Regulating Assault Weapons and Large-Capacity Magazines for Ammunition.

This Viewpoint discusses the history and current status of assault weapons bans in the US, provides evidence of the potential effectiveness of a US ban and information regarding the Australian ban, and explores potential next steps.

Evaluating the Impact of Employing Local Tax Collectors to Improve State-Level Licensing Program Outcomes in Florida.

The improvement of public services is an important public policy objective, and several approaches have been proposed and implemented across all levels of government to achieve this goal. A recent policy in Florida (FL) fosters collaboration between local and state governments by allowing local tax collector (TC) offices to receive and support applications for the state's concealed weapons (CW) license program. We use 80,020 application records to estimate process improvements brought about by this policy. Our analysis shows that by using TCs, the time for the application to be processed was one third the time it needed via mail and about 3% at the regional office. The likelihood of errors in applications and supporting documents decreased significantly. The policy, therefore, has improved the effectiveness of the CW licensing service in FL. Similar initiatives can be adopted by government entities facing bottlenecks in permitting or licensing processes.

Sexual Homicide in France.

The primary objective of this study was to describe and compare the modus operandi, and associated contextual and situational factors, of French serial sexual murderers (SSMs) and nonserial sexual murderers (NSMs). A further objective was to verify the generalizability of the conclusions of James and Proulx's 2016 systematic review of the modus operandi of sexual murderers, the majority of whom were American or English. Detailed data on the precrime, modus operandi, postcrime, and victimology factors of 120 French sexual murderers (SSMs: n = 33; NSMs: n = 87) were compared. The results suggest that choice-structuring properties that shape the modus operandi of French sexual murderers are similar to those reported by James and Proulx: The modus operandi of French SSMs was shaped by homicidal, sadistic, and rape fantasies, while that of NSMs was shaped by the need to satisfy immediate, especially sexual, needs. However, it should be noted that while the modus operandi of American and English NSMs is primarily shaped by general deviance, that of French NSMs appear be primarily shaped by sexual deviance.

Sexual Homicides in China: Exploring the Offender, Victim, and Offense Characteristics.

Nearly all information available on sexual homicides are limited to studies conducted in the West. Little is known about sexual homicides that occurred in China. The current study is arguably the first to explore the offender, victim, and offense characteristics of Chinese sexual homicides. Over a period of 23 years (1994 to 2016), the data of 59 cases collected from two data sources (i.e., published Chinese case reports and police data) are examined. Findings indicate that heterosexual assaults are far more prevalent in Chinese sexual homicides. Sexual murderers who averagely aged 32.44 years are mostly males (97%), single (67%), secondary school educated (68%), and with no prior overall (80%) and sexual (88%) convictions. The victims are mostly females (83%) with mean age of 35.35 years. The frequently observed offending patterns include strangers as victim choice (63%), con tactics as victim approach method (57%), sexual pleasure as primary motivation (49%), and personal weapons as murder weapon of choice (41%). Vaginal penetration is a commonly observed sexual assault (88%) and victim body mutilation is also not uncommon (47%). Three case examples are also presented to illustrate the diverse nature and offending patterns of Chinese sexual homicide offenders.

Mortality data in the age of drones ‡.

Mortality data plays an essential role in shaping humanitarian, legal and ethical responses to conflict situations. The rise of drone warfare poses new questions regarding the accuracy and reliability of mortality data in conflict. This article examines some of the methodological and political challenges to collecting mortality data in drone warfare, and how the way in which drones are framed in public discourse contributes to these challenges.

Adolescents as perpetrators of aggression within the family.

