Mass Shooting Prevention: What Can Local Law Enforcement Do?

The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand how law enforcement officers can influence mass shooting prevention tactics. Minimal research has been conducted on law enforcement’s influence in the prevention of mass shootings. At this stage, researchers describe needing more information about mass shooting prevention tactics. Since minimal research has been conducted on law enforcement’s influence on mass shooting prevention, the goal was to determine what they believe can be done. Guiding this study was phenomenology, the study of conscious experiences as they appear in the first person. Phenomenology has been crucial in the tradition of European philosophy throughout the 20th century (Smith & Spiegler, 2017). Law enforcement officers should be able both to critique current mass shooting prevention tactics and to provide guidance to identify prevention tactics

The Re-certification Barriers in the United States: Comparing Refugee Professional Credentials to Texas Standards

The purpose of this study is to explore the re-certification process for college- educated immigrants in the United States, Canada, and Texas. Underemployment is a problem among foreign trained professionals in the United States. Additionally, this study serves as a guide for the International Rescue Committee to assist future clients. The guide provides a general outline for the licensure process within three professions in Texas. A sample of 192 participants was collected from existing client files from a resettlement agency in Texas. The researcher found approximately 24% of participants were college-educated. An advanced level of English proficiency did not correlate to higher education levels among participants. The re-certification process in Texas for three professions— dentists, nurses, and physical therapists—were discussed. Canada recognized the problem of underemployment among immigrants and implemented the Pan-Canadian Framework in 2009. Many states have passed recent policies that are relevant to foreign-trained professionals. A more focused study is needed to examine brain waste among internationally trained professionals in the United States

Intensive Archeological Survey: State Highway 34 at Kings Creek, Kaufman County, Texas

On behalf of the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), SWCA Environmental Consultants (SWCA) conducted an intensive cultural resources survey on January 3, 2018, of 111.45 acres of existing right-of-way (ROW) along State Highway (SH) 34 at the Kings Creek in Kaufman County, Texas. As the project will receive funding from the Federal Highways Administration, it qualifies as an undertaking as defined in Title 36 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 800.16(y); therefore, the archeological survey was conducted in compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (54 U.S. Code 306108). Furthermore, the project must also comply with the Antiquities Code of Texas (9 Natural Resources Code 191). Jon Budd served as Principal Investigator under Texas Antiquities Permit No. 8225. The area of potential effects (APE) is defined as the existing SH 34 TxDOT ROW between 120 to 330 feet (36.6 to 100.6 meters [m]) wide beginning at County Road 4094 and extending 3.22 miles northeast to Farm-to-Market Road 1388. Depth of construction impacts are typically 4 feet (1.20 m), with a maximum of 30 feet (9.14 m). The APE consists of approximately 111.45 acres. Background research identified three previous cultural resources surveys that cross the APE, but no archeological sites, recorded landmarks, cemeteries, National Register of Historic Places districts or properties, or historical markers were identified within or immediately adjacent to the project area. The nearest site, 41KF74, is a sparse prehistoric lithic scatter located approximately 0.4 mile south of the proposed project’s southern terminus. Two potentially historic structures were identified just beyond the APE during the historic map review. The existing ROW has been extensively modified by the construction of SH 34, numerous existing overhead and buried utilities, intersecting roadways, ditches, driveways, and major flood control structures, such as levees and channelized drainages. Since much of the area is a wide, low-lying alluvial setting, fill sections elevating the roadway above the floodplain are pervasive throughout the APE. The field investigation consisted of a pedestrian survey of the entire APE augmented with nine shovel tests along adjacent terraces and seven backhoe trenches at drainage crossings. Fill sections and buried utilities, including fiber optic lines on both sides of the APE, precluded subsurface investigations in many areas. The pedestrian survey, along with shovel tests and backhoe trenches, identified no cultural materials or features within the project APE. The cumulative impacts from the roadway and existing utilities, as well as frequent inundation, indicate a negligible potential for intact archeological resources within the APE. SWCA made a reasonable and good faith effort per 36 CFR Part 800.4(b)(1) to identify and locate prehistoric and historic archeological properties within the proposed project APE. The field investigation discovered no cultural resources; therefore, SWCA recommends that a finding of “no historic properties affected” be made for the current undertaking

A Collaborative Approach to Eliminating Street Drug Markets through Focused Deterrence

This report presents the evaluation process and findings from the grant, A Collaborative Approach to Eliminating Street Drug Markets through Focused Deterrence. This action research was conducted by a team of researchers from The University of North Carolina at Greensboro‘s Center for Youth, Family, and Community Partnerships, the University of Notre Dame, and the Winston-Salem State University Center for Community Safety from January 2007 through December 2008

Centronuclear myopathy in labrador retrievers: a recent founder mutation in the PTPLA gene has rapidly disseminated worldwide

Centronuclear myopathies (CNM) are inherited congenital disorders characterized by an excessive number of internalized nuclei. In humans, CNM results from ~70 mutations in three major genes from the myotubularin, dynamin and amphiphysin families. Analysis of animal models with altered expression of these genes revealed common defects in all forms of CNM, paving the way for unified pathogenic and therapeutic mechanisms. Despite these efforts, some CNM cases remain genetically unresolved. We previously identified an autosomal recessive form of CNM in French Labrador retrievers from an experimental pedigree, and showed that a loss-of-function mutation in the protein tyrosine phosphatase-like A (PTPLA) gene segregated with CNM. Around the world, client-owned Labrador retrievers with a similar clinical presentation and histopathological changes in muscle biopsies have been described. We hypothesized that these Labradors share the same PTPLA<sup>cnm</sup> mutation. Genotyping of an international panel of 7,426 Labradors led to the identification of PTPLA<sup>cnm</sup> carriers in 13 countries. Haplotype analysis demonstrated that the PTPLA<sup>cnm</sup> allele resulted from a single and recent mutational event that may have rapidly disseminated through the extensive use of popular sires. PTPLA-deficient Labradors will help define the integrated role of PTPLA in the existing CNM gene network. They will be valuable complementary large animal models to test innovative therapies in CNM

A Street-Drug Elimination Initiative: The Law Enforcement Perspective

Purpose– The purpose of this study is to elucidate the elements, developmental stages, and operational steps of an open-air drug market intervention employed in two North Carolina communities in an effort to produce a model that can be duplicated by other law enforcement agencies. Design/methodology/approach– A systematic and practitioner-informed analysis of the steps and stages of the initiative is presented here. Law enforcement partners at the command and operational levels collectively contributed their voices to the synthesis of this model. Through purposive sampling, 13 key law enforcement stakeholders from the two police departments in North Carolina participated in semi-structured interviews conducted by a member of the research team. The interviews were transcribed and analyzed to extract participants' perceptions and recommendations regarding the intervention. Findings– Based on analyses of the interviews, the street-drug elimination strategy has been synthesized into several major steps. This paper elucidates the elements, developmental stages, and operational steps of the intervention. Research limitations/implications– This paper underscores important ingredients of the intervention and presents a model for other police departments to implement. Further examination of the strategy is necessary including research on improving the intervention, clarifying the factors that moderate the strategy's effectiveness, explicating the roles and perceptions of non-law enforcement partners and examining the continued impact of the initiative. Originality/value– The paper illustrates that this intervention has shown promise in reducing drug and violent crime associated with open-air drug markets and the research is of value to other police agencies that desire to implement this intervention