Bronxville HS Forensics Blog

Video Podcast - Identifying Skeletal Remains

2011-10-30T17:21:00.003-04:00

Video Podcast - Human Skeleton Overview

2011-10-23T20:27:00.001-04:00

Video Podcast - Physical Evidence

2011-10-15T20:13:00.001-04:00

Video Podcast - Collection and Preservation of Crime Scene Evidence

2011-10-10T14:35:00.001-04:00

Video Podcast Crime Scene Investigation - Searching for Physical Evidence and Documentation

2011-10-02T16:57:00.000-04:00

Video Podcast - Forensic Pathology Part 2: Stages of Decomposition

2011-09-18T16:16:00.002-04:00

Video Podcast - Forensic Pathology Part 1: Autopsy and Estimating the Time of Death

2011-09-18T16:15:00.002-04:00

Video Podcast - Forensic Entomology Part II - Crime Scene Insects

2011-09-11T17:42:00.001-04:00

Video Podcast - Forensic Entomology Part I: Insect Development

2011-09-11T16:25:00.001-04:00

Video Podcast - Short History of Forensics and Crime Labs

2011-09-02T22:53:00.001-04:00

Video Podcast - "Introduction to Forensic Science"

2011-08-27T17:26:00.001-04:00

Coating Clears Up Fingerprints

2011-05-27T07:42:00.001-04:00

Over the past few months scientists at Penn State University have been working on developing a coat that would clear up fingerprints. Sometimes scientists are not always able to retrieve fingerprints from certain objects. A group of scientists at Penn State have recently developed a “conformal coating process” that can reveal hard-to-develop fingerprints on nonporous surfaces without altering the chemistry of the print. Scientists Shaler and Ahklesh Lakhtakia, Charles Godfrey Binder “used a form of physical vapor deposition a method that uses a vacuum and allows vaporized materials to condense on a surface creating a thin film” This new process is very beneficial because it gives forensics scientists the ability to collect fingerprints from fragments of incendiary or explosive devices and still be able to analyze the chemicals that were used in the device. The coating material is heated in a vacuum, while the artifact to be coated is rotated fairly quickly to allow deposition over the entire surface. This process is very quick and efficient. It takes 15 minutes to produce the coating. These scientists are currently trying to develop “a portable device that could be brought to a crime scene and produce readable fingerprints on site.”

This article is very important to society because it gives forensics scientists the ability to identify and collect fingerprints that they wouldn’t be able to do before. This process should be used because it will make the process of collecting hard to obtain fingerprint samples much easier.

I chose this article because I was unaware of this new method. I was very interested in the advances forensic scientists have made in their field. This new method could be greatly beneficial for the law enforcement. I thought this article was pretty well written, but I thought it could have included more details regarding the topic.

White, James. "Coating Clears Up Fingerprints." Forensic Magazine. Web. 22 May 2011. <http://www.forensicmag.com/news/coating-clears-fingerprints>.

Posted for R.Minetti

Forensic Student Displays Artistic Talent

2011-05-25T09:24:00.003-04:00

To emphasize the need to develop our students' talents across the WHOLE curriculum, here are examples of our science students, who have also spent significant time pursuing and developing their artistic talent. In these hard economic times too often cuts are made in the arts. These works are strong evidence for educators and communities to insist on maintaining a full and meaningful curriculum!!

    Kyrie chose for her AP Art portfolio to produce digital renderings of the story behind foxes in Japanese folklore. Currently, Kyrie is a student in the Forensics course. She has taken four years of science in Bronxville, the "Core", our half year Freshman and Sophomore science courses (Core Chemistry Honors, Core Physics Honors, Core Biology Honors and Core Earth Science), and Biology II Honors. Kyrie has also taken AP courses in AP English Literature.

Forensic Scientists Improve DNA Analysis With Mummy-inspired Bone-baking

2011-05-22T14:11:00.001-04:00

Original Text:
February 1, 2008 — Forensic scientists analyzing bones found in the Gobi desert discovered that the DNA within them could be surprisingly easily extracted. In an experiment designed to mimic the conditions that affected those bones, baking a particularly difficult sample made the DNA much more easily extracted, probably because it makes it easier to break open more cells and expose more of the DNA molecules. Mummies have always held secrets, but now one of them has led to a new DNA technique.
Our fascination with mummies has sold millions at the box office. Now these preserved people -- mummies more than 800 years old -- are helping scientists reveal the mysteries of the past.
University of New Haven forensic scientist Dr. Heather Coyle is experimenting with a new technique by going back in time.
These are skeletal remains recently gathered from a Gobi desert cave. Surprisingly, Dr. Coyle was able to extract DNA from these mummies, but when she tried the same method on a body found in the USA, she was not as successful. "We realized that the bone we were trying to process was not yielding DNA from the case we were working on," Dr. Coyle said.
Standard DNA procedure for bones is to freeze them. When Coyle and her team re-examined the mummy remains they realized the Gobi desert created a natural bone baking process.
"It makes the bone more brittle so it makes it easier to grind and break open more cells, so we think we are accessing more DNA to begin with," Dr. Coyle said. Dr. Coyle decided to mimic nature by baking the cold case bones for 72 hours. Liquid nitrogen was then poured into a pulverizer. The bone was placed inside, ready to be crushed. After a short cycle the bone was turned to powder and ready for DNA extraction.
Coyle hopes her new technique will someday help close the book on several cold case files.

Summary:
When I was in sixth grade, I learned about Egyptian mummies in history class. Six years later, I found this article about forensic scientists in Egypt and how they could easily extract DNA from mummies! Even though the mummies had been dead for thousands of years, their DNA was still present. This article made me curious. How does a person’s DNA last for thousands of years? I thought the DNA had decomposed long ago. Not only did I find this article interesting myself; my parents were also amazed when I told them about it. Lastly, I would like to point out that this article reminded me of the King Tut exhibit at my favorite museum.
However, this article could have been done better in two ways. First of all, I think the original text was too long. Second, I think the author’s writing style was a little too opinionated. This is a news article, not an editorial!
Lastly, I think this article should not only be used in schools, I also think people outside of school (friends, family, penpals, etc.) might find this as interesting as I did. Hope you liked my summary, and don’t forget to comment. That is all.

Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/videos/2008/0201-baking_out_dna.htm

A study on the effect of storage duration and fabric type on DNA quantity extracted from dried seminal stains.

2011-05-18T20:14:00.001-04:00

http://www.forensicmag.com/article/storing-dna-fabric?page=0,0

Sexual violence occurs in every culture, in all levels of society, and in every country of the world. In cases of sexual assault, especially in rape, examinations often involve searching items such as clothing and bedding for seminal stains.¹² The seminal stains recovered on fabrics in the form of stained clothing, undergarments, and swabs on fabric material taken from the vagina and surrounding regions are submitted to DNA fingerprinting tests to compare them with the blood sample of the accused person. Isolation of DNA from such stains, particularly when the stains are old, is usually not possible. The causes could be degradation or decomposition of the biological material,which depends mainly upon the environmental conditions. Extraction was performed by using a genomic DNA purification kit (QIA amp DNA investigator kit for isolation of total genomic DNA from material stained with semen) on the first day as well as after 14 and 30 days. The results from the first day were used as reference samples. DNA quantity in dried seminal stains decreases with increased storage duration, and DNA recovery from natural fabrics (cotton and silk) is much higher than from artificial fabric (polyester), with the maximum yield from cotton followed by silk and polyester. Therefore, in the medicolegal practice, it is recommended that cotton fabric be used for swabs for collection of seminal stains.

This article affects all of humanity because rape is a serious problem around the whole world. With the help of DNA being extracted from clothing, many victims can be helped by the catching of the perpetrator.

The article was long and structured. It broke down everything that was needed to be known and was well written. All key points were addressed and everything was explained properly.

Forensic Breakthrough: Recovering Fingerprints on Fabrics Could Turn Clothes Into Silent Witnesses

2011-05-18T11:32:00.001-04:00

          Recently, Forensic experts at the University of Abertay Dundee and the Scottish Police Services Authority (SPSA) are creating new forensic techniques within the field of fingerprints. The new research seeks to recover fingerprint ridge detail and impressions from fabrics. This usually is considered a difficult task.
This new technique is known as vacuum metal deposition (VMD). This new technique uses gold and zinc to recover the fingerprint mark that is being investigated as part of the research project. VMD is a highly sensitive technique already used to detect fingerprint marks on smooth surfaces such as carrier bags, plastics and glass.

          Joanna Fraser, a forensic sciences researcher at the University of Abertay Dundee, said: "The research uses fine layers of metals to display fingerprints people may have left on fabrics, something which is far harder to do with soft surfaces. The technique has been around since the 1970s and is used on many surfaces but was never widely used on fabrics.”

          The process begins when they place the fabrics in a vacuum chamber. Then they heat up the gold to evaporate, and spread a film over the fabric. Then they heat up the zinc, which attaches to the gold where there are no fingerprint residues. This helps see the fingerprints and is shown on the original fabric.
I thought that this article was very interesting. It is fascinating about the new techniques of fingerprinting and how this new development can prove that the suspect committed the crime or not.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110131073141.htm

On the Scene: Improvised Tools of the Trade

2011-05-10T23:28:00.002-04:00

Sometimes the forensics techniques taught in classes and workshops, or the tools or equipment at an examiner’s disposal simply won’t work given the specifics of the crime scene. In such cases crime scene officers must try to think outside the box. This is how improvised forensics tools are developed. One example of an improvised tool is the Blue Light Special which was developed in 1994. At that time the only lights available to view semen, urine, and saliva samples at the crime scene were too large and too expensive to be used on field work. The blue light special fits on the head of a flashlight and has an amber viewing shield with a 455 nm blue filter included with the unit allows you to see semen, urine, and saliva stains right at the scene. Without such a portable light, you would have to collect everything at a scene that might possibly contain evidence. By identifying the evidence at the scene, you have the advantage of knowing what needs to be packaged and processed right away. Another improvised tool was developed when a crime scene officer needed to take pictures of a crime scene from a bird’s eye view but too far in overgrown woods to call in a truck. So he rigged a camera to the end of a pvc pipe. This is now called the Eagle-eye pole. A recent improvised tool is used to look for dust footprints on the floor. Normally a crime scene officer would have to hold a flashlight near the floor but this can be very uncomfortable. So one person attached a small light to the end of a broomstick on a 45 degree angle therefor the officer does not need to get so close to the floor to look for footprints.

This article relates to forensics scientist because the improvised tools mentioned in the article can be used by any crime scene officer. These tools are developed to try to make it easier for crime scene officers to find evidence at a crime scene.

