Showing papers in "Science & Justice in 2009"

TL;DR: The present paper first describes the new paradigm of the likelihood-ratio framework, then describes the history of its adoption for forensic voice comparison over approximately the last decade.

TL;DR: A comparative study of drug and alcohol findings in various victim groups between 2000 and 2006 suggests the presence of drugs and/or alcohol was of similar frequency in those victims in control and not in control, and infers an effect on driving ability and individual impairment.

TL;DR: The potential value of IRMS to attribute Australian AN samples to the manufacturing source was demonstrated through the development of a preliminary AN classification scheme based on nitrogen isotopes, and the classification scheme has potential as an investigative aid.

TL;DR: An attempt has been made to assess the effect of some of these criteria and their effect on the ability of ninhydrin to develop the marks in latent fingerprints under controlled conditions.

TL;DR: In this paper, the potential of inorganic analysis techniques for the discrimination of document (multipurpose office) paper was evaluated and it appeared that for the single techniques LA-ICP-MS had the highest overall discriminating power.

TL;DR: The experts tested were consistently better at identification than the public, with almost double the identification rates and half the errors, which suggests that training and experience in facial analysis will produce more reliable and accurate facial identification.

TL;DR: The method was shown to be equivalent to the traditional methods in terms of its sensitivity and discriminating power and used to conduct a survey of the current market for the supply of condoms in the U.K.

TL;DR: A brief overview of hair testing in cases of Drug Facilitated Crime stressing the importance of timely sample collection is provided and its usefulness will be highlighted through case examples.

TL;DR: Two cases where the findings of secondary level experimental studies undertaken to address specific issues particular to two forensic investigations proved to be important demonstrate that a fuller understanding of the specific context within which trace physical evidence is generated and subsequently collected can add evidentiary weight to the analysis and interpretation of that evidence.

TL;DR: The population of coloured fibres on bare skin was classified according to perceived colour, length, generic class and the presence or absence of delustrant and differential shedding results for a polyester/cotton mixture showed a small bias towards the retention of cotton.

TL;DR: The degree of discrimination obtained between non-denim blue cotton fibres using visible-UV range microspectrophotometry alone was found to be high, similar to that reported by a previous study where this method was combined with light and fluorescence microscopy.

TL;DR: Findings with respect to additional artefacts from a study of 10,000 alleles are presented and guidelines for interpretation are included to aid the interpretation of DNA mixtures where minor contributor(s) might be present in comparable amounts to the back stutter products.

TL;DR: A preliminary evaluation of the IRMS technique for the measurement of stable isotope values in TATP and PETN samples supports the dedication of resources for a full evaluation of this application to achieve Court reportable IRMS results.

TL;DR: The potential of combining isotope amount ratio measurements performed by MC-ICP-MS and IRMS for the detection of counterfeit pharmaceutical tablets has been investigated and has great potential for pharmaceutical counterfeit detection.

TL;DR: The relative chronological sequence of intersecting Gel pen ink lines and laser printed marks has been determined using optical methods using spectral reflection, relative sheen, skipping and gaps of gel pen ink strokes at the point of intersection.

TL;DR: The results from 30 distinct PETN, TNT and ANFO samples show that the different families of explosives are clearly differentiated by both their specific isotope signatures and their combination with corresponding element concentrations.

TL;DR: FTIR spectroscopy has been found to be a valuable probe for the analysis of the distribution of organic components such as nitroglycerine in gunshot residues deposited on and around the bullet entrance hole of the clothing of the victim in short range firearm discharges.

TL;DR: Isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) has been investigated as a potential tool for the analysis of architectural white paints, where no preparation of samples prior to analysis is required.

TL;DR: Although the available data do not provide uniform geographical coverage they do provide useful information which can assist police search investigations and they provide valuable contextual information which aids the evidential assessment of soil evidence when used in court.

TL;DR: Analysis of lipid extracts of whole soils and white particulate matter revealed the input to be isotopically distinct from common British domesticated animals, plotting closely to values determined for adipose fat obtained from of a murder victim.

TL;DR: Statistical analysis suggests that testate amoebae assemblages are somewhat spatially distinct and have potential to be used for soil discrimination, and further experimental work is crucial to examine the spatial and temporal variation of amoevolution in water films, wet ground and puddles before they can be added to the armoury of methods available to the forensic biologist.

TL;DR: The study built on previous research and compared Physical Developer to Oil Red O, testing both on four paper types, while being placed in three different water types and an accelerant for various amounts of time.

TL;DR: The concentrations ofTHC and THC-COOH in oral fluid showed a large variation and the results from oral fluid and urine samples from cannabis abusers did not show any correlation, so detailed information about time interval between drug use and sample collection is needed to interpret the oral fluid results properly.

TL;DR: Results have shown overall improvements for both within- and inter-laboratory reproducibility with respect to delta13C and delta15N measurements and highlighted the importance of sample preparation procedures and the need to standardise both these procedures and calibration against Standard Reference Materials.

TL;DR: Assessment of colour changes that occur in several types of commonly available textiles as a result of the long-term effects of various popularly used laundry detergents includes an assessment of the observed changes from a fibre analysis expert's point of view, as well as that of an average user/consumer of the products involved.

TL;DR: A number of two-way radios, similar to those which have been employed to initiate Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), were acquired from a commercial supplier and grouped into four pairs, considered to be representative of the components of an IED.

TL;DR: The main aims of the study were to identify the most frequently encountered drugs and to determine if there were any major drugs trends from the data collected, including the huge increase in polydrug use.

TL;DR: The stable isotope profile (SIP) of the wooden matchstick samples was unaffected by the presence of both petrol and a variety of fire extinguisher chemicals, and any changes seen could be attributed to the natural variability of isotopic composition encountered in a natural material such as wood.

TL;DR: Four species of mongoose were characterised by performing discriminate functional analysis (DFA) on measurements of their dorsal guard hair banding pattern and by microscopic hair characteristics (Cuticular, medullar and cross section); it was possible to distinguish between the four species studied, based on both these methods.