Development of Forensic Science
Crime Lab Organization
Crime Lab Services
Functions of the Forensic Scientist
Determining Admissibility
100

This is the definition of forensic science. 

What is the application of science to the laws enforced by police agencies in a criminal justice system? 

100

This is the world's largest forensic laboratory, organized in 1932 under the direction of J. Edgar Hoover.

What is the FBI Laboratory in Quantico, VA?

100

This is the unit that applies principles and techniques from various scientific disciplines to the identification and comparison of crime scene evidence. 

What is the physical science unit? 

100

This is an individual whom the court determines to have a particular skill or knowledge that is not expected of the average person and will aid the court in determining the truth of a matter at trial.

What is an expert witness? 

100

This person was assigned the responsibility of acting as a "gatekeeper" in judging the admissibility of scientific evidence in Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals. 

Who is the trial judge?

200

He is the "father of forensic toxicology" who published the first scientific treatise on poisons and their effects in 1814. 

Who is Mathieu Orfila? 

200

These are the four government agencies that offer forensic services at the federal level. 

What are the FBI, DEA, ATF, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service?

200

This unit dispatches specially trained personnel to the crime scene to collect and preserve evidence. 

What is the crime-scene investigation unit?

200

This is the difference between the testimonies of lay and expert witnesses. 

What is that lay witness testimonies must be factual, while expert witness testimonies offer opinions based on scientific analysis?

200

This document offers a more flexible standard for admitting scientific evidence than the Frye standard. 

What is the Federal Rules of Evidence? 

300

This was the first system of personal identification that distinguished between individuals based on body measurements and was developed by Alphonse Bertillon. 

What is anthropometry? 

300

These are the benefits of having regional labs operate as part of a statewide system. 

What is...

- Increased access for local agencies to crime labs

- Minimized duplication of services 

- Ensures inter-laboratory cooperation

300

This unit is staffed by professionals who perform DNA profiling on and compare biological samples like blood, hair, or bodily fluids. 

What is the biology unit? 

300

These are the three main functions of a forensic scientist. 

What are...

- to analyze physical evidence 

- to provide expert testimony

- to train others on evidence recognition and collection

300

This is the standard for admitting scientific evidence laid out in the case of Frye v. United States. 

What is...

in order to be admitted as evidence, the questioned procedure, technique, or principles must be "generally accepted" by a meaningful portion of the relevant scientific community. 

400

This is Locard's exchange principle. 

What is the fact that when two objects come into contact with each other, a cross transfer of materials occurs? 

400

These are responsible for essentially eliminating  confessions as a routine investigative tool since the 1960s.

What are Supreme Court decisions that required police to advise criminal suspects of their rights to remain silence and immediately access a lawyer?

400

This unit examines bodily fluids for the presence or absence of drugs and poisons. 

What is the toxicology unit

400

This is why it is important for all police officers working in the field to be trained on evidence recognition, collection, and preservation. 

What is the fact that a CSI unit may not always be available?

400

This is was the court's decision on admitting the scientific evidence brought up in the State v. Jascalevich trial. 

What is...

The court admitted the evidence and left the jury to determine its significance. 

500

He developed the first DNA profiling test in 1984. 

Who is Sir Alec Jeffreys? 

500

This is why the demand for drug-testing capabilities has increased so much since the 1960s. 

What is...

- Increased rate of drug-related crimes 

- Requirement that all drug seizures be sent to a lab for confirmatory chemical analysis

500

This is the unit that would examine and compare marks left by tools.  

What is the firearms unit? 

500

This is why physical evidence is preferred over confessions and eyewitness accounts for assistance in solving a crime. 

What is the fact that physical evidence is the only one of these methods that is free from inherent error/bias? 

500

This is what the case of Kumho Tire Co. v. Carmichael contributed to the standards for admitting evidence into court. 

What is that the judge's gatekeeping role extends to all expert testimony, not just scientific testimony. 

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