Category: Forensics

How Breath Alcohol Analysis Works

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Alcohol shows up in the breath because it gets absorbed from the mouth, throat, stomach and intestines into the bloodstream. Alcohol­ is not digested upon absorption, nor chemically changed in the bloodstream. As blood circulates through the lungs, some of the alcohol moves across the membranes of the lung’s alveoli, into the air stored within the lungs. Because the alcohol concentration in the breath is related to the concentration in the blood, an approximate measurement can be identified when using a simple ratio formula of breath alcohol to blood alcohol which is 2100:1. This means that 2100 milliliters of alveolar air will contain the same amount of alcohol as 1 milliliter of blood

The Etymology of the “AR15” Firearm and the Civilian AR15 vs the Military AR15

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Contrary to popular belief, the civilian version of the AR15 firearm is not an assault rifle, nor does the “AR” portion of the name stand to represent the term “assault rifle”. The AR15 is named as such because it was the 15th design (e.g. the “15” portion of “AR15”) of a firearm originally manufactured by ArmaLite (e.g. the “AR” portion of “AR15”), an American firearms manufacturer which has manufactured and sold the AR15 since 1959, with the firearm first being developed in 1956. The civilian version of the AR15 firearm became available to consumers from 1963 onward. The primary difference between the militarized model and the civilian model, being the function to enable automatic fire. Once the function of automatic fire is enabled, the AR15 is considered a militarized assault rifle

The Correlation Between International Conflict and the White Supremacist Movement

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Throughout U.S. history, there has always remained a correlation between the aftermath of conflict and vigilante and revolutionary violence connected to the White Supremacist movement. Surges of Ku Klux Klan membership align more closely with veterans of combat and the aftermath of war than they do with anti-immigration, populism, economic hardship, or any of the other political factors experts have traditionally relied upon to explain sudden spikes of membership affiliation. White supremacist activity always have a direct link to post war periods, including notable individuals such as George Lincoln Rockwell who was a World War II veteran and founder of the American Nazi Party, Richard Butler who was also a World War II veteran and founder of the Aryan Nations, Louis Beam who was a Vietnam War veteran and Grand Dragon of the Klux Klux Klan, and Timothy McVeigh who was a Gulf War Veteran and responsible for the Oklahoma City bombing of 1995

The Most Important Intervention to Avoid Suicide During a Mental Health Crisis

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In the U.S., most firearm related deaths are not homicides but rather suicides, and more people commit suicide by firearm then by all other methods combined. The timeframe of a suicidal crisis is typically 1 – 10 minutes in duration, and having a firearm at close reach increases the likelihood of a successful suicide attempt by 95%. If a firearm is not present during a moment of suicidal crisis, and another method is used to attempt suicide, this statistic plunges dramatically to become a 5% – 10% success rate. This is important as the means by which someone takes their life matters. Living in a firearm free home is a critically important aspect of suicide prevention for those who are at risk. It is recommended that during a crisis event, all firearms are unloaded and taken to a trusted friend, with all prescription, over the counter medications, and household poisons (eg. Draino etc.) locked away as well

The Imaginary Concept of Acquiring a “License to Kill”

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Everything performed during espionage is illegal as the act of espionage itself is by definition illegal which is why the imaginary concept of a “license to kill” is irrelevant and redundant as any execution performed during a spy operation is considered a legal act by the state of the officers nationality (e.g. the U.K., the U.S., France etc.), as these actions are always considered prudent and necessary of an officer in the field being that officers have extensive training for situations which they may encounter during a mission