This article was well written but the article just jumped from tool to tool. The tools were not connected at all except for the fact that they all where improvised.

http://www.forensicmag.com/article/scene-improvised-tools-trade?page=0,1

Cinderella Robbery

2011-05-10T20:53:00.004-04:00

On October 6th, a woman walking home was set upon by two men. One of which held a pistol to her. They walked her home in the attempt to rob her house. Upon arriving at the Woman's house, the lady's mother answered the door and was immediately knocked out by the robbers. The woman's husband heard the commotion and came running. After a scuffle and the lady hitting one of the robbers over the head with a lamp. The thieves decided life was too short and made a break for it. Unfortunately for one of these robbers, he left his sneaker at the scene of the crime. Forensic scientists were able to uncover the identity of the perpetrator by taking a DNA swab from his sneaker. After a few months of DNA research, scientists found a match to the sneaker. The robber had a prison record and an identifiable tattoo. Soon after the man was caught and put in prison.

I thought this article was very interesting because it showed me that scientists can extract DNA from almost anything. They were able to capture a man purely by having his shoe. Another thing I thought was interesting was the fact that the man lost his shoe, I mean they are supposed to be tied to your feet. But I digress... I guess this man will tie up his laces before he committs his next crime.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/16/nyregion/queens-robbery-case-hinges-on-a-sneaker.html?ref=forensicscience

Osama bin Laden's DNA: How sure is 99.9 percent sure?

2011-05-10T20:17:00.003-04:00

          Osama Bin Laden is dead, or so we think. After the shooting of Bin Laden, he was photographed and identified by his wife. John Brennan, assistant of homeland security, said “we can say with 99.9% confidence that this was Bin Laden.” A huge controversy rose. People wondered why they can’t be 100% positive, if they are so sure. His DNA analysis took less than 24 hours and in order to identify him, they compared his DNA to his relatives. The DNA test looks at short tandem repeat sequences and there are more shared repeating patterns in close relatives. However, Bin Laden’s DNA was considered a 99.9% confident, but his DNA was compared to his half sister! Since Bin Laden has no full siblings, his DNA results may be misleading.

          This article relates to the United States in particular. It touches on insecurities society has on the confidence of Bin Laden’s death. There is a possibility, very unlikely, that the body does not belong to Bin Laden, however, there is a high probability that that is not the case. Also, it is important for society to understand that DNA testing is never 100% accurate/confident and that there is always room for error.

          This article was well written and informative, however I would have liked to see the author put a positive perspective on Bin Laden’s death, rather than the concerning/no hope comment at the end. The article’s mood seemed pretty hopeless in terms of ever being confident in the body’s identification.

http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/health/forensics/osama-bin-ladens-dna-how-sure-is-ninety-nine-point-nine-percent-sure-5680593

Forensics: Overweight People Really Are Big-boned.

2011-05-04T18:07:00.001-04:00

My article was about the bone structure of overweight people. Forensic Anthropologists often have trouble determining what a person looked like based on their bones because they can’t tell how heavy that person was in life. A new study at the University of North Caroline shows that you can determine a person’s weight based on the size and shape of their femur and thighbone. Researchers found that the heavier an individual was, the wider the shaft of that person's femur. They think that this is because over weight people have to support more weight and because they walk differently. The study included only white males so only weight could affect the results.

I choose this article because in my statistics class we learned about blocking and only using on portion of the population in a study and this was an actually study where they did that. The article is important to the world because now dry remains can be identified more easily and therefore more killers can be caught.

The article was good but it could have been longer. Also the researchers were not named and I would have liked to see a case in which this was used.

"Forensics: Overweight People Really Are Big-boned." Science Daily: News & Articles in Science, Health, Environment & Technology. Web. 03 May 2011.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/03/110322105300.htm
posted for J. Weir

2011-05-02T22:16:00.003-04:00

Kevin Bisconti

There now is a new way to conduct autopsies without using any type surgery. This method can be used for natural and violent deaths alike also for individual deaths and mass fatalities. This new method is also friendly towards certain religions that have certain ceremonies for the deceased.

This new method came about from the University of Leicester under professor Rutty. The new autopsy starts off with an injection to the neck with contrast and take a full body CT (Computed Tomography) Scan by using this method forensic pathologist are able to determine up to 80% of deaths. This technique looks at the vessels of the heart of the deceased. This method also is very inexpensive and easy to use in all cases whether they are natural or unnatural death.. This still is in the works but the university plans to run many more test with many different scenarios.

I think that this was a very interesting article. However I don’t not think they went into that much detail about how the operation is done. I would have liked them to go into further detail about how the operation is preformed.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/03/110301111253.htm

New Technique to Help Catch Sexual Offenders: Scientists Detect Condom Lubricant on Fingermarks for the First Time

2011-05-02T20:46:00.000-04:00

Kyrie Abiko

While some sexual offenders think that they can get away with their crime by using a condom, a new technique being developed at Sheffield Hallam University puts them out of luck, for this new method can detect condom lubricant on fingerprints left by a suspect at a crime scene. This proves that the offender has had contact with a condom. This would enable forensic scientists to provide further support to the evidence in alleged cases of sexual assault.
Condoms have been used more often by sexual offenders for the reason of preventing the risk of STDs and the transfer of potential DNA evidence, thinking this would also lower the chance of them getting caught. However, this new method can link a suspect, identified by their fingermark, to the crime in one analysis and can aid police in proving that an offence has taken place. And it is hoped the technique might be used to match lubricant found on a fingermark with residues from vaginal swabs collected from the victim.
Researchers have even proved that this technique was successful even on fingermarks left several weeks before analysis. They also hope this technique can eventually be used to identify specific lubricants that can possibly indicate a specific condom manufacturer or even the particular brand. Researchers hope to find that breakthrough soon enough to further support evidence in cases of sexual assault in even a stronger way.
I thought this article was particularly interesting not just for the fact that this newly developed method can determine a suspect to be placed at the scene of a sexual assault, but also for the fact that the fingermarks in contact with lubricant can be carefully examined using advanced imaging equipment to map ridge patterns and therefore identify a specific individual as the suspect. It is also interesting that researchers might possibly find a way to identify the type of condom lubricant and/or identify the specific condom brand from the fingermarks.

Criminal Investigation - Forensic Sculptor

2011-04-25T05:58:00.001-04:00

          Frank Bender, a world famous forensic sculptor has been working in the field or years. His career began as a fluke when he entered a medical examiner’s office for a quick anatomy lesson during his time working as a photographer and artist on the side. Growing up in Phili, has made a name for himself because of his natural talent to recreate a badly damaged face in various circumstances out of clay.

          Some of his two most memorable career achievements have been: John List was a wealthy, religious man who in 1971 killed his whole family. When Bender got the case, List had been at large for 18 years. Frank constructed the bust of List from old photos aging the man by 18 years. List was apprehended eleven days after the sculpted bust was aired on America's Most Wanted. As well as Rossella Atkins, who in the late 1987, The Philadelphia Police Department asked Frank Bender for help with an unidentified body found in a field behind a high school. He imagined this young woman as someone looking for something better in life. When he created a bust of her head, he had her looking up with her head tilted back. After two years of canvassing the neighborhood with the bust, the police had got no leads so they handed the bust back to Bender who donated it to the Philadelphia College of Physicians where they put it on display. Three weeks later a woman felt drawn to the display – the clay bust turned out to be her grand niece, Rosella Atkins. He has also assisted in the capture of six of America’s Most Wanted including including Alphonse Perisco, the Colombo crime family boss; Robert Nauss, convicted murderer and former head of the Warlocks motorcycle gang; and Hans Vorhauer, a convicted methamphetamine manufacturer and burglar.

          Bender’s work was fascinating to me because of his ability. The story mentioned in the article took me by surprise because of the incredible skills he has, and his capability to construct a person’s facial features when he has so little talent and when the person has become nearly unrecognizable. I was also intrigued because of his talents because I think it is exciting to know there are people in the world who have this ability to identify criminals when in many cases, those connected to the victim might give up hope on a case until Frank Bender changes everything.

http://www.suite101.com/content/forensic-sculptor-a37550

posted for A. Sher

Forensic Anthropology Study Correlates Weight with Bone Shape

2011-04-12T12:57:00.000-04:00

In the past, forensics scientists in North Carolina have discovered that weight correlates with bone shape. Before this research, one of the main flaws of identifying unknown skeletal remains was that forensic scientists were unable to determine how much an individual weighed based on his or her skeleton. This new research, however, give experts in the field of anthropology the ability to what the shape of a femur can tell us about the weight of an individual. Although the research does not give scientists the ability to provide individuals exact weight based on their skeletal remains, it does allow for them to determine whether an individual was over or under weight. Professor Ross of NC State said, “Researchers found that the heavier an individual was, the wider the shaft of that person’s femur. Our researchers have hypothesized that the femur of an overweight person is more robust because it bears more weight, but also because overweight individuals move and walk differently to compensate for their greater mass.” Ross believes that this discover will be only the start over more breakthroughs in forensics skeletal evaluation. He is very optimistic that in the near future forensics scientists will be able to determine the exact weight of individual’s skeletal remains.

This article is very important to society because it can potentially revolutionize forensics anthropology. Determining the weight of individual’s skeletal remains has been something forensics scientists have never been able to do. However, with this recent breakthrough it shows that scientists are getting very close and will be able to determine the weight of individual’s skeletal remains in the near future.

I chose this article because I was unaware of this new discovery. I was very interested in the advances forensic scientists have made in the field of anthropology. This new method could be immensely beneficial for the law enforcement. I thought this article was pretty well written, but I thought it could have included more details regarding the topic.

Bibliography: Mills, James. "Forensic Anthropology Study Correlates Weight with Bone Shape." Forensic Magazine. Web. 11 Apr. 2011.

posted for R. Minetti

SPACE FORENSICS MIGHT POINT TO A MARTIAN ANCESTRY

2011-04-08T09:15:00.000-04:00

Researchers are attempting to apply the field of forensic science to space exploration recently. This task would be able to do DNA and RNA sequencing on Martian microbes (if they potentially exist) to either debunk the myth that humans are descended from some alien race from Mars or to prove it. The theory is called panspermia and such testing to also see if Martian microbes could potentially pose a risk to humans should they colonize Mars in the distant future. Landers would have to be sent to Mars in order to acquire these genomes. The idea does not claim that Martians landed on Earth millions of years ago but claims that microbes latched onto meteorites from Mars and were blasted to Earth, mutating over time to become humans. The article was well presented and thoroughly interesting because of how unique it was from other forensic articles in the news. Applying forensic science to science one would find in NASA is extremely far fetched and science fiction sounding—all in all this article does not relate in any way to anyone’s immediate life or directly to the field of criminal forensic science but to forensic science in general and almost a new take on it.

http://news.discovery.com/space/space-forensics-might-point-to-a-martian-ancestry-110326.html posted for J. O'Neill

