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Background. This case presents a detailed forensic examination of a unique femicide case followed by the perpetrator's suicide. Case report. On a Sunday afternoon, a 52 year old man killed his 43 year old partner in their home with eleven stab wounds. A few minutes later, he committed suicide by suspending himself to a tree in their home garden by means of a rope. This unique case is interesting because of the combination of methods used for both homicide and suicide, as well as the relationship dynamics between the victim and perpetrator. The perpetrator committed homicide by stabbing and then hanged himself. Conclusion. The case adds valuable knowledge to Forensic Medicine, advocating for increased awareness and preventive measures against domestic and gender-based violence. This report provides an in-depth analysis of a homicide-suicide incident, focusing on a unique case of homicide-suicide. It serves to highlight the global crisis of femicide. The case is situated within the context of gender- based violence, illustrating how such acts are deeply rooted in societal norms. It highlights patterns of intimate partner violence, where emotional factors play a significant role. Forensic analysis uncovered the overkill nature of the homicide, indicating excessive injuries beyond what was necessary for death, reflecting the psychological turmoil of the perpetrator. It emphasizes the importance of identifying signs of potential violence in domestic settings and implementing interventions for mental health support and the prevention of genderbased violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The island of Lanzarote is marked by a scarce preservation of skeletal remains of the Libyan-Berber populations that inhabited there between the beginnings of the Common Era and the Norman Conquest in the 15th century. This is an anomalous situation for people that lived uninterruptedly on the island for about 1400 years. The recent study of the few available human bones is providing transcendental data for the knowledge of the ways and conditions of life and, especially, of conflicts involving physical violence. The aim of this paper is to analyse the evidence of bone trauma in two individuals, male and female respectively, and to discuss the cause of their deaths. The results indicate the male was repeatedly stabbed, with a kind of dagger that could not be manufactured in the Canary Islands due to the absence of metal ores. This suggests a form of deadly violence unknown among the indigenous population. In contrast, the traces observed in the female individual, consisting of several energetic blows to the skull, are in line with the lethal violence practices of the Canarian indigenous populations, albeit executed to an extreme degree. Both cases display patterns of lesions revealing different forms of violence of significant interest for the comprehension of the conflicts and historical contexts in which they occurred. Apart from the lethal injuries themselves, the early chronology of the remains and the type of weapons used provide new data to explore the initial stages of the island's stable colonisation. For this same reason, it is a good opportunity to reflect on the expressions of violence among mainland Amazigh populations, scarcely known from an archaeological perspective, based on the behavioural models they bring to the islands. • We explore the early stages of colonisation of an oceanic island by indigenous North African groups at the beginning of the first millennium CE. • Two cases of lethal violence are analysed, allowing the identification of hitherto unknown cultural scenarios. • High rates of physical violence are identified in the oldest human remains of the Canary Islands. • The type of weapons and the pattern of wounds allow the distinction between indigenous and foreign models of violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This case presents a detailed forensic examination of a unique femicide case followed by the perpetrator's suicide., Case Report: On a Sunday afternoon, a 52 year old man killed his 43 year old partner in their home with eleven stab wounds. A few minutes later, he committed suicide by suspending himself to a tree in their home garden by means of a rope. This unique case is interesting because of the combination of methods used for both homicide and suicide, as well as the relationship dynamics between the victim and perpetrator. The perpetrator committed homicide by stabbing and then hanged himself., Conclusion: The case adds valuable knowledge to Forensic Medicine, advocating for increased awareness and preventive measures against domestic and gender-based violence. This report provides an in-depth analysis of a homicide-suicide incident, focusing on a unique case of homicide-suicide. It serves to highlight the global crisis of femicide. The case is situated within the context of gender- based violence, illustrating how such acts are deeply rooted in societal norms. It highlights patterns of intimate partner violence, where emotional factors play a significant role. Forensic analysis uncovered the overkill nature of the homicide, indicating excessive injuries beyond what was necessary for death, reflecting the psychological turmoil of the perpetrator. It emphasizes the importance of identifying signs of potential violence in domestic settings and implementing interventions for mental health support and the prevention of genderbased violence.