The Coca Leaf Extraction Process to Manufacture Cocaine

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The cocaine extraction process is complicated but begins with workers shredding the leaves of the coca plant into fine particulate with machinery (e.g. weed trimmer etc.) after which cement powder is added, then sulphuric acid dissolved in water, with the leaves then being placed into an oil drum and doused with gasoline. The mixture is left to sit for an extended period of time so that the cocaine itself can be extracted from the coca leaf. The oil drum mixture is stirred continuously using a large rod and then poured through a filter into another container where battery acid is introduced. The battery acid is sulphuric acid making it similar to the first few steps but it is slightly different as it is diluted with water to become no greater than a 37% concentrate. Battery acid helps to separate the cocaine liquid from the gasoline, with 90% of the barrel being gasoline and 10% at the bottom being pure liquid cocaine. Because the gasoline and liquid cocaine have different specific densities, plantation workers place a hose into the bottom of the barrel so that the liquid cocaine can be extracted, either using a pump or gravity by manually sucking on the hose until liquid cocaine starts flowing through. Pure liquid cocaine is clear like water, and has an acidic, bitter, strong taste. Sodium bicarbonate is then added as it helps to eradicate the excess gasoline and battery acid which remains and turns the liquid white. Once the liquid is dried, it begins to resemble cocaine but the process is not yet complete. The dried powder is then cooked on a stove top and stirred continuously to remove further impurities, the top layer is then removed the same way soup skin is removed with a brown colored liquid left remaining which is cocaine. The brown liquid is spread onto a baking pan and left to dry. It is this paste that is passed onto drug cartels to then be distributed internationally

The Use and Misuse of the U.S. Constitution’s 5th Amendment and Canada’s Section 13 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms

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Although Canada does not have a 5th Amendment like the U.S., it does have the ability to invoke Section 13 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which guarantees that “a witness who testifies in any proceedings has the right not to have any incriminating evidence so given used to incriminate that witness in any other proceedings, except in a prosecution for perjury or for the giving of contradictory evidence”. Although the 5th Amendment does not exist in Canada, a collection of laws that function as the same purpose do exist affording both Canadian and U.S. citizens the right to make no statement so as not to incriminate themselves when being questioned. An individual cannot use the 5th Amendment or Section 13 as an absolute and unwavering protectionary device from any statement however. Discretion is provided dependent upon whether or not the person being questioned reasonably believes that disclosure of information could be utilized in a criminal prosecution or that it could lead to other evidence that may be used against that person in the future. In the US, an individual who has been convicted of a crime and sentenced cannot invoke the 5th Amendment. When an individual is able to leverage the 5th Amendment, their silence or refusal to answer questions cannot be used against them in a criminal case meaning a prosecutor cannot argue to a judge or jury that the defendant’s silence implies guilt. In Canada, Section 13 only protects against the use to incriminate prior compelled testimony and is not valid against the use of testimony previously voluntarily supplied

The Discovery of the Sunken S.S. Titanic

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The S.S. Titanic’s shipwreck site was found by the U.S. Navy whilst embarking upon a clandestine military submarine sea voyage operation in 1982. The intent of the mission was to surpass the Russians on every front, including land, sea, air, and space. Geologist and Navy Captain Robert Ballard was the person who developed the mission idea by suggesting that the U.S. Navy scour the seafloor to gather intelligence and search for evidence of Soviet placed hardware. The original intention of the mission was to locate and recover 2 U.S. Navy submarines which were classified as top secret nuclear attack vessels and lost during the 1960’s. The first submarine was the U.S.S. Scorpion, lost in 1968 with 99 onboard, and the second was the U.S.S. Thresher, lost in 1963 with 129 onboard. Recovery of these vessels during the 1960’s was limited to the Sound Navigation and Ranging technology of the era, commonly abbreviated as “SONAR”. Ballard only had 12 days to locate the S.S. Titanic during the mission without exposing his cover story, a feat which was unable to be completed by the French and the Americans, despite having much longer time spans and multiple expeditions to achieve this goal. Ballard narrowed down the search area to 80 square kilometers and focused towards the south as he believed that ocean currents would have carried sunken debris in that direction. Ballard continued searching for a trail of scattered debris from the S.S. Titanic and on the 9th day of the expedition, with time quickly running out, the operators of the remotely operated vehicle ARGO, found wreckage from a modern iron ship which appeared to be from the early 20th century. It was confirmed shortly after on September 1, 1985 at 12:48 AM that these remains were 1 of the 29 boilers belonging to the S.S. Titanic. It had been 73 years since the S.S. Titanic was last seen, resting nearly 4 kilometers below sea level, with it’s 1500 onboard passengers and crew