NEWS FLASH! Search continues as 3 bodies prove not to be those of missing woman

2011-04-06T08:28:00.000-04:00

Original text: New York (CNN) — The remains of three women found on a remote stretch of beach in Long Island, New York, do not include those of Shannan Gilbert, whose search led to the investigation of a possible serial killer. Gilbert, 24, of Jersey City, New Jersey, has been missing since May and was last seen alive in the Gilgo Beach area. As authorities searched for clues concerning her disappearance last year, they uncovered a total of eight corpses found in various stages of decomposition. A woman's body was found March 29 off Ocean Parkway, west of Cedar Beach, police said. When medical examination determined they were not Gilbert's remains, the police continued to search. On Monday, they found the remains of three additional people. They have also since been determined not to be those of Gilbert, police said in a statement Tuesday. Gilbert's sister, Sheree Gilbert, told HLN's Nancy Grace Tuesday night she was surprised none of the victims were her sibling. "When we at first found out in December the first body initially they had found could have been hers, we had already prepared ourselves, and we were just hoping the search would come to an end," Sheree Gilbert said. "We just don't know where she is at this point and we don't want her to suffer. We don't want her to be lost somewhere, not ever found." Police say the hunt for a potential serial killer continues, as does the search for Gilbert, who, like the women whose bodies have been found, advertised for prostitution services on such sites as Craigslist. The first four bodies were discovered stuffed into bushes on a quarter-mile stretch of waterfront property on Oak Beach, indicating "they were dumped there by the same person or persons," said Richard Dormer, Suffolk County Police commissioner, in December. "It's too coincidental that there were four bodies in the same location." The remains of the fifth body were found about a mile from where the other corpses were discovered, he said, refusing to disclose exactly where the three additional remains were found on Monday. Summary of the article: When I searched for a current event article on the CNN website, this article was the first one that caught my eye in the “JUSTICE” section. Not only did it capture my attention; I read the article and it left me in awe. “But how could four dead bodies be convienently located in the same spot?” I wondered. That was very interesting to me, so I decided to read on. At first, I thought the four victims were a group of friends who just happened to meet a serial killer during their walk – and (alas) they were all shot and killed. (You know how serial killers are.) However, the article says that none of them were related to each other. On a lighter note, I found this article to be very consise; instead of boring me with unnecessary details, the author got right to the point. Despite this fascinating topic, I found some potential errors with this article. First of all, this article is very brief (perhaps a little TOO brief). I would appreciate it if this article were a bit longer. Second, there must be a legitimate, scientifically-accurate reason for all four victims to die in the same location. It just doesn’t make sense. Lastly, I would like to mention that this article really provoked my curiousity. Who is responsible for such a dastardly crime such as this? And did he/she commit suicide after murdering four people, or is he/she still on the lam? I don’t know who it is, but hopefully, the criminal will be arrested as soon as possible. Keep your fingers crossed! Source: http://www.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/04/05/new.york.bodies/index.html

Crime Scene 101: Locating and Documenting Evidence

2011-03-20T17:07:00.001-04:00

http://www.forensicmag.com/article/crime-scene-101-locating-and-documenting-evidence?page=0,1

This article is a summary of how you should locate and document evidence at a crime scene. How do you find the evidence and how do you properly document it once you find it? If you locate every piece of evidence but fail to document each item carefully, the evidence may end up being worthless in court. One of the keys to locating evidence at a crime scene is proper lighting. While lighting is especially important at night, you may also need additional lighting during the day. A flashlight is needed, but just using a flashlight isn’t enough. CSOs have many options for lighting. Most important, you want the scene as bright as day. If you have an outdoor scene at night, you’ll need large lights. Waiting until daytime may compromise your evidence. If the weather changes, for example, you could lose evidence or have trouble finding it. Also, if you wait to process the scene, an officer has to stay at the scene to secure it. When you photograph the scene, first, take enough photographs. It’s not unusual to take 200-400 photos of a major crime scene, and with digital cameras there’s no reason not to take as many photos as you need. Once you’ve photographed the evidence, collect the evidence and prepare the Evidence Custody Sheet, a report which documents all of your evidence.

This article does not really affect my life in particular. Its more of a how-to guide for a crime scene. I suppose, however, a victim of a crime would want his crime scene officials to locate and document evidence as efficiently as possible to have a chance in catching the perpetrator.

This was a well written article. It was very straightforward. It spoke to the reader using the word "you". It described just how important each step in crime scene evidence really is.

Research Will Help ID Bodies Left Behind by Chilean Earthquake, Pinochet Regime

2011-03-08T14:22:00.004-05:00

          Recently, new research from North Carolina State University determined that medical examiners and others will help to identify human remains of those killed during the recent earthquake in Chile. Dr. Ann Ross stated: “We have developed population-specific identification criteria for the Chilean population, which will help us determine the stature and biological sex of skeletal remains…” For the past ten years, forensic scientists have developed a population – specific identification criteria that account for different height, built and many other characteristics. This is important because populations can differ from different areas of the country and world. The researchers evaluated remains from a 20th century Chilean cemetery in order to accurately characterize Chilean skeletal features. They were then able to develop stature criteria that can help researchers arrive at an accurate height for an individual based on an analysis of his or her long bones, including the femur and tibia.

          This research affects humanity because now with this new sort of technology, identification of victims in other types of tragedies can be found earlier in the process and can even result in an earlier day for an autopsy.

          I thought that this article was an interesting article because the research according to the chart of different heights and other characteristics can help determine the identification of the victims in the Chilean earthquake.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/09/100914095936.htm

Study Examines Why Innocent Suspects May Confess to a Crime

2011-03-01T16:11:00.001-05:00

          Since 1989 there have been 25% of 266 people convicted due to false confession. Iowa State University (ISU) did a study to see why innocent suspects may confess to a crime. They found that people will confess to illegal activities in order to relieve proximal (short term) consequence while not considering the distal (long term) consequence. ISU performed two experiments on ISU psychology undergraduates and both found that the students would admit to doing some unethical or criminal behavior just in order to get out of short term consequences. In the first experiment, the proximal consequence was the students would be asked to answer a long set of repetitive questions while the distal consequence was having to meet with a police officer a few weeks later to discuss the answers in detail. After this experiment, they found most students shifted their admissions to avoid the repetitive questions. In the second experiment, the proximal consequence was to meet with a police officer immediately after the interview and the distal consequence was to return to the lab in a few weeks to be asked a long set of repetitive questions. Once again, the students tried to veer away from the proximal consequence (meeting with the police officer). These two experiments validate why some people may confess to a crime they didn’t do, just to avoid being interrogated by the police.

          This article relates to human behavior. Forensic science is more than just uncovering what happened at a crime scene, it’s also to understand why it occurred. This is a similar idea, understanding why people may falsely confess is important because we can then find an alternate way of questioning people in a way so they don’t need to lie. Understanding this and hopefully changing the approach to questioning will allow innocent suspects to be free and help determine who the real suspect is.

       This article was very interesting; however I wish the article provided statistics of how many people avoided the proximal consequences in the two experiments. I think it would have validated the article’s point more.

http://www.forensicmag.com/news/study-examines-why-innocent-suspects-may-confess-crime

Forensic Breakthrough: Recovering Fingerprints on Fabrics Could Turn Clothes Into Silent Witnesses

2011-02-28T23:26:00.000-05:00

Currently a new technique in fingerprinting is being researched by forensic scientist in Scotland. This new Technique would allow the fingerprint of a suspect to be lifted from an article of clothing, something that has not been done before. For the past thirty years a team located at the University of Abertay has studied fingerprints and this new method seems to be successful.

The process in which this is done requires the use of the elements Zinc and Gold. This is know as VMD or Vacuum Metal Deposition, however this process has been around for some time. Joanna Fraser, a forensic scientist currently studying this method explains. "The research uses fine layers of metals to display fingerprints people may have left on fabrics, something which is far harder to do with soft surfaces. The technique has been around since the 1970s and is used on many surface but was never widely used on fabrics.”

I think that this new technique of fingerprinting can greatly help in the field of forensic science as well as law enforcement when it come to catching criminals.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110131073141.htm

Solving Cases with Technology: Voice Stress Analysis

2011-02-15T23:16:00.001-05:00

Voice stress analysis more commonly known as VSA is a very effective way to determine if someone is lying. It is designed to measure the changes caused by how the body reacts to stressful situations. The foundation of VSA technology is that a person’s voice emits detectable fluctuation in both AM, amplitude modulation, and FM, frequency modulation, frequencies called microtremors. When you listen to a person speaking, you hear the AM which rides atop the FM, which is undetectable to the human ear. Under the stress created from a deceptive response there is a reduction in the FM frequencies causing the microtremors to increase. It is an involuntary autonomic response detectable with a microphone and a computer running the proper software. The skilled examiner then analyzes the person’s voice patterns looking for these frequency discrepancies. Since this the change in frequencies is an involuntary response there are no known counter measures. A person cannot manipulate his voice frequencies the way he may be able to manipulate blood pressure, breathing, and skin response.

When compared with a polygraph, the VSA technology is easier to use, faster to administer, less stressful, cheaper, and 98% accurate. VSA works in any language whether the subject is face to face or on the phone. Drugs, alcohol, and medical conditions do not affect the tests. Voice recordings that are years old can be used to solve cold cases. This test is less stressful for the subject than a polygraph test which makes VSA more accurate. When compared with a polygraph, the VSA technology is easier to use, faster to administer, less stressful, cheaper, and 98% accurate. A VSA test is more effective than a polygraph test because polygraph tests can’t analyze a recording while a VSA test can. Each test has the same admissibility in court.

http://www.forensicmag.com/article/solving-cases-technology-voice-stress-analysis?page=0,2

Forensic Breakthrough: Recovering Fingerprints on Fabrics Could Turn Clothes Into Silent Witnesses

2011-02-15T19:27:00.004-05:00

Recently, new research has been done on new methods of techniques of recovering fingerprints from different surfaces, the most challenging being from fabrics such as clothing recovered from a crime scene. Now it is the first time in about 30 years that recovering fingerprints from fabrics has become a major focus in research. As part of the research project, VMD, a technique known as vacuum metal deposition, uses gold and zinc to recover the fingerprint mark that is supposedly on the fabric. VMD is a highly sensitive method to easily detect fingerprints is already used on materials such as plastics and glass. When supposed fingerprints on fabrics are dusted with a combination of gold and zinc, the fabric is laced in a vacuum chamber, where the gold is heated up which results it to evaporate and spread a fine film over the fabric. Then when the zinc is heated up, it attached to the gold where there are no fingerprint residues. This helps reveal the fingerprint, where contact has been made you see the original fabric, and where there is no contact we're left with the gray color of the metal film. One way of explaining it is like a photographic negative, where colors show up as their opposites. Here the fingerprint ridges show through as clear fabric, but where there are no ridges we see the distinctive grey colour of the metal.

The University of Abertay Dundee and forensic experts are currently studying its use in the examination of clothing and see if this evidence could act as a "silent witness" and bring value to an investigation. As research continues, recovering fingerprints have been successful on a number of other fabrics besides cotton, such as silk, nylon, and polyester. In the past, it was proved difficult to distinguish a clear fingerprint on fabric, but it is shown that it is now possible. Further research on this method will further improve the method itself and prove its effectiveness.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110131073141.htm

Touch DNA

2011-01-23T14:58:00.000-05:00

http://www.forensicmag.com/article/touch-dna?page=0,0

Touch DNA

Touch DNA is used to process an item someone has touched. We are always shedding skin cells when we touch something. We leave skin cells behind. Scientists can use skin cells left by criminals to develop a DNA profile. Scientists can take a small sample of skin cells and make as many copies of the DNA as they need to perform their analysis. This process provides a highly specific genetic portrait of the person profiled. The whole process takes only takes a few days . This is much less time than is needed for traditional DNA processing. The right samples of DNA must be collected. This method can be used on samples taken from guns, steering wheels, cell phones, glass, plastic, wood, cloth, fabric, etc.

