Forensic chemistry

Forensic chemistry is the application of chemistry to law enforcement or the failure of products or processes. Many different analytical methods may be used to reveal what chemical changes occurred during an incident, and so help reconstruct the sequence of events. "Forensic chemistry is unique among chemical sciences in that its research, practice, and presentation must meet the needs of both the scientific and the legal communities. As such, forensic chemistry research is applied and derivative by nature and design, and it emphasizes metrology and validation." Methods: One particularly useful method for the simultaneous separation, identification, and quantitation of one or more individual components of an unknown substance or mixture is the use of a gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer (GC-MS). A GC-MS is actually two instruments that are attached together physically, and together comprising one of the so-called "tandem" or "hyphenated" techniques. The gas chromatograph (GC) is essentially a hot (150-350°C), temperature-controlled oven holding a bent or coiled, specially packed or coated glass column between one and a few dozen meters long. A small volume (typically a few microliters) of a drug sample or other unknown substance that has been dissolved in an organic solvent (such as chloroform or methanol) is quickly injected into the hot column. Volatile components in the sample are vaporized by the heat of the oven and are forced toward the end of the column by the flow of an inert "carrier gas" (typically helium). The special chemical component(s) within the column bind to substances contained in the moving vaporized sample mixture with slightly different force. As a result, different substances eventually are "eluted" (i.e. emerge from the end of the column) in differing amounts of time, which is known as the "retention time". The retention time of various components so eluted can then be compared to those of known standard molecules eluted using the same method (column length/polarity, flow rate of carrier gas, temperature program). While this comparison provides (presumptive) identification of the presence of a particular compound of interest in the unknown sample, in general the GC portion of the technique is used as a separation and quantitation tool, not an identification tool. To provide positive identification of the sample components, the column eluent is then fed into a mass spectrometer ("MS"). These highly complex instruments use one or more methods (bombardment with electrons, high heat, electrical force) to break apart molecules into ions. These ions are separated by their mass, commonly with the use of a quadrupole mass analyzer or quadrupole ion trap, and detected by an electron multiplier. This provides a distinctive fragmentation pattern, which functions as a sort of "fingerprint" for each compound. The resulting patterns are then compared to a reference sample for identification purposes. Spectroscopy: IR spectrum showing carbonyl absorption due to oxidative degradation of polypropylene. Another instrument used to aide in identification of compounds is the Fourier Transform infrared spectrophotometer (FTIR). The sample is bombarded with infrared radiation. Polar bonds found in organic compounds have a natural frequency of vibration similar to the frequency of infrared radiation. When the frequency of the infrared radiation matches the natural frequency of the bond, the amplitude of the vibration increases, and the infrared is absorbed. The output of an infrared spectrophotometer charts the amount of light absorbed vs. the wavelength, typically with units of percent transmission and wavenumbers(cm−1). Because both the frequency and the intensity of absorption are dependent on the type of bond, a skilled chemist can determine the functional groups present by examining the infrared spectrum. As with the GCMS the FTIR spectrum can be compared to that of a known sample, thus providing evidence for the identification of a compound. Spectroscopy can also help to identify materials used in failed products, especially polymers, additives and fillers. Samples can be taken by dissolution, or by cutting a thin slice using a microtome from the specimen under examination. Surfaces can be examined using Attenuated total reflectance spectroscopy, and the method has also been adapted to the optical microscope with infra-red microspectroscopy Ultraviolet-visible-near infrared spectroscopy is used to test for certain drugs of abuse. UV-visible-NIR microspectrophotometers are instruments able to measure the spectra of microscopic samples. The UV-visible-NIR microspectrophotometer is used to compare known and questioned samples of trace evidence such as fibers and paint chips. They are also used in the analysis of inks and papers of questioned documents and to measure the color of microscopic glass fragments. As these samples are not altered, UV-visible-NIR microspectroscopy is considered a non-destructive technique. Thermoplastics can be analysed using characterization techniques such as infra-red spectroscopy, ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and an environmental scanning electron microscope. Failed samples can either be dissolved in a suitable solvent and examined directly (UV, IR and NMR spectroscopy) or be a thin film cast from solvent or cut using microtomy from the solid product. Infra-red spectroscopy is especially useful for assessing oxidation of polymers, such as the polymer degradation caused by faulty injection moulding. The spectrum shows the characteristic carbonyl group produced by oxidation of polypropylene, which made the product brittle. It was a critical part of a crutch, and when it failed, the user fell and injured herself very seriously. The spectrum was obtained from a thin film cast from a solution of a sample of the plastic taken from the failed forearm crutch. Sample integrity: Forensic chemists usually perform their analytical work in a sterile laboratory decreasing the risk of sample contamination. In order to prevent tampering, forensic chemists must keep track of a chain of custody for each sample. A chain of custody is a document that stays with the evidence at all times. Among other information, contains signatures and identification of all the people involved in transport, storage and analysis of the evidence. This makes it far more difficult for intentional tampering to occur, it also acts as a detailed record of the location of the evidence at all times for record keeping purposes. It increases the reliability of a forensic chemist's work and increases the strength of the evidence in court.A distinction is made between destructive and non-destructive analytical methods. Destructive methods involve taking a sample from the object of interest, and so injures the object. Most spectroscopic techniques fall into this category. By contrast, a non-destructive method conserves the integrity of the object, and is generally preferred by forensic examiners. For example, optical microscopy and microspectroscopy cannot injure the sample, so they are considered non-destructive techniques. Luminol: A method frequently used in forensic chemistry is that employing luminol (as preemptory test), a derivative of phthalic acid, which reacts with metal cations and hence to detect traces of blood. The process involves mixing luminol with a polar solution dependent upon the method used to create the luminol base, which is spread carefully in places where it is thought that there are remnants of blood after all other evidence has be collected due to its destructive properties. Thus, typically the iron-shaped cation found in the heme group of hemoglobin reacts with luminol observing a blue luminescence of the reaction itself is carried out. However, due to the nature of luminol there are other metal ions that it can react with to produce false positives, for this reason alone that is why it is used only to determine the possibility of blood being present. In this process, the final product is the 3-aminophthalate anion which is in an excited state. Upon returning to the ground state (or basal) releases energy in the form of light, which is known as blue luminescence. The reaction described has a very slow cinétic. In fact it is the iron in the heme group of hemoglobin, which catalyzes the process. Another note to keep in mind when working with luminol is that the reagent is only viable for a maximum of ten minutes and the darker the room the better the test. Examples: Polymers for example, can be attacked by aggressive chemicals, and if under load, then cracks will grow by the mechanism of stress corrosion cracking. Perhaps the oldest known example is the ozone cracking of rubbers, where traces of ozone in the atmosphere attack double bonds in the chains of the materials. Elastomers with double bonds in their chains include natural rubber, nitrile rubber, and styrene-butadiene rubber. They are all highly susceptible to ozone attack, and can cause problems like car fires (from rubber fuel lines) and tire blow-outs. Nowadays, anti-ozonants are widely added to these polymers, so the incidence of cracking has dropped. However, not all safety-critical rubber products are protected, and, since it only takes a few parts per billion of ozone to start attack, failures are still occurring. Another highly reactive gas is chlorine, which will attack susceptible polymers such as acetal resin and polybutylene pipework. There have been many examples of such pipes and acetal fittings failing in properties in the USA as a result of chlorine-induced cracking. In essence, the gas attacks sensitive parts of the chain molecules (especially secondary, tertiary or allylic carbon atoms), oxidizing the chains and ultimately causing chain cleavage. The root cause is traces of chlorine in the water supply, added for its anti-bacterial action, attack occurring even at parts per million traces of the dissolved gas. Most step-growth polymers can suffer hydrolysis in the presence of water, often a reaction catalysed by acid or alkali. Nylon for example, will degrade and crack rapidly if exposed to strong acids, a phenomenon well known to those who accidentally spill acid onto their shirts or tights. Polycarbonate is susceptible to alkali hydrolysis, the reaction simply depolymerising the material. Polyesters are prone to degrade when treated with strong acids, and, in all these cases, care must be taken to dry the raw materials for processing at high temperatures to prevent the problem from occurring. Many polymers are also attacked by UV radiation at vulnerable points in their chain structures. Thus, polypropylene suffers severe cracking in sunlight unless anti-oxidants are added. The point of attack occurs at the tertiary carbon atom present in every repeat unit, causing oxidation and finally chain breakage.

