Iowa Judicial Retirement System, Independent Auditor's Reports, Financial Statements and Required Supplementary Information, June 30, 2004

State Agency Audit Report

Experimental endocarditis following dental extractions in rats with periodontitis.

This study analyzed the development of bacterial endocarditis following dental extraction in rats with periodontal disease. Periodontal disease was produced in rats by tying silk ligatures around the two maxillary first molars, and placing the animals on a high sucrose diet. Sterile aortic valve vegetations were produced by means of a transaortic catheter, and 24 hours later the maxillary first molars were extracted. The animals were killed 72 hours after the extractions. In rats with periodontal disease induced for 10 and 14 weeks, extractions resulted in an incidence of bacterial endocarditis of 24% and 50%, respectively, most of which were due to streptococcal species (two were caused by Staphylococcus [corrected] aureus). The difference, though not statistically significant (p = 0.10, chi 2 with Yates correction), shows a trend toward increased incidence of endocarditis with increasing severity of periodontal disease. This model demonstrates that one can reliably induce bacterial endocarditis after dental extractions in rats with periodontal disease.

5B Judicial District Youth Services, Independent Auditor's Reports, Basic Financial Statements, Schedule of Findings, Eight Months ended February 28, 2005 and Year ended June 30, 2004

Other Audit Reports - 28E Organizations

5B Judicial District Youth Services, Independent Auditor's Reports, Basic Financial Statements, Schedule of Findings, Eight months ended February 28, 2005 and Year Ended June 30, 2004

Other Audit Reports - 28E Organizations

Report of Recommendations to the Iowa Judicial Branch, June 30, 2005

State Audit Reports

Report of Recommendations to the Iowa Judicial Branch - County Clerks of District Courts, June 30, 2004

Other Audit Reports - Iowa Judicial Branch

Combined Report of Recommendations to the Eight Judicial District Departments of Correctional Services, June 30, 2004

Other Audit Reports - Judicial

Cognitive issues in fingerprint analysis: Inter- and intra-expert consistency and the effect of a "target" comparison

Deciding whether two fingerprint marks originate from the same source requires examination and comparison of their features. Many cognitive factors play a major role in such information processing. In this paper we examined the consistency (both between- and within-experts) in the analysis of latent marks, and whether the presence of a 'target' comparison print affects this analysis. Our findings showed that the context of a comparison print affected analysis of the latent mark, possibly influencing allocation of attention, visual search, and threshold for determining a 'signal'. We also found that even without the context of the comparison print there was still a lack of consistency in analysing latent marks. Not only was this reflected by inconsistency between different experts, but the same experts at different times were inconsistent with their own analysis. However, the characterization of these inconsistencies depends on the standard and definition of what constitutes inconsistent. Furthermore, these effects were not uniform; the lack of consistency varied across fingerprints and experts. We propose solutions to mediate variability in the analysis of friction ridge skin.

Research involving biological material from forensic autopsies: legal and ethical issues.

Recommendations and laws do not always contain specific and clear provisions on the use of cadaveric material in research, and even more rarely do they address explicitly the ethical issues related to research on material obtained during forensic autopsy. In this article we analyse existing legal frameworks in Europe by comparing the legal provisions in 2 European Countries which are member states of the Council of Europe, the UK and Switzerland. They were chosen because they have distinct legal frameworks that make comparisons interesting. In addition, the detailed laws of the UK and a specific law project and national ethical recommendations in Switzerland permit us to define more clearly the legal range of options for researchers using cadaveric material obtained during forensic investigations. The Human Tissue Act 2004 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, its Scottish equivalent with the same title (2006) and the national ethical guidelines in Switzerland all require consent from the deceased person, an appropriate relative or a person with power of attorney for healthcare decisions before cadaveric biological material can be obtained and used for research. However, if the purpose of the autopsy is purely forensic, no such authorization will be sought to carry out the autopsy and related analyses, which might include genetic testing. In order to be allowed to carry out future research projects, families need to be approached for informed consent, unless the deceased person had left written directives including permission to use his or her tissues for research.

Iowa Judicial Retirement System, Independent Auditor's Reports, Financial Statements and Required Supplementary Information, June 30, 2005

State Audit Reports

La interpretación judicial: el intérprete de la Ciutat de la Justícia

El presente trabajo pretende ser un reflejo de la realidad del intérprete judicial en los juzgados de Barcelona. En el primer bloque hemos realizado un breve repaso bibliográfico. En el segundo, un estudio de campo que muestra cómo es el intérprete de la Ciutat de la Justícia y cómo trabaja.

Les enjeux de l'allaitement maternel pour les nouveau-nés hospitalisés [Issues surrounding the breastfeeding of hospitalized newborns].

The nutritional and physiological qualities of breast milk make it the best food for newborns, favouring their wellbeing and growth. The implementation of a programme encouraging the breastfeeding of hospitalised newborns in care departments requires specific methods of organisation, as well as constant and adapted support from health professionals.

The short arm of the law: judicial institutions and local governance in Brazil

This paper estimates the effect of judicial institutions on governance at the local level in Brazil. Our estimation strategy exploits a unique institutional feature of state judiciary branches which assigns prosecutors and judges to the most populous among contiguous counties forming a judiciary district. As a result of this assignment mechanism there are counties with nearly identical populations, some with and some without local judicial presence, which we exploit to impute counterfactual outcomes. Conditional on observable county characteristics, offenses per civil servant are about 35% lower in counties that have a local seat of the state judiciary. The lower incidence of infractions stems mostly from fewer violations of financial management regulations by local administrators, fewer instances of problems in project execution and project managment, fewer cases of non-existent or ineffective civil society oversight and fewer cases of improper handling of remittances to local residents.

Combined Report of Recommendations to the Eight Judicial District Departments of Correctional Services, June 30, 2005

Other Audit Reports - Judicial

Report of Recommendations to the Iowa Judicial Branch - County Clerks of District Courts, June 30, 2005

Other Audit Reports - Judicial