On Different Categories of Cybercrime in China

Cybercrimes have become an eye-catching social problem in not only China but also other countries of the world. Cybercrimes can be divided into two categories and different kinds of cybercrimes shall be treated differently. In this article, some typical cybercrimes are introduced in detail in order to set forth the characteristics of those cybercrimes. However, to defeat cybercrimes, joint efforts from countries all over the world shall be made.

Forty Years of Reform and Opening Up:The Birth and Development of China's Criminal Justice System

The Third Plenary Session of the 11 th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China held in 1978 marked the initiation of the policy of reform and opening up in China,beginning a new chapter in the construction of a socialist legal system.The first Chinese criminal procedure law was promulgated the following year and was revised twice in 1996 and 2012.Although remarkable progress has been made,the level of the rule of law in China's criminal procedure must still be improved to meet the goal of modernizing the criminal rule of law.

STRATEGIC INTERPRETATIONS AND PRACTICAL PATHWAYS OF STRENGTHENING LEGISLATION IN KEY, EMERGING, ANDFOREIGN-RELATEDFIELDS

Legislation in key,emerging,and foreign-related fields is an essential legal guarantee for the implementation of major national development strategies.Nowadays,as national development needs evolve,legislation becomes more comprehensive,integrating political,economic,social,cultural,and ecological considerations to advance the strategic goal of the Five-Sphere Integrated Plan.It is thus essential to strengthen legislation in key,emerging,and foreign-related fields.This paper will examine the significance of legislation for promoting major national development strategies,analyze the scope and interrelations of legislation in key,emerging,and foreign-related fields,summarize achievements and existing problems thereof,and explore the pathways for legislation in these fields to safeguard the advancement of major national development strategies.

The use of wastewater analysis in forensic intelligence:drug consumption comparison between Sydney and different European cities

Wastewater analysis offers objective and complementary information to illicit drug agencies by monitoring patterns of illicit drug consumption.In this study,wastewater samples from three different wastewater treatment plants in Sydney,Australia were collected in March 2016.Ten targeted drugs were analysed and temporal and geographical analyses were performed to obtain a better understanding of the type and amount of illicit drugs consumed in Sydney in comparison with similar studies conducted around Australia and in Europe.Among the targeted drugs,methamphetamine was consumed the most,followed by cocaine and 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine(MDMA).Weekly patterns were observed where a peak during the weekend was present.The geographical analysis showed differences between the regions targeted.This observation may be related to socio-demographic aspects.The comparison of our study to other data sources from Australia showed a high consumption of methamphetamine in Sydney and Western Australia.The comparison between Sydney and different European cities revealed a difference in consumption,which is in line with traditional market indicators.The information obtained through wastewater analysis provides complementary information regarding illicit drug consumption,the size,and the evolution of the illicit drug market.This,ultimately,will assist authorities in making informed decisions.

CT-scan vs.3D surface scanning of a skull:first considerations regarding reproducibility issues

Three-dimensional surface scanning(3DSS)and multi-detector computed tomography(MDCT)are two techniques that are used in legal medicine for digitalizing objects,a body or body parts such as bones.While these techniques are more and more commonly employed,surprisingly little information is known about the quality rendering of digitalized three-dimensional(3D)models provided by each of them.This paper presents findings related to the measurement precision of 3D models obtained through observation of a study case,where a fractured skull reconstructed by an anthropologist was digitalized using both post-mortem imaging methods.Computed tomography(CT)scans were performed using an 8-row MDCT unit with two different slice thicknesses.The variability of 3D CT models superimposition allowed to assess the reproducibility and robustness of this digitalization technique.Furthermore,two 3D surface scans were done using a professional high resolution 3D digitizer.The comparison of 3D CT-scans with 3D surface scans by superimposition demonstrated several regions with significant differences in topology(average difference between+1.45 and-1.22 mm).When comparing the reproducibility between these two digitalizing techniques,it appeared that MDCT 3D models led in general to greater variability for measurement precision between scanned surfaces.Also,the reproducibility was better achieved with the 3D surface digitizer,showing 3D models with fewer and less pronounced differences(from+0.32 to-0.31 mm).These experiments suggest that MDCT provides less reproducible body models than 3D surface scanning.But further studies must be undertaken in order to corroborate this first impression,and possibly explain the reason for these findings.

