History of Forensics
Who identified the different characteristics of fingerprints, long before the modern system of identification was set in place?
What case set the precedent of scientific community acceptance of evidence and methods in a trial?
Frye v. US
The first S of CSI
Secure the Scene
An investigator should only photograph relevant evidence.
You come across a tshirt soaked in an unknown fluid. How do you classify and collect?
collect: use gloves to collect the whole shirt into a bag, labeled as evidence
classify: unknown fluid - toxicology, physical (chemistry), biology (blood)
fibers - physical
Who was Mathieu Orfila? What is he known for?
Father of Toxicology
Textbook about toxicology as a study of forensics
Who is the ultimate authority on the admissibility of evidence?
the judge presiding over the case
Who secures the scene, and for what purpose?
first officer on scene (or investigator)
security of evidence, management of people on scene, medical help
This step of the 7 S's creates a map of the scene, by which investigators, the jury and the judge can examine the crime scene.
sketch
You come across tire marks in a dirt road, 20 ft from where a body lies.
How do you classify and collect?
Collect : relief with plaster, pictures
Classify : ballistics (impression)
What is anthropometry? Who created it, and why?
anthropometry - study of measurements and proportions of the body
Bertillon
personal identification of criminals
This court trial established the rules for evidence admissibility, titled the Daubert Standard.
Daubert v. Merrell Pharma Inc.
Why are witness testimonies are often disregarded until proven?
-Biased memory and observation
-lying
-collusion
These are necessary parts of the final sketch.
Title Box, evidence key, compass, dimension, and the body of the sketch.
You come across a bloody bathroom, the victim on the far side of the room. How do you collect and classify evidence from the victim?
Blood - biology, swab/cotton pad, tape or scrape up
Hair - biology/DNA, tweezers, separate different sources
Nail Clippings - dirt (physical), DNA/biology, tweezers, tape or vacuum
Before this man, forensics was a wild west of random principles and methods. After this man, forensics followed a system, the nature of science and the scientific method. Who is that man?
Gross
Eureka! The Smith lab has come up with a new test for a previously undetectable poison, but it has not been peer-reviewed. They want to present this evidence in a trial, where they detected the poison in a bottle that the suspect was carrying. Is this evidence acceptable?
no.
What purpose does the 3rd "S" serve?
initial walkthrough (first impressions)
-condition of the crime scene
-evidence
-victim/suspect?
-any additonal information from responding officer
the 5 official search methods of forensics are these.
spiral
grid
quadrant
line
wheel
As an investigator in a high profile case, you are tasked with collecting and sending off saliva samples.
How do you do this?
classify : biology/DNA
Who is Edmund Locard?
opened the first crime lab in Europe
Locard's Principle : trace evidence; the transference of evidence from one source to another; evidence left at the crime scene can be traced to a specific source and vice versa.
How could the Daubert and Frye rulings negatively affect an investigation?
-evidence/method not widely accepted enough
-double jeopardy
Secure, Separate, Scan, ______. This step has to do with what process?
See
Photography of the crime scene
why don't investigators collect all things in a crime scene as evidence?
time, money, relevence
The chain of custody.
what is the paper trail that follows and tracks all evidence to maintain proper handling?