Murphy Brasuel:
Intro to Forensic Science Quiz
1
Blk 2, 2010-‘11
Honor Code: We have only our calculators to arrive at the answers. By printing you names below, you
are agreeing to this code. Print your name clearly for credit. (Time Limit 90 minutes) You may only
take the test in the class room (Barnes 209).
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Short Answer:
1. What is the fourth amendment? What are three exceptions to the fourth amendment related to
national security and the investigation of crimes?
The fourth amendment is the right of people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects
against unreasonable searches and seizures. Warrants for searches and seizers will only be issued upon
probable cause , supported by oat or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and
the persons or things to be seized.
Exceptions include border searches, consent searches, searches incident to an arrest, plain view doctrine,
emergency exceptions, open fields, stop and frisk procedures and vehicle inventories.
2. What has contributed to the rapid growth of crime laboratories in the United States since the
1960’s?
First, Supreme Court decisions (Miranda act) in the 1960’s eliminated confessions as a routine
investigative tool. This placed a greater emphasis on securing scientifically evaluated evidence. Second,
the dramatic increase in U.S. crime rates (tied to drafting of drug laws) led to a greater need for scientific
examination of criminal evidence. Third, the advent of DNA profiling led to a need for crime labs to
expand their staffs and modernize their facilities to meet the demands of Drug investigation and DNA
evidence.
3. What important principle was established in the case of Frye v. United States?
Frye v. United States established the principle that questioned procedures, techniques, or principles must
be “generally accepted” by a meaningful segment of the relevant scientific community before they are
admissible as evidence at trial
4. How did the court’s ruling in the case of Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceutical, Inc. affect the
admissibility of scientific evidence in federal courts?
In Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc., the Supreme Court asserted that “general acceptance”
is not an absolute prerequisite to the admissibility of scientific evidence under the Federal Rules of
Evidence. According to the Court, the Rules of Evidence assign to the trial judge the task of ensuring that
an expert’s testimony rests on a reliable foundation and is relevant to the task at hand.
5. How does the testimony of an expert witness differ from the testimony of a lay witness?
A lay witness must give testimony on events or observations that arise from personal knowledge. This
testimony must be factual and, with few exceptions, cannot contain the personal opinions of the witness.
By contrast, the expert witness evaluates evidence that the court lacks the expertise to do, and thus must
express his or her personal opinion as to the significance of the findings. The views expressed are
accepted only as representing the expert’s opinion and may later be accepted or ignored in jury
deliberations.
6. Identify four common search patterns recommended by the FBI. When would you choose to use
each pattern? What pattern did you use in your crime scene and why?
Spiral (Crime Scenes no physical boundaries)
Grid (Large outdoor crime scenes)
Strip (or line) (Outdoor crime scenes where a coordinator arranges many searchers)
Zone (or quadrant) (Indoor crime scenes where different teams are assigned small areas to seach and one
searcher is assigned to several areas of equal size)
Wheel (or ray) Circular crime scenes
7. Describe the four kinds of evidence, including at least one specific example of each.
Physical evidence includes tangible objects—that is, items that are real, direct, and not circumstantial
(e.g., weapons, trace evidence, blood, hair, fibers). Documentary evidence includes any kind of writing,
sound, or video recording (e.g. a transcript of a telephone conversation; its validity is usually
authenticated by expert testimony. Demonstrative evidence consists of real evidence used to illustrate,
demonstrate, or recreate a prior event (e.g., a cardboard model of the crime scene). Testimony comprises
evidence in the form of witnesses speaking under oath in court (e.g., eyewitnesses, hearsay witnesses,
character witnesses).
8. Sketch a diagram of hair. Describe and explain the different parts of hair that play a role in
forensic examination of hair evidence.
Cuticle: The cuticle is formed by overlapping scales that occur in a variety of
patterns in different animal species. The distinctive scale pattern formed by
animal hair makes it an important feature for species identification.
Cortex: The cortex derives its major forensic importance from the fact that it
is embedded with pigment granules that impart hair with color. The color,
shape, and distribution of these granules provide important points of
comparison among the hairs of different individuals.
Medulla: The medulla is a cellular column running through the center of the
hair. The ratio of the diameter of the medulla to the diameter of hair can
differentiate species. Individuals may have a continuous (mongoloid),
interrupted, fragmented, or no medulla.
9. Describe the incident in 1903 that led to the debunking of Bertillon’s system of measurement
(and subsequently strengthened the use of fingerprinting).
Will West was convicted and sentenced to the U.S. penitentiary at Leavenworth, Kansas. A few days after
arriving, West was brought to Bertillon to be measured and photographed. He denied ever being in the
penitentiary before, even though the measurements Bertillon took were almost identical with those
already obtained from a prisoner named “William West.” Will West, the new prisoner, continued to deny
he had ever been incarcerated, even though his photograph and that of William West appeared to be
identical. After fingerprinting the two prisoners, it was discovered that although the two prisoners
appeared to be identical twins, there was no resemblance between their fingerprints.
10. Explain how identification and comparison sum up the work of forensic scientists examining
physical evidence.
Identification is the process of determining a substance’s physical or chemical identity. Comparison is
the process of ascertaining whether two or more objects have a common origin. Identity is required to
determine if a crime has been committed and origin can help determine the people involved in the crime.
11. If a naked, dead body (still air) of 100 kg is found at 2:30 p.m. to have a rectal temperature of
18oC and the ambient temperature is 28.5oC, what is the approximate time of death.
It is off scale for the nomogram and thus the time of death is greater then 60 hours.
12. Give the general class of the following fingerprints:
a)
b)
LOOP
WHORL
13. Fingerprint A below is from the primary suspect in a bombing. Fingerprint B was recovered
from the crime scene (a far superior lift than anything you would actually see). From this evidence
is the suspect guilty? Why or why not?
A
B
The suspect is not guilty, while similar there are marked differences in the fingerprints.
14. What is the final step in fingerprint identification? Why is this step necessary if a computerized
database of fingerprints is available for automated fingerprint comparison?
The final step in fingerprint identification is always visual comparison of the prints in question by a
trained examiner. A computer database can only produce a list of prints that are similar to the print in
question; it cannot make a positive identification.
15. In each case decide if the described property is a physical or chemical property:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
The combustion of hydrogen in oxygen forms water. chemical
Chlorine is green-yellow in color. physical
Petroleum propels vehicles. chemical
The density of uranium metal is 19.07 g/cm3. physical
Sodium chloride melts at 1074 K. physical
16. A CSI is going to purchase 8.34 pounds of a ninhydrin reagent for a large department. (a)
What is the volume of the compound in liters if the density of the liquid is 0.235g/ml? (b) If the
compound costs $65.34 per gallon, how much will chemist have to spend? 1 pound = 453.59237 g, 1
gal = 3.7854L, 1000ml = 1L
453.59237 g
1ml
1L
×
×
1lbs
0.235 g 1000ml
(a)
8.34lbs ×
(b)
16.0977 L ×
= 16.1L
1gal
$65.34
×
= $277.86
3.7854 L 1gal
Short Essay:
1. What steps did you follow in processing the crime scene on Thursday. Explain how these steps match
or do match the prescribed methods for processing a crime scene (i.e. what was first, what should have
been done first and why, how was the crime scene recorded, etc.).
2. Describe what methods were used to obtain latent prints at the crime scene and in what instances are
these methods useful?
3. Describe handling or packaging of evidence at the crime scene and the purpose behind any specialized
handling or packaging.