Electrokinetic remediation of metal-polluted marine sediments: experimental investigation for plant design

This paper presents the results of an extensive set of laboratory experiments performed to design a demonstrative electrokinetic plant for extracting heavy metals from marine sediments dredged from the Livorno marine harbour. The investigated sediments displayed a high salinity, a high acid neutralization capacity, a low electrical resistivity (0.5 Ωm), a high alkalinity (pH ≈ 8) and a large fraction of fine particles. The target metals were Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn at relatively weak and inhomogeneous concentrations with high non-mobile fractions. After an accurate characterization, several screening and full electrokinetic tests were performed using cells of two different sizes, several conditioning agents (HNO3, HCl, H2SO4, citric acid, oxalic acid, ascorbic acid, EDTA), different applied current intensities and durations. The tests highlighted the need for long treatment times in order to obtain a significant pH reduction, with some appreciable metal removal being attained only after several weeks. The best results were obtained with strong acids used as the conditioning agents, with significant specific effects of each acid, including pronounced resistivity increase (from 0.5 up to 10 Ωm) and a high electroosmotic flow (EOF) with H2SO4, or a reversed EOF (electroendosmosis), and minor resistivity changes with HNO3. The use of the obtained data to design a demonstrative plant is also presented in the paper, with considerations on operating parameters such as energy and reagent consumption, characteristics of plant components and required safety measures. buffer capacity, conditioning agent

Abuses and Distortions in Emotional Processes as Risk Factors for Parricide

Parricide is a rare case of murder having a strong emotional impact on public opinion, especially when it is heinous and perpetrated by minors. Based on the analysis of the judicial files archived at the Minor Penal Institute "N. Fornelli" of Bari, the authors will report three impressive cases perpetrated by minors, by focusing on their emotional features. Differences between the crimes of parricide committed by adults and minors will be highlighted, by analyzing the peculiar relations between the problems underlying parricide and the role played by abuses and maltreatments experienced by minors perpetrating such crime. In particular, attention will be paid to the emotional processes aroused in minor parricide offenders

Killed to Be Saved … A Rare Case of Salvific Matricide From Demoniac Possession

After attending this presentation, attendees will understand the importance of the existential narrative that underlies the relationship between the perpetrator and the victim, as a means of understanding how rare criminal events can occur. This presentation will impact the forensic science community by serving as an example of how the individual life path is influenced by an infinite number of more or less pathological relationships. The “demoniac” theme has not disappeared from the cultural representations of the sacred, the spiritual, the religious, and are understood as attempts to draw causal connections in order to defend man from the unknown, which has always inspired terror. It seems like a paradox, but the more rational society becomes, the more humans seem to need to tap into the universe of the irrational, the sacred, and the supernatural. If this complex cultural and anthropological horizon is combined with psychiatric disease, the scene is set and the risk factors for becoming perpetrators or victims of crime will increase. This presentation introduces the case of a matricide by a 60-year-old woman, a graduate in psychology with a family history of psychiatric disease and a complex sentimental relationship. The woman was diagnosed with bipolar affective disorder with maniacal symptoms, drug abuse, and had undergone two previous obligatory health treatments. She then began to adopt spiritual therapy, recommended to her by a friend, and suspended traditional drug therapy, using cannabis and alternative therapies. In May 2015, she went to her mother’s home for a “therapeutic vocation” (to look after her mother), bringing with her a medicinal syrup recommended by the spiritual therapist for her mother, who suffered from respiratory disease. At the mother’s home, she suffered an episode of acute psychotic decompensation in which she became convinced that an evil spell had been cast over the home. This became a fixed idea, and she suffered mood changes and pathological bursts of excitement. On the morning of the homicide, convinced that there were objects evoking negative presences, she created havoc in the home, believing that the devil was concealed inside her mother’s throat (because of her respiratory problems). In the throes of an agitated mystical frenzy, she placed a holy card and a rosary into her mother’s throat. A second holy card was later found crumpled in her mother’s mouth, imprinted with the words, “Satan leave this house, leave my mother and my sister.” At the coroner’s autopsy, numerous excoriations were seen on the face (due to the violence of the aggression), evident hematomas in the back of the mouth, particularly in the pharyngeal region, blood in the bronchi, as well as areas of pulmonary emphysema alternating with areas of atelectasia; these led the specialist to conclude that death was caused by asphyxia due to obstruction of the upper airways (internal asphyxia). The choice of homicidal mode is particularly suggestive: suffocation with a “sacred” object, the holy card. The victim had a typical paradoxical psychotic profile; to chase away the demon, to extinguish and definitively silence the demoniac spirit voice, and to save her from evil, the mother was killed with the use of a sacred object. There are an infinite number of more or less “pathological relationships” around us that affect choices, life paths, and chances of fulfilment. Some, definitely abnormal, can certainly have a stronger effect on the life story of an individual; however, crime (and matricide is no exception) is potentially the result of many factors.1 Identifying the cause as mental disease is not enough; only the analysis of the entire relationship between the perpetrator and the victim can contribute to discerning the background leading to such remarkable, shocking events.2,3 Reference(s): 1. Heide M., Frei A. (2010). Matricide: A critique of the literature. Trauma Violence. 11(1):3-17. 2. Wick R., Mitchell E., Gilbert J.D., Byard R.W. (2008). Matricide in South Australia. A 20-year retrospective review. J Forensic and Legal Medicine. 15:168-171. 3. Torrey E.F. (2006). Violence and Schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Research. 88:3-

