A "D.I.Y." MANUAL

Applied Police and Fire Photography Raymond P. Silijander (C. C'. Thomas, Sprin&.eld, Illznoir, 1976, 3 ljpp., $18.50)

This is a well illustrated volurrie over one-third of' which is devoted t o photographs and line drawings. The first chapters deal with image formation, lenses, filters, exposure determination rtc., not to trxt hook rlcpth, but sufliricntly to provide any new member of a photoe;raphic department coming without previous knowledge of the subject, with somc backqround information. Thcsc arc followcd by chapters on "Arson and Questinnable Flres", "Traffic Accident Photography" and "Surveillance Photography", all providilig iriliurilation or1 techniques which if applied should produce photographs of value to investi- gatinq officcrs and courts. The remainder of the book deals briefly with a wide range of photographic techniques from "In~pressions and Toolmark Photo- graphy" to "Document Examinations" and "Finqcrprint Photography" with a full chaptcr devoted to "Polaroid".

This book will no doubt be a worthwhile acquisitioii fur a trdininq sclic~ol library, where some of the many techniques described for use in field and laboratory situations must prnvc of intcrrst to sturlrnts nf this subject.

L. SUI\.IMLKSCALL\

THE PROFESSTONIZI.S

The Pathology of Violent Injury 3. K. Ilfmon, Ed. (Edralartl Arwold, Lor~(ion, 1978, 375pp., in(lex, &16.00)

Professor Ken Mason is to be congratuIated on having edited one of the most satisfactory books on Iegal medicine to be produced durinz the last. fkw ycars. There has been a plethora of medico-Iegal texts in the EngIish language dur*ing the last half decade but many are somewhat repetitive and are often a re-hash of the old classical conccpts of forensic mcdicinc, many of which are now being called into rloubt.

"The Pathology of Violent Injury" does not set out to he a formal cornpre- hensive textbook, but is rather a hyhrid hctween a series of monographs on various aspects ol'tsaumalic pathology ancl a version of "Recent Advanc~s" in the subject. For once, the book actually sticks to the description given by its title and covrrs most of thc phenomena associated with mechanical insult to the I~ody. Virtually all ille ~weni~- f iv r conti*ibutors can lay some claim to expertise in thc topic upon which they write and there is a ~velcome lack of ovcrlap and contradiction between the chapters. So often in a multi-author bonk, lark of' firrn editorial direction leads to confusion and omissions, but in P~.oTessot. Mason's present volume, this appears to have been avoided quite successli~lly.

Quite naturally, with Ken Mason's interest in transportation accidcnts, especially of the airhorne variety, there is a fairly extensive contribution from those experienced in this subject. Some extremeIy interesting data are given on motor vehicle accidents, prcvcntivc mcthods and especially pedestrian injuries, which numerically form the qreatest single coinponent nf traffic accidents on a global scalc.

Professor Mason hirnself not unnaturally writcs on aircraft disasters a n d Professor Tom Marshall writes about violence and civil disturbancr, using his own manor of Ulster as a reservoir of expcricnce. War wounds, burnirlg, stabbing, sexual crimes, asphyxial death, head injuries, domcstic violence and robbery are dealt with by people well qualified to cliscuss thrse sul~jecls. Modesty precludes me from saying Inore than that the chapter on h.lining ant1 Quarrying accidents is at least adequate!

Michael Green of Leeds has written a very fill1 ant1 iriosl interesting cllapter on sporting injuries and Alan Watson of Glasgow has written on "Kicliing,

Karate and Kurlg Fu", wl~ich presurrlably is still rife in the Gorbals. Another Scottish stalwart, Bill Hendry and collaborators have written about a most topical subject, "The Offshore Scene and its Hazards", which now has the greatest incidence of industrial trauina in British industry.

Clinical sequelae to violence is well covered by chapters on haemorrhage, coagulation and thrombosis, renal failure, and fat and bone marrow embolism and the psychiatrist is rrpresented hy a final chapter on the psychopathological effects of violence.

By and large, this book is excellent value for full-time forensic pathologists, for the general cornner's patholngist and for any other doctor who has a substantial interest in trauma and its eKects. No doubt lawyers with a stake in compensation practice would also be glad to havc acccss to this book, if only for the very comprehensive references at thc cncl of each chaptrr, which lead the reader on to an extremely wide field of published expertise.

One furthcr point in its favour is that the book has no territorial limitations in that il is not tied to any particular system of jurisprudence. This should mean that this excellent book can have relevance on a world-wide scale and it is to bc hoped that it will receive thc attention that i t dcscrvcs amongst "The ProScssionalsn who makc up the band of international forensic pathologists.

B.K.

COMMUNICATION

Policing a Perplexed Society Sir Robert Mark (Allell B U r ~ i e ~ i r i , I,ondutr, 1977, 129pp., index, £2.50 papelback)

It is an indication of the quality of Sir Robcrt Mark's period as Commissioner of tlie hletropolitan Policc Forcc: that his name thrc~ugh press and T.V. beca~nc a household word. These tirnrs had their problems-the decline in law and order, the increase in violence, the existence of police corruption, the frictions of a n111lti-racial conlmunity, the social confrontation of public rlemonstrations in London, the expressed dissatisfaction with the Iegal system and the increase of complaints against the police. The Commissioner not only spoke out strongly on thcsc thrmcs hut carried his thoughts into positivc action. Hc took drastic steps to rid the policr nf co~.ruption within its ranks. He ernphasised the need in con troll in^ a democratic society for social acceptance of police authority. He challenged the legal prof'ession to re-think thr arlvcrsary system of justice and the ethics of legal representation ( a piece 01' business as yet unfinished). And much more.

Sir Robert was tlie cornm~rnicatnr par. excellence. No consicleration of police work in rnodern times can ignore his challenging

contribution to police thinking and practice. This selection of papers delivered in the course of duty to different audiences and for difl'erent purposes sets nut most of these themes.

They must not be shelved. We owe it to our society to follow them through to a conclusion.

A.1I.R.

HERCULES, THE AL'GEAN STABLES AND OTHER MATTERS

In the Office of Constable Sir Robert ,Ifark (Loncfon, C;i)llins, 19 78; 320@@., .with index and illusfr atioju, E6.95)

Tn the unlikrly event oL' anynnr not knowing tliat fact already, this book is Sir Robert Mark's autobiography. I n one sense, there is nothing in i t for readers of this Journal: there is not a singIe reference in it to forensic scientists or thrir Iabr~ratorirs. In another sense, they sI~o~lld read, mark and digest every \\.orrl of i t : the att thor '~ passionate concern with the problems of law enforce-