Transfer of Fibres onto Knife Blades in Stabbing Events: Distribution and Determination of the Stabbing Sequence

Knives are among the weapons most frequently involved in criminal cases.They represent the most encountered category of weapons in Swiss homicide cases(completed and attempted homicides considered)and are also frequently employed in assault cases,notably bodily injuries.Whenever a knife is involved in a stabbing event,DNA and fingerprints may be sought.When garments are damaged,fibres can also be investigated.Fibres from the victim's garments might transfer onto the blade of the knife used in the assault and can thus provide useful infbnnation to determine whether a particular weapon could have be used to stab the victim.This study simulates vertical stabbings into garments with the use of a special holding device.Different types ofknives and blades straight or serrated were used as weapons.Two garments presenting different shedding capacities and garment structures were also considered for the simulations.The distribution of fibres transferred onto the blade(number and position)was recorded for each simulation performed.Sequences of stabbings into the two garments were also carried out to assess whether the order of the stabs could be determined.Several parameters were considered,notably the distribution of fibres transferred onto the blade.The transfer of fibres inside the stab damage ballistic soap was used in this study and on the area near the second damage was also investigated.This study provides new insight into the interpretation of fibres transferred onto knives after a single stab or a sequence of stabbings and into determining the stabbing sequence.Finally,the study brings some guidelines for the search and recovery of fibres on the crime scene and on the blades ofknives.

The Role of the Subjectivist Position in the Probabilization of Forensic Science

This paper is concerned with the contribution of forensic science to the legal process by helping reduce uncertainty.Although it is now widely accepted that uncertainty should be handled by probability because it is a safeguard against incoherent proceedings,there remain diverging and conflicting views on how probability ought to be interpreted.This is exemplified by the proposals in scientific literature that call for procedures of probability computation that are referred to as"objective,"suggesting that scientists ought to use them in their reporting to recipients of expert information.I find such proposals objectionable.They need to be viewed cautiously,essentially because ensuing probabilistic statements can be perceived as making forensic science prescriptive.A motivating example from the context of forensic DNA analysis will be chosen to illustrate this.As a main point,it shall be argued that such constraining suggestions can be avoided by interpreting probability as a measure of personal belief,that is,subjective probability.Invoking references to foundational literature from mathematical statistics and philosophy of science,the discussion will explore the consequences of this interdisciplinary viewpoint for the practice of forensic expert reporting.It will be emphasized that-as an operational interpretation of probability_the subjectivist perspective enables forensic science to add value to the legal process,in particular by avoiding inferential impasses to which other interpretations of probability may lead.Moreover,understanding probability from a subjective perspective can encourage participants in the legal process to take on more responsibility in matters regarding the coherent handling of uncertainty.This would assure more balanced interactions at the interface between science and the law.This,in turn,provides support for ongoing developments that can be called the"probabilization"of forensic science.

Chemical Analysis of Tire Traces in Traffic Accidents Investigation

The aim of the forensic investigation of traffic accidents is to help establish the nature and/or the circumstances of the event.This might be done with the purpose of determining the legal responsibilities of each person involved or to provide families,with a reconstruction of the events,to help understand why their relatives were injured or killed.A methodology for the comparison of chemical profiles of tire traces and tire tread samples obtained by pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry has been developed.Chemical profiles are represented by relative abundances of 86 compounds.The variability of the tread within and between 12 tires was assessed.Considering the level of the source as"brand and model"the intra-variability was found to be smaller than the inter-variability leading to the complete discrimination of the 12 tires of the sample set.Braking tests were carried out on a racetrack in order to produce tire traces which origin was known.The results obtained with a supervised classification method showed that more than 94%of the replicates of the traces were correctly assigned to the class membership(i.e.,brand and model)of the tire at their origin.These results support that the chemical profile of one trace does not differ from the chemical profile of the tire at its origin but differs generally from the other chemical profiles of the sample set.

