Validation of a large Italian Database of 15 STR loci.

Results from a collaborative exercise with proficiency testing conducted by 20 Italian laboratories on the 15 loci included in the Identifiler kit were analyzed by allele sharing methods and by standard population genetics tests. The validated database, including about 1500 subjects, was merged with that of a previous exercise conducted on nine loci, and the resulting allele frequencies, subdivided by Italian region, were published on-line.

Detection of manipulations on printed images to address crime scene analysis: A case study.

Photographic documents both in digital and in printed format plays a fundamental role in crime scene analysis. Photos are crucial to reconstruct what happened and also to freeze the fact scenario with all the different present objects and evidences. Consequently, it is immediate to comprehend the paramount importance of the assessment of the authenticity of such images, to avoid that a possible malicious counterfeiting leads to a wrong evaluation of the circumstance. In this paper, a case study in which some printed photos, brought as documental evidences of a familiar murder, had been fraudulently modified to bias the final judgement is presented. In particular, the usage of CADET image forensic tool, to verify printed photos integrity, is introduced and discussed.

Entomological evidence: lessons to be learnt from a cold case review.

Insects are known to be useful in estimating time since death, but this is only possible if samples are collected and preserved correctly according to best practices. This report describes a case where an 18-year old female was found dead and during the first medico-legal investigation which determined it was a homicide, entomological samples were collected but not considered. The case was then closed with no suspect. However, 9 years after the first investigation the courts decided that the case needed to be re-examined. In doing so the new review team decided that although the remaining entomological evidence was poorly preserved some extra information may be gained from its analyses. On inspection of the remaining samples of larvae no normal morphological analyses could be conducted. Molecular analyses were combined with an unorthodox morphological analysis to provide an estimate of the post-mortem interval based on insect evidence, indicating the value of multidisciplinary approaches to both cold and contemporary cases.