Showing papers in "Science & Justice in 2013"

TL;DR: The way in which post-mortem changes will affect the recovery of DNA from teeth under a range of commonly used extraction protocols is discussed and the benefits and pitfalls of using specific tooth tissues for DNA extraction are highlighted.

TL;DR: This work found novel highly specific RNA biomarkers for the identification of vaginal secretions with high specificity and sensitivity and identified six promising candidates, two of which are able to differentiate between VS and other body fluids containing significant numbers of epithelia, particularly saliva and skin.

TL;DR: A novel application of visible wavelength hyperspectral image analysis has been applied to determine the age of blood stains up to 30 days old suggesting that the pre-processing stages described are revealing spectroscopic changes which are reliably following the time dependent oxidation of HbO2.

TL;DR: Given the body of evidence supporting the potentially serious implications of domain irrelevant information, it was decided to introduce a context management scheme at the Document Examination Unit of the Victoria Police Forensic Services Department.

TL;DR: Luminol, fluorescein, hydrogen peroxide, ultraviolet light and infrared photography were tested in an effort to find a rapid and efficient blood search tool for direct application to dark surfaces and luminol was proposed due to its greater sensitivity.

TL;DR: This work evaluates cocaine purity and the concentration ranges of adulterants and inorganic constituents for 31 street cocaine samples seized in two different regions of Brazil from July 2008 to May 2010 to study the relationship of constituents to the chemicals used in the manufacturing of cocaine.

TL;DR: A method for the rapid analysis of suspicious samples was developed, using a portable capillary electrophoresis with contactless conductivity detection, which allows the separation of scopolamine from atropine which has a similar structure and is present along with scopolamines in some samples.

TL;DR: In forensic age estimation procedures in living persons, sonographic examination of the iliac crest apophysis makes it possible to minimise exposure of the individual to radiation in accordance with the existing legal basis for the use of X-rays on humans.

TL;DR: Developing strict and detailed scientific methods and protocols, blinding examiners to potentially biassing irrelevant contextual information, statistical tools and measurement instrumentation that provide objective and accurate quantification, as well as best practices in collecting and analysing evidence – all based on data – are important and warranted steps in further establishing and strengthening forensic work as a science.

TL;DR: It is shown that operational devices to elicit subjective probabilities - in particular the so-called scoring rules - provide additional arguments in support of the standpoint according to which categorical claims of forensic individualisation do not follow from a formal analysis under that view of probability theory.

TL;DR: It is demonstrated that a similar gain in genotype information can be obtained with standard (28-cycle) PCR conditions using the same joint interpretation methods as well as with standard DNA profiling data obtained using a specifically developed LCN methodology.

TL;DR: All techniques improved correct naming on their own, but together promoted highly-recognisable composites with mean naming at 74% correct, suggesting that these techniques, if used together by practitioners, should substantially increase the detection of suspects using this forensic method of person identification.

TL;DR: Basic two-component mixtures are analysed to assess whether the heights of DNA and RNA peaks may guide association of donor and cell type, and to discourage to associate cell types and donors from peak heights when performing RNA and DNA profiling.

TL;DR: The Raman scattering tool was able to determine the sequence of heterogeneous intersection strokes involving a blue stamp pad ink and other writing instruments, such as ballpoint pen ink (red and black), pencil and laser printer toner.

TL;DR: 2D and 3D imaging techniques as well as many of the algorithms used to match these images and the statistical methods used to judge the uniqueness of fired bullets and spent cartridge cases are reviewed.

TL;DR: The finding that effects were weaker, although not entirely removed, in those with IAI certification suggests that training may be an appropriate route for reducing the effect of contextual influence and bias in suitability determinations.

TL;DR: The morphometric method showed that the method for the replacement and mixing of skin secretions on the palm was appropriate to ensure reproducibility of latent prints and there was a time-dependent reduction in the width of ridges and on the percentage of visible ridges over 30 days.

TL;DR: The sequence of intersecting strokes of laser printers and typewriter ink with the strokes of gel pen ink, ballpoint pen ink and fountain pen ink has been determined by studying their absorption spectra by using Video Spectral Comparator.

TL;DR: The results of this research show that, provided the incidence of false positives is borne in mind, direct AP testing can be especially useful when screening exhibits which are difficult to indirectly (blot) AP test or when it is problematic to relocate an AP positive stain.

TL;DR: The results suggest that individuals with experience in gait analysis perform well in the comparative identification of suspects from CCTV footage, and therefore do have a role to play as expert witnesses in this field.

TL;DR: The results show the possibility of obtaining good quality developed marks, even under such adverse circumstances, and further and wider research should be undertaken in which other variables are introduced such as different substrates, other types of liquids, and environmental or time factors.

TL;DR: This study emphasises the main issue while working with altered bones: the impossibility to extract DNA in some cases, and, worth of all, the contamination of the sample or the faint amplification of Y band which leads to a wrong sex answer.

TL;DR: Results showed that U6, GAPDH and 18S rRNA were the suitable markers in the authors' set of samples in various corpse conditions, that B2M and ACTB were reliable internal controls in heart tissue only, and that microRNAs had such high M values that they should not be chosen for endogenous control genes.

TL;DR: Time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) chemical mapping was used to investigate the order of deposition of natural latent fingerprints and laser printed ink on paper and shows that sodium, potassium and C(3)H(5) positive ions were particularly abundant endogenous components of the natural fingerprints and also present in the paper examined, but were mostly absent in the laser printed Ink.

TL;DR: During the validation, Orchid Cellmark's Sperm Elution© method consistently recovered a greater number of spermatozoa from simulated sexual assault items and swabs taken following consensual sexual intercourse compared to a water extraction technique.

TL;DR: A probabilistic model was developed and applied to a hypothetical scenario where alternative hypotheses about the discharge time of a spent cartridge found on a crime scene were forwarded and proved to be a valuable method for interpreting aging-related data.

TL;DR: It is suggested that historically firearm and toolmark examiners have rendered categorical or inconclusive opinions and eschewed probabilistic ones may no longer be necessary or desirable, and an alternative approach that is within a comprehensive logical/Bayesian paradigm is outlined.

TL;DR: The use of derivatized amino acids are used to determine the efficacy of the visualization reagents 1,8-diazafluoren-9-one (DFO) and ninhydrin to allow a more scientific approach to method development for fingermark enhancement techniques.

TL;DR: The Mobile-Eyes™ iris recognition system exhibited accurate and reliable enrollment, verification, and identification applications in this study and may have special applications in subjects with nystagmus.

TL;DR: Black magnetic powder and black powder suspensions appear to be the most successful enhancement techniques with a high number of ridge detail-developed prints over a selected time scale.