Download Forensic Science

Seminar:
Introduction to
Forensic Science
Definition and Scope
Freddie Arocho-Perez
Kaplan University
SC300: Big Ideas in Science
What is Forensic Science?
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The application of science to criminal and civil
laws that are enforced in the justice system.
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Any application of science to law enforcement.
Includes geology, chemistry, physics, biology, etc.
Criminalistics – any of the services provided by
a crime laboratory.
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For all intents and purposes, the term is usually
interchangeable with forensic science.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
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Author of the Sherlock Holmes
series.
Popularized forensic investigation
through his novels.
Used up-and-coming detective
methods in his stories, including
fingerprinting, serology, firearm
identification, and questioned
documents.
Major Contributors to the Field
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Mathieu Orfila (1787-1853) – father of
toxicology: the science of dealing with
poisons and their effects.
Alphonse Bertillon (1853-1914) – developed
science of anthropometry – the taking of a
series of body measurements for means of
personal identification (later replaced by
more reliable fingerprinting).
Francis Galton (1822-1911) – first thorough
study of fingerprints and how to classify
them; offered statistical proof of their
uniqueness.
Major Contributors to the Field
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Edmond Locard (1877-1966) –
created the first rudimentary
crime lab in Lyon, France (1910).
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Locard’s Exchange Principle –
“When a criminal comes in contact
with an object or person, a crosstransfer of evidence occurs.”
"Every Contact Leaves a Trace"
Major Contributors to the Field
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Every criminal can be connected to his/her crime
scene by something as small as dust particles
carried to or from the scene.
First to request that suspects’ clothing be
examined in the lab.
His success led to the establishment of police
labs in Vienna, Berlin, Sweden, Finland, and
Holland.
Federal Bureau of Investigation
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Under director J. Edgar Hoover, national lab
for forensic services established in 1932.
FBI lab is now the world’s largest, with 1
million examinations each year.
Introduction to Crime Scene
Investigation
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The purpose of crime scene investigation is
to help establish what happened (crime
scene reconstruction) and to identify the
responsible person.
Carefully documenting the conditions at a
crime scene and recognizing all relevant
physical evidence.
Introduction to Crime Scene
Investigation
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The ability to recognize and properly collect
physical evidence is oftentimes critical to
both solving and prosecuting violent crimes.
It is important to determine the full extent of a
crime scene.
The Crime Scene
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A place where a crime has taken place.
A starting point for a criminal investigation.
A crime scene is not merely the immediate
area where a body is located or where an
assailant concentrated his activities but can
also encompass a vehicle and
access/escape routes.
Crime Scene Vocabulary
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Crime Scene: Any physical location in which a crime has
occurred or is suspected of having occurred.
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Primary Crime Scene: The original location of a crime or
accident.
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Secondary Crime Scene: An alternate location, such as where
additional evidence may be found.
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Suspect: Person thought to be capable of committing a crime.
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Accomplice: Second person associated with committing a
crime.
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Alibi: Statement of where a suspect was at the time of a crime.
Types of Evidence
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Evidence used to resolve a crime can be split into 2 areas:
testimonial evidence and physical evidence.
– The testimonial evidence would be any witnessed
accounts of an incident or crime.
– The physical evidence would refer to any material items
that would be present on the crime scene or the victims.
These items would be presented in a crime investigation to
prove or disprove the facts of the issue.
 Examples include DNA, the body itself, the weapon
used, pieces of carpet, blood and other body fluids,
fingerprints, or casts of footprints or tire prints.
 Trace evidence refers evidence that is found at a crime
scene in small but measurable amounts.
Crime Scene Search Patterns
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The purpose of a search is to locate,
identify, and collect any tangible
material which may be associated
with a suspect and/or victim from the
crime scene and/or the crime.
There are standard search patterns
used at a crime scene, especially
when the scene is very large. These
patterns include: spiral, grid, strip or
line, and quadrant or zone search.
Forensic Science disciplines at the
Illinois State Police Crime Labs
Investigating the Evidence
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Drug Chemistry - Determines the presence of
controlled substances and the identification of
marijuana
Trace Chemistry - Identification and comparison of
materials from fires, explosions, paints, and glass.
Microscopy - Identification and comparison of hairs,
fibers, woods, soils, building materials, insulation
and a broad group of materials referred to as
“particulate unknowns”.
Biology/DNA - Presence and comparison of body
fluids and dried stains such as blood, semen, and
saliva.
Toxicology - Determines the presence of drugs and
poisons in tissue, blood, urine and other body fluids.
Forensic Science disciplines at the
Illinois State Police Crime Labs
Investigating the Evidence
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Latent Prints - Identification and comparison of
hidden impressions from sources like fingers, palms,
feet, shoes, ears, lips or the tread on vehicle tires.
