Despite all the forensic shows and movies you have seen, this branch of science is really not all the glamorous. In fact, this is tedious, repetitive work that sometimes entails months and months of hard work with one case stacked on top of the other. And although the popular concept of catching criminals because of one piece of hair or a partial fingerprint left on a gun barrel may seem like plausible concepts, most real life cases are not as clear cut as these. In fact, there are so many cases that have remained unsolved over the decades with very little chance of them seeing any court time. Amazingly, forensics is not about merely finding out the truth. It is about unearthing enough evidence in the interest of what legal action (civil or criminal) should be taken. If there is not enough to bring any form of conviction to light, these cases remain in storage or in file.
Forensic Science encompasses everything that has to deal with death – and this is a huge spectrum in itself without having to include the legal aspects of the evidences at hand. This will include the physiological sciences like forensic anthropology, odontology, entomology and pathology. Cyber tech involves computer forensics and informational forensics. Forensic psychiatry and psychology belong to social sciences.
Some forensic labs contain one or more offices that deals with ballistics, blood stain pattern analysis, bomb site reconstruction, controlled substances, DNA profiling, fingerprint analysis, fire investigation (arson office,) forensic accounting, forensic arts, forensic footwear evidence, forensic engineering (which may include material and polymer comparison and reconstruction,) forensic toxicology, plane crash reconstruction, questioned document examination, trace evidence laboratory and vehicular accident reconstruction (which may include tire track comparison.)
However, since these “diagnostic tools” are pretty much bulky and expensive, only the largest forensic laboratories in the US can accommodate some of the offices. Very often, evidence is shipped outside the county or state to federal offices instead. Or, if the local university has in-house experts who specialize in “unique” subjects like ancient weapons or water contaminants, evidence may be submitted to these aforementioned people with the probability that these experts and their findings may be subpoenaed at a later date.
Other things you may not know about forensic science deals with the matches: DNA matches, fingerprints, car make and shoe sole matches. In TV shows and movies, these matches can be made by simply typing in a key on a “special” computer and the results easily appear on the monitor or are printed neatly on a piece of paper. In very dramatic instances, matches are even made “conclusively” by visual comparison only. The truth is: DNA testing can take weeks and weeks before completion. AFIS or automated fingerprint identification software may be a boon to forensics, but these too do not make matches at the drop of a hat. These can take days at the very least, because very often, clear or whole fingerprints are never extracted in pristine order from crime scenes. And lastly, visual comparison is never accepted in the court rooms, so conclusive evidence cannot be attained through this method.
Tags
Science