trace evidence

Trace evidence is created when objects contact. Material is often transferred by heat or induced by contact friction. The importance of trace evidence in criminal investigations was shown by Dr. Edmond Locard in the early 20th Century. Since then, forensic scientists use trace evidence to reconstruct crimes, and to describe the people, places and things involved in them. Studies of homicides published in the forensic science literature show how trace evidence is used to solve crimes. Trace evidence is important in accident investigation, where movement of one part against another will often leave a tell-tale mark. Such analysis is of great use in forensic engineering. Examples: Examples of typical trace evidence in criminal cases include glove prints, hairs, cosmetics, Lipsticks, plant fibers, mineral fibers, synthetic fibers, glass, paint chips, soils, footprints, botanical materials, gunshot residue, explosives residue, and volatile hydrocarbons (arson evidence). For such evidence to be useful, it must be compared to similar items from suspects, but particular care is necessary to ensure a thorough analysis. Ladder feet often leave a trace pattern on the ground, so showing how the ladder moved and caused an accident to the user. Skid marks from tires are often critical in determining the sequence of events before and during a car crash. Vehicular accident reconstruction relies on such marks to estimate vehicle speed before and during an accident, as well as braking and impact forces. Fabric prints of clothing worn by pedestrians in the paint and/or road grime of the striking vehicle can match a specific vehicle involved in a hit-and-run collision. Such traces are also known as "witness marks", especially in engineering and may be critical in understanding how a product failed. A typical witness mark could be an impact depression which broke a product, especially if that mark can be matched to the product which made the impact such as a hammer or nail. Such marks are also commonly encountered in criminal cases, and include bite marks, puncture marks, bullet holes etc. Protection: The first preservation is to photograph in situ, and then remove the objects showing key traces, protect them, and analyse under controlled laboratory conditions. Many techniques are used in the protection of trace evidence from criminal investigations, although all must be photographed as soon as possible, and while still in place. Samples may be collected by shaking, brushing, taping, vacuuming, swabbing and hand picking. Great care may be needed to prevent contamination with other substances (such as natural oil and sweat on the hand of the collector). In some cases, such as with oil or grease, a solvent extraction can be used to collect the evidence for analysis. The method used for collection is generally dependent on both the type of evidence and from where or what sort of object it is being collected. Trace Evidence is also found in much smaller amounts at crime scenes. Analysis: Analysis of trace materials most often begins with a visual examination of the evidence usually involving macrophotography. This is then usually followed by microscopic analysis, of which a number of different types are available depending on the type of material to be analysed, such as a stereomicroscope, scanning electron microscope (SEM) or comparison microscope. SEM is especially useful because X-ray analysis can be conducted on selected areas of the sample, so is a form of microanalysis. It is useful where chemical residues can show unusual elements present which may indicate chemical attack of the product. A car accident caused by a diesel fuel leak, for example, showed traces of sulfur on the cracked tube indicative of attack by sulfuric acid from the battery. Gunshot residue may be identified by elemental analysis using atomic absorption or with a scanning electron microscope equipped with an energy dispersive spectroscope. Small amounts of explosives, volatile hydrocarbons, and other chemicals are identified with the use of analytical instruments, such as gas chromatography, mass spectrometry, and infrared spectroscopy, all of which separate out the components of the chemicals. Similar comments apply to damaged items from an accident scene, but care is needed in ensuring that the sample is not damaged by the testing, or sampling for testing. Such nondestructive testing must always be used first before considering destructive methods which involve taking small samples from the item for more detailed tests, such as spectroscopic analysis. Use of all such methods must be done in consultation with other experts and the relevant authorities, such as lawyers on both sides of a case. Problems: False positives and contamination by subsequent handling or nearby objects (e.g. mixing of blood from victim and attacker), for example, are problems owing to the presence of many common substances and the necessity of human involvement in the collection of trace evidence. Both can occur with DNA traces and fingerprints. Partial fingerprints are even more vulnerable to false positives. Samples from accidents or crimes should therefore be protected as much as possible by enclosure in a sealable container as soon as possible, after an incident is under investigation.

forensic photography

Forensic photography, sometimes referred to as forensic imaging or crime scene photography, is the art of producing an accurate reproduction of a crime scene or an accident scene using photography for the benefit of a court or to aid in an investigation. It is part of the process of evidence collecting. It provides investigators with photos of victims, places and items involved in the crime. Pictures of accidents show broken machinery, or a car crash, and so on. Photography of this kind involves choosing correct lighting, accurate angling of lenses, and a collection of different viewpoints. Scales, like items of length measurement or objects of known size, are often used in the picture so that dimensions of items are recorded on the image. Methods: Crime or accident scene photographers usually capture images in color but also in black and white. The photograph of the skid mark was made during reconstruction at the accident scene to show how and why the ladder had slipped and caused a serious injury to the user. Color pictures are generally preferred because color may be an important aspect of the trace evidence, for example. Thus traces of paint or dye on a piece of evidence may be crucial to linking the evidence with a crime or accident. Fit for court: The images must be clear and usually have scales. They serve to not only remind investigators of the scene, but also to provide a tangible image for the court to better enable them to understand what happened. The use of several views taken from different angles helps to minimise the problem of parallax. Overall images do not have scales and serve to show the general layout, such as the house where the murder is thought to have occurred. Context images show evidence in context, like how the knife was next to the sofa. Close up images show fine detail of an artifact, such as a bloody fingerprint on the knife. Road traffic incident (RTI) photographs show the overall layout at the scene taken from many different angles, with close-ups of significant damage, or trace evidence such as tire marks at a traffic collision. As with crime scene photography, it is essential that the site is pristine and untouched as far as is possible. Some essential intervention, such as rescuing a trapped victim, must be recorded in the notes made at the time by the photographer, so that the authenticity of the photographs can be verified. As with all evidence a chain of custody must be maintained for crime scene photographs. Sometimes a CSI (forensic photographer) will process his/her own film or there is a specific lab for it. Regardless of how it is done any person who handles the evidence must be recorded. Secure Digital Forensic Imaging methods may be applied to help ensure against tampering and improper disclosure. Accident scene pictures should also be identified and sourced, police photographs taken at the scene often being used in civil cases. Analysis of historic photographs: Crime or accident scene photographs can often be re-analysed in cold cases or when the images need to be enlarged to show critical details. Photographs made by film exposure usually contain much information which may be crucial long after the photograph was taken. They can readily be digitised by scanning, and then enlarged to show the detail needed for new analysis. For example, controversy has raged for a number of years over the cause of the Tay Bridge disaster of 1879 when a half-mile section of the new bridge collapsed in a storm, taking an express train down into the estuary of the river Tay. At least 75 passengers and crew were killed in the disaster. The set of photographs taken a few days after the accident have been re-analysed in 1999–2000 by digitising them and enlarging the files to show critical details. The originals were of very high resolution since a large plate camera was used with a small aperture, plus a small grain film. The re-analysed pictures shed new light on why the bridge fell, suggesting that design flaws and defects in the cast iron columns which supported the centre section led directly to the catastrophic failure. Alternative explanations that the bridge was blown down by the wind during the storm that night, or that the train derailed and hit the girders are unlikely. The re-analysis supports the original court of inquiry conclusions, which stated that the bridge was "badly designed, badly built and badly maintained".

dancing

Dance is a performance art form consisting of purposefully selected sequences of human movement. This movement has aesthetic and symbolic value, and is acknowledged as dance by performers and observers within a particular culture. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoire of movements, or by its historical period or place of origin. An important distinction is to be drawn between the contexts of theatrical and participatory dance, although these two categories are not always completely separate; both may have special functions, whether social, ceremonial, competitive, erotic, martial, or sacred/liturgical. Others disciplines of human movement are sometimes said to have a dance-like quality, including martial arts, gymnastics, figure skating, synchronized swimming and many other forms of athletics. Performance and participation: Theatrical dance, also called performance or concert dance, is intended primarily as a spectacle, usually a performance upon a stage by virtuoso dancers. It often tells a story, perhaps using mime, costume and scenery, or else it may simply interpret the musical accompaniment, which is often specially composed. Examples are western ballet and modern dance, Classical Indian dance and Chinese and Japanese song and dance dramas. Most classical forms are centred upon dance alone, but performance dance may also appear in opera and other forms of musical theatre. Participatory dance, on the other hand, whether it be a folk dance, a social dance, a group dance such as a line, circle, chain or square dance, or a partner dance such as is common in western Western ballroom dancing, is undertaken primarily for a common purpose, such as social interaction or exercise, of participants rather than onlookers. Such dance seldom has any narrative. A group dance and a corps de ballet, a social partner dance and a pas de deux, differ profoundly. Even a solo dance may be undertaken solely for the satisfaction of the dancer. Participatory dancers often all employ the same movements and steps but, for example, in the rave culture of electronic dance music, vast crowds may engage in free dance, uncoordinated with those around them. On the other hand, some cultures lay down strict rules as to the particular dances in which, for example, men, women and children may or must participate. Origins: Archeological evidence for early dance includes 9,000 year old paintings in India at the Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka, and Egyptian tomb paintings depicting dancing figures, dated c. 3300 BC. It has been proposed that before the invention of written languages, dance was an important part of the oral and performance methods of passing stories down from generation to generation. The use of dance in ecstatic trance states and healing rituals (as observed today in many contemporary "primitive" cultures, from the Brazilian rainforest to the Kalahari Desert) is thought to have been another early factor in the social development of dance. References to dance can be found in very early written history; Greek dance (horos) is referred to by Plato, Aristotle, Plutarch and Lucian. The Bible and Talmud refer to many events related to dance, and contain over 30 different dance terms. In Chinese pottery as early as the Neolithic period, groups of people are depicted dancing in a line holding hands, and the earliest Chinese word for "dance" is found written in the oracle bones. Dance is further described in the Lüshi Chunqiu. Primitive dance in ancient China was associated with sorcery and shamanic rituals. During the first millennium BCE in India, many texts were composed which attempted to codify aspects of daily life. Bharata Muni's Natyashastra (literally "the text of dramaturgy") is one of the earlier texts. It mainly deals with drama, in which dance plays an important part in Indian culture. It categorizes dance into four types - secular, ritual, abstract, and, interpretive - and into four regional varieties. The text elaborates various hand-gestures (mudras) and classifies movements of the various limbs, steps and so on. A strong continuous tradition of dance has since continued in India, through to modern times, where it continues to play a role in culture, ritual, and, notably, the Bollywood entertainment industry. Many other contemporary dance forms can likewise be traced back to historical, traditional, ceremonial, and ethnic dance. Dancing and music: Dance is generally, though not exclusively, performed with the accompaniment of music and may or may not be performed in time to such music. Some dance (such as tap dance) may provide its own audible accompaniment in place of (or in addition to) music. Many early forms of music and dance were created for each other and are frequently performed together. Notable examples of traditional dance/music couplings include the jig, waltz, tango, disco, and salsa. Some musical genres have a parallel dance form such as baroque music and baroque dance; other varieties of dance and music may share nomenclature but developed separately, such as classical music and classical ballet.