Although family violence perpetrated by juveniles has been acknowledged as a potentially serious form of violence for over 30years, scientific studies have been limited to examining the incidence and form of home violence. The present study examined the prevalence of family aggression as perpetrated by youths; we examined groups drawn from clinic-referred and forensic samples. Two audits of case files were conducted to systematically document aggression perpetrated by referred youths toward their family members. The purpose of the first audit was fourfold: i) to identify the incidence of the perpetration of family aggression among clinical and forensic samples; ii) to identify whether there were any reports of weapon use during aggressive episodes; iii) to identify the target of family aggression (parents or siblings); and iv) to identify the form of aggression perpetrated (verbal or physical). The second audit aimed to replicate the findings and to show that the results were not due to differences in multiple deprivation indices, clinical diagnosis of disruptive behavior disorders, and placement into alternative care. A sampling strategy was designed to audit the case notes of 25 recent forensic Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) cases and 25 demographically similar clinic-referred CAMHS cases in the first audit; and 35 forensic cases and 35 demographically similar clinic-referred CAMHS cases in the second audit. Using ordinal chi-square, the forensic sample (audit 1=64%; audit 2=82.9%) had greater instances of family violence than the clinical sample (audit 1=32%; audit 2=28.6%). They were more likely to use a weapon (audit 1=69%; audit 2=65.5%) compared to the clinical sample (audit 1 and 2=0%). Examining only the aggressive groups, there was more perpetration of aggression toward parents (audit 1, forensic=92%, clinical=75%; audit 2, forensic=55.17%, clinical=40%) than toward siblings (audit 1, forensic=43%, clinical=50%; audit 2, forensic=27.58%, clinical=30%). Based on these findings, we would urge professionals who work within the child mental health, particularly the forensic area, to systematically collect reports of aggression perpetrated toward family members.

Ballistic parameters and trauma potential of carbon dioxide-actuated arrow pistols.

Medical literature abounds with reports of injuries and fatalities caused by arrows and crossbow bolts. Crossbows are of particular forensic and traumatological interest, because their mode of construction allows for temporary mechanical storage of energy. A newly developed type of pistol (Arcus Arrowstar), which belongs to the category of air and carbon dioxide weapons, discharges arrow-shaped bolts actuated by carbon dioxide cylinders. As, to the best of the authors' knowledge, literature contains no information on this uncommon subclass of weapons it is the aim of this work to provide the experimental data and to assess the trauma potential of these projectiles based on the ascertained physical parameters. Basic kinetic parameters of these carbon dioxide-actuated bolts (velocity v = 39 m/s, energy E = 7.2 J, energy density E' = 0.26 J/mm(2)) are similar to bolts discharged by pistol crossbows. Subsequent firing resulted in a continuous and fast decrease in kinetic energy of the arrows. Test shots into ballistic soap blocks reveal a high penetration capacity, especially when compared to conventional projectiles of equal kinetic energy values (like, e.g., airgun pellets). To conclude, these data demonstrate the high efficiency of arrow-shaped projectiles, which are also characterized by a high cross-sectional density (ratio of mass to cross-sectional area of a projectile).

The Arms Trade Treaty (ATT): a public health imperative.

The United Nations adopted an historic international Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) in April 2013. A 1997 meeting of Nobel Peace Prize laureates who called for an International Code of Conduct to address the 'destructive effects of the unregulated arms trade' initiated discussions that led to the Treaty. Public health institutions, including the World Health Organization and the International Committee of the Red Cross, and nongovernmental health groups such as International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, made adoption of the ATT a public health imperative. The poorly regulated $70 billion annual trade in conventional arms fuels conflict, with devastating effects on global health. The ATT aims to 'reduce human suffering'. It prohibits arms' sales if there is knowledge that the arms would be used in the commission of genocide, attacks against civilians, or war crimes. The health community has much to contribute to ensuring ratification and implementation of the ATT.

[Experimental throws with a knife to clarify a case of domestic violence]. / Messerwurf--Experimentelle Untersuchungen in einem Fall von "häuslicher Gewalt".

For an expert opinion, the course of events in a conflict resulting in a 3 cm deep and 1.8 cm wide stab wound on the neck of a woman was to be reconstructed. Based on the statements of witnesses, there were three possible scenarios: 1. The knife was thrown from a distance of about one meter. 2. The knife had accidentally slipped from the hand. 3. The knife was deliberately used for a stab to the neck of the victim. The experimental setup comprised the knife presumably causing the injury and four comparable knives. The victim was represented by a pig carcass. The results of the test throws are presented and the sequence of movements is assessed as to the most probable course of events. Four male and three female subjects performed test throws which were documented by video recordings and measurements of the penetration depth. Six of the seven subjects were able to generate stab wounds by throwing the knives, whereas a knife accidentally slipping from the hand never caused a stab wound in the tests.