Bayesian Networks for the Age Classification of Living Individuals: A Study on Transition Analysis

Over the past few decades,age estimation of living persons has represented a challenging task for many forensic services worldwide.In莒eneral,the process for age estimation includes the observation of the degree of maturity reached by some physical attributes,such as dentition or several ossification centers.The estimated chronological age or the probability that an individual belongs to a meaningful class of ages is then obtained from the observed degree of maturity by means of various statistical methods.Among these methods,those developed in a Bayesian framework offer to users the possibility of coherently dealing with the uncertainty associated with age estimation and of assessing in a transparent and logical way the probability that an examined individual is younger or older than a given age threshold.Recently,a Bayesian network for age estimation has been presented in scientific literature;this kind of probabilistic graphical tool may facilitate the use of the probabilistic approach.Probabilities of interest in the network are assigned by means of transition analysis,a statistical parametric model,which links the chronological age and the degree of maturity by means of specific regression models,such as logit or probit models.Since different regression models can be employed in transition analysis,the aim of this paper is to study the influence of the model in the classification of individuals.The analysis was performed using a dataset related to the ossifications status of the medial clavicular epiphysis and results support that the classification of individuals is not dependent on the choice of the regression model.

The Relevant Physical Trace in Criminal Investigation

A criminal investigation requires the forensic scientist to search and to interpret vestiges of a criminal act that happened in the past.The forensic scientist is one of the many stakeholders who take part in the information quest within the criminal justice system.She reads the investigation scene in search of physical traces that should enable her to tell the story of the offense/crime that allegedly occurred.The challenge for any investigator is to detect and recognize relevant physical traces in order to provide clues for investigation and intelligence purposes,and that will constitute sound and relevant evidence for the court.This article shows how important it is to consider the relevancy of physical traces from the beginning of the investigation and what might influence the evaluation process.The exchange and management of information between the investigation stakeholders are important.Relevancy is a dimension that needs to be understood from the standpoints of law enforcement personnel and forensic scientists with the aim of strengthening investigation and ultimately the overall judicial process.

Integration of Trace Images in Three‑dimensional Crime Scene Reconstruction

Forensic image analysis has greatly developed with the proliferation of photography and video recording devices.Trace images of serious incidents are increasingly captured by first responders,witnesses,bystanders,or surveillance systems.Image perception is exposed with a special emphasis on the influence of the field of view on observation.In response to the pitfalls of the mental eye,a way to systematize the integration of images as traces in three‑dimensional crime scene reconstruction is proposed.The systematic approach is based on the application of photogrammetric principles to slightly modify the usual photographic documentation as well as on the early collection and review of available trace images.The integration of images as traces provides valuable contributions to contextualize what happened at a crime scene based on the information that can be obtained from images.In a wider perspective,the systematic analysis of images fosters the use and interpretation of forensic evidence to complement witness statements in the criminal justice system.This article outlines the benefits of integrating trace images into a coherent reconstruction framework in order to improve interpretation of their content.A solution is proposed to integrate perception differences between the field of view of cameras and the human eye.

Evaluation and Examination of a Possible Shoe‑polish Trace in a Hold‑up Case

In this article,we show how the Bayesian framework can be applied to a hold‑up case involving a possible shoe‑polish trace according to one of the parties.This article highlights the importance of interpreting data from the beginning of the examination through the preassessment steps.Once a set of alternative propositions in agreement with the information provided by the parties is chosen,one can establish what is needed in the case.Here,limited data were available to assign factors such as transfer and rarity of the traces.Consequently,we showed how specific case‑tailored experiments provide meaningful data for evaluation.In this case,the police had observed a trace on the jacket of a person who reported to have been pushed with the offender’s gun during the hold‑up attempt.When the jacket was submitted to our laboratory,the exact nature of the trace was unknown.Particles from this trace were collected and analyzed by stereomicroscopy,microscopy,and infrared spectroscopy.The obtained results supported that this trace was waxy material.The literature dealing with the analysis of waxy materials generally uses solvent extraction‑based methods.Here,as our analytical sequence allowed a good discrimination of different waxy products of known origin,we considered that this methodology was adequate.Moreover,it did not involve any extraction step that could lead to undesired compounds from the substrate(e.g.,dyes and additives).This article therefore suggests an alternative analytical sequence for the analysis of such material in casework.