Blogger.com

Blogger is a blog-publishing service that allows multi-user blogs with time-stamped entries. It was developed by Pyra Labs, which was bought by Google in 2003. Generally, the blogs are hosted by Google at a subdomain of blogspot.com. Blogs can also be hosted in the registered custom domain of the blogger (like www.example.com). So blogspot.com domain publishings will be redirected to the custom domain. A user can have up to 100 blogs per account. Up until May 1, 2010, Blogger allowed users to publish blogs on other hosts, via FTP. All such blogs had (or still have) to be moved to Google's own servers, with domains other than blogspot.com allowed via custom URLs. Unlike WordPress, Blogger allows its users to use their own domain free of charge, while Wordpress charges around $11 to use a custom domain. Blogger cannot be installed on a web server. One has to use DNS facilities to redirect a custom URL to a blogspot domain.

google

Google is an American multinational technology company specializing in Internet-related services and products. These include online advertising technologies, search, cloud computing, and software. Most of its profits are derived from AdWords, an online advertising service that places advertising near the list of search results. Google was founded by Larry Page and Sergey Brin while they were Ph.D. students at Stanford University. Together they own about 14 percent of its shares but control 56 percent of the stockholder voting power through supervoting stock. They incorporated Google as a privately held company on September 4, 1998. An initial public offering followed on August 19, 2004. Its mission statement from the outset was "to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful," and its unofficial slogan was "Don't be evil". In 2004, Google moved to its new headquarters in Mountain View, California, nicknamed the Googleplex. Rapid growth since incorporation has triggered a chain of products, acquisitions and partnerships beyond Google's core search engine. It offers online productivity software including email (Gmail), a cloud storage service (Google Drive), an office suite (Google Docs) and a social networking service (Google+). Desktop products include applications for web browsing, organizing and editing photos, and instant messaging. The company leads the development of the Android mobile operating system and the browser-only Chrome OS for a netbook known as a Chromebook. Google has moved increasingly into communications hardware: it partners with major electronics manufacturers in the production of its "high-quality low-cost" Nexus devices and acquired Motorola Mobility in May 2012. In 2012, a fiber-optic infrastructure was installed in Kansas City to facilitate a Google Fiber broadband service. The corporation has been estimated to run more than one million servers in data centers around the world (as of 2007). It processes over one billion search requests and about 24 petabytes of user-generated data each day (as of 2009). In December 2013, Alexa listed google.com as the most visited website in the world. Numerous Google sites in other languages figure in the top one hundred, as do several other Google-owned sites such as YouTube and Blogger. Its market dominance has led to prominent media coverage, including criticism of the company over issues such as search neutrality, copyright, censorship, and privacy.

Facebook.com

Facebook is an online social networking service headquartered in Menlo Park, California. Its website was launched on February 4, 2004, by Mark Zuckerberg with his Harvard College roommates and fellow students Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Moskovitz and Chris Hughes. The founders had initially limited the website's membership to Harvard students, but later expanded it to colleges in the Boston area, the Ivy League, and Stanford University. It gradually added support for students at various other universities and later to high-school students. Since 2006, anyone who is at least 13 years old is allowed to become a registered user of the website, though the age requirement may be higher depending on applicable local laws. Its name comes from a colloquialism for the directory given to it by American universities' students. After registering to use the site, users can create a user profile, add other users as "friends", exchange messages, post status updates and photos, share videos and receive notifications when others update their profiles. Additionally, users may join common-interest user groups, organized by workplace, school or college, or other characteristics, and categorize their friends into lists such as "People From Work" or "Close Friends". Facebook had over 1.44 billion monthly active users as of March 2015. Because of the large volume of data users submit to the service, Facebook has come under scrutiny for their privacy policies. Facebook, Inc. held its initial public offering in February 2012 and began selling stock to the public three months later, reaching an original peak market capitalization of $104 billion. On July 13, 2015, Facebook became the fastest company in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index to reach a market cap of $250 billion. History: On July 20, 2008, Facebook introduced "Facebook Beta", a significant redesign of its user interface on selected networks. The Mini-Feed and Wall were consolidated, profiles were separated into tabbed sections, and an effort was made to create a "cleaner" look. After initially giving users a choice to switch, Facebook began migrating all users to the new version starting in September 2008. On December 11, 2008, it was announced that Facebook was testing a simpler signup process. Notes: Facebook Notes was introduced on August 22, 2006, a blogging feature that allowed tags and embeddable images. Users were later able to import blogs from Xanga, LiveJournal, Blogger, and other blogging services. Chat: Facebook Chat was added April 6, 2008. It is a Comet-based[169] instant messaging application which allows users to communicate with other Facebook users in a way similar in functionality to instant messaging software.

all american girl (song)

"All-American Girl" is a song composed by country pop singer Carrie Underwood, Ashley Gorley and Kelley Lovelace. It is the second single from Underwood's second studio album, Carnival Ride, released in the United States on December 17, 2007. (See 2007 in country music). "All-American Girl" is the second single for which Underwood shares a writing credit, the first being "So Small", which preceded it. The song is a mid-tempo country-pop song, with a soaring chorus. Underwood stated in an issue of Entertainment Weekly that the high note during the bridge in the song is the highest note she has ever hit (E5, or the E an octave above middle E). The song centers around a "beautiful, wonderful, perfect all-American girl." The first verse tells the story of a father hoping for a baby boy to continue his legacy, but "when the nurse came in with a little pink blanket, all those big dreams changed". The baby girl now has her father "wrapped around her finger", and his heart belongs to that "all-American girl." The second verse then shifts to 16 years later when the girl is now a teenager who falls head-over-heels for the "senior football star." Just like the girl's father, she becomes the center of the boy's world. The final bridge tells of when the girl and boy get married and are expecting "one of their own". When she asks the boy what he's hoping for he replies with "one just like you": an "all-American girl." Underwood said the song is in part her autobiography. The music video, which premiered January 23, 2008, was again directed by Roman White. The video features several different scenes of Underwood in different outfits portraying what an All-American girl could be behind different backgrounds through a green screen. Throughout the video she appeared as an American Olympic swimmer, an artist/painter, a nurse, a photographer, a cowgirl, a waitress, a ballerina, a clothing designer, a chef, a cheerleader, a veterinarian, a beauty queen, a mother, a football player, a police officer, a teacher, a graduate, a college student (wearing a sweatshirt from her sorority Sigma Sigma Sigma), a bride, a flight attendant, a news anchor, an astronaut, a firefighter, a soldier, a surgeon, a welder, a scientific chemist, a car thief and the President of the United States. In one scene, as a reference to Underwood's video for "Before He Cheats", she wears the same black leather jacket and sunglasses while holding a baseball bat, with the same smashed red pickup truck in the background (whenever the newswoman is shown, along the bottom screen can be seen a scrolling news track, practically putting out an APB on Underwood for having destroyed the truck). Scenes also have her performing in a green zip-up hoodie and jeans, in an orange room.

contract killing

Contract killing is a form of murder in which one party hires another party to kill a target individual or group of people. It involves an illegal agreement between two or more parties in which one party agrees to kill the target in exchange for some form of payment, monetary or otherwise. Either party may be a person, group, or an organization. Throughout history, contract killing has been associated with organized crime and with vendettas. For example, in recent United States history, the gang Murder, Inc. committed hundreds of murders in the 1920s to the 1940s on behalf of the National Crime Syndicate. Contract killing provides the hiring party with the advantage of not having to be directly involved in the killing. This makes it more difficult to connect said party with the murder and decreases the likelihood of establishing guilt for the committed murder, because the hiring party did not commit the murder; they only enabled it to happen. It is also often used by parties who do not have the ability to carry the killing themselves, such as a spouse contracting the murder of their partner.

