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Introduction
Forensics is the application of science to law. Forensic science is used to investigate criminal cases involving a victim, such as assault, robbery, kidnapping, rape, murder and civil cases such as forgeries, fraud, or negligence. Forensics determines if laws or regulations were violated in marketing food and drinks, manufacturing of medicines, agricultural pesticide use, automobile emission compliance, drinking water purity, and monitoring international secret nuclear weapons program. "Forensic Science," Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2000 http://encarta.msn.com 1997-2000 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved Forensic Science Resources - Forensic sciences directory and resource compilation. Forensic Services Division -- Forensic examiners in the Secret Service Forensic Services Division (FSD) provide analysis for documents, fingerprints, false identification, credit cards, and other related forensic science areas. Examiners use instrumental and chemical analysis to reviewing evidence. FSD manages the Secret Service’s polygraph program. The division coordinates photographic, graphic, video, audio, image enhancement service, and voice identification. FSD is responsible for the Forensic Hypnosis Program. As part of the 1994 Crime Bill, Congress mandated the Secret Service to provide forensic/technical assistance for missing and sexually exploited children. FSD offers assistance to federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, the Morgan P. Hardiman Task Force and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). For more government crime and justice agencies, see Government Agencies Forensic Science Communications -- A forensic science journal published quarterly in January, April, July, and October by FBI Laboratory personnel. It is a means of communication between forensic scientists. Forensics - Police Listing of Resources Crime Scene Investigation Articles - Crime Scene Investigators resources. Stranger than fiction, crime scene investigation requires an eye for detail and a strong stomach. Lie Detection: Sweating the Truth -- For centuries investigators relied on their wits and intuition to determine whether a suspect was telling the truth. In the mid-20th century, technology offered a more scientific means the lie detector, or polygraph. For over 20 years, Joyce Gilchrist's testimony in court meant the difference between innocence and guilt. Brain Fingerprinting testing has proven to be 100% accurate in 170 tests, which included actual criminal cases, tests on FBI agents and military medical experts. In all but 6 cases, the system produced a determination of either "information present" or "information absent." 100% of these determinations were correct. In 6 cases, insufficient information was available and no determination was made. Explore the Interactive Autopsy with Dr. Baden! See what an actual forensic autopsy entails through exclusive video, autopsy stills and 3D animation. The Virtual Autopsy -- You read the case history, then read the autopsy reports. Secrets of the Dead: Crime Scene Investigations Meet History. Forensic animation is causing a stir in courtrooms around the country. It has become the latest high-tech way to present evidence in criminal cases. Defense attorney Joe D'Andrea claims a 72-second animation sent his client to prison for life. "There's no doubt that the animation was his demise," says D'Andrea. Frank Bender is a "recomposer of the decomposed." He's one of the top forensic sculptors and identification experts in the nation. Virtual Exhibit on Forensic Science Blood Types Tutorial -- The Human Genetics Tutorial concerning the inheritance of the ABO blood group alleles. University of Arizona Luminol: The Blood Detector -- Luminol is a chemical that glows greenish blue when it comes into contact with blood even traces that are years old. It reacts to hemoglobin, an oxygen-carrying protein in red-blood cells. Luminol can detect blood at 1 part per million. If there is one drop of blood within 999,999 drops of water, Luminol will glow. An interview with DNA forensics authority Dr. Bruce Weir Krazy Glue: The Print Lifter - Krazy Glue is widely used to lift prints from items with previously "impossible" surfaces, such as plastic bags, car windows or even human bodies. On these materials, any brushing, smoothing or touching typically would smear or erase any print. A chemical in the glue called cyanoacrylate, however, is attracted to the amino acids, fats and proteins left behind by human touch, forming a plastic mold of the print. It was an unintended side effect. Handwriting Analysis: Reading Between the Lines -- There are 2 types of handwriting analysts: forensic document examiners and graphologists. Forensic document examiners compare handwriting samples to see if they came from the same person. Graphologists use standardized methods to identify handwriting strokes and relate these to specific personality traits, offering a profile of the suspect.
April 22, 2006 Copyright Kari Sable Burns 1994-2006 |
Forensic Science International - Publishes original contributions in a variety of scientific disciplines pertaining to forensic sciences. Includes forensic pathology, histochemistry, chemistry, biochemistry, toxicology and other areas of examination and investigation relative to science and medicine as they relate to law.
Clinical And Forensic Toxicology News American Academy Of Forensic Sciences Crime Scene Investigation: Crack The Case With Real-Life Experts by Cyril H. Wecht, -- "Concentrate on what cannot lie: the evidence" is sage advice from one of the many popular TV shows based on investigative skills-an audience that now averages 30 million viewers each week and growing. Viewers sit glued to their TVs to watch forensic experts peer through microscopes and dust for fingerprints. Now with this book you, too, can examine every clue, searching for that singular element that can prove invaluable in an investigation. Death's Acre: Inside the Legendary Forensic Lab/the Body Farm/Where the Dead Do Tell Tales -- A pioneer of modern forensic anthropology reveals secrets of the world's first-and only-laboratory devoted to death. Cracking Cases: The Science of Solving Crimes by Henry C. Lee, Thomas W. O'Neil (Contributor), and Charles D. Gill- - Dr. Lee world-renowned forensic expert investigates five murder cases. Includes the OJ Simpson case, where Dr. Lee's scrutiny of blood evidence revealed Los Angeles Police Department missed blood drops on Nicole Simpson's back, a second footprint of a possible assailant, and the physical unlikelihood Simpson climbed a fence. The "Wood chipper murder" a pilot killed his wife, then ground up her body. Ed Sherman an English professor attempted to cover up the time of his wife's death by turning up the air-conditioning and claiming he was away sailing. In the Mathison murder, a seasoned Hawaiian police sergeant ran over his wife after a quarrel. Police sergeant MacArthur staged his wife's suicide. Dr. Lee gained respect through his testimony in the OJ Simpson trial. Dr. Lee presents a simply understood scientific account of the murders, blood-spatter evidence and blood identification, and DNA. Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach A forensic exploration of postmortem bodies. For 2000 years, cadavers have been involved in science. They've tested France's first guillotines, ridden the NASA Space Shuttle, been crucified in a Parisian laboratory to test the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin, and helped solve the mystery of TWA Flight 800. Roach visits cadavers from the anatomy labs and pharmacies of medieval and 19th-century Europe to a human decay research facility in Tennessee, to a plastic surgery practice lab, to a Scandinavian funeral directors' conference on human composting. There are chapters on cannibalism, Chinese crematorium, 13 b/w illustrations. Crime Science for the Future by Marcus Felson Pointing from the Grave by Samantha Weinberg, Nadia May -- A grisly murder case that went unsolved for over a decade. The history of DNA and the lives made and destroyed by a molecule. |
by Joe Niehaus Gradually law enforcement specialists have used forensic hypnosis - when collecting information from the witness. Hypnosis enables the witness to recall minute details previously forgotten due to momentary excitement or fear. Investigative Forensic Hypnosis presents the practical application and scientific side of this subject, explaining forensic hypnosis in an understandable way, answering many common questions, and identifying its practical use in the courtroom.The author, with 22 years of experience in law enforcement and 14 years experience in forensic hypnosis, brings his outstanding law enforcement background and valued expertise to this important, informative handbook, dissolving misconceptions or doubts and illuminating forensic hypnosis as a valuable advantage in any case. Investigative Forensic Hypnosis outlines essential guidelines for using forensic hypnosis, and identifies specific procedures for determining the facts of a case. 