The Shifting Landscape of Latent Print Testimony:An American Perspective

Friction ridge comparison testimony in the United States has long been characterized by speaking in absolutes:fingerprints are unique,the Analysis,Comparison,Evaluation,and Verification methodology has a zero-error rate,and the testimony presented by the expert should be regarded as an incontrovertible fact.Once the National Research Council released their watershed report in 2009,questioning and criticizing these clear overstatements of the strength of the evidence,many commentators and professional organizations recommended that the friction ridge community rethink the way their evidence was presented in reports and in court.Yet,change has been slow to come.While some agencies have begun a shift in the way they present their findings,many others still testify the same way they always have.This paper presents the historical context of where American friction ridge testimony has been,lays out the arguments for why it needs to change,describes some recent efforts to improve,and highlights some likely directions for the future of friction ridge reporting and testimony in the United States.

“同一认定”中的意见决策论

纵观法庭科学和其相关学科分支,学术研究人员和司法鉴定实践者对"同一认定"概念的理解存在着不同程度的偏离,其主张为"可以从潜在的一组来源中确定唯一的来源"。特别是近年来,在"同一认定"作为一种鉴定意见的实践发展进程中,关于"同一认定"的理解和认识仍停留在原有阶段,实践中基本没有实质性的改变[]1。更重要的是,专业协会和司法鉴定实践者舍弃了正式的意见决策论的概念来界定"同一认定"的本质,主要的难题是我们难以把握鉴定意见结果可取还是不可取的衡量尺度(如,利用效用函数)。在该领域现有的研究基础上,本论文引入并介绍了效用函数及损失函数的基本概念,同时特别提及他们在司法鉴定同一认定领域中的应用。本文强调,正确地理解同一认定意见决策工具,不仅可以减少"个人的"主观影响,而且还展示了如何将该理论与现实中的意见判断问题的构成特点联系起来。

鉴定意见“优良性”判别和量化的规范方法研究

本文将会审查并分析一些通常认识,这些认识是关于那些已经被统计学证实并且可以被称之为一项决策(鉴定意见)的法庭科学同一认定的推断。PCAST(美国总统科学和技术顾问委员会)于2016年对法庭科学实践过程的系列考察,发布了有实证数据支持的建议。作者也会从该角度来考虑这一主题。作者也会指出这些通过鉴定得出的意见为何以及如何能够称之为决策,并通过实验方法证明这些观点(即在可控条件下有多位专家进行实验),提供一种对于专家表现和特定法庭科学分支(如指纹检验)的一般科学有效性可描述的评价指标。尽管这有助于评估某个特定法庭科学领域的鉴定实践是否值得信任,然而这些通过实验得出的数据并不能解答在特定个案中什么是好的鉴定意见(决策)。在之后的问题讨论中我们需要更进一步的思考,比如思考做决策的目的是什么。我们将会提出一种规范的方法,即一对对立的鉴定意见的“质”和“量”的比较可以被视为统计学的扩展领域,其中推理和数据分析是必要但不充分的前提条件。

Preface

On behalf of the Organizing Committee,we welcome you to this Special Issue of the Journal of Forensic Science and Medicine(JFSM).It contains full papers presented at the 2nd International Symposium on Sino Swiss Evidence Science 2016(2nd ISSSES 2016),held at the School of Criminal Justice(SCJ)(Faculty of Law,Criminal Justice,and Public Administration)of the University of Lausanne(UNIL)over September 6-9,2016(http://wp.uniLch/issses/).