death by laughter

Death from laughter refers to a rare instance of death, usually resulting from cardiac arrest or asphyxiation, caused by a fit of laughter. Instances of death by laughter have been recorded from the times of Ancient Greece to the modern day. Death may result from several pathologies that deviate from benign laughter. Infarction of the pons and medulla oblongata in the brain may cause pathological laughter. Laughter can cause atonia and collapse ("gelastic syncope"), which in turn can cause trauma. See also laughter-induced syncope, cataplexy, and Bezold-Jarisch reflex. Gelastic seizures can be due to focal lesions to the hypothalamus. Depending upon the size of the lesion, the emotional lability may be a sign of an acute condition, and not itself the cause of the fatality. Gelastic syncope has also been associated with the cerebellum. Historical deaths attributed to laughter: Zeuxis, a 5th-century BC Greek painter, is said to have died laughing at the humorous way he painted the goddess Aphrodite – after the old woman who commissioned it insisted on modeling for the portrait. One ancient account of the death of Chrysippus, the 3rd century BC Greek Stoic philosopher, tells that he died of laughter after he saw a donkey eating his figs; he told a slave to give the donkey neat wine with which to wash them down, and then, "...having laughed too much, he died" (Diogenes Laertius 7.185). In 1410, King Martin of Aragon died from a combination of indigestion and uncontrollable laughter. In 1556, Pietro Aretino "is said to have died of suffocation from laughing too much". In 1660, Thomas Urquhart, the Scottish aristocrat, polymath and first translator of François Rabelais's writings into English, is said to have died laughing upon hearing that Charles II had taken the throne. In 1893, Farmer Wesley Parsons laughed to death over a joke told in Laurel, Indiana. He laughed for nearly an hour. He then died two hours after the incident. On 24 March 1975, Alex Mitchell, from King's Lynn, England, died laughing while watching the "Kung Fu Kapers" episode of The Goodies, featuring a kilt-clad Scotsman with his bagpipes battling a master of the Lancastrian martial art "Eckythump", who was armed with a black pudding. After 25 minutes of continuous laughter, Mitchell finally slumped on the sofa and died from heart failure. His widow later sent The Goodies a letter thanking them for making Mitchell's final moments of life so pleasant. Diagnosis of his granddaughter in 2012 of having the inheritable long QT syndrome (a heart rhythm abnormality) suggests that Mitchell may have died of a cardiac arrest caused by long QT syndrome. In 1989, Ole Bentzen, a Danish audiologist, died laughing while watching A Fish Called Wanda. His heart was estimated to have beaten at between 250 and 500 beats per minute, before he succumbed to cardiac arrest. In 2003, Damnoen Saen-um, a Thai ice cream salesman, is reported to have died while laughing in his sleep at the age of 52. His wife was unable to wake him, and he stopped breathing after two minutes of continuous laughter. He is believed to have died of either heart failure or asphyxiation. Fictional deaths attributed to laughter: J. P. Cubish from Daffy Duck's Quackbusters. The Toon Patrol in Who Framed Roger Rabbit. In "The Deadly Experiments of Dr. Eeek", from the Give Yourself Goosebumps series by R. L. Stine, it is possible to get an ending where chimpanzees tickle your feet until you die of laughter. Kenny McCormick, a character on South Park, suffers said fate in the fifth-season episode "Scott Tenorman Must Die" while he watched a video of Cartman singing "I'm a Little Piggy" and oinking. Ana in the play The Clean House by Sarah Ruhl. Jerry's friend, Fulton, in the Seinfeld episode entitled "The Stand-In". In the Batman franchise, famed villain The Joker often kills his victims using a poison that causes uncontrollable and quickly fatal fits of manic laughter – the victim's corpse is often left with a huge ghastly smile reminiscent of the Joker's own. In the 1989 film, a news broadcast reporting a scheme involving this very toxin (named "Smilex" in this film) is cut short when one of the reporters begins laughing hysterically, as if amused by the sinister plot, before collapsing dead with the characteristic rictus. At the end of the film Mary Poppins, Mr. Dawes, Sr. by Dick Van Dyke is said to have literally died laughing after being told a joke: "I know a man with a wooden leg named Smith." "Really? What's the name of his other leg?" In the musical and film Little Shop of Horrors, a character asphyxiates on laughing gas and his last words are "I've laughed myself to death". In the Six Feet Under episode "Parallel Play", a teenage girl dies laughing after making a prank phone call. In Episode 12 of Season 1 of 1000 Ways to Die, a man dies after laughing continuously for 36 hours at an unknown joke. In Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, the heroes cross a "Chasm of Death" filled with gas fumes that induce uncontrollable laughter, frequently killing those who try to cross the chasm. In the Monty Python sketch The Funniest Joke in the World, the British win the Second World War by translating a lethally funny joke into German and transmitting it to German troops and two Gestapo officers. In the story "Laughter" from the book Double Dare to be Scared, the boy (which the story is about) literally laughs his head off after getting touched by a fairy. In Coleman Barks' translation of Jelaluddin Rumi's poem "Dying, Laughing", from his collection of poems The Essential Rumi: "He opened like a rose that drops to the ground and died laughing." Twenty-two men in a London club, and all the people in a courtroom, in The Three Infernal Jokes by Lord Dunsany. The joke-teller was immune. Pecos Bill died of laughter upon seeing a "city-slicker" try to swagger into a bar. President C. Snow died of laughter in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay. He was supposed to be executed, but then laughed when Katniss shot Alma Coin. He suffocated in his own blood. Shi Eun died from laughter while watching a comedy movie in a theatre in the Korean TV series drama named God's Quiz in its episode 8 of season 1.

murder

Murder is the killing of another person without justification or valid excuse, and it is especially the unlawful killing of another person with malice aforethought. This state of mind may, depending upon the jurisdiction, distinguish murder from other forms of unlawful homicide, such as manslaughter. In some U.S. states, laws regarding murder are determined by the Model Penal Code. Most societies, from ancient to modern, have considered murder a very serious crime deserving harsh punishment for purposes of retribution, deterrence, rehabilitation, or incapacitation. There are many reasons why murder has been criminalized, including its costs to society as well as being considered intrinsically wrong. For example, murder may be considered intrinsically wrong because it violates a right to life, or objectifies the victim, or is oppressive; murder may be costly to society by undermining law and order, by squandering potential accomplishments of the victims, by risking escalation of violence, or by spreading fear and grief. In most countries, a person convicted of murder is typically given a long prison sentence, possibly a life sentence where permitted. In some countries, the death penalty may be imposed for such an act – though this practice is becoming less common. Definition: The eighteenth-century English jurist William Blackstone (citing Edward Coke), in his Commentaries on the Laws of England set out the common law definition of murder, which by this definition occurs when a person, of sound memory and discretion, unlawfully kills any reasonable creature in being and under the king's peace, with malice aforethought, either express or implied. The elements of common law murder are: Unlawful killing of a human by another human with malice aforethought. The Unlawful – This distinguishes murder from killings that are done within the boundaries of law, such as capital punishment, justified self-defense, or the killing of enemy combatants by lawful combatants as well as causing collateral damage to non-combatants during a war. Killing – At common law life ended with cardiopulmonary arrest – the total and permanent cessation of blood circulation and respiration. With advances in medical technology courts have adopted irreversible cessation of all brain function as marking the end of life. of a human – This element presents the issue of when life begins. At common law, a fetus was not a human being. Life began when the fetus passed through the vagina and took its first breath. by another human – In early common law, suicide was considered murder. The requirement that the person killed be someone other than the perpetrator excluded suicide from the definition of murder. with malice aforethought – Originally malice aforethought carried its everyday meaning – a deliberate and premeditated (prior intent) killing of another motivated by ill will. Murder necessarily required that an appreciable time pass between the formation and execution of the intent to kill. The courts broadened the scope of murder by eliminating the requirement of actual premeditation and deliberation as well as true malice. All that was required for malice aforethought to exist is that the perpetrator act with one of the four states of mind that constitutes "malice." The four states of mind recognized as constituting "malice" are: Intent to kill, Intent to inflict grievous bodily harm short of death, Reckless indifference to an unjustifiably high risk to human life (sometimes described as an "abandoned and malignant heart"), or Intent to commit a dangerous felony (the "felony murder" doctrine). Under state of mind (i), intent to kill, the deadly weapon rule applies. Thus, if the defendant intentionally uses a deadly weapon or instrument against the victim, such use authorizes a permissive inference of intent to kill. In other words, "intent follows the bullet." Examples of deadly weapons and instruments include but are not limited to guns, knives, deadly toxins or chemicals or gases and even vehicles when intentionally used to harm one or more victims. Under state of mind (iii), an "abandoned and malignant heart", the killing must result from the defendant's conduct involving a reckless indifference to human life and a conscious disregard of an unreasonable risk of death or serious bodily injury. An example of this is a 2007 law in California where an individual could be convicted of third-degree murder if he or she kills another person while driving under the influence of alcohol, drugs, or controlled substances. In Australian jurisdictions, the unreasonable risk must amount to a foreseen probability of death (or grievous bodily harm in most states), as opposed to possibility. Under state of mind (iv), the felony-murder doctrine, the felony committed must be an inherently dangerous felony, such as burglary, arson, rape, robbery or kidnapping. Importantly, the underlying felony cannot be a lesser included offense such as assault, otherwise all criminal homicides would be murder as all are felonies. As with most legal terms, the precise definition of murder varies between jurisdictions and is usually codified in some form of legislation. Even when the legal distinction between murder and manslaughter is clear, it is not unknown for a jury to find a murder defendant guilty of the lesser offence. The jury might sympathise with the defendant (e.g. in a crime of passion, or in the case of a bullied victim who kills their tormentor), and the jury may wish to protect the defendant from a sentence of life imprisonment or execution. Degrees of murder Many jurisdictions divide murder by degrees. The distinction between first- and second-degree murder exists, for example, in Canadian murder law and third-degree murder is recognized in U.S. murder law and Peruvian murder law. The most common division is between first- and second-degree murder. Generally, second-degree murder is common law murder, and first-degree is an aggravated form. The aggravating factors of first-degree murder depend on the jurisdiction, but may include a specific intent to kill, premeditation, or deliberation. In some, murder committed by acts such as strangulation, poisoning, or lying in wait are also treated as first-degree murder. Common law According to Blackstone, English common law identified murder as a public wrong. At common law, murder is considered to be malum in se, that is an act which is evil within itself. An act such as murder is wrong or evil by its very nature. And it is the very nature of the act which does not require any specific detailing or definition in the law to consider murder a crime. Some jurisdictions still take a common law view of murder. In such jurisdictions, what is considered to be murder is defined by precedent case law or previous decisions of the courts of law. However, although the common law is by nature flexible and adaptable, in the interests both of certainty and of securing convictions, most common law jurisdictions have codified their criminal law and now have statutory definitions of murder. Exclusions General Although laws vary by country, there are circumstances of exclusion that are common in many legal systems. Self-defense: acting in self-defense or in defense of another person is generally accepted as legal justification for killing a person in situations that would otherwise have been murder. However, a self-defense killing might be considered manslaughter if the killer established control of the situation before the killing took place. In the case of self-defense it is called a "justifiable homicide". Unlawful killings without malice or intent are considered manslaughter. In many common law countries, provocation is a partial defense to a charge of murder which acts by converting what would otherwise have been murder into manslaughter (this is voluntary manslaughter, which is more severe than involuntary manslaughter). Accidental killings are considered homicides. Depending on the circumstances, these may or may not be considered criminal offenses; they are often considered manslaughter. Suicide does not constitute murder in most societies. Assisting a suicide, however, may be considered murder in some circumstances. Killing of enemy combatants by lawful combatants, in accordance with lawful orders in war, is also generally not considered murder; although illicit killings within a war may constitute murder or homicidal war crimes. (see the Laws of war article) Specific to certain countries Capital punishment: some countries practice the death penalty. Capital punishment ordered by a legitimate court of law as the result of a conviction in a criminal trial with due process for a serious crime. The 47 Member States of the Council of Europe are prohibited from using the death penalty. Euthanasia, doctor-assisted suicide: the administration of lethal drugs by a doctor to a terminally ill patient, if the intention is solely to alleviate pain, is seen in many jurisdictions as a special case (see the doctrine of double effect and the case of Dr John Bodkin Adams). Killing to prevent the theft of one's property is legal in Texas. In 2013, a jury in south Texas acquitted a man who killed a prostitute who attempted to run away with his money. Killing an intruder who is found by an owner to be in the owner's home (having entered unlawfully): legal in most US states (see Castle doctrine). Killing to prevent specific forms of aggravated rape or sexual assault - killing of attacker by the potential victim or by witnesses to the scene; legal in parts of the US and in various other countries.[citation needed] In some parts of the world, especially in jurisdictions which apply Sharia law, the killing of a woman or girl in specific circumstances (e.g., when she commits adultery) and is killed by her husband or other family members, known as honor killing, is not considered murder. Victim All jurisdictions require that the victim be a natural person; that is, a human being who was still alive before being murdered. In other words, under the law one cannot murder a corpse, a corporation, a non-human animal, or any other non-human organism such as a plant or bacterium. California's murder statute, Penal Code Section 187, was interpreted by the Supreme Court of California in 1994 as not requiring any proof of the viability of the fetus as a prerequisite to a murder conviction. This holding has two implications. The first is a defendant in California can be convicted of murder for killing a fetus which the mother herself could have terminated without committing a crime. The second, as stated by Justice Stanley Mosk in his dissent, is that because women carrying nonviable fetuses may not be visibly pregnant, it may be possible for a defendant to be convicted of intentionally murdering a person he did not know existed. Mitigating circumstances Some countries allow conditions that "affect the balance of the mind" to be regarded as mitigating circumstances. This means that a person may be found guilty of "manslaughter" on the basis of "diminished responsibility" rather than being found guilty of murder, if it can be proved that the killer was suffering from a condition that affected their judgment at the time. Depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and medication side-effects are examples of conditions that may be taken into account when assessing responsibility. Insanity Main article: M'Naghten rules Mental disorder may apply to a wide range of disorders including psychosis caused by schizophrenia and dementia, and excuse the person from the need to undergo the stress of a trial as to liability. Usually, sociopathy and other personality disorders are not legally considered insanity, because of the belief they are the result of free will in many societies. In some jurisdictions, following the pre-trial hearing to determine the extent of the disorder, the defense of "not guilty by reason of insanity" may be used to get a not guilty verdict. This defense has two elements: That the defendant had a serious mental illness, disease, or defect. That the defendant's mental condition, at the time of the killing, rendered the perpetrator unable to determine right from wrong, or that what he or she was doing was wrong. Aaron Alexis holding shotgun during his rampage. Under New York law, for example: § 40.15 Mental disease or defect. In any prosecution for an offense, it is an affirmative defense that when the defendant engaged in the proscribed conduct, he lacked criminal responsibility by reason of mental disease or defect. Such lack of criminal responsibility means that at the time of such conduct, as a result of mental disease or defect, he lacked substantial capacity to know or appreciate either: 1. The nature and consequences of such conduct; or 2. That such conduct was wrong. —N.Y. Penal Law, § 40.15 Under the French Penal Code: Article 122-1 A person is not criminally liable who, when the act was committed, was suffering from a psychological or neuropsychological disorder which destroyed his discernment or his ability to control his actions. A person who, at the time he acted, was suffering from a psychological or neuropsychological disorder which reduced his discernment or impeded his ability to control his actions, remains punishable; however, the court shall take this into account when it decides the penalty and determines its regime. Those who successfully argue a defense based on a mental disorder are usually referred to mandatory clinical treatment until they are certified safe to be released back into the community, rather than prison. Post-partum depression Postpartum depression (also known as post-natal depression) is recognized in some countries as a mitigating factor in cases of infanticide. According to Dr. Susan Friedman, "Two dozen nations have infanticide laws that decrease the penalty for mothers who kill their children of up to one year of age. The United States does not have such a law, but mentally ill mothers may plead not guilty by reason of insanity." Unintentional For a killing to be considered murder in nine out of fifty states in the US, there normally needs to be an element of intent. A defendant may argue that he or she took precautions not to kill, that the death could not have been anticipated, or was unavoidable. As a general rule, manslaughter constitutes reckless killing, but manslaughter also includes criminally negligent (i.e. grossly negligent) homicide. Diminished capacity In those jurisdictions using the Uniform Penal Code, such as California, diminished capacity may be a defense. For example, Dan White used this defense to obtain a manslaughter conviction, instead of murder, in the assassination of Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk. Aggravating circumstances Murder with specified aggravating circumstances is often punished more harshly. Depending on the jurisdiction, such circumstances may include: Premeditation Poisoning Murder of a police officer, judge, firefighter or witness to a crime Murder of a pregnant woman Crime committed for pay or other reward Exceptional brutality or cruelty Murder for a political cause Hate crimes, which occur when a perpetrator targets a victim because of his or her perceived membership in a certain social group. In the United States and Canada, these murders are referred to as first-degree or aggravated murders. Murder, under English criminal law, always carries a mandatory life sentence, but is not classified into degrees. Penalties for murder committed under aggravating circumstances are often higher, under English law, than the 15-year minimum non-parole period that otherwise serves as a starting point for a murder committed by an adult