Spiders are successful natural enemies of pests occurring throughout the different strata of an agroecosystem. The study of their functional responses can provide information related to the potential effectiveness of different species and guilds on reducing a pest population. However, multiple prey availability may change the functional response of a predator. In this study, the functional responses of three species of spiders in single‐prey and multiple‐prey experiments were modelled. The spider species Haplodrassus rufipes, Araniella cucurbitina and Synema globosum were chosen as being representatives of ground runners, orb‐weavers and ambushers, respectively. Three prey species were selected: a target prey, the Mediterranean fruit fly Ceratitis capitata and two alternate prey species, the flour moth Ephestia kuehniella and the house cricket Acheta domesticus. When the selected target prey C. capitata was supplied in the single‐prey experiments, the most and the least efficient spider species were H. rufipes and S. globosum, respectively. However, opposite results were obtained when alternative preys were supplied. Also, A. cucurbitina significantly changed its functional response with the presence of alternative prey species. Considering the prey preference during the multiple‐prey experiments, A. domesticus, used as representative of a heavy, long‐sized and highly motile prey, was avoided whereas C. capitata, the target pest used as representative of light, small‐sized and moderately motile prey was preferred by the three species of spiders. Ephestia kuehniella, used as representative of light, medium‐sized and low motile prey was occasionally consumed. Each guild could include efficient predators against pests according to its hunting strategies and the ecological exploited niches. Orb‐weavers could be efficient predators against flying pests; ambushers such as S. globosum could contribute to the reduction of the populations of flower‐visiting pests, whereas active ground hunters may also play an important role preying on pests that develop a part or all of its life cycle in the ground. However, further research on feeding behaviour such as prey switching is needed for a better understanding of the effectiveness of spiders as natural enemies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses femicide in Italy. The assumption is that femicide is not a discrete act of killing a woman. It is assumed that depending on the types of relationship between the victim and the perpetrator (e.g., known versus unknown, intimate versus acquaintance), the risk processes may differ. When femicide involves the killing of an intimate partner, it is likely to be characterized by sustained and escalating intimate partner violence (IPV) that can reach its climax with extreme acts of violence that lead to intimate partner femicide (IPF). Eighty-six cases of femicide that occurred in North-West Italy between 1993 and 2013 were examined in this study. Findings suggest that femicide was disproportionately perpetrated by intimate partners (current or past), rather than strangers. IPF was likely to be the epilogue of an abusive relationship, with high levels of contentiousness and conflicts being the frequent significant precursors. Non-intimate partner femicide (NPF) was more likely to be characterized by antisocial or predatory motives, highly frequent when the victims were prostitutes. These preliminary findings suggest that joint scientific, professional, and political efforts are paramount in order to address strategies aimed at assessing the differential risk of IPV early in time so as to prevent it from escalating into IPF or NPF and to provide the appropriate support for victims and their families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Overkilling • Forensic medicine • Perpetrator • Weapon • Circumstances Overkilling in the Forensic Medicine is known as a specific type of homicide where the number of inflicted injuries greatly surpasses the number of fatal ones. Conducted research aimed to create a unified definition of the phenomenon and its classification criteria by analysing a vast majority of variables concerning its various characteristics. From the population of homicide victims autopsied in the authors' research facility a number of 167 cases were chosen consisting of both overkilling and other homicides. 70 cases were thoroughly analysed based on the completed court files, autopsy protocols and photographs. Second part of the research concerned the facts regarding the perpetrator, used weapon and the circumstances of the act. Conclusions of the conducted analysis allowed to add further characteristics to the overkilling definition: the perpetrators were almost exclusively men, around 35 of age, not related to the victim but might have been in a close relationship with them, often a conflicted one. They did not threaten the victim before the incident. Mostly perpetrators were not intoxicated, and they tried to cover up the homicide in various ways. Perpetrators of overkilling were in most cases mentally disturbed (and thus stated insane), had different levels of intelligence but also a low level of planning before the act – rarely taking actions as preparing the weapon in advance, choosing the scene or luring in the victim. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Violence against women is a disabler of dignity, liberty, and rights of the person, with murder being its extreme form for silencing the individual. Despite psycho-criminological research providing evidence that violence can happen across cultures, sexes, and societies, other findings show that some forms of violence i.e. Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), which involves more frequently women as victims, is not rare in contemporary society. The aim of this study is to analyze the violence against women, and how it escalates up to the point in which it aggravates into femicide. In order to carry out this study, data from both the Turin Archive of the Institute of Legal Medicine (1970–1997), and the Archive of the Central Morgue (1998–2016) were collected. The interest was to focus on those women who were killed in Turin, between 1970 and 2016, by a male with whom they were involved in a more or less intimate relationship (e.g., matrimonial, sexual, friendship, professional, etc.). Collateral information was also gathered from forensic files that reported sufficient details about the criminal events. The sample was composed of 275 women killed by violence in Turin, Italy, by 260 males. This research was based on two questions: Is murder the worst possible scenario of a long-lasting abusive relationship? Are we witnessing a shift in how violence now happens, becoming perhaps less striking than murder, but not less painful from the victim's point of view? These findings show that escalation into femicide featured more likely within an intimate and affective relationship between victim and perpetrator; they also show that when the perpetrator knew the victim, it was more likely that an overkilling took place. When victims sustained multiple injuries that went beyond those necessary to cause their death, one is in front of an overkilling. These results also suggest that motives behind intimate partner femicide could account for a differential degree of violence, so that the longer and closer the relationship was between victim and perpetrator, the higher the risk of IPV escalating into femicide, and of femicide being executed with extreme and severe force.