Family Secrets: When the Horror in the House Has No Obvious Cause and the Need for Unveiling

After attending this presentation, attendees will understand the importance of both the criminological and anthropological investigation in understanding a crime associated with forensic investigations and forensic psychiatric and psychological investigations. This presentation will impact the forensic science community by serving as an example of the importance of reconstructing the life experiences of the perpetrator and the victim, in order to unveil the pathway leading to a particularly complex murder. Particularly violent and brutal homicides, due to their mode of expression, sometimes present a contradictory and paradoxical scenario, complicating the forensic, psychiatric, and psychological forensic reconstructions.1 The case is that of a 67-year-old man, a typographer, married with children, whose matrimonial life was apparently marked by quiet harmony until members of the wife’s family (sister and mother) intervened in the relationship. After that, the man said his wife had become authoritarian and aggressive, deliberately humiliating him, and their relationship had deteriorated. On the day of the homicide, the woman had, as usual, adopted an authoritarian attitude and started to shout and push her husband. The husband, after having endured this humiliation for many years, suddenly and repeatedly struck her with an axe he was carrying in a bag, inflicting numerous blows that caused significant damage to her head. Immediately after, the man phoned for help. The man’s psychiatric history was negative, and there were no signs of cognitive impairment. For this destructive act directed against his wife, qualifying as abnormal on the psychopathological plane, relevant motivational elements emerged. There were no signs suggesting a temporary psychotic decompensation nor a criminal plan. The scenario depicted a murder of impulse rather than premeditated aggression, bearing in mind the impromptu weapon used (he had not even removed the axe from the bag). In short, it was not an idea that had long been brooded upon and finally implemented (as occurs in cases of delirium), but a deep underlying discomfort that finally erupted as a result of a quarrel (although this was denied), triggered by a contingent event (a verbal provocation) that brought on frustration, followed by an act of physical aggression (a shove) that had an explosive effect on the perpetrator of the murder. From the medical-legal consultation, it emerged that the man had continued relentlessly striking the woman even after she had fallen to the ground, denoting not only that his emotions were completely out of control, but also his wish to “destroy” the victim. The homicidal behavior appeared disorganized, whereas immediately after the murder, he reacted in a usual way, calling for help. Faced with such a terrible scene, limited information was gained from the forensic psychiatric and psychological assessment conducted on the perpetrator. The man had no criminal record and did not use drugs or alcohol. This elderly person, retired, leading an ordinary and peaceful life, was described by everyone (family, friends, coworkers, jail staff) as a kind person, very polite, and helpful. The only significant finding from information obtained from his children was that the victim had a difficult character, was rigid and complex, and often abused her husband, who had patiently endured it for 26 years. Despite the absence of signs of severe mental illness or important criminal motive, the cause of this murder conducted within the domestic walls of a normal family is to be traced to the relational and historical aspects of the family structure and of the subjects involved in the crime.2 The medicolegal, psychiatric, and forensic psychology assessments must include a criminological and relational anthropological analysis, with the goal of establishing a reason for committing such a terrible murder, through close study of the experiences of the subjects involved, and the context in which the murder was committed.3 1168 *Presenting Author Reference(s): 1. Coccaro E.F., Sripada C.S., Yanowitch R.N., Phan K.L. (2011). Corticolimbic function in impulsive aggressive behavior. Biol Psychiatry. 69:1153-1159. 2. Fornari U. (2013). Trattato di Psichiatria Forense, V ed. Utet, Torino. 3. Osumi T., Nakao T., Kasuya Y., Shinoda J., Yamada J., Ohira H. (2012). Amygdala dysfunction attenuates frustration-induced aggression in psychopathic individuals in a non-criminal population. Journal of Affective Disorders. 142:331-338

IL CONTRIBUTO DELLA PSICODIAGNOSTICA CLINICA E FORENSE ALLA VALUTAZIONE MEDICO LEGALE DELLE COMPETENZE E DELLA IDONEITÀ GENITORIALE