This article is important because it can impact the world of crime in a positive light. With touch DNA, we can now more accurately identify suspects of a crime scene based on the skin cells they have shed. Not only can we identify skin cells but also materials such as guns, cell phones, and clothing. This way, all suspects of a crime can be identified.

The only criticism I have about the article is that many aspects should be explained more thoroughly. It is a bit brief on the methods of examination.

To much TV is Harmful for your Heart Health

2011-01-21T09:42:00.000-05:00

Spending to much time in front of a TV or a computer screen can increase the risk of heart disease and premature death. Data shows that people who spend less then 2 hours a day looking a t a screen and those who use more then 4 hours are likely to have a major cardiac event that involves hospitalization, death or both. Those spending less than two hours a day staring at a screen, there was a 48% increased risk of death in those spending four or more hours a day. Data shows that one fourth of the organization between screen time and cardiovascular events was explained collectively by C-reactive protein, body mass index, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol suggesting that irritation and of lipids may be one pathway through which extended sitting increases the risk for cardiovascular events. CRP, a well-established marker of low-grade irritation, was two times higher in people spending more than four hours of screen time per day compared to those spending less than two hours a day. A present study showed that 4,512 adults who were affected. From a survey a total of 325 all-cause deaths and 215 cardiac events occurred during an average of 4.3 years of follow up.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/01/110110164736.htm

Posted for X. Lessane

Hips Don't Lie: Researchers Find More Accurate Technique to Determine Sex of Skeletal Remains

2010-12-17T00:32:00.001-05:00

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/07/100706112601.htm

As we all know from doing the sex identification lab, there are many ways to find out whether a skeleton is male or female, black, white, or Asian. However, scientists have recently discovered a new way to identify the sex of a skeleton. Scientists are now using three-dimensional imaging technology to effectively quantify the specific characteristics of the os coax (pelvis) that differentiate males from females. This scientific breakthrough is being lead by Dr. Ann Ross, a doctor as North Carolina State University. This technology was originally going to be used to identify skeletons that had been smashed and un-identifiable in natural disasters or massive accidents. However, recently forensics scientists have began to take an interest in this technology to help better identify victims in cases. This method is not merely helpful for identifying remains, but is much more accurate than being done by a human because the computers can make much more exact calculations. Dr. Ross and many of her associates hope that forensic scientists will begin to use this machine regularly some time in the near future.

Forensic Metal Fingerprinting: Simple, Handheld Device Which Can Measure Corrosion on Machine Parts

2010-12-16T15:21:00.003-05:00

University of Leicester. "Forensic metal fingerprinting: Simple, handheld device which can measure corrosion on machine parts." ScienceDaily 22 October 2010. 16 December 2010 .

Recently there has been research into fingerprint detection. There is a new device that can help determine an identity of a person using forensic metal fingerprinting. This device has been created at the University of Leicester. Dr John Bond's method of identifying fingerprints on brass bullet-casings, even after they have been wiped clean, was based on the minuscule amounts of corrosion which can be caused by sweat. Now Dr. Bond is applying this new technique to the industry by creating a machine which can measure corrosion. Corrosion is a process in which a solid is eaten away and changed by a chemical action. An example of corrosion would be as in the oxidation of iron in the presence of water by an electrolytic process. There is much research on inhibiting the corrosion of brass because of its use in heat exchangers and industrial pipe work, this technique enables the degree of corrosion to be easily measured.
This new technique affects humanity because this device makes it easier to measure corrosion on machine parts as well as making it easier for fingerprint analysis. Fingerprint analysis can be difficult to determine in some instances, but with this new device, fingerprint analysis can be determined earlier in the process.
Overall, I thought that this article was very interesting because there are many new developments in fingerprint analysis recently. I liked when Dr. Bond stated: "This is a new, quick, cheap and easy way of measuring the extent of corrosion on copper and copper based alloys, such as brass,”. This quote explains how this new machine effects humanity as well as why he created this device. I think that this article was well written as well as explained the process of fingerprint analysis with this new tool.

Facial Recognition: A Valuable Tool For Law Enforcement

2010-12-08T22:34:00.002-05:00

Facial recognition has been around longer than most people think. It all started with Bertillon when he worked on face classification. Bertillon developed means by which portraits could be sorted by common morphological characteristics, the specific shapes of the different parts of the face, and therefore an individual’s photo could be found without having to resort to browsing through large collections of portraits. This is known as portrait parlé or spoken portrait. Facial recognition is also involved in identification line-up techniques in which a witness is confronted with a group of physically similar people, one of whom is a suspect. The witness must then decide whether one of the persons in the group was present at the scene of the crime or not. Today, police officers equipped with PDAs can quickly capture facial images and submit search requests to remote facial recognition systems, quickly determining whether an individual is known to law enforcement. These computers are very accurate; pierce county sheriff’s office in Washington State has demonstrated an accuracy rate of 94%. This is still not as accurate as fingerprint analysis but it can be very useful when fingerprint data does not exist or when multiple independent verification methods are desired.

This is very important because facial recognition can help police with identification. It also provides another resource for scientists to use instead of just fingerprint analysis. Facial recognition can provide law enforcement agencies with a valuable tool for multiple public safety applications.

This article was written very well. I liked how the article was broken into sections such as, background, general facial recognition, and criminal prevention.

http://www.forensicmag.com/article/facial-recognition-valuable-tool-law-enforcement?page=0,1

Age Estimation from Blood

2010-12-08T21:48:00.000-05:00

Recently scientists have been able to determine the age of a person from there blood. This is possible because the method in which this is preformed takes advantage of T-cells, which are fundamental in the immune system. When DNA cells and T-Cells come together they form circular DNA cells and which are known as TCR cells. These TCR cells decline at a constant rate with age. This method was crated by Manfred Kayser of the Erasmus MC University Medical Center.

This will help forensic science because it gives investigators another means of identification besides bone and teeth marks. Also if a criminal or missing person was bleeding at the crime scene it would be easier to find their age with the blood instead of other techniques. Another reason why this method helps benefit Forensic science is that if a criminal is not in the DNA database then there is not information on them. However using this technique one can find out the age of the criminal or missing person.

I found this article to be very interesting because it shows us another one of the many Forensics techniques. One thing that would have been better about this article would be if they gave an example of when this method was used, and proven helpful. But over all I think that this was a good article.

Putting a Living Face on the Nameless Dead

2010-12-08T21:40:00.001-05:00

“Putting a Living Face on the Nameless Dead”
By Shoshanaa Walter

Two farmers at Watsonville Farm stopped to find an anonymous body found in a ditch. The body was expected to be an illegal immigrant who was killed and then put on this road. The only identifiable body parts were the skull and some teeth. Investigators wanted to know who this body was so they called a forensic artist, Gloria Nusse, to draw his face. In order to make this man’s face, Ms. Nusse formed a resin casting over its face. His face was now visible; the man was John Doe. Ms. Nusse then worked on three other unknown Hispanic bodies. To begin identifying the faces, she places 20 needles in different locations of the skull to indicate the tissue depth, measures the angle of the nasal spine and cavity to determine the protrusion of the nose, and measures the width of the lips by their proportion of their eyes sockets. Ms. Nusse says it’s all about reading the skull in order to remake the face. One of the bodies was Yesenia Nungaray, a 16 year old girl who left her town with an older man. How Ms. Nusse displayed Ms. Nungray was incredible accurate to what she actually looked like. A way in which she tries to make the bodies easily identifiable is by extenuating their unique features.
These sculptures of the unknown bodies are very helpful for identifying the bodies that may never have been identified if it weren’t for these sculptures. Since the United States does not have DNA or any way of identifying illegal immigrants, this is really the best way of figuring out who these people are. They send the sculptures down to the country where they are presumably from and then hope for someone, a relative or friend, to come up and identify them.
One critique I have for this article is that it is way too boring. I thought the topic would be interesting originally, but more I read on, there was no real direction in the topic. I wish it was either more directed towards this sculpture technique and the three bodies or more on Ms. Nusse and other success she has had with these sculptures.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/05/us/05bcclay.html?_r=1&ref=forensic_science

Explosives

2010-11-20T18:13:00.001-05:00

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/10/101021131605.htm

For almost a decade Christine Mahoney and a team of scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology have been working towards stopping the threat of terrorist-based attacks. They are doing this by creating a sound measurement and a standard infrastructure. One of the measurement techniques is called Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry and it is proving to be critical in identifying the various components of explosives. This technique is mass spectrometric-based imaging that can detect components like binders, oils, and the explosives themselves. This is better than gas or liquid chromatography because it can provide a partial analysis of extracted samples. ToF-SIMS provides rapid identification of both organic and inorganic constituents. It is also well0suited for direct analysis of small explosive particles collected directly in the field and sent to the lab. Mahoney says that the laboratory technique is sensitive enough to detect bits of explosive material scattered in a fingerprint. The ultimate goal of this technology is to use it to create standardized reference samples.

This article is important to today’s forensic world because it has provided a whole new technology for explosives. This technology is much faster and much more accurate in identifying explosives and their different components. Also once it is used to create reference samples it will make examining explosives much easier and faster.

This was a very good and informational article. It presented a new break through in forensic technology very well. It could use an example or something like that but it was still a very good and important article.

New Forensic Camera Can Spot Bloodstains

2010-11-18T21:31:00.003-05:00

http://www.upi.com/Science_News/2010/11/12/Forensic-camera-can-spot-bloodstains/UPI-69511289608295/

      Recently, U.S. researchers claimed to have developed a new camera allowing criminalists to scan a crime scene for bloodstains without altering or destroying valuable evidence. The researchers that developed the camera prototype can detect bloodstains even when the sample has been diluted to a great extent. Usually, bloodstains are detected by spraying a chemical called luminol around the crime scene that reacts with the iron in any blood present to emit a blue glow that can be seen in the dark. However, luminol is toxic, and can dilute blood samples making the DNA difficult to recover, and can smear blood spatter patterns that often tell how the victim died. In addition, it can produce false positives by reacting with things like bleach, rust, carbonated soft drinks and coffee. In spite of this, This new camera can distinguish between blood and all four of those substances, the researchers say. The way the camera works is when it take an image of a scene, it beams pulses of infrared light on a surface and then detects the infrared light that is reflected back off it. A special filter placed in front of the camera's detector can make a diluted blood stain show up against its surroundings by filtering out wavelengths that aren't characteristic of blood proteins. Researchers say that different filters could detect contrasts between a surface and any type of stain, such as sweat and lipids in fingerprints not visible to the naked eye.

