","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":49565,"journal":{"name":"Science & Justice","volume":"64 4","pages":"Page I"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1355030624000649/pdfft?md5=c7879a2a283890cca73121471619293d&pid=1-s2.0-S1355030624000649-main.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141630344","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}