1. An Introduction to Forensic Science
Powerpoint used an altered: Original belongs to
South Pointe High School

2. What is Forensic Science?
Forensic science is the application of scientific knowledge to questions of civil and criminal law(legal stuff). Also called Criminalistics

3. Areas of Forensic Science

4. Course Topics & Perspective
Forensic scientists are also required to testify in court about their analysis of evidence.
To make a convincing case, you need to be able to clearly and concisely explain your results and their significance in lab reports.
Finally, mock crime scenes will be investigated and real case studies analyzed.

5. Interdisciplinary Relationships
Forensics is a diverse field, and rarely are forensic scientists “generalists” – people who specialize in all aspects of forensic science. Forget what you see on CSI.
Forensic scientists don’t wear pumps to a crime scene, they rarely interview suspects or make arrests, and they are not experts in all areas of forensic investigations. Rather, forensic experts usually specialize in one or two branches of forensic investigation.

6. Interdisciplinary Relationships
A botanist may be an expert in forensic botany. An entomologist may be an expert in forensic entomology. Chemists may specialize in forensic toxicology or arson and bomb analysis. People with expertise in physics may focus on firearms and ballistics or blood spatter analysis.

7. Interdisciplinary Relationships
It would be impossible to survey all areas of forensic science in a semester long high school course.
Rather, we will explore a range of fields, topics and methodologies to give you a sense of the diverse fields of study in forensics.

8. Interdisciplinary Relationships
Nevertheless, forensic science is an applied scientific discipline, and your success in this course will require you to apply your basic understanding of physics, chemistry, biology and even math to explore the range of topics surveyed.

9. Why do we look to science for assistance in our legal system?
Increasing Crime Rates
New or Changed Laws
New Crimes
New Weapons (*see next slide)
Response to Public Concerns
Response to Law Enforcement Concerns

10. New Weapons?

12. Applying Science to Law
Applying science to the Criminal Justice System depends on a scientist’s ability to supply accurate & objective information that reflects the events that have occurred at a crime.

13. Civil vs. Criminal Law CIVIL LAW CRIMINAL LAW
filed by a private party.
a corporation
an individual
Penalty: a guilty defendant pays the plaintiff for losses caused by their actions.
no incarceration
filed by the government
Penalty: a guilty defendant is punished by
incarceration (in jail/prison)
fine paid to the gov’t
execution (death penalty)
Crimes are divided into 2 classes:
misdemeanors - < 1 year incarceration
felonies - 1+ year sentence

14. History & Development of Forensic Science

15. When in Rome…
“Forensic” comes from the Latin word “forensis” meaning forum.
During the time of the Romans, a criminal charge meant presenting the case before the public.
Both the person accused of the crime & the accuser would give speeches based on their side of the story.
The individual with the best argument would determine the outcome of the case.

16. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Mystery author in late 1800’s
Popularized scientific crime-detection methods through his fictional character ‘Sherlock Holmes’.

17. Mathieu Orfila (1787-1853) “Father of Toxicology”
Wrote about the detection of poisons & their effects on animals.

18. Alphonse Bertillon (1853-1914)
“Father of Anthropometry”
Developed a system to distinguish one individual person from another based on certain body measurements.

19. Anthropometry

20. Francis Galton ( )
“Father of Fingerprinting”
Developed fingerprinting as a way to uniquely identify individuals.

21. Leone Lattes (1887-1954) “Father of Bloodstain Identification”
He developed a procedure for determining the blood type (A, B, AB, or O) of a dried blood stain.

22. Calvin Goddard (1891-1955) “Father of Ballistics”
Developed the technique to examine bullets, using a comparison microscope, to determine whether or not a particular gun fired the bullets.

23. Albert Osborn (1858-1946) “Father of Document Examination”
His work led to the acceptance of documents as scientific evidence by the courts.

24. Walter McCrone ( )
“Father of Microscopic Forensics”
He developed & applied his microscope techniques to examine evidence in countless court cases.

25. Hans Gross ( )
“Father of Forensic Publications”
Wrote the book on applying all the different science disciplines to the field of criminal investigation.