stab wound

A stab wound is a specific form of penetrating trauma to the skin that results from a knife or a similar pointed object that is "deeper than it is wide". While typically stab wounds are thought only to be caused only by knives, they can also occur from ice picks, pens, broken bottles, and even coat hangers. Most stabbings occur because of intentional violence or through self infliction. The treatment is dependent on many different variables such as the anatomical location and the severity of the injury. Even though stab wounds are inflicted at a much greater rate than gun shot wounds, they account for less than 10% of all penetrating trauma deaths. Management: Stab wounds can cause various internal and external injuries. They are generally caused by low-velocity weapons, meaning the injuries inflicted on a person are typically confined to the path it took internally, instead of causing damage to surrounding tissue, which is common of gunshot wounds. The abdomen is the most commonly injured area from a stab wound. Interventions that may be needed depending on severity of the injury include airway, intravenous access, and control of hemorrhage. The length and size of the knife blade, as well as the trajectory it followed, may be important in planning management as it can be a predictor of what structures were damaged. There are also special considerations to take into effect as given the nature of injuries, there is a higher likelihood that persons with these injuries might be under the influence of illicit substances which can make it harder to obtain a complete medical history. Special precautions should also be taken to prevent further injury from a perpetrator to the victim in a hospital setting. Similarly to treating shock, it is important to keep the systolic pressure above 90mmHg, maintain the person's core body temperature, and for prompt transport to a trauma center in severe cases. To determine if internal bleeding is present a focused assessment with sonography (FAST) or diagnostic peritoneal lavage (DPL) can be used. Other diagnostic tests such as a computed tomography scan or various contrast studies can be used to more definitively classify the injury in both severity and location. Local would exploration is also another technique that may be utilized to determine how far the object penetrated. Observation can be used in place of surgery as it can substitute an unnecessary surgery, which makes it the preferred treatment of penetrating trauma secondary to a stab wound when hypovolemia or shock is not present. Labatory diagnostic studies can also help serve as ajuncts to determine the effeciency of care such as a hematocrit, white blood cell count and chemical tests such as liver function tests. Surgery: Surgical intervention may be required but it depends on what organ systems are affected by the wound and the extent of the damage. It is important for care providers to thoroughly check the wound site inasmuch as a laceration of an artery often results in delayed complications sometimes leading to death. In cases where there is no suspicion of bleeding or infection, there is no known benefit of surgery to correct any present injuries. Typically a surgeon will track the path of the weapon to determine the anatomical structures that were damaged and repair any damage they deem necessary. Surgical packing of the wounds is generally not the favored technique to control bleeding as it can less useful then fixing the directly effected organs. In severe cases when homeostasis cannot be maintained the use of damage control surgery may be utilized. Epidemiology: Stab wound are one of the most common forms of penetrating trauma globally, but account for a lower mortality compared to blunt injuries due to their more focused impact to a person. Stabbings are a relatively common cause of homicide in Canada and the USA. Typically deaths caused by stabbings are due to organ failure or blood loss. They are the mechanism of approximately 2% of suicides. Most stab wounds are caused by intentional violence, as the weapons used to inflict such wounds are readily available compared to guns. In Canada, homicides by stabbing and gunshot occur relatively equally (1,008 to 980 for the years 2005 to 2009). In the United States guns are a more common method of homicide (9,484 verses 1,897 for stabbing or cutting in 2008). Stab wounds occur four times more than gunshot wounds in the United Kingdom, but the mortality rate associated with stabbing has ranged from 0-4% as 85% of injuries sustained from stab wounds only affect subcutaneous tissue. Most assaults resulting in a stab wound occur to men and persons of ethnic minorities. History: Some of the first principles of wound care come from Hippocrates who promoted keeping wounds dry except for irrigation. Guy de Chauliac would promote removal of foreign bodies, rejoining of severed tissues, maintenance of tissue continuity, preservation of organ substance, and prevention of complications. The first successful operation on a person who was stabbed in the heart was performed in 1896 by Ludwig Rehn, in what is now considered the first case of heart surgery. In the late 1800s it was hard to treat stab wounds because of poor transportation of victims to health facilities and the low ability for surgeons to effectively repair organs. However, the use of laparotomy, which has been developed a few years earlier, had provided better patient outcomes than had been seen before. After its inception, the use of exploratory laparotomies was highly encouraged for "all deep stab wounds" in which surgeons were to stop active bleeding, repair damage, and remove "devitalized tissues". Because lapapotomies were seen to benefit patients, they were use on most every person with an abdominal stab wound until the 1960s when doctors were encouraged to use them more selectivity in favor of observation. During the Korean war a greater emphasis was put on the use of pressure dressings and tourniquets to initially control bleeding.