Parenting, with its multiple skills and declinations, is a construct difficult to define. Forensic psychiatric and psychological assessment required to experts is also complex. Psychological tests, if correctly used, could be an useful and crucial instrumnet for forensic assessment. It would be desirable that the expert, who wish to apply a proper forensic methodology, allows to distinguish - either in the report or in the debate - statements based on evidences and scientific literature from assumptions or personal opinions. For this reason, psycho-diagnostic instruments offer a significant and irreplaceable contribution, even with all their limitations: they do not replace clinical and forensic investigation, but integrate it, providing reliable and scientifical measurements..It is clear that clinical evaluations, based on psychodiagnostics, should be interpreted in a legal key. Tests can be, if properly used, a useful and decisive contribution to these difficult assessments. In this delicate area of forensic work, the expert should not only consider clinical aspects, but he has also to consider the narrative, historical, existential, criminological and contextual dimensions of subjects and their systems

I Am Not Pregnant: A Multidisciplinary Approach in a Case of Feticide Due to Denial of Pregnancy

Learning Overview: After attending this presentation, attendees will be aware of the complexity of a case of feticide, due to the particular prior relationship between the murderer and the victim. Impact on the Forensic Science Community: This presentation will impact the forensic science community by demonstrating the importance of using a multidisciplinary approach, including psychiatric-criminological investigation, forensic-pathologist analyses, radiological imaging, and genetic testing, to provide the judge with a key to interpretation of the crime. Feticide is a rare crime, with a percentage in Europe that ranges from 0.07% in Finland to 8.5% in Austria, per 100 births. It consists of the homicide of a newborn by its mother during delivery or afterward. The presented case regards the death of an infant found on the seashore. After investigations were conducted by the police, a 22-year-old woman was charged with the murder of her own child. Two inspections of the seashore were made. In the first, the baby was found supine, almost completely buried by the shore and the waves. The body was not rigid, hypostasis was not present, and the temperature of the corpse was uniform with the water’s temperature. The umbilical cord was fragmented; no blood or sign of mummification were present. Reddish areas with an irregular distribution were present on the anterior part of the body. All the postmortem parameters used to estimate the time since death suggested four to five days. The second inspection was made a few days later because of the discovery of a dark stain on the seashore that turned out to be blood. A DNA test was performed and showed a match between the baby and the 22-year-old woman and also confirmed the blood found on the stain belonged to both the baby and the mother. An X-ray, a Computed Tomography (CT), and a sonogram were performed and revealed a bi-parietal transverse fracture and regular pulmonary ventilation. The autopsy confirmed the cranial fracture and that no malformations were observed. All analyses concluded that the baby’s death occurred a short period after delivery, and the cause of death was a hemorrhagic shock secondary to the non-completion of the umbilical cord. Due to its complexity, the case required a multidisciplinary approach to establish the reasons behind the mother’s unusual behavior. After a psychiatric evaluation, it was determined that the mother was affected by a borderline and narcissistic personality disorder, a low IQ with high level of egocentricity, and affective and cognitive immaturity. Nevertheless, this diagnosis was not enough to explain the crime committed. It was decided that the unusual defensive mechanism of the mother toward the gestation was denial of the pregnancy. From the psychiatric investigation, it also emerged that this was her second pregnancy and the first one also was characterized by denial behavior. Denial of pregnancy is a rare condition and remains a phenomenon little known to health care professionals. It is characterized by a woman’s lack of awareness of being pregnant; this is a dysfunctional defensive mechanism that does not allow the physical and emotional development in which women adapt to their future maternal role. From a psychiatric point of view, denial of pregnancy can be divided into two groups: psychotic and non-psychotic. After the psychiatric investigation, it emerged that the denial of the pregnancy was a non-psychotic type and was based on a prolonged affective disorder, which means that the woman was not psychologically prepared to give birth. Based on the denial of pregnancy, feticide can be considered an impulsive, not predetermined, behavior fueled by a sense of anguish due to the sudden and unexpected confrontation of the denied reality—the birth. The mother’s solution was the most primitive but functional—throw out the baby. The described case poses challenging legal and psychiatric issues that require careful consideration. In the first place, the diagnosis of this type of disorder is important in Italian law because it can change the imputation, with a significant reduction in the number of years of sentencing in prison and, secondly, because it is important for the judge to have an explanation for such a dramatic behavior that is in contrast with social expectations before issuing a sentence

Non-traditional parenting attributes. Being fathers and mothers facing sex reassignment surgery

Abstract The continuation of the marriage between two spouses of which one has requested to register his changed sexual identity does not in any way affect the rights the Constitution guarantees to the other married couples or to question the principle, now transposed into our order, Only two people of different sex can marry. No one is hiding the complexity of the situation that needs to be addressed if a parent faces the gender correction path and the children are present in the family and relational context where the subject lives and faces and faces this delicate problem. It is undeniable that the transition and the subsequent surgical intervention that the parent will undergo will bring a series of changes within the complex and contradictory family structure, conveying that landscape of stress and positive and negative emotions implied in every change. It is equally unde- niable that such changes will have to be designed, represented and interpreted by minors with the help and support of highly qualified staf