     This is a breakthrough in forensic science for the reason that this special camera can identify blood stains in a crime scene without tampering with any valuable evidence, therefore making the evidence authentic and accurate

     Overall, i thought this article was interesting because of how this breakthrough can change so much in forensic sciences and make the blood stain detection method faster,accurate, and reliable

Forensic Accounting

2010-11-18T21:26:00.001-05:00

Article found at: http://www.theforensicexaminer.com/articles/news/11/15/Fishbowl-the-Forensic-Accountant-A-Closer-Look-at-the-Skills-Forensic-Accounting-Education-Should-Emphasize

     The article was about the skills a good forensic accountant needs, but first it told exactly what a forensic accountant does. Forensic accountants are tasked with tracing the bank accounts of criminals and terrorists to find where they have hidden stolen money or were they are hiding. They also try to figure out whether or not a person or company has committed fraud. Companies also hire forensic accountants to evaluate their assets before making a big decision.

     The article then went on to describe qualities that a good forensic accountant needs and cited a survey of forensic accounting practitioners and educators. The skills they seemed to think were most important for a for forensic accountant were deductive analysis, critical thinking, unstructured problem solving, investigative flexibility, analytical proficiency, oral communication, written communication, specific legal knowledge, and composure. It ended with suggestions on how these skills can be integrated into a forensic accounting curriculum.

     I liked this article in general because it gave a good summary of what exactly a forensic accountant is and what they need to do that job well. It also gave good suggestions on how to teach forensic accounting. The one thing I didn’t like was the way they presented the survey results. It got very repetitive as those surveyed all answered the questions in exactly the same way. They made a new paragraph for each question and all the paragraphs seemed the same.I choose this article because I don’t know much about forensic accounting and I wanted to know more. It impressed me because I didn’t realize how important forensic accounting is for things like tracking down terrorists.

$18 Million to Man Wrongly Imprisoned

2010-11-01T15:15:00.004-04:00

Kip Stack 11/1/10

Forensics C Block Mr. Ippolito

Just recently a man who was wrongly accused of rape, robbery, and assault was let out of prison. He was let out due to testing of his DNA and the fact that it did not match the DNA collected from the victim. He has been in prison for more than two decades and for the past four years he has been fighting to have DNA evidence from the case tested against his DNA. He also received help from his lawyer and the Innocence Project group to rerun tests on the crime scene DNA against his DNA. “It said that of about 50 people from New York City it had represented in the last five years, half had received the DNA evidence in their cases from the city. In the other cases, the city was unable to produce the evidence or explain what had happened to it.” In the end since he was falsely accused the jury said that what the city did had violated his rights and he was awarded $18.5 million.

This article may change how forensic science is conducted because the New York City police department was so careless and just jumped to a conclusion. Now the forensic scientists will most likely be much more careful and base their accusations and conclusions on results. Just reading this article may scare people because after this incident their might be a fear of other people being wrongly accused. There also might be questions about other cases in the past and how other people in prison right now might be innocent. I chose this article because reading the title caught my attention. As I read it, it made me become interested to know how many falsely accused people are in prison and how many mistakes the police have made.

Overall I think the article was well written, but there are a few areas of it where the author could have improved. I think it could have been better if he expanded more about the forensic science part. Another area where I think there could have been improvement was talk a little less on what he has been up to lately.

Spontaneous Combustion

2010-11-01T13:11:00.000-04:00

          This article gives an explanation of the term, “spontaneous combustion” and explains the factors that contribute to this action. Combustion happens when materials heat up to the point of burning without the absorbing heat from its surroundings. This act most commonly happens amongst paints, oils, sawdust, hay, waste paper, coal and charcoal. One exception is when levels of oxidations or heat drawn in are minimal like in rusty iron. The levels of heat supply and oxidation are important because in order for the reaction to be successful, it is often very hard to study the causes and properties of this reaction because there are usually no remaining materials. There are two forms of detection in this case, one is to determine the increased burning in the center of the object versus the outside; and another form of detection is to justify that after attempts to put out a flame, the results were to only to light up in flames again.

          This article is important to society because spontaneous combustion is a frequently talk about topic; however, there is frequently no definite answer. These studies to try an understand combustion is going to help give us a better understanding of what combustion is, and could later on eliminate arson suspected crimes if there were ways to rule out a person starting a fire instead of natural causes.

          I think the article was well written and somewhat informative; however, more information on why it is a useful form of research would have been beneficial. Also, more knowledge on who is studying combustion and for what reasons seem to be an important factor for this topic since there is really no presentation of background information on who is doing these studies and the purposes.

"Forensic Biology » Articles » Anthropology » "Truth In Bones"" The Bronx High School of Science. Web. 01 Nov. 2010.

Posted for A. Sher

After 15 years in prison, Montgomery man is cleared of murder.

2010-11-01T12:23:00.000-04:00

Jermaine Arrington, who has been incarcerated for the past 15 years, was just released last week after being exonerated of 2^nd Degree Murder. In 1994, two groups of friends were attending a cookout in Montgomery County when a dispute erupted between the two groups. Paul Simmons was stabbed and Jermaine Arrington was accused of the stabbing, five witnesses claiming that he had done it—two saying they had seen Arrington stab Simmons and three saying that they had heard Arrington claim they had stabbed Simmons. Prosecutors were bolstered in their argument by the testimony of a forensic chemist. The scientist claimed that the blood found on the sweatpants of Jermaine Arrington was a match to Paul Simmons’ blood through various enzyme tests. 15 years later and the enzyme tests and the testimony from the witnesses are being brought into question. Arrington and his lawyer had ordered a new blood test while Arrington was behind bars and the results stated that the blood found on Jermaine Arrington’s sweatpants was not that of Paul Simmons but of some unknown individual. This was very heartening for the defense and another trial was ordered. Now Arrington is a free man and just wants to put the last 15 years of his life behind him.

This incident is important because it is a sobering thought about forensic science and how much stock society throws into a sometimes-haphazard process. Because the test results were one thing and not the other a man went to jail for 15 years of his life and was then subsequently released from jail. The article was almost a comment on how much more rigorous testing needs to be in question of forensic evidence because one wrong test result could ruin any given suspect’s life and could make a guilty person free. All in the entire article was comprehensive and a good summary of a pretty unfortunate incident. Jermaine Arrington is now free and the family of Paul Simmons is mournful, still believing that Arrington is the killer and that this is no justice for Simmons’ memory.

Works Cited

Morse, Dan. “After 15 years in prison, Montgomery man is cleared of murder.” The Washington Post 31 Oct. 2010: n. pag. Web. 31 Oct. 2010.

Posted for J. O'Neill

Research Will Help ID Bodies Left Behind by Chilean Earthquake, Pinochet Regime

2010-10-15T10:33:00.002-04:00

Forensics Kathleen Moriarty
Current Event article 10/13/10

Research Will Help ID Bodies Left Behind by Chilean Earthquake, Pinochet Regime
ScienceDaily.com (Sep. 14, 2010) — New research from North Carolina State University will help medical examiners and others identify human remains of those killed during the recent earthquake in Chile, as well as the bodies of the "disappeared" who were killed during the Pinochet administration. "We have developed population-specific identification criteria for the Chilean population, which will help us determine the stature and biological sex of skeletal remains," says Dr. Ann Ross, an associate professor of sociology and anthropology at NC State and lead author of a paper describing the research.
"My vision for this work is to help identify the remains of victims of political violence that occurred under the Pinochet regime," says Ross, whose mother is Chilean. "This will also help in contemporary body identification efforts in Chile. For example, in the event of a mass fatality -- such as the February earthquake in Chile -- this will help authorities identify recovered remains." For the past decade, forensic researchers -- such as Ross -- have been developing population-specific identification criteria that account for variations in height, build and other characteristics that can be critical when attempting to identify human remains. "This is important," Ross explains, "because populations vary. Identifying characteristics such as height and sex can be significantly different from population to population."
For this study, the researchers evaluated remains from a 20th century Chilean cemetery in order to accurately characterize Chilean skeletal features. They were then able to develop stature criteria that can help researchers arrive at an accurate height for an individual based on an analysis of his or her long bones, including the femur and tibia.
The researchers were able to develop criteria to determine a body's biological sex based on measurements of the articulation of the upper arm bone (the humerus) and the femur.
The paper, "New identification criteria for the Chilean population: Estimation of sex and stature," was co-authored by Maria Jose Manneschi of the Universidad de Chile. The paper will be published in a forthcoming issue of Forensic Science International. The research was made possible by support from NC State.
NC State's Department of Sociology and Anthropology is a joint department under the university's College of Humanities and Social Sciences and College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.

Source: Earthquake, Pinochet Regime." ScienceDaily 14 September 2010. 15 October 2010 .

Summary:
On September 14, 2010, new research from North Carolina State University grabbed the attention of medical examiners and other forensic scientists involved in the reconstruction of Chile, where a massive earthquake had occurred. According to Dr. Ann Ross, an associate professor of sociology and anthropology at NC State, not everyone was killed in the earthquake. In fact, some residents of Chile had disappeared from the scene. Closer looks at the remains of dead Chilean bodies reveal the unique and distinctive traits in their bones. These traits are not present in the skeletons of Caucasoids (Whites), Mongoloids (Asians), or Negroids (Blacks). To put it mildly, Chileans fall into the category of Hispanics (because Spanish is the most common language in Chile); they have different skeletons than the other ethnic groups.
I thought this article was attention-grabbing, especially because I was learning about the same things that the investigators were studying in Chile. Although I don’t know the scientific term for Hispanic skeletons, which I assume is “Hispanoids” (please correct me if I’m wrong), I still find this article to be relevant and worthy of my research. And if I said anything racist about Hispanic skeletons, I apologize.
The reason I chose this article is because I am interested in news outside the United States. I love to learn about foreign cultures. I particularly find Asian cultures (Japanese and Chinese) interesting, as well as Spanish cultures because I am almost fluent in Spanish. In addition, I enjoy learning about forensics. Therefore, this article caught my attention.
Despite the pros of this article, I also noticed some cons. This article is written in English, which, to us, seems like a no-brainer. But what about the Chileans, who might not speak English? Suppose a Chilean man (or woman) wants to read this article, but he/she can’t understand it. I think this article should have a “Translate” button that links you to the Spanish version of the article when you click on it. My other criticism is that the Pinochet regime wasn’t discussed enough in this article. Therefore, I think that part is extraneous (unnecessary). In closing, I hope you liked my article. Be sure to leave comments! (Just don’t write anything inappropriate.) Thank you!

Research Will Help ID Bodies Left Behind by Chilean Earthquake, Pinochet Regime

2010-10-14T12:20:00.000-04:00

ScienceDaily.com (Sep. 14, 2010) — New research from North Carolina State University will help medical examiners and others identify human remains of those killed during the recent earthquake in Chile, as well as the bodies of the "disappeared" who were killed during the Pinochet administration. "We have developed population-specific identification criteria for the Chilean population, which will help us determine the stature and biological sex of skeletal remains," says Dr. Ann Ross, an associate professor of sociology and anthropology at NC State and lead author of a paper describing the research.