26. Edmond Locard ( )
“Father of the Crime Lab”
In 1910, he started the 1st crime lab in an attic of a police station in Paris, France.
With few tools, he quickly became known world-wide to forensic scientists & criminal investigators & eventually founded the Institute of Criminalistics in France.
His most important contribution was the “Locard’s Exchange Principle”

27. Locard’s Exchange Principle
“Every Contact Leaves a Trace.”
He believed that every criminal can be connected to a crime by particles carried from the crime scene.
When a criminal comes in contact with an object or person, a cross-transfer of evidence occurs.
Wherever he steps, whatever he touches, whatever he leaves, even unconsciously, will serve as a silent witness against him. Not only his fingerprints or his footprints, but his hair, the fibers from his clothes, the glass he breaks, the tool mark he leaves, the paint he scratches, the blood or semen he deposits or collects. All of these and more, bear mute witness against him. This is evidence that does not forget. It is not confused by the excitement of the moment. It is not absent because human witnesses are. It is factual evidence. Physical evidence cannot be wrong, it cannot perjure itself, it cannot be wholly absent. Only human failure to find it, study and understand it, can diminish its value.
- Professor Edmond Locard

28. J. Edgar Hoover
“Father of the FBI” - Director of Federal Bureau of Investigation during the 1930’s
Hoover's leadership spanned 48 yrs & 8 presidential administrations. His reign covered Prohibition, the Great Depression, WWII, the Korean War, the Cold War, & the Vietnam War.
He organized a national laboratory to offer forensic services to all law enforcement agencies in the U.S.
VERY CONTROVERSIAL
He exceeded & abused his authority with unjustified investigations & illegal wiretaps based on political beliefs rather than suspected criminal activity
FBI directors are now limited to 10-year terms

29. Applications of Forensic Science
Identification of Criminals or Victims
Solving Mysteries
Past crimes (unsolved or wrongfully convicted)
Cause, Location, Time of Death
Paternity cases
Cyber crimes
Corporate Crimes (Enron)
Voice Analysis
IDENTIFY POTENTIAL SUSPECTS WHOSE DNA MAY MATCH EVIDENCE LEFT AT CRIME SCENES
EXONERATE PERSONS WRONGLY ACCUSED OF CRIMES
IDENTIFY CRIME & CATSTROPHE VICITIMS
ESTABLISH PATERNITY AND OTHER FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS

30. Applications of Forensic Science
Application of DNA as evidence
Prevention vs. Reaction
Catastrophes & Wars
ID remains of victims (either civilian or soldiers)
ex. Holocaust or Katrina
Military & International Forensics
Terrorism
The search for WMD’s
stockpiled or stored weapons from past wars
IDENTIFY POTENTIAL SUSPECTS WHOSE DNA MAY MATCH EVIDENCE LEFT AT CRIME SCENES
EXONERATE PERSONS WRONGLY ACCUSED OF CRIMES
IDENTIFY CRIME & CATSTROPHE VICITIMS
ESTABLISH PATERNITY AND OTHER FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS

31. Forensic Scientist Job Description Process and document crime scenes
Collect and preserve evidence
Analyze and compare evidence in a laboratory
Reconstruction of data
Provide Expert Testimony
Skills Needed
Good observation skills
Analytical skills
Deductive reasoning

32. Branches of Forensic Science:
medical doctors, medical examiners, and pathologists
study medical history, perform an autopsy, and collect medical and trace evidence from the body for further analysis
Help determine cause and circumstances of death

33. dentists who specialize in identification perform bite mark analysis and dental identification when there is no other way for body identification

34. Forensic Toxicology
medical examiners and the Coroner’s office determine toxic substances in the body; includes drugs and poisons

35. Forensic Anthropology
identification of persons or personal characteristics (sex, age, race, stature) based on body remains

36. Munitions
When the Army unearthed more than a 1,000 mortar rounds from a WW2 training site, they enlisted a Forensic Science Lab to determine which were live munitions & which were dummies.

37. Forensic Serology
identification of blood and other body fluids (semen, vaginal fluid, saliva)

38. Forensic Serology
identification of blood and other body fluids (semen, vaginal fluid, saliva)

39. Forensic Psychiatry and Psychology
evaluate offenders and profile criminal cases

40. Forensic Computer Science
investigate criminal use of technology and electronic records

41. Forensic Entomology
uses insects to determine time of death and location of a corpse

42. Changes Induced at Scene and Physical Evidence
We cannot stress how much any find at a crime scene is important.
A single bead of a necklace can be the determining factor of trying to prove someone's whereabouts.

43. Imprints vs Indentations
An imprint is a mark left by an object when it came in contact with another object (2D)
An indentation is a three-dimensional mark left in a soft(derformable) object.

44. Striations
Grooves/Scratches when two surface pass over each other. (Toolmarks)

45. Locard Exchange Principle
Another way physical evidence is produced is when two surface/materials come into contact.
There will be an exchange of material across the contact boundary.
Example: animal hair.

46. Deposits
Sometimes direct contact is not required. Physical evidence can be left behind when large or small quantities of materials travel through the air.

47. Uses of Physical Evidence
Developing an MO (Modus Operandi)
Looking through physical evidence allows to determine commonalities among crime scenes.

48. Exclusions and Linkages
Proving something DOESN’T belong to a crime is as powerful as proving something DOES belong.
The goal is corpus delecti - the facts and circumstances constituting a breach of a law.
concrete evidence of a crime, such as a corpse.
Linkage shows events are linked, exlusions shows events are not.