ballistic trauma

Ballistic trauma or gunshot wound (GSW) is a form of physical trauma sustained from the discharge of arms or munitions. The most common forms of ballistic trauma stem from firearms used in armed conflicts, civilian sporting, recreational pursuits and criminal activity. Ballistic trauma is sometimes fatal for the recipient, or causes long term negative consequences. Destructive effects: The degree of tissue disruption caused by a projectile is related to the size of the temporary versus permanent cavity it creates as it passes through tissue. The extent of cavitation, in turn, is related to the following characteristics of the projectile: -Kinetic energy: KE = mv2/2 (where m is mass and v is velocity). This helps to explain why wounds produced by missiles of higher mass and/or higher velocity produce greater tissue disruption than missiles of lower mass and velocity. -Yaw -Deformation -Fragmentation The immediate damaging effect of the bullet is typically severe bleeding, and with it the potential for hypovolemic shock, a condition characterized by inadequate delivery of oxygen to vital organs. In the case of traumatic hypovolemic shock, this failure of adequate oxygen delivery is due to blood loss, as blood is the means of delivering oxygen to the body's constituent parts. Immediate effects can result when a bullet strikes a critical organ such as the heart or damages a component of the central nervous system such as the spine or brain. Common causes of death following gunshot injury include exsanguination, hypoxia caused by pneumothorax, catastrophic injury to the heart and larger blood vessels, and damage to the brain or central nervous system. Additionally, gunshot wounds typically involve a large degree of nearby tissue disruption and destruction due to the physical effects of the projectile. Non-fatal gunshot wounds can result in serious disability. Gunshot injuries can vary widely from case to case since the location of the injury can be in any part of the body, with wide variations in entry point. Also, the path and possible fragmentation of the bullet within the body is unpredictable. The study of the dynamics of bullets in gunshot injuries is called terminal ballistics. Non-fatal gunshot wounds frequently have severe and long-lasting effects, even after the victim has made a successful recovery. Typically, the consequences involve some form of major disfigurement and/or permanent disability. As a rule, all gunshot wounds are considered medical emergencies that require immediate hospital treatment. Hospitals are generally required to report all gunshot wounds to police. Origins of medical treatment: Until the 1880s, the standard practice for treating a gunshot wound called for physicians to insert their unsterilized fingers into the wound to probe and locate the path of the bullet. Surgically opening abdominal cavities to repair gunshot wounds, Germ theory, and Joseph Lister's technique for "antisepsis surgery" using dilute carbolic acid, which had been first demonstrated in 1865, had not yet been accepted as standard practice by prevailing medical authorities. For example, sixteen doctors attended to James A. Garfield and most probed the wound with their fingers or dirty instruments. Historians agree that massive infection was a significant factor in President Garfield's death. At almost the same time, in Tombstone, Arizona Territory on 13 July 1881, George E. Goodfellow performed the first laparotomy to treat an abdominal gunshot wound. :M-9 Goodfellow pioneered the use of sterile techniques in treating gunshot wounds, washing the patient's wound and his hands with lye soap or whisky. He became America's leading authority on gunshot wounds and was widely recognized for his skill as a surgeon. Goodfellow is credited as the United States' first civilian trauma surgeon.

unlikely superhero lines

It's the wrong time of the month, so naff off #UnlikelySuperheroLines; "Be righteous, Jive Turkeys! Or I, Leisure Suit Dude, will harsh your mellow. Dy-No-Mite!!" #UnlikelySuperheroLines ; Fear not ma'am... Laundrymech is here! Your delicate, frilly, laced undergarments are in safe hands! #UnlikelySuperheroLines; "Criminals are a cowardly, superstitious lot. I must be a creature of the night. A slow loris! Yeah, that'll do it." #UnlikelySuperheroLInes; My superpower is procrastination. I'll save you tomorrow. Or the next day. #UnlikelySuperheroLines;#UnlikelySuperheroLines "I accept Paypal."; Wouldn't it be rad if we put nipples on our costumes?? #UnlikelySuperheroLines; Eyes up here, chief. #UnlikelySuperheroLines; #UnlikelySuperheroLines This suit can tell what religion I am...it leaves no room for imagination.; Your welcome Miss. That will be $1000....or we can work out another form of payment #UnlikelySuperheroLines

John Smith murderer

John David Smith III (born 1951) is an American murderer convicted of killing his first wife and also believed to have murdered his second, although her body has never been located. Additionally skull fragments were found in a locker owned by him that belonged to a third, unidentified, woman. Photographs of two unidentified women were also found in his possession and form the basis for ongoing "Jane Doe" inquiries. In 2014, one of the women was identified and found alive. Smith's case was documented in a Lifetime movie titled Murder on Pleasant Drive, an episode of Cold Case Files and the books Stranger in my Bed by Michael Fleeman and My Sister Is Missing: Bringing a Killer to Justice" by Sherrie Gladden-Davis. and on Forensic Files season 9, episode 19: Deadly Matrimony. Relationship with Janice Hartman: Smith married Janice Hartman (b. 2 March 1951) on June 30, 1970 when they were both 19. A troubled marriage ensued; Garry Hartman, Janice's brother, said that Smith was abusive when he visited the couple for the first time. Hartman left Smith in 1974 and headed back to Ohio intending to divorce him. A few days later, after filing for divorce, she disappeared. Soon after Hartman went missing, Smith's brother Michael observed him building a narrow box at their grandfather's house which John claimed was to contain some of Janice's belongings. In 1979 their grandfather discovered the box and called Michael. He opened the box to find a dismembered corpse with rainbow hair which he believed to be Janice Hartman's body. He notified his brother of the discovery. John stopped by the residence, picked up the box and headed to Indiana to dispose of the body. Smith's second wife Betty Fran Gladden Smith, who he married in March 1990, disappeared from West Windsor Township, New Jersey on October 4, 1991. Prior to her disappearance, she had been unable to leave her home due to a broken hip. Michael Smith, guilt-ridden from the knowledge of what his brother had done, turned to drinking, but kept his secret until 1999. That year he revealed the facts of his gruesome discovery to an FBI agent investigating the disappearances of John Smith's wives. Police in Ohio and Indiana were issued a notice to be on the lookout for such a box. It was subsequently discovered that the box had been found in 1980 by the Highway Department in an Indiana field, but the victim, unidentified at the time, had been listed as a "Jane Doe". Smith was arrested in October 2000 in Escondido, California, where he was living with his third wife. He was tried beginning 2 July 2001 and convicted later that month of the murder of Janice Hartman in 2000 and sentenced to 15 years to life in prison. His first parole date was in 2011. He unsuccessfully appealed his conviction in 2002. The family of Janice Hartman sought civil damages against Smith's grandmother and brother for their alleged involvement in covering up Smith's crime for over twenty years, but were unsuccessful. Smith remains incarcerated at Marion Correctional Institution.

Automated fingerprint identification system

Automated fingerprint identification is the process of automatically matching one or many unknown fingerprints against a database of known and unknown prints. Automated fingerprint identification systems are primarily used by law enforcement agencies for criminal identification initiatives, the most important of which include identifying a person suspected of committing a crime or linking a suspect to other unsolved crimes. Automated fingerprint verification is a closely related technique used in applications such as attendance and access control systems. On a technical level, verification systems verify a claimed identity (a user might claim to be John by presenting his PIN or ID card and verify his identity using his fingerprint), whereas identification systems determine identity based solely on fingerprints. With greater frequency in recent years, automated fingerprint identification systems have been used in large-scale civil identification projects. The chief purpose of a civil fingerprint identifications system is to prevent multiple enrollments in an electoral, welfare, driver licensing, or similar system. Another benefit of a civil fingerprint identifications system is its use in background checks for job applicants for highly sensitive posts and educational personnel who have close contact with children.

fire investigation

Fire investigation, sometimes referred to as origin and cause investigation, is the analysis of fire-related incidents. After firefighters extinguish a fire, an investigation is launched to determine the origin and cause of the fire or explosion. Investigations of such incidents require a systematic approach and knowledge of basic fire science. In common with many forensic disciplines, one of the early tasks of fire investigation is often to determine whether or not a crime has been committed. The difficulty of determining whether arson has occurred arises because fire often destroys the key evidence of its origin. Many fires are caused by defective equipment, such as shorting of faulty electrical circuits. Car fires can be caused by faulty fuel lines, and spontaneous combustion is possible where organic wastes are stored. A fire investigator looks at the fire remains, and obtains information to reconstruct the sequence of events leading up to the fire. One of the challenging aspects of fire investigation is the multi-disciplinary basis of the investigator's job. As fires can be caused by or involve many ignition sources and fuels, fire investigators need to know not only the science of fire behavior, but also to have a working understanding of many different areas of study including construction, electricity, human behavior, and mechanical devices. For example, if there is a gas appliance at the origin of the fire, an investigator should know enough about appliances to either include or exclude it as a possible cause of the fire. Fire investigators sometimes work with forensic engineers, such as forensic electrical engineers when examining electrical appliances, household wiring, etc. Spoliation is the destruction or alteration of evidence through intention or ignorance. The mere act of extinguishing a fire can destroy potential evidence of arson or what is also known as an "Incendiary fire." Firefighters are educated that the stream of their fire hose or the use of a Pike Pole can destroy evidence and efforts are made to do what is required to extinguish the fire, while not destroying clues to the fires' origin. A fire investigation was once compromised by a fire fighter turning off the knobs on a gas stove in the interests of safety after a house fire was knocked down. In the following investigation the homeowners daughter was accused by her father of leaving the stove on after she left the house but there was then no way to accurately determine the position of the burner knobs on the stove. Though there were no criminal issues involved in this fire, this incident of spoliation created a lack of closure for the family and feelings of distrust and animosity within the family members.