"My vision for this work is to help identify the remains of victims of political violence that occurred under the Pinochet regime," says Ross, whose mother is Chilean. "This will also help in contemporary body identification efforts in Chile. For example, in the event of a mass fatality -- such as the February earthquake in Chile -- this will help authorities identify recovered remains." For the past decade, forensic researchers -- such as Ross -- have been developing population-specific identification criteria that account for variations in height, build and other characteristics that can be critical when attempting to identify human remains. "This is important," Ross explains, "because populations vary. Identifying characteristics such as height and sex can be significantly different from population to population."

For this study, the researchers evaluated remains from a 20th century Chilean cemetery in order to accurately characterize Chilean skeletal features. They were then able to develop stature criteria that can help researchers arrive at an accurate height for an individual based on an analysis of his or her long bones, including the femur and tibia.

The researchers were able to develop criteria to determine a body's biological sex based on measurements of the articulation of the upper arm bone (the humerus) and the femur.

The paper, "New identification criteria for the Chilean population: Estimation of sex and stature," was co-authored by Maria Jose Manneschi of the Universidad de Chile. The paper will be published in a forthcoming issue of Forensic Science International. The research was made possible by support from NC State.

NC State's Department of Sociology and Anthropology is a joint department under the university's College of Humanities and Social Sciences and College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.

Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/09/100914095936.htm

Submitted by K. Moriarty

Fast Forensic Test Can Match Suspects' DNA With Crime Samples in Four Hours

2010-10-14T12:18:00.002-04:00

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/08/100804122715.htm

Over the past few months, scientists have been working on developing a new method for DNA profiling. This newly developed method, has made checking DNA collected from people that were arrested for crime with DNA samples from crime scenes stored in forensic databases, essentially as simple and quick as matching fingerprints. The new method allows for the law enforcements to check if a person’s DNA matches other DNA found at past crime scenes, while suspects are being processed and remain in jail. The quickness and efficiency of this new test ensures that criminals are not pre-maturely released on bail. Andre Hopwood, a forensics scientists stated that frequently “criminals are arrested, spend less than a day in jail, and then commit crimes while they are out on bail.” Currently, most DNA tests take any where from 24-72 hours to complete. In order to mitigate the amount of time this process takes, scientists have built a chip that can copy and analyze DNA samples taken from a cotton swab. DNA may be collected from suspects by swabbing their mouth. After the sample is collected, it is then mixed with some chemicals and warmed up. This whole process only take four hours to complete, a number far less than current methods. This is a very beneficial method because police can correctly check and match DNA with suspects from a crime scene before they are released on bail.

This article is very important to society because it can potentially prevent other crimes from being committed by identifying suspects DNA correctly, before they are released on bail and free to commit crimes. This process should be used because it can effectively reduce the amount of time DNA profiling takes.

I chose this article because I was unaware of this new method. I was very interested in the advances forensic scientists have made in their field. This new method could be immensely beneficial for the law enforcement. I thought this article was pretty well written, but I thought it could have included more details regarding the topic.

Submitted by R. Minetti

In Scandal’s Wake, Police Turn to Quick, Cheap Test for Drugs

2010-10-14T12:16:00.002-04:00

Nearly 700 officers were trained to use portable kits to test for cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine. The “presumptive” tests, which cost about $1 each, were introduced into the field in April. Police officials hope that they will reduce the need for more comprehensive drug testing, which is now being outsourced to Alameda County at a cost to the city of $155 per case.

Presumptive tests have been standard practice for decades at police departments across the country, including ones in Alameda, San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties. But critics are concerned that the San Francisco police may be moving from one scandal to another. The city’s public defender’s office says the tests could lead to false arrests because some legal substances are known to yield a positive result for illegal narcotics.

In addition, with set time limits to complete the test and myriad ways to interpret the colors, experts say field-testing can be difficult to perform, especially under the often-stressful conditions of police work. The department has issued a seven-page manual to help officers with the portable kits.

The agency responsible for the lab’s accreditation discovered other problems: a short staff, outdated equipment and testing procedures, inconsistent record-keeping, even a family of feral cats living at the facility.

An audit by the United States Department of Justice and the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office concluded that the drug analysis staff of three was overworked, handling about 14,000 cases a year. Technicians were struggling to process the caseload under a tight deadline — within 48 hours, the time allotted for prosecutors to file charges after a suspect’s arrest.

Chief George Gascon shuttered the drug-analysis section of the lab and introduced presumptive testing in the hope that it would sharply reduce the number of cases sent out for lab work. Since more than 90 percent of drug cases in San Francisco are resolved with plea agreements or dropped charges, officials reasoned, they would need fewer lab tests, which prosecutors rely on in a jury trial to prove cases beyond a reasonable doubt.

Police officials say field testing could lead to a reduction in lab tests to 4,000 a year, from 14,000. Moving forward from the scandal, police officials have said a reconstituted crime lab could easily handle the smaller caseload, an argument they have presented to the Board of Supervisors in pushing for a new facility.

Submitted by I. Markota

New Method Developed to Capture Fingerprints on Difficult Surfaces

2010-10-04T20:59:00.003-04:00

Penn State. "New Method Developed to Capture Fingerprints on Difficult Surfaces." ScienceDaily 11 May 2010. 4 October 2010 .

      Recently, a process developed by Penn State professors can reveal hard- to develop fingerprints on complicated surfaces without altering the chemistry of the print. This conflict occurs due to the techniques beign used for developing fingerprints, not the chemistry of the prints. Infrared and x-ray imaging also aim towards the chemicals behind the outer layer of the skin. Researchers believe that even after the fingerprints are created, forensic specialists could test the fingerprint material to determine specifics about the person's prints. The researchers used a type of vapor deposition which is a method that uses a vacuum and allows vaporized materials to condense on the surface creating a thin film. The deposition process would usually require exceptionally clean surfaces because any unnecessary items would create a problem in the fingerprint results when the results would be seen. One benefit of this approach would be the ability to retrieve fingerprints off fragments from incendiary ir explosive devices and still able to analyze the chemicals used in the device.

     I think that this article is important to society because research has been done to have this problem not be a prominent problem for crime scene investigation. This process may be effective than the original way of creating fingerprints because the method would not take as long as the old way. This development would affect society becuase there will be less unidentified issues in a crime scene due to this procedure. I chose this article because there are so many advances in technology in science. I thought that this article was very interesting becuase I did not realize that this issue would be so prominent in crime scene investigations.

     I thought that this article was written well, but I think that the article went too much in depth about the writers and not enough on this new development. Also, I think that this article went into too much detail about fingerprints in general and not enough on the acutal procedure about the new ways to capture fingerprints.

Baking Out DNA

2010-10-04T19:47:00.002-04:00

http://www.sciencedaily.com/videos/2008/0201-baking_out_dna.htm

Recently, Forensic scientists who were analyzing the DNA in the bones of mummified humans in the Gobi desert made a recent discovery. They found that it was relatively easy to extract DNA from the mummified remains. Many scientists were asking the question of why it was easier to extract DNA from bones hundreds of years then it was to from a new bone. The simple fact had to do with the fact that the bones buried in the Gobi Desert were baked for hundreds of years, making it easier to extract the DNA. As of late, Forensic scientists have frozen bones as part of standard procedure. Now however, some scientists such as Dr. Heather Coyle are firm believers in bone baking. "It makes the bone more brittle so it makes it easier to grind and break open more cells, so we think we are accessing more DNA to begin with." Dr. Coyle then tested this theory by baking a bone in liquid nitrogen for 72 hours and then putting them in a pulverizer. To no one's surprise the DNA extraction was much easier.

This new method could prove to shorten the identification process when identifying skeletons. By baking bones, forensic scientists have been able to successfully extract DNA from a bone within 72 hours of receiving it. This in turn could lead to more suspects being caught.

Fast Forensic Test Can Match Suspects' DNA With Crime Samples in Four Hours

2010-09-27T13:15:00.003-04:00

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/08/100804122715.htm

There have been newly developed tests that will make it a lot easier to match DNA samples to suspects. Police will be able to check if the DNA matches while the person is still being processed and before they decide whether or not to put them on bail. Many criminals are immediatly put up for bail, even though they may be of the most dangerous people out there. These quicker DNA tests will help keep them locked up for good. To create this quick test forensic scientists created a chip that can copy and analyze DNA. So all the police have to do is swab a suspects mouth and the chip does the rest. Scientists are already optimizing it to two hours.

This article affects humanity because it will help keep murderers and dangerous criminals locked up without bail and off the streets. It will also help keep people from being wrongfully condemned of a crime from going to jail. It will make it easier to see who the real criminals are.

The article was written well, but it could have used real world examples instead of being general. It would have made the article more interesting. The article is also really well written because it gets straight to the point and doesn't waste time with useless details.

Parameters For Selecting A Triage Tool

2010-09-26T21:06:00.002-04:00

http://www.forensicmag.com/article/parameters-selecting-triage-tool?page=0,1

Can anything really be deleted offline? Is it true, if someone were to erase their past history, no one could ever find out what they were looking at? The answers to these questions are obviously no, everything can be traced online. There are many ways for investigators to receive past online history. A way in which is beginning to flourish are the triage tools. These tools are made to capture data from a live system meaning they can keep the data long after “plug is pulled.”
Triaging a computer can be a very important aspect for investigators because it can provide them with the methodology to quickly assess a computer’s relevance to an investigation prior to removing its power and seizure. Using these tools, investigators can trace where criminals have been and who they have been contacting. These tools are not only useful for investigators; they can also be productive for the military.
Although the military have many sources of retrieving lost information due to explosions of technology, they have been using different triage tools to determine which one works best for their situations. The way in which the USSOCOM, United States Specials Operations Command, have been selecting their triage tools has been by previous procurements. The tools were tested among different computer scenarios such as computer hard drives, SD cards, and USB Thumb Drives. They then tested each triage tool and found the ADF Triage G2 Tool from ADF Solutions, Inc. was rated the highest among military testing.
The triage tools seem to be a very productive way in helping prevent or identify any crimes. There will always be a controversy of people thinking it is unconstitutional because it is an invasion of privacy. The real question comes down to if you think privacy of someone’s previous records is more important than the lives of others.

Forensic Lab Saved From Closure

2010-09-19T14:07:00.007-04:00

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/north_east/7981377.stm

Summary by Kathleen Moriarty

On April 3, 2009, the Scottish Police Services Authority (SPSA) planned to build a new crime laboratory in Dundee. Their old laboratory in Aberdeen was expected to be demolished. But Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill wanted the SPSA to review their proposal before moving on. Eventually, the plan was cancelled, and the old location of the forensic laboratory was kept in business. Besides, convener Vic Emery of the SPSA deemed the relocation of the facility "premature". Over the next 5-6 months, the SPSA worked towards establishing a national forensic service, which turned out to be successful in cities like Edinburgh and Aberdeen.

