Neuropsychiatry of frontal lobe dysfunction in violent and criminal behaviour: a critical review.
(9/21)
OBJECTIVES: To establish the link between frontal lobe dysfunction and violent and criminal behaviour, based on a review of relevant literature. METHODS: Articles relating evidence of frontal lobe dysfunction with violence or crime were collected through a MEDLINE search using the keyword "frontal lobe" combined with the terms "aggression," "violence," "crime," "antisocial personality disorder," "psychopathy," "impulse control disorders", and "episodic dyscontrol." Reference lists were then searched for additional articles. RESULTS: High rates of neuropsychiatric abnormalities reported in persons with violent and criminal behaviour suggest an association between aggressive dyscontrol and brain injury, especially involving the frontal lobes. The studies reviewed support an association between frontal lobe dysfunction and increased aggressive and antisocial behaviour. Focal orbitofrontal injury is specifically associated with increased aggression. Deficits in frontal executive function may increase the likelihood of future aggression, but no study has reliably demonstrated a characteristic pattern of frontal network dysfunction predictive of violent crime. CONCLUSIONS: Clinically significant focal frontal lobe dysfunction is associated with aggressive dyscontrol, but the increased risk of violence seems less than is widely presumed. Evidence is strongest for an association between focal prefrontal damage and an impulsive subtype of aggressive behaviour. (+info)
An overview of DNA methods for the identification and individualization of marijuana.
(10/21)
The purpose of this review is to summarize the status of DNA-based methods for the identification and individualization of marijuana. In forensics, both identification of a substance as marijuana and the subsequent individualization of a sample may be desired for casework. Marijuana identification methods in the United States primarily include biochemical tests and, less frequently, DNA-based tests. Under special circumstances, DNA-based tests can be useful. For example, if the quantity of seized marijuana is extremely small and/or biochemical tests do not detect any D9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), DNA identification of plant material as Cannabis is still possible. This circumstance can arise when seeds, trace residue, tiny leaf fragments, or fine roots need to be analyzed. Methods for the individualization of marijuana include amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP), random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD), and short tandem repeat (STR) techniques that link an evidentiary sample to a source. Marijuana growers propagate their plants either by seed or by cloning. Seed-generated marijuana plants are expected to have unique DNA profiles analogous to a human population. Cloned marijuana plants, however, exhibit identical DNA profiles that allow for tracking of plant material derived from a common genetic lineage. The authors have validated the AFLP method for marijuana samples and are constructing a comparative database of marijuana seizure samples to estimate the expected frequency of a DNA profile match between unrelated plants. Continued development of DNA-based methods for plants can be useful for marijuana and other types of plant evidence in forensics. (+info)
AN EXPERIMENT IN FACIAL RECONSTRUCTIVE SURGERY IN A PRISON POPULATION.
(11/21)
A 10-year study of the effects of reconstructive surgery on selected inmates in a British Columbia provincial prison is described. It is proposed that physical defects can be dominant causes of crime, and that the correction of facial defects in inmates of a penal institution can effect a striking improvement in their conduct during imprisonment, and make them more confident on re-entry into society. This survey, covering 450 patients operated on in a 10-year period, demonstrates a marked decrease in the rate of criminal recidivism. (+info)
PATHOLOGICAL STATES AND CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY.
(12/21)
The doctor is embarrassed in court when asked to testify to the effects of illness on a defendant's capability "of appreciating the nature and quality of an act or omission or of knowing that an act or omission is wrong". The source of his difficulty is traced to the legal concepts of "guilt", "crime" and "punishment" which imply a legal view of man at variance with our modern biological view. To abolish this discrepancy we need not accept a medical model for criminal law where "crime" is analogous to "disease", and "punishment" to "treatment". A pragmatic approach to the handling of the criminal could exclude the notions of "guilt" and "punishment" and yet fulfil the rational goals of protecting society from the criminal and of compensating his victims. (+info)
Forensic DNA identification of animal-derived trace evidence: tools for linking victims and suspects.
(13/21)
AIM: To evaluate the population substructure of purebred dogs and cats in order to estimate the true significance of a microsatellite-based DNA match for use as evidence in legal proceedings. The high frequency of animal hair as a forensic evidence submission necessitates the development of mitochondrial analysis tools as well. METHODS: Random samples from a large convenience collection of veterinary diagnostic submissions from the western USA were used, as well as contributed samples of unrelated purebred cats and dogs. Dogs (n=558) were profiled with 17 microsatellites and the data evaluated for Hardy Weinberg and linkage equilibrium. The mitochondrial control region (D loop) of dogs (n=348) and cats (n=167) was sequenced to determine the haplotype distribution. RESULTS: Domestic dogs in the western United States showed significant population substructure with marked associations within loci but no disequilibrium between loci. A population substructure coefficient Theta=0.11 is recommended for calculating genotype frequencies. Mitochondrial haplotypes in cats and dogs show less variation than human haplotypes. CONCLUSION: Although population substructure occurs in domestic dogs (and can be inferred in cats), the discriminatory power of microsatellite analysis is dramatic with even partial DNA types, strongly supporting the prosecution of perpetrators in five discussed cases. Mitochondrial analysis, while less powerful, adds a layer of evidence in four discussed cases. (+info)
A kidney from hell? A nephrological view of the Whitechapel murders in 1888.
(14/21)