The Forensic Nurse

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If you test positive for HIV, the sooner you take steps to protect your health, the better. Early medical treatment and a healthy lifestyle can help you stay well. Prompt medical care may delay the onset of AIDS and prevent some life-threatening conditions. There are a number of important steps you can take immediately to protect your health:

• See a licensed health care provider, even if you do not feel sick. Try to find a health care provider who has experience treating HIV. There are now many medications to treat HIV infection and help you maintain your health. It is never too early to start thinking about treatment possibilities.
• Have a TB (tuberculosis) test. You may be infected with TB and not know it. Undetected TB can cause serious illness, but it can be successfully treated if caught early.
• Smoking cigarettes, drinking too much alcohol, or using illegal drugs (such as methamphetamines) can weaken your immune system. There are programs available that can help you stop or reduce your use of these substances.
• Get screened for other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Undetected STDs can cause serious health problems. It is also important to practice safe-sex behaviors so you can avoid getting STDs.

There is much you can do to stay healthy. Learn all that you can about maintaining good health.

Not having (abstaining from) sex is the most effective way to avoid transmitting HIV to others. If you choose to have sex, use a latex condom to help protect your partner from HIV and other STDs. Studies have shown that latex condoms are very effective, though not 100%, in preventing HIV transmission when used correctly and consistently. If either partner is allergic to latex, plastic (polyurethane) condoms for either the male or female can be used.

In most cases the EIA (enzyme immunoassay), used on blood drawn from a vein, is the most common screening test used to look for antibodies to HIV. A positive (reactive) EIA must be used with a follow-up (confirmatory) test such as the Western blot to make a positive diagnosis. There are EIA tests that use other body fluids to look for antibodies to HIV. These include:

• Oral Fluid Tests – use oral fluid (not saliva) that is collected from the mouth using a special collection device. This is an EIA antibody test similar to the standard blood EIA test. A follow-up confirmatory Western Blot uses the same oral fluid sample.
• Urine Tests – use urine instead of blood. The sensitivity and specificity (accuracy) are somewhat less than that of the blood and oral fluid tests. This is also an EIA antibody test similar to blood EIA tests and requires a follow-up confirmatory Western Blot using the same urine sample.

Rapid Tests:

A rapid test is a screening test that produces very quick results, in approximately 20 minutes. Rapid tests use blood from a vein or from a finger stick, or oral fluid to look for the presence of antibodies to HIV. As is true for all screening tests, a reactive rapid HIV test result must be confirmed with a follow-up confirmatory test before a final diagnosis of infection can be made. These tests have similar accuracy rates as traditional EIA screening tests. Please visit the rapid HIV testing section for details.

children’s author K.P. Bath  was sentanced to six years in prison for possession of child pornography. The author has written books such as “The Secret of Castle Cant” and “Escape from Castle Cant”.

Authorities found Bath’s collection included images depicting sadistic conduct, rape, sodomy and bestiality.  Prosecutors were originally seeking more serious charges of distribution and transporting child pornography as well, but were later dropped as part of a plea agreement in exchange for the guilty plea.

A man who has been unofficially known as the “grim Sleeper” for the past twenty years has finally been arrested. The suspect, Lonnie David Franklin Jr., a 57 year old man from Los Angeles is alledged to have committed at least 11 unsolved murders dating back to 1985.

A judge has denied mr. Franklin bail. He will be arrained in a Los Angeles court in August 2010 on ten counts of murder and one count of attempted murder as of today.

The case has been very long and drawn out process spanning multiple decades. The break in the case finally came using DNA evidence. The DNA match was found using what is sometimes viewed a controverial tactic known as familial DNA Searching.

Everyone has their own unique DNA signature that specificly can be used to identify an individual, family members share enough common DNA markers to help identify family members as potential matches as well. 