Firearms & Toolmarks - Examination and
comparison of fired bullets, discharged cartridges,
guns, gunpowder patterns, and marks left by erased
serial numbers in metal or by burglary tools like a pry
bar or screwdriver.
Questioned Documents - Side by side comparisons
of questioned handwriting and hand printing, ink,
paper, writing instruments, printers, photocopiers,
additions, eradications, obliterations, watermarks,
and impressions.
Analytical Instrumentation: HPLC
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HPLC: High-Performance
Liquid Chromatography
System is fully automated
using data acquisition
software.
HPLC is a commonly used
technique for separating
and analyzing sample
components in the forensic
laboratory.
HPLC Configuration
Analytical Instrumentation: HPLC
Analytical Instrumentation: AFM
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AFM: Atomic Force
Microscopy
AFM has the advantage of
imaging almost any type of
surface, including ceramics,
glass, and biological
samples.
Resolution of fractions of a
nanometer; one billionth of a
meter.
Analytical Instrumentation: AFM
AFM Configuration
Analytical Instrumentation: AFM
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Progressive images from atomic
force microscopy show the
compaction of DNA in yeast
caused by a protein called AbF2.
Analytical Instrumentation: AFM
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Images of a virus
called Phi29,
associated to
Hepatitis B.
Identification of Drugs
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Screening Tests: Changes in
Color
Marquis Test
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Test for heroin, morphine, opium
derivatives.
Substances turn purple with 2%
formaldehyde in sulfuric acid.
Scott Test
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Cocaine turns blue when mixed with
solution A (2% cobalt thiocyanate in
water and glycerine).
The blue color turns clear with
addition of solution B (concentrated
hydrochloric acid).
The clear color turns blue again with
the addition of chloroform.
Identification of Drugs
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Screening Tests: Changes in
Color
Duquenois-Levine Test
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Marijuana turns purple in the
chloroform layer when treated by
solution A (2% vanillin and 1%
acetaldehyde in ethyl alcohol);
solution B (concentrated
hydrochloric acid); and solution C
(chloroform).
Bloodstain Analysis
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Bloodstain revealed by the
“chemi-luminescent”
reaction between blood and
luminol.
Luminol reacts with Iron
found in hemoglobin.
Mass Spectrometry
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The drug enters the
mass spectrometer
where it is broken into
fragments.
The size and amounts of
these fragments are
specific to each
compound.
The spectra obtained
from these fragments
can be compared to a
known standard.
Evidence Examples
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Blood
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There are 150 known proteins, 250 known enzymes, and
many more antigens in blood.
Investigators can often estimate the time a crime occurred
from how dry the blood is.
The shape of blood at the scene (pool, drops, stains, or
splashes) can provides clues as to what happened as well as
the location and description of bloodstains.
Blood evidence is frequently used to eliminate a pool of
suspects.
Evidence Examples
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Fingerprints
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A fingerprint can conclusively identify both suspects and victims,
since everyone has unique fingerprint patterns.
Databases, such as AFIS (Automated Fingerprint Identification
System) are available for rapid computerized searching, on
national, state and local levels.
Bite Marks
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Each of the thirty-two teeth in humans is unique due to age and
wear.
Bites can tell how quickly the offender subdued the victim and
can often be matched to dental records.
Evidence Examples
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Wounds
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Wounds can often be matched to weapons, tool marks on
the weapon, or at least the weapon's size, shape, and
length.
Wound pattern analysis is a special technique that often
provides clues to how a crime was committed or
characteristics of the suspect (left-handed, right-handed,
height, etc.).
Tool Marks
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When a tool is made and used, tiny nicks and chips begin to
form, which adds unique characteristics to its blade and
edges. Tools may also pick up traces of substances it came
in contact with.
Evidence Examples
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Skeletal Remains
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Forensic anthropologists analyze skeletal remains to
determine four characteristics for a victim: age, sex, race,
and stature.
Determining the sex of a victim is the first step in the
analysis of unidentified human remains. The innominate
bone, which comprises the pelvis, offers the most
definitive traits. The humerus or femur is also used and an
analysis of the skull can give investigators clues about the
whether the person was male or female.
Determining the age and stature (height) of a victim can
be done by analyzing the development of the teeth, bone
growth, and the length of specific bones, such as the
femur.
Determining the race of a victim can be done by analyzing
the skull for specific characteristics that are common
among people of different races.
Evidence Examples
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Facial Composites
– Investigators work with sketch
artists and eyewitnesses to
create facial composites, or
sketches of a person’s face.
– Today many police
departments are using facial
reconstruction software to help
them with this task.
– The composite may be used
internally to assist officers in
identifying the suspect or used
externally through local media
(radio, TV, and newspaper) to
solicit leads from citizens.