Link : http://www.forensicmag.com/articles.asp?pid=231
A common problem in death investigation is the finding and identification of objects and places associated with either the commission of an incident or the actual location of a decedent's body. Weapons are often disposed of in natural areas: objects, clothing, and vehicles may be cleaned in an attempt to remove evidence of blood and tissue; bodies are buried in remote areas or with associated efforts to conceal burial. Once an object or place is located, standard criminalistic, archeological, and forensic investigative methods can be used to make the victim, perpetrator, or object linking.
Various methods are utilized to locate an object of interest such as searching an area with trained dogs. In this article it is apparent that the use of specially trained canines for the location of human remains and objects of forensic interest. Forensics uses a canine that has been specifically trained to indicate a scent source as being from decomposed human tissue. Latimer believes canine forensics will continue to build on its reputation within the scientific and legal communities.
“But that will only happen if we work on improving the profession and policing ourselves rather than waiting for legal decisions in big cases to dictate the way we do things,” he said. “If we are proactive enough, many of the legal challenges can be avoided.”
3 comments:
I really enjoyed Trent's article about the use of canine dogs in the forensic field. I thought his writing was good and to the point and that it was an unusual topic to choose which made it really interesting. I liked that he touched on the use of canines in forensics which is not a common topic so it was something that I hadn't heard a million times before. It would have been nice if he had gone into a bit more detail and maybe even given an example of a specific case where canine's were used. I really felt I learned alot about this and will be interested to hear whether the legal system will accept it.
What I liked most about the article and the way Trent presented it was the fact that he chose an interesting topic that addressed the advances being made in forensic science. In addition, I thought it was well written. Lastly, he gave a good analysis of the article and made clear its primary focuses. The review, however, could have been better if he used more examples from the article and provided more facts or examples of where and when canines have been used. Overall, I learned a great deal on how we can use animals to find bodies and evidence that can bring justice to the court room.
I enjoyed Trents article that he chose because it is an abnormal topic that can change forensic science greatly in the search for evidence. I also liked how he succinctly wrote up the main points of the event he had chosen. I liked how he was explaining, before he brought up the main point about the dogs, the process forensics scientists go through. I only would make a couple changes about his critique. I would ask that he spend more time talking about the use of dogs instead of more of the background of forensic science and also that he uses maybe one more quote to show the article that he had used was a little more valid to the point he was talking about. i found the fact that using dogs could actually be an effective way to find bodies and that it is almost to the point where it is accepted by all forensic sciences.
Joe Wood
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