computational criminology

Computationalcriminology is an interdisciplinary field which uses computing science methods to formally define criminology concepts, improve our understanding of complex phenomena, and generate solutions for related problems. Methods Computing science methods being used include: -Algorithms -Data Mining -Data Structures -Formal Methods -Software Development Process Areas of usage: Computational criminology is interdisciplinary in the sense that both criminologists and computing scientists work together to ensure that computational models properly match their theoretical and real-world counterparts. Areas of criminology for which computational approaches are being used include: -Environmental Criminology -Identity Theft -Justice Forensics Computationalforensics (CF) is a quantitative approach to the methodology of the forensic sciences. It involves computer-based modeling, computer simulation, analysis, and recognition in studying and solving problems posed in various forensic disciplines. CF integrates expertise from computational science and forensic sciences. A broad range of objects, substances and processes are investigated, which are mainly based on pattern evidence, such as toolmarks, fingerprints, shoeprints, documents etc., but also physiological and behavioral patterns, DNA, digital evidence and crime scenes. Computationalmethods find a place in the forensic sciences in several ways, as for example: rigorous quantification of individuality, definition and establishment of likelihood ratio, increase of efficiency and effectiveness in daily forensic casework. Algorithms implemented are from the fields of signal and image processing, computer vision, computer graphics, data visualization, statistical pattern recognition, data mining, machine learning, and robotics. Computer forensics (also referred to as "digital forensics" or "forensic information technology") is one specific discipline that could use computational science to study digital evidence. ComputationalForensics examines diverse types of evidence. Forensic animation. Forensic animation is a branch of forensic science in which audio-visual reconstructions of incidents or accidents are created to aid investigators. Examples include the use of computer animation, stills, and other audio visual aids. Application of computer animation in courtrooms today is becoming more popular. The first use of forensic animation was in Connors v. United States, both sides used computer re-creations and animations in a case surrounding the crash of Delta Flight 191 on August 2, 1985. The crash resulted in the deaths of 137 people and extensive property damage. In the resulting lawsuit a method was required to explain complicated information and situations to the jury. As part of the plaintiff presentation, a 45-minute computer generated presentation was created to explain the intricacies of the evidence and thus began forensic animation. The first reported use of computer animation in a U.S. criminal trial was in the 1991 Marin County, CA homicide trial of James Mitchell (of the porno-businessman Mitchell Brothers). The prosecution used the animation to explain the complex details of the shooting incident to the jury. It showed the positions of James Mitchell, Artie Mitchell (the victim), the bullet impact points, and the path taken by bullets as they entered Artie's body. The animation was admitted, over objection by the defense, and the case resulted in a conviction. The use of the animation was upheld on appeal and the success of the forensic animation led to its use in many other trials. In India Prof. T D Dogra at AIIMS New Delhi in 2008 used animation to explain the court of law and investigating agencies first time in two important cases of firearm injuries,case of Murder and Terrorist encounter killings(Batla house encounter case).

Gas Chromatagraph Mass Spectrometry

Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) is an analytical method that combines the features of gas-chromatography and mass spectrometry to identify different substances within a test sample. Applications of GC-MS include drug detection, fire investigation, environmental analysis, explosives investigation, and identification of unknown samples. GC-MS can also be used in airport security to detect substances in luggage or on human beings. Additionally, it can identify trace elements in materials that were previously thought to have disintegrated beyond identification. GC-MS has been widely heralded as a "gold standard" for forensic substance identification because it is used to perform a specific test. A specific test positively identifies the actual presence of a particular substance in a given sample. A non-specific test merely indicates that a substance falls into a category of substances. Although a non-specific test could statistically suggest the identity of the substance, this could lead to false positive identification. The use of a mass spectrometer as the detector in gas chromatography was developed during the 1950s after being originated by James and Martin in 1952. These comparatively sensitive devices were originally limited to laboratory settings. The development of affordable and miniaturized computers has helped in the simplification of the use of this instrument, as well as allowed great improvements in the amount of time it takes to analyze a sample. In 1964, Electronic Associates, Inc. (EAI), a leading U.S. supplier of analog computers, began development of a computer controlled quadrupole mass spectrometer under the direction of Robert E. Finnigan. By 1966 Finnigan and collaborator Mike Uthe's EAI division had sold over 500 quadrupole residual gas-analyzer instruments. In 1967, Finnigan left EAI to form the Finnigan Instrument Corporation along with Roger Sant, T. Z. Chou, Michael Story, and William Fies. In early 1968, they delivered the first prototype quadrupole GC/MS instruments to Stanford and Purdue University. When Finnigan Instrument Corporation was acquired by Thermo Instrument Systems (later Thermo Fisher Scientific) in 1990, it was considered "the world's leading manufacturer of mass spectrometers". In 1996 the top-of-the-line high-speed GC-MS units completed analysis of fire accelerants in less than 90 seconds, whereas first-generation GC-MS would have required at least 16 minutes. By the 2000s computerized GC/MS instruments using quadrupole technology had become both essential to chemical research and one of the foremost instruments used for organic analysis. Today computerized GC/MS instruments are widely used in environmental monitoring of water, air, and soil; in the regulation of agriculture and food safety; and in the discovery and production of medicine.

forensic facial reconstruction

Forensic facial reconstruction (or forensic facial approximation) is the process of recreating the face of an individual (whose identity is often not known) from their skeletal remains through an amalgamation of artistry, forensic science, anthropology, osteology, and anatomy. It is easily the most subjective—as well as one of the most controversial—techniques in the field of forensic anthropology. Despite this controversy, facial reconstruction has proved successful frequently enough that research and methodological developments continue to be advanced. In addition to remains involved in criminal investigations, facial reconstructions are created for remains believed to be of historical value and for remains of prehistoric hominids and humans. Legal admissibility: In the U.S., the Daubert Standard is a legal precedent set in 1993 by the Supreme Court regarding the admissibility of expert witness testimony during legal proceedings, set in place to ensure that expert testimony is based on sufficient facts or data, derived from proper application of reliable principles and methods. When multiple forensic artists produce approximations for the same set of skeletal remains, no two reconstructions are ever the same and the data from which approximations are created are largely incomplete. Because of this, forensic facial reconstruction does not uphold the Daubert Standard, is not considered a legally recognized techniques for positive identification, and is not admissible as expert testimony. Currently, reconstructions are only produced to aid the process of positive identification in conjunction with verified methods. Types of identification: There are two types of identification in forensic anthropology: circumstantial and positive. Circumstantial identification is established when an individual fits the biological profile of a set of skeletal remains. This type of identification does not prove or verify identity because any number of individuals may fit the same biological description. Positive identification, one of the foremost goals of forensic science, is established when a unique set of biological characteristics of an individual are matched with a set of skeletal remains. This type of identification requires the skeletal remains to correspond with medical or dental records, unique ante mortem wounds or pathologies, DNA analysis, and still other means. Facial reconstruction presents investigators and family members involved in criminal cases concerning unidentified remains with a unique alternative when all other identification techniques have failed. Facial approximations often provide the stimuli that eventually lead to the positive identification of remains. Types of reconstructions: Two-dimensional reconstructions: Two-dimensional facial reconstructions are based on ante mortem photographs, and the skull. Occasionally skull radiographs are used but this is not ideal since many cranial structures are not visible or at the correct scale. This method usually requires the collaboration of an artist and a forensic anthropologist. A commonly used method of 2D facial reconstruction was pioneered by Karen T. Taylor of Austin, Texas during the 1980s.[6] Taylor's method involves adhering tissue depth markers on an unidentified skull at various anthropological landmarks, then photographing the skull. Life-size or one-to-one frontal and lateral photographic prints are then used as a foundation for facial drawings done on transparent vellum. Recently developed, the F.A.C.E. and C.A.R.E.S. computer software programs quickly produce two-dimensional facial approximations that can be edited and manipulated with relative ease. These programs may help speed the reconstruction process and allow subtle variations to be applied to the drawing, though they may produce more generic images than hand-drawn artwork. Three-dimensional reconstructions: Three-dimensional facial reconstructions are either: 1) sculptures (made from casts of cranial remains) created with modeling clay and other materials or 2) high-resolution, three-dimensional computer images. Like two-dimensional reconstructions, three-dimensional reconstructions usually require both an artist and a forensic anthropologist. Computer programs create three-dimensional reconstructions by manipulating scanned photographs of the unidentified cranial remains, stock photographs of facial features, and other available reconstructions. These computer approximations are usually most effective in victim identification because they do not appear too artificial. This method has been adapted by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, which uses this method often to show approximations of an unidentified decedent to release to the public in hopes to identify the subject. Superimposition: Superimposition is a technique that is sometimes included among the methods of forensic facial reconstruction. It is not always included as a technique because investigators must already have some kind of knowledge about the identity of the skeletal remains with which they are dealing (as opposed to 2D and 3D reconstructions, when the identity of the skeletal remains are generally completely unknown). Forensic superimpositions are created by superimposing a photograph of an individual suspected of belonging to the unidentified skeletal remains over an X-ray of the unidentified skull. If the skull and the photograph are of the same individual, then the anatomical features of the face should align accurately.