Effort Uses Dogs’ DNA to Track Their Abusers

2010-09-19T12:37:00.002-04:00

Often in many crime investigations, DNA is looked into to find something out, such as the victim or suspect. But now, many Scientists and animal rights advocates are considering doing the same for dog's that have been abused to track down their past owners. They have created the country’s first dog-fighting DNA database, which they say will help criminal investigators piece together an abused animal’s history by establishing ties among breeders, owners, pit operators and the animals. In other words, justice can be served.
Canin Codis, the system made for containing the DNA profiles of abusive owners is similar to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's digital archive for storing DNA profiles of criminals. One such abuse crime against dogs is dog fighting. This is where owners have their dogs compete against other dogs in a fighting pit. However, The new database may provide a useful tool for tracking down where the animal was bred, and maybe the owner. Scientists say that by swabbing the inner cheek of a dog, they will be able to determine whether the animal comes from one of several known dog-fighting bloodlines. This way it can be and if a suspected dog fighter’s animal matches one of those bloodlines, that would be a key piece of evidence.”
These animals were horribly mutilated, such as missing ears, missing eyes, missing parts of their leg, etc. One such animal, a brown and white pit bull that now goes by the name Reggie, still bears a web of fight scars across his face. The dog cowers at the sound of cheering crowds, which his owner, Gale Frey, believes he associates with the roar of the fight pit.
Not nearly 250 of the dogs recovered in the last year that have taken part in dog fighting have been rehabilitated and are now pets or service and therapy dogs.

This has a positive impact on our society because this new DNA profile tracking system will help track down abusive owners and get rid of them, protecting dogs from any more harm and rehabilitate them.

one thing I'd like to know in the article is if this system would be set up for other pets in general that might also be abused in the furure.

Engineers Pioneer New Digital Forensics Technology

2010-09-17T08:49:00.000-04:00

Kevin Bisconti 9/16/10
Forensics current event

Engineers Pioneer New Digital Forensics Technology

At the University of Maryland’s A. James Clark School of Engineering researchers are working on creating a new type of digital fingerprinting system that would help to protect things from Hollywood assets and identify national security leaks. As the world becomes more digitized there is an increasing demand for security as the rate of cyber criminals grow. Teachers at the school are developing a new type of “cyber Forensics”. Not only does the new technology help protect but it will also help trace the criminals.

The way that this type of technology can help benefit society is that it brings a whole ne level of security to computers. Not only does it protect ones information form being hacked into but it will also help find the person behind the hacking. This could seriously help reduce the amount of online crimes like identity theft to national security.

I think that this was a well-written and interesting article. I thin that the topic was very interesting. I don’t think that there was anything that was wrong with the article it was a decent length and it got right to the point.

http://www.eng.umd.edu/news/news_story.php?id=307

Arlington Fiasco Destroys Faith

2010-09-16T23:12:00.004-04:00

Dorell, Oren. "Arlington Fiasco Destroys Faith." USA Today 16 Sept. 2010, sec. A pg 3A Print

This article is about a father who believes that workers at Arlington cemetary may hav mad mistakes at his son's burial site. Heath Warner was a Marine private stationed in Iraq in 2006. On November 26, 2006, Heath was killed by an improvised explosive device. He was only 19 years old at the time. He was subsequently buried in Arlington, Virginia because his father, Scott Warner felt it was the right way to honor him. Warner stated, "It was our son's wishes to be buried at Arlington and we considered it the highest honor we could hive hime." Scott had heard about strage happenings at the cemetery. He had heard rumors of a grave that was misplaced. When more strange reports came in, he started to get more suspicious. In June a report was found stating that there were 211 cases of misplaced or unmarket graves in three of the seventy sections in Arlington. Additionally, many urns had dirt from a landfill that was used to fill graves. A team of the new cemetery management is now workin on correcting these issues. It is estimated that htese issues could affect up to 6,600 of 300,000 graves. When the Warner family asked for a report on Heath's grave, the report came back with errors and omissions. Scott Warner then arranged for Heath's body to be exhumed. They used pictures of Heath's tattoos to identify the body. "The method of identification today was very gruesome and very primitive. There are other ways this could have been done that would have been more dignified," Scott remarked. He believes that the cemetery officials should have had a third party come in to verify DNA and fingerprint identifications. They should not have relied on the photographs of the tatoos for identification.

The article was important to me because my grandfather was buried in Arlington cemetery. He was retired Marine colonel. The article makes me wonder if my grandfather was buried correctly. While reading the article, I began to think if I sould do some research into his grave. The article is important to society because the family and friends of people buried in Arlington care about the remains of their lost loved ones. If they found out that their loved ones were not buried where they believed them to be, they would be very hurt.

I found this article to be very shocking. I would never have thought that a burial site as prominent as Arlington would have these issues. This is especially disconcerting because some of the most distinguished military leaders of our country are buried there. I also liked how the article described how the body was identified.

Havasupai Case Highlights Risks in DNA Research

2010-04-28T20:43:00.000-04:00

The article “Havasupai Case Highlights Risks in DNA Research” in the April 21 edition of the New York Times highlights another debate over the use of donated DNA. However, in this case, 41 members of the Havasupai Indian tribe are refusing to donate their DNA for genetic research because there is no absolute guarantee that it will not be used for anything else. This distrust has started recently, when parents in Texas sued the state health agency when they learned that blood taken from their babies for disorder screening was made available to scientists without authorization. Unfortunately, this poses a problems for researchers, for they cannot give an absolute guarantee, but the also cannot do their research if people can’t trust them.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/22/us/22dnaside.html

XBOX Forensics

2010-04-27T18:10:00.001-04:00

A forensics toolkit for the Xbox gaming console is described by US researchers in the International Journal of Electronic Security and Digital Forensics. The toolkit could allow law enforcement agencies to scour the inbuilt hard disk of such devices and find illicit hidden materials easily. computer scientist David Collins has probably spent more time messing around with the Microsoft XBox, other gaming consoles, and PDAs in the name of forensic science than anyone else. He is a digital forensics expert at Sam Houston State University, and is working hard to replicate "mods" - both hardware and software for the Xbox and other devices. Criminals often hide illicit data on the XBox in the hope that a gaming console will not be seen as a likely evidence target especially when conventional personal computers are present in the same premises, for instance. The toolkit developed by Collins will allow police and other investigators the chance to lay bare the contents of XBox hard disks. Cell phones, smart phones, PDAs, game consoles and other devices provide a convenient means to store data of all kinds, including images, video, audio and text files. But they also provide a simple way for criminals to possess and hide illegal material too. Collins' XFT utility can mount an image of the FATX file system used by the XBox, allowing the user to explore in detail the directory structure. Collins points out that unlike the standard FAT32, NTFS, and similar systems used by the hard disks in personal computers, there is little documentation on the proprietary FATX system. However, it is possible nevertheless to acquire an image of a FATX hard disk and to mount it on another device. "Once the Xbox file system is mounted, the analyst can use shell commands to browse the directory tree, open files, view files in hex editor mode, list the contents of the current directory in short or long mode and expand the current directory to list all associated subdirectories and files," explains Collins. Importantly, from the legal perspective, XFT can also record such investigative sessions for playback in a court of law, which protects the defendant from falsified as well as providing more solid evidence for the prosecution. Collins explains how future work on XFT will involve making the toolkit into a fully functional forensic operating system (OS). This OS will be packaged as both a bootable operating system from a hard disk and a "live" bootable compact disk. "This implementation will be open source, verbosely commented and designed from the ground up as a forensic OS," says Collins, "This will remove any and all proprietary operating system dependencies, making the forensic process as transparent as possible."

Japan Clears Man Imprisoned for 17 Years

2010-04-26T22:15:00.000-04:00

The article “Japan Clears Man Imprisoned for 17 Years” is about a Japanese man who was wrongfully convicted of a murder. In 1993, Toshikazu Sugaya was sentenced to life in prison for murdering a four-year-old girl. Mr. Sugaya was a kindergarten bus driver when the murder occurred and was the perfect “candidate,” as we know now, for corrupt prosecutors.

The prosecutors working Toshikazu Sugaya’s case forced, in ways that aren’t exactly known, Mr. Sugaya to make false confessions. In addition, the forensic scientists working the case flawed the DNA that was used to convict Mr. Sugaya and ensure a severe sentence. The corruption within the Japanese criminal justice system is something that judges recognize as a problem that needs to be addressed.

The DNA that was used to convict Toshikazu was falsified in order to connect him to the murder of the little girl. DNA falsification is something that most people never think of, but when people are placed in desperate situations you never know what they will do. Fortunately, a fresh DNA analysis was conducted at the request of Toshikazu Sugaya’s lawyers. With the true DNA of Mr. Sugaya available, Mr. Sugaya was released in June of 2009.

Experimental Validation Tool for Cell Phone Forensics Developed

2010-04-26T21:03:00.001-04:00

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) researchers have developed a new technique aimed at improving the validation of a crime lab's cell phone forensics tools. Cell phones reveal much about our daily communications, such as calls and texts. A small chip card within most phones, called an identity module, stores this and other data for a subscriber. A subscriber identity module (SIM) accommodates phonebook entries, recently dialed numbers, text messages and cellular carrier information. Forensic examiners use off-the-shelf software tools to extract the data, allowing them to "connect the dots" in a criminal case such as identifying affiliations or detecting mobile phone activity around the time of an event.

But for this information to be used as evidence in court or other formal proceedings, the software tools that forensic teams employ are normally validated to determine suitability for use. Currently, preparing test materials for assessing cell phone tools is labor intensive and may require learning new command languages to perform the process.

NIST scientists detail their proof-of-concept research in a NIST Interagency Report, Mobile Forensic Reference Materials: A Methodology and Reification. They also developed an experimental application, called SIMfill, and a preliminary test dataset that follows the methodology described in the report. SIMfill can be used to automatically upload cell phone data such as phone numbers and text messages to "populate" test SIMs that can then be recovered by forensic cell phone tools. In this way, examiners can use SIMfill as one method to assess the quality of their off-the-shelf tool.

"Our research was a proof of concept," report author Wayne Jansen says. "Hopefully, forensic examiners will use our work to validate mobile forensics tools thoroughly before they employ them." The next step in the research is open. Scientists could expand the technique for mobile handsets and other types of identity modules, or the forensic community could decide to adopt this dataset and application as an open source project, according to Jansen.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091202091032.htm

"In 3rd Trial, Conviction in Murders From 1985" by John Schwartz

2010-04-26T20:12:00.004-04:00

Twenty years ago a soldier, Master Sgt. Timothy B Hennis was tried in civilian court for 3 murders. Hennis was acquitted of the the murders. This month Hennis was recalled to face the military court at Fort Brag. Hennis was convicted of the same murders he was acquitted because of DNA tests that were not available during the first trial. Originally, he had been convicted of raping and murdering Kathryn Eastburn and killing her two daughters in 1985. Since then, the DNA identification technology and the field of forensic science has improved tremendously. The military jury was able to try him again this year. Forensic scientists were able to provide convicting evidence linking Hennis' DNA to Ms Eastburns DNA. Evidently, Forensic science has made many advances over the years and is extremely useful in solving crimes. These DNA tests were very helpful in solving this case.