49. Importance of Proper Evidence Collection
You can be the smartest scientist in the world but improper handling of evidence can break a case.

50. Chain of Custody:
Chain of Custody refers to the document or paper trail showing the seizure, custody, control, transfer, analysis, and disposition of physical and electronic evidence.
Chain-of-custody bears on the weight of the evidence, not its admissibility.
Just because you don’t have a chain-of-custody process doesn’t mean that the evidence is inadmissible. Admissibility is determined by the manner in which the evidence was acquired. It must be legally obtained!

51. (consists of the first ten amendments to the Constitution)
The Bill of Rights
(consists of the first ten amendments to the Constitution)
First Amendment:  Freedom of Religion, Speech, and Press, the Right to Assemble Peaceably and to Petition the Government “for a redress of grievances.”
Second Amendment: Right to Keep and Bear Arms- “A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.”
Third Amendment: Quartering of Troops- “No soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.”
Fourth Amendment: Search and Seizure- “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.“
Fifth Amendment: Grand Jury, Double Jeopardy, Self-Incrimination, Due Process
Sixth Amendment: Criminal Prosecutions – Right to  a speedy public trial by an impartial jury, to confront witnesses and to counsel for defense.
Seventh Amendment: Common Law Suits –Right to a Trial by Jury
Eighth Amendment: No Excessive Bail or Fines or Cruel and Unusual Punishment- “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.”
Ninth Amendment: Non-Enumerated Rights or “Rule of Construction of the Constitution”-  “The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.”
Tenth Amendment: States’ Rights- Rights not explicitly delegated to the Federal Government in the Constitution are reserved to the States or to the People.

52. Steps in Pursuing Justice:
Crime is committed
Crime is discovered (a suspect may be identified)
Police investigate and information is collected
Crime Scene is documented and searched for evidence
All information assembled into a report for a prosecutor
Investigation ensues
If there is enough evidence to establish probable cause, an arrest warrant is issued
After arrest, suspect is booked, fingerprinted, photographed, and informed of Miranda Rights

53. Not guilty by reason of insanity Double jeopardy No contest
Suspect is brought before magistrate, judge, or commissioner within 72 hours for arraignment
During arraignment the defendant is brought before court to hear charges and enter a plea.
May enter a plea of:
Guilty
Not guilty
Not guilty by reason of insanity
Double jeopardy
No contest
Preliminary or evidentiary hearing, Grand Jury, or Plea bargaining
** More than 90% of convictions come from negotiated pleas, which means less than 10% of criminal cases end up in trials.

56. A Virtual Tour of
the Body Farm

57. Doorway to death, the main gate of the Anthropology Research Facility—the “Body Farm”—consists of a wooden privacy fence inside a chain-link fence topped with razor wire.

58. Security is a high priority
Security is a high priority. Fences, padlocks, video surveillance cameras, & police patrols safeguard the world’s only human-decomposition research facility.

59. One research study examined the effects of the elevated temperatures—and limited insect access—to which a body in a car would be subjected.

60. Corpse 1-81 was an elderly white male; he became part of a pioneering study of insect activity in human corpses.

61. Close-up of a recent research subject
Close-up of a recent research subject. After only a few weeks in the Tennessee summer, the skull is completely bare & many vertebrae are exposed. The rib cage & pelvis are covered with dried, leathery skin, but the soft tissues beneath are gone, consumed by insects & bacteria.

62. Close-up of a human femur & hip bone, containing an artificial hip implant. Such orthopedic devices can help identify an unknown crime victim.

63. An aerial view of the Body Farm
An aerial view of the Body Farm. Large wooden tripods are used for hoisting & weighing bodies as part of a research study of weight loss during decomposition.

64. A jaw from a research subject held by the founder of the Body Farm, Dr Bill Bass.

65. Key Question: Time Since Death?
How does the decomposition rate compare in:
sunshine vs shade?
In cool weather vs hot weather?
In a shallow grave vs on the ground?
In water?
Inside a car?
What effect do other variables have—humidity, insect activity, clothing, body weight, & so on?

66. Why is TSD so important?
1st question at most murder scenes: "How long has this person been dead?“
TSD: Time Since Death
It's crucial to know when the crime was committed.
it can help narrow the search for a suspect or
it can help rule out potential suspects who had alibis at the time the victim was killed.
Now, if the body's fresh--no more than a day or two old--a medical examiner can generally pin down the time since death to within a matter of hours. But if the body's badly decayed--for instance, if it was dumped in the woods and lay there for weeks or months before being found by hunters--determining time since death requires detailed knowledge of the stages of decomposition, the role of temperature and humidity, the extent of insect activity in the corpse, and so on. Those are the kinds of variables we've spent decades researching at the Body Farm