forensic entomology

Forensic entomology is the application and study of insect and other arthropod biology to criminal matters. It also involves the application of the study of arthropods, including insects, arachnids, centipedes, millipedes, and crustaceans to criminal or legal cases. It is primarily associated with death investigations; however, it may also be used to detect drugs and poisons, determine the location of an incident, and find the presence and time of the infliction of wounds. Forensic entomology can be divided into three subfields: urban, stored-product and medico-legal/medico-criminal entomology. Historically, there have been several accounts of applications for, and experimentation with, forensic entomology. The concept of forensic entomology dates back to at least the 14th century. However, only in the last 30 years has forensic entomology been systematically explored as a feasible source for evidence in criminal investigations. Through their own experiments and interest in arthropods and death, Sung Tzu, Francesco Redi, Bergeret d’Arbois, Jean Pierre Mégnin and the doctor Hermann Reinhard have helped to lay the foundations for today's modern forensic entomology. Urban forensic entomology: Urban forensic entomology typically concerns pests infestations in buildings gardens or that may be the basis of litigation between private parties and service providers such as landlords or exterminators. Urban forensic entomology studies may also indicate the appropriateness of certain pesticide treatments and may also be used in stored products cases where it can help to determine chain of custody, when all points of possible infestation are examined in order to determine who is at fault. Medico-legal forensic entomology: Medicolegal forensic entomology covers evidence gathered through arthropod studies at the scenes of murder, suicide, rape, physical abuse and contraband trafficking.[6] In murder investigations it deals with which insects eggs appear, their location on the body and in what order they appear. This can be helpful in determining a post mortem interval (PMI) and location of a death in question. Since many insects exhibit a degree of endemism (occurring only in certain places), or have a well-defined phenology (active only at a certain season, or time of day), their presence in association with other evidence can demonstrate potential links to times and locations where other events may have occurred.[8] Another area covered by medicolegal forensic entomology is the relatively new field of entomotoxicology. This particular branch involves the utilization of entomological specimens found at a scene in order to test for different drugs that may have possibly played a role in the death of the victim.

if school taught me anything

#IfAnythingSchoolTaughtMe I should really watch Godzilla movies to learn about physics properly.; #IfAnythingSchoolTaughtMe about the time Nixon created RoboCop.; #IfAnythingSchoolTaughtMe that everything that you've stressed over isn't important after you leave; #IfAnythingSchoolTaughtMe that narratives of people of color, women, and LGBTQ folks will be erased when history recounts itself.; #IfAnythingSchoolTaughtMe not to trust the DATDA teacher.; #IfAnythingSchoolTaughtMe The teacher's REAL job is to inculcate conformity and discourage intelligent thought.; #IfAnythingSchoolTaughtMe how to write an entire essay on a book I never read the night before it's due; #IfAnythingSchoolTaughtMe how to finish my homework in less than 10 minutes; #IfAnythingSchoolTaughtMe that the only thing standing between my goals and dreams is my own self doubt.; #IfAnythingSchoolTaughtMe that the most important things in life can't be taught in a classroom.; #IfAnythingSchoolTaughtMe how to get dressed in 5 minutes; #IfAnythingSchoolTaughtMe That this was the dress code for guys vs the dress code for girls; #IfAnythingSchoolTaughtMe that having your top button done up is way more important than your actual education

gendercide

Gendercide is the systematic killing of members of a specific sex. Gendercide is reported to be a rising problem in several countries. Census statistics report that in countries such as China and India, the male to female ratio is as high as 120 men for every 100 women. Gendercide also takes the forms of infanticide, and lethal violence against a particular gender at any stage of life.

forensic psychiatry

Forensic psychology is the intersection between psychology and the justice system. It involves understanding fundamental legal principles, particularly with regard to expert witness testimony and the specific content area of concern (e.g., competence to stand trial, child custody and visitation, or workplace discrimination), as well as relevant jurisdictional considerations (e.g., in the United States, the definition of insanity in criminal trials differs from state to state) in order to be able to interact appropriately with judges, attorneys and other legal professionals. An important aspect of forensic psychology is the ability to testify in court as an expert witness, reformulating psychological findings into the legal language of the courtroom, providing information to legal personnel in a way that can be understood. Further, in order to be a credible witness the forensic psychologist must understand the philosophy, rules, and standards of the judicial system. Primary is an understanding of the adversarial system. There are also rules about hearsay evidence and most importantly, the exclusionary rule. Lack of a firm grasp of these procedures will result in the forensic psychologist losing credibility in the courtroom. A forensic psychologist can be trained in clinical, social, organizational or any other branch of psychology. Generally, a forensic psychologist is designated as an expert in a specific field of study. The number of areas of expertise in which a forensic psychologist qualifies as an expert increases with experience and reputation. Forensic neuropsychologists are generally asked to appear as expert witnesses in court to discuss cases that involve issues with the brain or brain damage. They may also deal with issues of whether a person is legally competent to stand trial. Questions asked by the court of a forensic psychologist are generally not questions regarding psychology but are legal questions and the response must be in language the court understands. For example, a forensic psychologist is frequently appointed by the court to assess a defendant's competence to stand trial. The court also frequently appoints a forensic psychologist to assess the state of mind of the defendant at the time of the offense. This is referred to as an evaluation of the defendant's sanity or insanity (which relates to criminal responsibility) at the time of the offense. These are not primarily psychological questions but rather legal ones. Thus, a forensic psychologist must be able to translate psychological information into a legal framework. Forensic psychologists may be called on to provide sentencing recommendations, treatment recommendations or any other information the judge requests, such as information regarding mitigating factors, assessment of future risk and evaluation of witness credibility. Forensic psychology also involves training and evaluating police or other law enforcement personnel, providing law enforcement with criminal profiles and in other ways working with police departments. Forensic psychologists may work with any party and in criminal or family law. In the United States they may also help with jury selection.

Alvin Lathem

A Louisiana fisherman could face life in prison if convicted of killing a shrimp boat captain in a fight over a life jacket as their boat sank. Alvin Latham was arraigned today on a charge of second-degree murder for allegedly stabbing the boat’s captain as they struggled for the life jacket. He’s being held on $200,000 dollars bond. When Latham was rescued, he told authorities that he and the captain of the Bandit, Raymond Leiker, had prayed together before the boat went down in the Gulf of Mexico the night of July 16. And when Leiker’s foot got tangled in a net, Latham said, he tried to save the man. When he couldn’t, Latham said, he swam for help. He was rescued by another fishing boat this afternoon. Body Holds Clues Leiker, 34, of Port Sulphur, was found Friday. An autopsy found he had suffered stab wounds and blunt-force injuries to his head and arms. “Until we found the body, there was no indication that anything illegal had gone on out there,” said Maj. John Marie. Police confronted Latham, 46, with the evidence Saturday and he admitted inflicting the wounds, Marie said. Sheriff’s Capt. Curtis Bowers said the men were heading into the safety of a bay to escape the squall when the motor was swamped and the boat started taking on water. Inside the shrimp boat’s cabin, the men began fighting over the only life jacket. Leiker grabbed it and headed out, Bowers said. Once outside, a wave knocked Leiker into the sea, Bowers said. The captain apparently had not tied the life jacket around himself and it was lost. Leiker tried to clamber back on board the sinking vessel. Latham has confessed to grabbing a knife and pipe and striking at the captain, who fell back into the sea, Bowers said. “He said he thought the captain was going to come back at him,” Bowers said. “I think things just went way out of hand, with the weather so bad and the boat sinking, they were just fighting for their lives,” Bowers said.

Forensic Linguistics

Forensic linguistics, legal linguistics, or language and the law, is the application of linguistic knowledge, methods and insights to the forensic context of law, language, crime investigation, trial, and judicial procedure. It is a branch of applied linguistics. There are principally three areas of application for linguists working in forensic contexts: -understanding language of the written law, -understanding language use in forensic and judicial processes, and -the provision of linguistic evidence. The discipline of forensic linguistics is not homogenous; it involves a range of experts and researchers in different areas of the field. The phrase forensic linguistics first appeared in 1968 when Jan Svartvik, a professor of linguistics, used it in an analysis of statements by Timothy John Evans. During the early days of forensic linguistics in the United Kingdom, the legal defense for many criminal cases questioned the authenticity of police statements. At the time, customary police procedure for taking suspects' statements dictated that it be in a specific format, rather than in the suspect's own words. Statements by witnesses are very seldom made in a coherent or orderly fashion, with speculation and backtracking done out loud. The delivery is often too fast-paced, causing important details to be left out. Early work of forensic linguistics in the United States concerned the rights of individuals with regard to understanding their Miranda rights during the interrogation process.[clarification needed] An early application of forensic linguistics in the United States was related to the status of trademarks as words or phrases in the language. One of the bigger cases involved fastfood giant McDonald's claiming that it had originated the process of attaching unprotected words to the 'Mc' prefix (referred to as McWords) and was unhappy with Quality Inns International's intention of opening a chain of economy hotels to be called 'McSleep.' In the 1980s, Australian linguists discussed the application of linguistics and sociolinguistics to legal issues.[citation needed] They discovered that a phrase such as ' the same language ' is open to interpretation. Aboriginal people have their own understanding and use of 'English', something that is not always appreciated by speakers of the dominant version of English, i.e., 'white English'. The Aboriginal people also bring their own culturally based, interactional styles to the interview.