Internet Predators: Wave Of The Future
As the vast majority of you will likely know, since the inception of the internet, sexual predators have had another ‘safer’ avenue in which they could prowl for victims. But thankfully, our law enforcement agencies as well as various not-for-profit organisations have been as on top of things as they can, running undercover stings to the best of their abilities (such as those run by Perverted Justice in conjunction with NBC’s Dateline and local law enforcement agencies).
Ivan ‘The Backpacker Murderer’ Milat
For those of you that don’t know, Ivan Milat was one of Australia’s most prolific and evil serial killers. He still to this day maintains his innocence, and there are a number of theories out there that actually suggest he was not the only killer involved in the slayings (a number of theories suggest that other members of his family were involved but none have been proven).
Death Penalty Racial Bias?
I used to be all for the death penalty – i figured that the legal system did such a great job that never in my wildest dreams would innocent people be sent to prison, let alone be sentenced to death. Naive, i know, but i was young, misinformed and maybe even in a little bit of denial? But these days, although i’m still happy to see certain offenders ‘get whats coming to them’ i’m a lot more cautious. Cases such as the highly controversial ‘West Memphis Three’ as well as other cases i’ve read about over the past few years where death row inmates have been exonerated after years on death row have made me start questioning the criminal justice systems effectiveness for extraditing the truth.
Descarte’s Dualistic Dilemma
For Descartes, dualism was a logical attempt to explain that which could not be explained in purely physical terms, however as time has gone by, the idea that a non-physical, non-spatial mind stuff with no extension could causally interact and affect a purely physical body has lost a lot of its force. It is likely that as time goes on we will see breakthroughs that will force dualists to accept that the mind is actually a purely physical part of the brain.
Intelligent Design Theory vs Evolutionary Hypothesis
The debate surrounding the development of the universe, specifically life and even more specifically (and contentiously) human life, has of late entered another phase. Intelligent Design Theory, or IDT, is increasing in popularity and has become almost a household term. The “monkey” debates of the last century where the teaching of evolution in public schools was controversial are now being mirrored in the current debate over the teaching of IDT in schools as a valid scientific alternative to standard Darwinian evolution.
Firearm Identification (Forensic Ballistics)
But what is forensic ballistics exactly? What is included in this field?
The Rifling and the Scientist
In the field of forensic ballistics, studies have significantly shown that no two firearms are alike; that is, no two firearms when firing ammunition leave the exact same marks as another (on said ammunition), even if that other is an identical model from an identical manufacturer. This makes it very easy for experts in the field to differentiate between weapons in the same fashion that fingerprints differentiate between individual people.
How does this all work though i hear you ask?
Six Death Sentences To One Defendant, Making a Point Maybe?
36 year old Dale Hausner has already been sentenced to six… yes that’s right, six, death sentences for his instigator role in the 14 month killing spree in Phoenix. Said spree left 6 people dead and 19 others injured with the victims including pedestrians, cyclists, dogs and even horses but this week co-defendant Samuel Dietman, who is the primary witness against Hausner and who has pleaded guilty to sometimes joining him on the crimes is pleading for leniency, hoping to avoid the death penalty.