The 18th Century Gin Craze and it’s Association with Murder

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Gin was highly consumed in poorer areas of London, England as it was a cheaper alternative to beer. Gin was unregulated during the early 18th century, and was often badly distilled and filled with harmful compounds like oil of vitriol which is similar in construct to modern day turpintine, sulfuric acid, and methylated spirits. By 1750, gin consumption was at its peak, with the city of London consuming 11,000,000 (11 million) gallons per year. In the poorest areas of London, specifically upon the east end, it was not uncommon for everyone in public to be permanently drunk; an analogue to the modern day crack cocaine epidemic of the 1980’s. All members of society consumed gin including men, women, and children, with many cases exhibiting severe addictive traits as was the case with Judith Darfour, who took her child into a heath, murdered them to sell their petticoat clothing and acquire more gin, then attended work later that day as if nothing had occurred. Gin related crime soared and Mothers Ruin which refers to “women who killed their family members to acquire funds for gin” was responsible for the deaths of thousands of men, women, and children. When the death rate climbed higher than the birth rate, the British government was forced to intervene, outlawing small gin distilleries and ending the era referred to as the “Gin Craze”

Photographic Evidence of Lewis Carroll’s Alleged Pedaphilia Involving Alice Liddell, the Protagonist of Alice In Wonderland

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A photograph linked to Lewis Carroll was found in the Musée Cantini, a French museum in Marseille, France, which depicts what appears to be a pubescent aged Lorina Liddell who was the older sister of Alice Liddell, the person whom the fictional character of Alice in Alice In Wonderland was based upon. The photograph is problematic as it displays Liddell, fully nude, from a frontal angle. It’s unclear if the photograph was taken by Carroll or only linked to him, and it’s not completely clear as to whether or not the girl in the photograph is actually Liddell. The image isn’t permitted to leave France, so any study upon the subject must be conducted within the borders of the country. In 1993, Carroll expert Edward Wakeling deemed the photo to be not of Liddell after repeated examination and comparison to other images of Liddell. Nicholas Burnett, a picture conservationist with specialized knowledge in 19th century photography technology has stated that he believes the inscription upon the photograph which states “Lorina Liddell, Carroll, Col, MC” is actually a dealers notation which states what the photograph is of, where it came from, and denotes that it’s part of a collection, hence the abbreviation “col”. It’s unclear what “MC” stands for as the Musée Cantini does not use this abbreviation, but it could possibly stand for “Musée Cantini”. Carroll photographed the Liddell girls during the 1860’s which is crucial because the photograph in question has a slow growth mold which is difficult to reproduce fraudulently, beneath a thin layer of egg white albumin used as an outer coating. This photograph is known to have been cropped as the negative is larger than the print which is impossible to achieve unless the photograph itself was cut down. Carrol favored using an Ottawa Walls folding camera which is the same kind of camera which created the photograph in question. Finally, the print was made from a wet collodion negative which is a printing technique which Carroll is known to have used. If the photograph was from a later date, it would have used a paper negative which would have caused it to appear less crisp and clear. The evidence seems to suggest that Carroll did indeed take and develop the photograph. Forensic comparative analysis using modern scientific methods of comparing one photograph to another were used to examine the photograph and experts concluded that the girl in the photograph, is indeed Lorina as the eyes, specifically the epicanthic fold of the eyes, matches that of photographs of Lorina when she is in her adult years, as well as her elder years. The nose provides another example of evidence as the width of the nose at the nasion, meaning the point between the eyes and the bridge of the nose, the width of the alae (pronounced “ail-ee”) which is the spongy part of the side of the nose, and the nostrils are all broadly consistent with later photographs of Lorina. The lips provide further evidence, and perhaps the most interesting of all the compiled evidence as the lips definitively show a Cupid’s bow upon the upper lip, but also a lower lip which is prominent and protruding upon the right side, but not the left. These features forensically demonstrate that there is moderate likelihood that the photograph of the pubescent girl is indeed Lorina. The leader of the forensics team which evaluated the evidence at hand has gone on record to state that because no court case involved, it can confidently be stated that the photograph in question is in fact Lorina, however it should be noted that if a court case were pursuant, the evidence presented may not be enough to garner a conviction as its lacking solid, definitive proof, beyond and to the exclusion of reasonable doubt