In this case one of Mr. Franklins family has a previous unrelated conviction on a felony weapons charge. It has become standard procedure in many jurisdictions now to collect DNA samples on felony offenders.  Investigators were able to run a DNA sample found at a murder scene against the DNA database. a Partial hit was found on Mr. Franklins family member DNA sample.  Because it was only a partial match it ruled that individual out, but also was able to conclusively prove that a very close relative may have been involved in the murder, which drastically narrowed down the search.

The Grim Sleeper is suspected in at least 11 murders . He like most serial killers chose victims within his own ethnic profile, in this case targeting black women, some of which who worked as prostitutes. Prostitutes are often targets of serial killers because of the lower social profile. Friends and Families often don’t report the victim missing for longer periods of time allowing for more evidence to be lost during the critical hours after the murder.

Serveral years ago another arrest was made by police who claimed they had ballistic evidence for the murders, but that case did not lead to a conviction. Margaret Prescod, who founded the Black Coalition Fighting Back Serial Murders and worked with the families of victims in the case said that she is “cautiously optomistic” regarding this latest arrest.

Aerial footage was taken on Wednesday showing police searching cars in the garage of the suspect’s home in south Los Angeles.  The garage was not far from the corridor where the victims’ bodies were dumped.

The close proximity to the body dumping ground is another tell tale sign that the murderer may have personal and intimate knowledge of the area allowing him to elude detection for so many years. Serial killers often tend to be invisible to nearly everyone. Because they do not raise suspision they can lull people into trusting them, and allowing them to get victims to let their guard down, or be placed into vulnerable positions that they may not do with a person they feel uncomfortable with.

The National Sexual Violence Resource Center serves as the nation’s principle information and resource center regarding all aspects of sexual violence. It provides national leadership, consultation and technical assistance by generating and facilitating the development and flow of information on sexual violence intervention and prevention strategies. The NSVRC works to address the causes and impact of sexual violence through collaboration, prevention efforts and the distribution of resources.

Every year over a million women and children become enslaved into a world of sexual slavery. This problem is not just a problem in developing countries of the world, but very much a problem here in the United States as well. By some estimates between 150,000 and 300,000 are sold for sex here in the US.

On January 25, 2010 actors Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher launched a new charity organization called DNA aimed at putting an end to the global sex trafficking trade.

For More information visit http://demiandashton.org/

Sexual assualt knows no boundries. No matter what race, what nationality, what socio-economic status you hail from can spare you from the potential turmoil. 

 So is the case of Lawrence Taylor, the former NFL linebacker great for the New York Giants. Thursday morning the Hall of Fame linebacker was arrested in his hotel in Rockland County for soliciting sex from a 16 year old girl.

 Taylor was arrested when police were told that the minor had been delivered to his hotel room by another man, Rasheed Davis. Taylor stated at a news conference that he had paid $300 to the man for delivering her. He claims not to have engaged in sex with the minor girl. His Attorney Arthur Aidala state that Taylor is “a loving and family man” and that “My Client did not have sex with anybody. ”

The girl, who has not been identified because she is a minor, was reported missing back in march as a suspected runaway. ESPN.com reported “Early Thursday morning, Davis punched and kicked her, drove her to the hotel against her will and told her she had to have sex with Taylor, police said. When she refused, Davis handed her over to Taylor, who sexually assaulted her, they said. Taylor paid her $300, which she gave to Davis”.

After the alleged incident, she was somehow able to use a cell phone to get a message out. Her uncle received a text message from her with an address and contacted New York Police department to investigate. Officers found the girl along with Rasheed Davis at an address in the Bronx. Davis was charged with unlawful imprisonment, assault and endangering the welfare of a child. It was then when police were directed to Lawrence Taylors whereabouts. The hotel is located  about a half mile from the Spook Rock Golf Course, where Taylor frequently plays.

Mr. Taylor was released after posting a $75,000 bond and subsequently driven away from the courthouse by Mark Lepselter, a friend and business associate.