Violence against women is a disabler of dignity, liberty, and rights of the person, with murder being its extreme form for silencing the individual. Despite psycho-criminological research providing evidence that violence can happen across cultures, sexes, and societies, other findings show that some forms of violence i.e. Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), which involves more frequently women as victims, is not rare in contemporary society. The aim of this study is to analyze the violence against women, and how it escalates up to the point in which it aggravates into femicide. In order to carry out this study, data from both the Turin Archive of the Institute of Legal Medicine (1970–1997), and the Archive of the Central Morgue (1998–2016) were collected. The interest was to focus on those women who were killed in Turin, between 1970 and 2016, by a male with whom they were involved in a more or less intimate relationship (e.g., matrimonial, sexual, friendship, professional, etc.). Collateral information was also gathered from forensic files that reported sufficient details about the criminal events. The sample was composed of 275 women killed by violence in Turin, Italy, by 260 males. This research was based on two questions: Is murder the worst possible scenario of a long-lasting abusive relationship? Are we witnessing a shift in how violence now happens, becoming perhaps less striking than murder, but not less painful from the victim's point of view? These findings show that escalation into femicide featured more likely within an intimate and affective relationship between victim and perpetrator; they also show that when the perpetrator knew the victim, it was more likely that an overkilling took place. When victims sustained multiple injuries that went beyond those necessary to cause their death, one is in front of an overkilling. These results also suggest that motives behind intimate partner femicide could account for a differential degree of violence, so that the longer and closer the relationship was between victim and perpetrator, the higher the risk of IPV escalating into femicide, and of femicide being executed with extreme and severe force. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An appraisal of the regulatory role of natural enemies on target pests requires the identification of the mechanisms/traits that enhance the ability of an organism to control the density of its prey/host. After stinging herbivore hosts with their ovipositor, hymenopteran parasitoids tend to reject them without ovipositing or host-feeding. Termed pseudoparasitism, the frequency and consequences of this type of attack (hereafter oversting) have been largely disregarded in the hymenopteran parasitoid literature. We choose the parasitoids Aphytis melinus and A. chrysomphali and their common host Aonidiella aurantii as a model system to study this behavior. Using field and laboratory observations, we showed that overstinging is a common behavior in the wild. Under controlled conditions, overstinging occurred more frequently than host-feeding, a behavioral trait that is used to evaluate the potential of parasitoids as biological control agents. Oversting reduced the fecundity and survival of the herbivore host. When we compared between parasitoid species that attack the same host species, the virulence and frequency of this behavior depended on parasitoid species. These results demonstrate that overstinging should be incorporated in the models of host-parasitoid interactions to analyze population dynamics as well as in the future selection of parasitoids for biological control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parricide is a category of homicide in which the victims are the parents, and the killers, their children. The authors report a case of a 45-year-old man who killed his 73-year-old widowed father in an extremely violent manner: he struck the father in the head with a wooden wash board, stabbed him with a pair of scissors and several times with a screwdriver. Afterwards, he kicked the victim in the face and jumped up and down on his body, thereby crushing the father's chest with his weight. The case reported here may be classified as an "unusual patricide" when one considers the age of the aggressor, the diagnosis of psychiatric disorders, that the victim was the father, and that the murder was committed in an extremely violent manner.