Criminal Investigation &
Forensic Science
FORENSICS
…to mean the methods of science applied
to matters involving the justice system
Which sciences are forensic sciences?
Any science can be a forensic science if it
has some application to justice
Criminalistics, Pathology, Anthropology,
Odontology, Engineering, Entomology
Forensic Science applies
Chemistry
Biology
Physics
Geology
} to civil and criminal law
Places physical evidence into a professional
discipline.
Forensic Science is the application of science to those
criminal and civil laws that are enforced by police agencies
in a criminal justice system.
Forensic Science is…
Applied Science
Often called “criminalistics”
CRIMINALISTICS
The term can be used to describe the
comparative forensic sciences such as
fingerprints, questioned documents,
firearms and toolmarks
• Most commonly, however,
criminalistics refers to the myriad of
types of physical evidence
generated by crime scenes
• Illicit drugs, blood and DNA, fire and
explosive residues, hairs and fibers,
glass and soil particles, paints and
plastics, fingerprints, bullets, and
much more
The development of
Forensic Science
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle:
Popularized physical detection
methods in a crime scene
Developed the character
Sherlock Holmes
FORENSIC PATHOLOGY
Forensic pathologists determine the cause
and manner of death in cases where
someone dies under suspicious circumstances
Cause of death – event that directly causes
death
- Stroke, drug overdose, auto crash,
poisioning, etc.
Manner of death – the type of death (four
only)
FORENSIC PATHOLOGY
Homicide, natural, accidental, and suicide
(and/or undetermined manner of death)
Autopsy (or postmortem examination) is used
to make these determinations (to determine
the cause)
Pathologists work for medical examiners or
coroners (varies by state)
After a human body expires there are several stages of death
-Rigor Mortis
immediately following death, the muscles relax and then become rigid,
shortening of the muscles.
-Livor Mortis
when the human heart stops pumping, the blood begins to settle in the
parts of the body closest to the ground due to gravity. The skin will
appear dark blue or purple in these lower areas close to the ground.
- Algor Mortis
the process in which the body temperature continually cools after death
until it reaches room temperature, enabling the medical examiner to
establish the general time of death.
FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGY
● Forensic anthropologists work with skeletal remains for identification and
examination
● If they have the correct bones:
○ Species, gender, age, racial characteristics, manner of death, and even
socioeconomic status can be determined
● If human, they determine from what part of the body the bone originated
● If there is an injury to a skeleton or major bones, the cause of the injury or
death can be determined
● It is also possible to build a face onto a skull using clay and pegs of various
sizes
● Facial reconstruction helps find missing persons
FORENSIC ODONTOLOGY
Odontology is a another name for dentistry
Bite marks on a victim or other object can be
matched to a suspect
Forensic odontologists can also help identify
remains from disasters such as plane crashes
Postmortem dental records are taken and matched
to x-rays taken before death
It is also possible to distinguish causes of facial
injuries for the an identification of an unknown
individual
Falling down the stairs vs. being struck by an
object
Forensic Entomology
The study of insects and their developmental
stages
Can help to determine the time of death by
knowing when those stages normally appear in
the insect's life cycle
■ Flies (usually blowflies) are usually the first to arrive at a crime
scene
■ Flies and other insects lay their eggs in decaying flesh
■ Different insects do this at different times
■ Other insects such as beetles and wasps will attack and feed
off the insects and eggs
■ This parade of visitors takes place at surprisingly consistent
time intervals
■ Forensic entomologists can estimate the postmortem interval
(how long ago death occurred)
■ If a person has been poisoned or has overdosed, flies and other
insects will ingest this as well
FORENSIC ENGINEERING
■ Forensic engineers can be valuable in cases where something has gone wrong
with a mechanical or structural entity or in cases of automobile crashes
■ Failure analysis is one of the major contributions that forensic engineers make
to the justice system
■ The majority of the work of forensic engineers is in the investigation of traffic
crashes
■ Accident reconstruction is used to determine speeds, directions of impact,
and who was driving the vehicle at the time of impact
■ Used to analyze construction accidents, and the causes and origins of fires
or explosions
FORENSIC PSYCIATRY
■ The study of human behavior and
legal proceedings in both civil and
criminal cases
■ In civil and criminal cases, competency
often needs to be determined
■ In criminal trials, the evaluation of
behavior disorders is often required in
order to establish the psychological
profile of a suspect.