Ramapo Chief of Police Peter Brower said Taylor was cooperative when police took him into custody at around 4:00AM. Brower would not comment on if Lawrence Taylor knew the age of the girl, but did state that “Ignorance is not an excuse to an individual’s age”. In New York, third-degree rape is a charge levied when the victim is under the age of consent, which is 17 years of age.

Many victims of sexual crimes live the remainder of their lives, or a good portion of it, in fear that they will be victimized again. They often want to see their attacker locked up forever as punishment for the torment they experienced.

 Some states actually do have laws on their books to do just that. Most people dont even know such laws exist. They are called civil commitment laws and basically say that when a person becomes and has repeatly shown to be an emminent threat to the community as a whole, the govenment has the ability to incarcerate that individual indefinately.   

“The primary goal is incapacitation, that is, protecting society from people who are predicted to be dangerous in the future,” said Eric Janus, author of “Failure to Protect” and dean at William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul, Minnesota. “The second goal is to provide treatment to these individuals.”

In 1990, Washington state became the first state to pass a civil commitment law specifically for violent sex offenders. Twenty states now have civil commitment laws.

Indefinate confinement of individuals to mental hospitals or treatment centers for those with severe mental illness has been acceptable in the United States since its close to its birth as a nation. Around turn of the 20th century many laws dealing with sexual psychopaths were passed as women gained more and more rights. But as the century progressed the laws were either repealed or rarely applied.

This week the United States Supreme Court is re-evaluating its position on civil commitment based on an appeal. They have upheld the use of such laws in the past when the goal has been rehabilitation and not further punishment. These laws can mandate indefinate treatment even after their criminal time behind bars has ended. Some argue that these treatments could happen while the person is incarcerated rather than after their sentancing.

The case being heard by the Supreme Court this week centers around a lay that has been used in as many as 77 cases where inmates were held in a federal prison in North Carolina under indefinate commitment.  “The justices will decide whether the program enacted under the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 is constitutional by infringing on a traditional state function”.

Alan DuBois, attorney for the federal prisoners, said it was wrong for the United States to claim a public safety argument when justifying continued incarceration.

“This statute is not written constitutionally,” he added. “It effectively does require no connection between the underlying criminal charge and the subsequent commitment. You can be in custody for any crime whatsoever. ”

Lawyer David Hargett convinced the Virginia Supreme Court that his client had a constitutional right to contest his civil commitment.

“I have found talking with people they are shocked to hear somebody can be sentenced by a judge, serve out that entire sentence and then say, ‘Wait a minute, we’re not going to let you go,’ ” Hargett said, calling it a legal “black hole.”

The full story can be viewed on cnn.com

Victims Assistance Services of WestCOP, Inc. in collaboration with Barbara Rome, RN, SANE-A will be providing a four-day, 40-hour Adult/Adolescent SANE training course based on the New York State DOH protocol, the National protocol and the IAFN standards for SANE education.

Victims Assistance Services coordinates the Westchester County SANE Program.  This training will take place at their main office in Elmsford from 8am-6pm, on January 28^th, 2010 through January 31^st, 2010.  If you are a RN, NP or PA interested in taking this training, in order to specifically work as a SANE in our county-wide program, please send a cover letter and resume via email to mlaaksonen@westcop.org or via fax to 914-345-3513 to the attention of Michele Laaksonen, Sexual Assault Program Manager I.    The training fee is $250.  The deadline for training registration is January 1^st, 2010.  Due to space limitations, we will be accepting a restricted number of applicants.   

 About the trainer:  Barbara Rome is an Assistant Professor at Westchester Community College and emergency room nurse and nursing supervisor at Northern Westchester Hospital.  She is a nationally and New York state certified Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner and has been practicing as a SANE in both Putnam and Westchester County for over ten years.  Barbara has been called to testify in criminal trial and before the grand jury on numerous occasions.  She holds a Master of Science degree from Mercy College.  

Victims Assistance Services is a component of Westchester Community Opportunity Program Inc., a private not-for-profit, multipurpose social service agency dedicated to helping people and changing lives.