Homicide in America According to Eric Monkkonen, professor of history and policy studies at the University of California at Los Angeles, homicide in the United States has not changed much in two hundred years, and that it remains a crime committed mostly by men in the heat of passion, "to asset manliness, power or territory" (Woo pp)
Review and Discussion Background and Overview. Concern over juvenile homicides is certainly not new, and as early as 1642, juvenile offenders have been committed to death in the United States for such extreme acts of violence (Crespi & Rigazio-Diglio, 1996)
133). In sum, low-income blacks and males continue to be responsible for a disproportionate number of juvenile homicidal acts, but juvenile homicide is not restricted to these age, ethnic or socioeconomic groups (Heckel & Shumaker, 2001)
784). Although there remain some gaps in the literature concerning the specific individual causes of juvenile homicide, drugs, alcohol, gang activity, a history of family violence (discussed further below) (Horowitz, 2000) and a fear of being viewed as "weak" by their peers have contributed significantly to the existing incidence of juvenile homicides in the United States (Walker & Roberts, 2001)
According to Moeller (2001), the incidence of juvenile homicide arrest remained relatively stable during the period 1972 to 1982, then declined to a record low in 1984 only to spiral upward again to a peak in 1993. Indeed, between 1984 and 1991, the number of juvenile homicide arrests more than doubled, compared to a 20% increase for adults (Moeller, 2001)
10). In addition, knives and other weapons commonly classified as dangerous are typically used in juvenile homicides (Phipps, 1999)
These authors cite a number of professionals working in the juvenile justice system in New York who report that, "Juvenile delinquents, particularly violent ones, are fully responsible for their own actions and that their actions are a function of choices they make. These conscious, deliberate choices result from their using a set of rules that completely disregards the rights of other people" (Walker & Roberts, 2001, p
Therefore, an analysis using Spearman's rank test will establish the strength of the connection between the variables. A 5% significance level is the critical value for accepting the hypothesis (Myers and Well, 2003)
These specially trained units are used to investigate serious or fatal car crashes. Their specialized training often deals with accessing the structural damage to a vehicle or other items, taking measurements and drag factors in order to determine speed, movement, and points of collision for traffic incident reconstruction (Byrd, 2000)
" Forensic science is not new, although it does look dramatically different that just a few decades ago. The research suggests that "forensic science resolves legal issues by applying scientific principles to them" (Hall, 1999, p 2)
¶ … Welcome to Homicide Case "Welcome to Homicide" "There's a theory that every time you leave an area, you always leave evidence behind, no matter what, no matter how careful you are; and that's why there's forensics" (Santy, 2007)
For example, the case illustrated the use of a K-9 as a way to possibly catch on a scent that would lead to further evidence. According to the research, "Europeans have been using scent-discriminating canines in criminal investigations for more than 100 years" (Stockham, Slavin, & Kift, 2004, p 1)
Fingerprinting was a true revolution in forensic analysis. It is also known as Dactylography and its roots go as far back as ancient China (Swanson, Chamelin, & Territo, 2003)
'Duping delight' -- psychologist Paul Ekman's term -- represents a key characteristic of the psychopathic profile." Because a psychopath doesn't feel guilt, shame or anxiety when he lies, he's unlikely to make mistakes during such deceptions that the average person might make (Ekman 67)
Not every murderer is a psychopath and the exact definition of a psychopath has been widely debated. Constant strain runs along the high profile cases of murdering psychopaths, which is "A deeply disturbing inability to care about the pain and suffering inexperienced by others -- in short, a complete lack of empathy, the prerequisite for love" (Hare, 6)
Another classic trait of the psychopathic thought process is the enjoyment of deceit and seeing very little value or worth in the truth. "Psychopaths have a remarkable disregard for the truth" (Patrick
All murders were considered capital offences and all individuals involved in them were sentenced to death before 1961. Consequent to 1976 murder was divided into two categories: first degree and second degree (Ross 187)
"From the late fifties both rates started to move upwards. By 1970 each had surpassed their previous highpoints in 1930" (Torrance 123)
Crimes against children and the elderly are often most difficult to excuse and most difficult for crime scene investigators to process psychologically (Swanson, Chamelin & Territo, 1999: 313). Such investigations often result in tremendous psychological burden with time (O'Hara, 2003: 178)
There are some crimes that are more difficult to handle spiritually and emotionally than others. Crimes against children and the elderly are often most difficult to excuse and most difficult for crime scene investigators to process psychologically (Swanson, Chamelin & Territo, 1999: 313)