Introduction
&
Expectations
Supply list
 Composition Notebook
 Writing Utensil (Pen or Pencil)
 Lab Fee – 20.00
CLASS EXPECTAITONS
 Bring all necessary supplies to class
 Participate in class
 Do your part in lab
What is Forensic Science?
-the application of science to the criminal and civil
laws that are enforced by police agencies in a
criminal justice system
TV show involving Forensic Science
Disciplines that are included in Forensic Science
 Criminalistics
 Engineering Science
 General Science
 Jurisprudence
 Odontology
 Pathology/Biology
Disciplines that are included in Forensic Science
 Physical Anthropology
 Psychiatry and Behavioral Science
 Questioned Documents
 Toxicology
This is not a exclusive list, but does include the
most common disciplines involved.
History and Development of Forensic Science
Early Development
 Earliest record of applying forensic science to
solve a crime come from a 3rd century China
Initial Scientific Advances
 1775 – Development of test for arsenic
poisoning
 1798 – A Treatise on Forensic Medicine and Public Health
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1806 – More refined method of Arsenic testing
1814 – Mathieu Orfila, father of modern
forensic toxicology
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Published book on toxicology
1828 – William Nichol invented polarizing
microscope
Late Nineteenth-Century Progress
 Public officials beginning to apply knowledge
from all scientific disciplines to the solving of
crimes
 Anthropology and morphology were 1st used
1879 Alphonse Bertillon
 The first system of personal identification was
called anthropometry.
 It distinguished one individual from another
based on a series of measurements
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1892 – first use of fingerprints to identification
Sherlock Holmes – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
heavily influenced by science articles of the day
Twentieth Century Breakthroughs
1901 – Karl landsteiner discovered blood typing
1915 – Leone lattes – created a way to blood type
dried blood
1910 – Albert S Osborn “Questioned Documents”
Edward Locard
 1910 convinced Lyons Police department to
give him an attic to do forensic work.
 Founder of Institute of Criminalistics
 Locard Exchange Principle – When 2 objects
come in contact with each other, a crosstransfer of materials occurs
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Army Colonel Calvin Goddard – allowed
investigators to determine whether a particular
gun has fired a bullet by comparing the bullet
with one that has been test fired
Modern Scientific Advances
 DNA typing
 More exact than fingerprints
 Almost fool proof
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Forensic science is the application of science to
criminal and civil laws that are enforced by
police agencies in a criminal justice system
The first system of personal identification was
called anthropometry. It distinguished one
individual from another based on a series of
measurements
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Forensic science owes its origins to individuals
such as Bertillon Galton, Lattes, Goddard,
Osborn, and Locard, who developed the
principles and techniques needed to identify or
compare physical evidence
Locard Exchange Principle states when two
objects come in contact with each other, a crosstransfer of materials occurs
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Locard exchange principle
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History of Crime Labs in the United States
1923- Los Angeles Police Department – Oldest
Forensic Lab
1932 – FBI – J. Edgar Hoover
4 major federal crime laboratories
FBI
 DEA
 Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives
 The US Postal Inspection Service
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Don’t have state boundaries
Physical Science Unit
 Applies principles and techniques of chemistry,
Physics, and geology to the identification and
comparison of crime-scene evidence.
 Staffed by criminalists who have expertise to
use chemical test and modern analytical
instrumentations
 Analyze drugs, glass, paint, explosives, and
soil
Biological Unit
 Staffed with biologist and biochemists
 Identify and perform DNA profiling on dried
blood stains and other fluids, compare hair and
fibers
Firearms Unit
 Examines firearms, discharged bullets,
cartridge cases, Shotgun shells, and
ammunitions of all types
 Examines garments for gun discharge residue
 Determine angle and distance a firearm was
fired
Document Examination Unit
 Studies the handwriting and typewriting on
questioned documents to ascertain authenticity
and source
 Analyzing paper and ink
Photography Lab
 Examines and records physical evidence
 Includes digital imaging infrared, ultraviolent,
and X-ray photography
Toxicology Unit
 Examines body fluids and organs to determine
the presence of absence of drugs and poisons
 Generally housed in the Coroner’s office
Latent Fingerprint Unit
 Processes and examines evidence for latent
fingerprints
Polygraph Unit
 Lie detector
 Maintained and used at Police departments
Voiceprint Analysis Unit
 Used in telephone threats or tape-recorded
messages
 Uses digital generated voiceprint to compare
samples
Crime Scene Investigations Unit
 CSI
 Becoming more popular since 911
 Combines all units under 1 unit
 Evidence is collected, recorded and analyzed
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The development of crime labs in the US has
been characterized by rapid growth
accompanied by lack of national and regional
planning and coordination
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Four major reasons for the increase in the
number of crime laboratories in the US since
1960
Miranda Rights eliminated confessions as a routine
investigation tool
 Staggering increase in crime rates in the US
 Illicit-drugs must be sent to a forensic lab to be
identified
 The advent of DNA profiling
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The technical support provided by crime
laboratories can be assigned to five basic
services:
Physical science unit
 Biology unit
 Firearms unit
 Document examination unit
 Photography unit
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Some crime labs offer optional services such as
toxicology, fingerprint analysis, polygraph
administration, voiceprint analysis, and Crime
scene investigation
Special forensic science services available to the
law enforcement community include forensic
pathology, forensic anthropology, forensic
entomology, forensic psychiatry, forensic
Odontology, forensic engineering, forensic
computer and digital analysis
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Analyzing Physical Evidence
Determine admissibility of evidence
Judging scientific evidence
Providing expert testimony
Furnish training in the proper recognition,
collection and preservation of physical
evidence
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A forensics scientist must be skilled in applying
the principles and techniques of the physical
and natural sciences to analyzing evidence that
may be recovered during a criminal
investigation
The cases Frye vs.. United States and Daubert
vs. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals Inc set
guidelines for determining the admissibility of
scientific evidence into the courtroom
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An expert witness evaluate evidence based on
specialized training and experience
Forensics scientists participate in training law
enforcement personnel in the proper
recognition, collection and preservation of
physical evidence
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Scientific method – a process that uses strict
guidelines to ensure carful and systematic
collection organization and analysis of
information
Expert witness – a individual whom the court
determines to possess a particular skill or
knowledge in a trade or profession that is not
expected of the average layperson and that will
aid a court in determining the truth of a matter
at a trial
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http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/p
layer/places/cultureplaces/work/us_crimescenecleaners.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQUE8Ie
VmpA