Forensic Identification of Tattoos

2010-04-20T23:35:00.000-04:00

The science of biometrics involves identification of people based on physical and behavioral characteristics. This includes facial recognition software, voice identification software and retina scanning. Biometrics is used commonly in forensic science with fingerprinting, handwriting analysis, hair analysis and blood identification.

Skin markings like scars, birthmarks and tattoos are considered soft biometrics, easily measurable physical characteristics that can change. Tattoos are becoming more common with estimates that approximately 36% of people between 18 and 29 have at least one tattoo. Most are specific to the individual, though many social groups adopt tattoos of similar design to designate membership. This is very common among gang members. Tattoos can give information on social characteristics such as time in prison, number of crimes committed and ethnic affiliations. Tattoos have been used for identifying bodies in mass disasters like 9/11 and homicides. This is often necessary when partial remains are found or other identifying biometrics like fingerprints are removed. Residual markings from tattoos remain in the skin even after burns or decomposition. Tattoos are also used to identify suspects in custody who may be using a false name. In the past, forensic investigators have kept large notebooks containing tattoo photos, which later gave way to searchable computer databases with tattoo characteristics. Both are unwieldy and require significant search time to find a match.

http://forensicscience.suite101.com/article.cfm/forensic-identification-of-tattoos

Murderous tale fascinates New Zealand

2010-04-20T14:33:00.002-04:00

In 1995 in New Zealand a gruesome murder took the country by storm, and it was soon what everybody was talking about. In 1995, David Bain was found guilty of killing his brother, two sisters and his parents in the family's Dunedin home. There was speculation in the family about the father and incest between the two daughters. Many people believe that the father was tierd of living and took everyones life and his own as well, but kept the son alive to pin the murder on him. The only string of evidence is a tiny blood spatter and the time a "gurgling" noise was heard coming from one of the sister's bodies.

http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?index=2&did=1661588541&SrchMode=1&sid=3&Fmt=3&VInst=PROD&VType=PQD&RQT=309&VName=PQD&TS=1271788525&clientId=7184

New Sensors for Chemical agents and Drugs

2010-04-13T20:52:00.001-04:00

This will allow better, faster decisions to be made in response to terrorist threats.
The scanning instrument will use Raman Spectroscopy which involves shining a laser beam onto the suspected sample and measuring the energy of light that scatters from it to determine what chemical compound is present. It is so sophisticated it can measure particles of a miniscule scale making detection faster and more accurate.
Normally this type of spectroscopy is not sensitive enough to detect low concentrations of chemicals, so here the sample is mixed with nanoscale silver particles which amplify the signals of compounds allowing even the smallest trace to be detected.
Dr Steven Bell from Queen's University Belfast who is leading the research said:
"Although we are still in the middle of the project we have finished much of the preliminary work and are now at the exciting stage where we put the various strands together to produce the integrated sensor device. For the future, we hope to be able to capitalise on this research and expand the range of chemicals and drugs which these sensors are able to detect."
It is hoped the new sensors will also be the basis for developing 'breathalyzer' instruments that could be of particular use for roadside drugs testing in much the same way as the police take breathalyzer samples to detect alcohol.
At present, police officers are only able to use a Field Impairment Test to determine if a person is driving under the influence of drugs. The accuracy of this method has been questioned because of concerns that it is easy to cheat.
To ensure the technology is relevant, senior staff members from FSNI (Forensic Science Northern Ireland) will give significant input into the operational aspects of the technology and give feedback as to how it might be used in practice by the wider user community.
Stan Brown, Chief Executive of FSNI said:
"We consider the work being carried out by researchers at Queen's University extremely important and potentially very useful in driving forward the effectiveness, efficiency and speed of forensic science practice. The combination of leading edge research and hands-on experience of FSNI's practitioners has already proven very fruitful and is likely to lead to significant developments in forensic methodologies across a range of specialisms."

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091005102708.htm

2010-04-05T23:55:00.000-04:00

This article talked about a case west of Salt Lake City, Utah. Analysis of hair is a good way to tell what was going on in the body that it grew on. Now, it is being used more creatively than ever before in forensics science labs. Two scientists at the University of Utah, James Ehleringer and Thure Cerling, founders of Isoforensics Inc, which uses stable isotope analysis of forensic substances to find slight variations in chemical elements’ various isotopes. Ehleringer says, “Hair is a good trap for all those things flowing through the blood system.” Traces of things in and around the body can be found in the hair. This is interesting because by looking at the hair, one will be able to tell more about the life lived by the victim. The victim from Utah is unknown, but with these new methods, studying a few stands of her hair, looking at the various isotopes, scientists were able to determine that she had been living in the area for two years of her life. Hair also makes a good forensic tool because it tends to stick around at crime scenes and various places. “A single hair can determine a person’s location during the past weeks or even years,” says Cerling. This method can also help in proving or disproving alibis. It helps determine who was where at which times.

Bone May Reveal A New Human Group

2010-03-25T05:41:00.000-04:00

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/25/science/25human.html?ref=science

A new species of human may have been discovered recently. A species so rare that all that is left is the fragment of the bone of a child. The child who carried the DNA lineage was probably 5 to 7 years old, but it is not yet known if it was a boy or a girl. The finger bone was excavated by Russian archaeologists in 2008 from a place known as the Denisova cave. Researchers extracted DNA from the bone and reported Wednesday that it differed from that of both modern humans and of Neanderthals. By extraction of mitochondrial DNA, scientists can come to the conclusion that the bone belonged to a distinct human lineage that migrated out of Africa at a different time from the two known archaic human species.

One researcher said at a news conference that before confirming that the child was a new species, he needed to rule out the possibility that it belonged to a population formed by interbreeding between the new lineage and a known species. He said he was analyzing the rest of the child’s DNA, from the main or nuclear genome, to test this possibility.

The artifacts found in the cave in the same layer as the finger bone include ornaments and a bracelet that are typical of modern human sites from the Upper Paleolithic age in Europe. These are puzzling artifacts to be found with a nonmodern human species. But bones can move up and down in archaeological sites, and it is hard to know if the finger bone is truly associated with these artifacts even though there was little sign of mixing in the cave’s layers.

This article relates to forensic science because it uses DNA analysis, anthropology, and dirt analysis to find out more about a particular person.

New Hand Bacteria Study Holds Promise for Forensics Identification

2010-03-24T22:46:00.002-04:00

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/03/100315161718.htm

A new bacteria has been found useful in the Forensic Science community. This new bacteria found on both keyboards, mice, phones and other household items can help to identify an individual. This newly found bacteria left behind by our hands contains its own DNA which is not the same within two individuals. This method is also very unique to the crime scene investigation because usually when blood, semen, saliva are needed for DNA testing this new bacteria can help to identify a suspect through the bacteria left behind from skin cells. Although this technique has been proved very useful there are bioethical problems that have been faced due to legal standards on fingerprinting and DNA typing. While there are legal standards for fingerprinting and DNA there are no legal standards for using human-associated bacteria to identify an individual.

Vindication Now Arrives After a Battle of 28 Year

2010-03-24T17:45:00.003-04:00

"Vindication Now Arrives After a Battle of 28 Years" is an interesting article about a man named Freddie Peacock who was recently released from jail after five years. He was a churchgoing man from New York who had a severe mental illness and was trying to convince the world that he was not guilty of rape. Mr. Peacock was arrested in July 1976 when a woman who was attacked and raped outside her Rochester apartment building identified Mr. Peacock, who also lived in the building, as the assailant. Peacock's sister, Edith Leonard, explained how for the following 28 years Peacock refused to drop the subject, he would consistently try to tell his family and friends of his innocence. He even begged his parole officer not to release him from state supervision, fearing the action would undermine his many appeals. With barely a comment, Judge David D. Egan of the State Supreme Court in Rochester vacated the 1977 conviction in the face of new DNA testing that proved Mr. Peacock’s innocence. Neither the judge nor the prosecutor directly addressed Mr. Peacock during the five-minute procedure, and neither offered an apology. According to officials, Mr. Peacock was the 250th person nationwide to be exonerated by DNA evidence.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/05/nyregion/05dna.html

“Environmental Forensics” Could Cut the Costs of Brownfield Development

2010-03-21T18:39:00.002-04:00

Scientists now believe that with the emerging field of “Environmental Forensics”, it will be easier to prove who is responsible for causes of pollution at contaminated. This could be greatly beneficial in both time and money, as difficult and tedious legal proceedings would no longer be required in order to figure out who is to blame and responsible for paying the legal remediation costs. Brownfield sites hold huge potential for the building and expansion of new businesses, residential areas, and leisure locations, but they cannot be built upon if they are contaminated. This developing field of Forensic Scientist would allow for such expansion faster and with much more ease as well as for the same benefits of projects already under way.

The individual skills that are involved in this budding science (i.e. ecological impact analysis, chemical analysis, hydrology, etc) it is the integration of these skills in tandem, with the legal process, and with the other existing fields of forensic science is what currently hinders its full development.

However, a push is being made to bring this science into more application. The EPSRC is currently working to promote the application of environmental forensic science by focusing on real, live issues an cases. Professor Bob Kalin, who is leading the research program, will delivered his findings at the Queen’s University Belfast festival in September of 2006. He explained how environmental forensics focuses on identifying how and when contamination took place, the contaminations extent and impact, and whether and if there has been any illegal attempts to cover up any contamination. He also outlined specific cases of his findings. In this new age of environmental conscientiousness, this new field of science can only prove beneficial.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/09/060908192920.htm

Murder by the Drop

2010-03-19T08:58:00.000-04:00

This article essentially talks all about this book called “The Poisoner’s Handbook” by Deborah Blum. The book details how forensic science has come so far and how New York City played a huge part in that. She talks about how Tammany Halls corruption spilled over into the invention of the modern day coroner. She also talks about how the first coroners would often show up to court drunk and would also take many bribes from various different entities. They would exchange these bribes for falsified death certificates. Under this original system, many murderers roamed free and good men were framed and locked away until 1918, when a new system was put into effect.
This new system was spearheaded by a blue-blooded doctor named Charles Norris, who discovered how to detect toxic substances like Thalium and Radium. Dr. Norris brought about a new and less corrupt body examining system that benefited all parties, except for the guilty ones.
Ultimately, this book is a collection of short stories and how they center around poison and the two detectives who are in charge of finding out who the perpetrators are.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/28/books/review/East-t.html

To Stop Crime, Share Your Genes

2010-03-18T22:01:00.000-04:00

This article talks about the new idea to have the DNA profiles of non-convicted suspects to be put into the DNA database called CODIS. Currently CODIS only contains the DNA profiles of only convicted criminals. Many Americans feel that the proposal flies in the face of one of the major values of the United States which is “innocent until proven guilty”. Also, statistics have shown that African Americans are more likely to be arrested than whites. Critics are now beginning to see this new proposal as a genetic collection that resemble the “Jim Crow’s database”.
A DNA profile distills a person’s complex genomic information down to a set of 26 numerical values, each characterizing the length of a certain repeated sequence of “junk” DNA that differs from person to person. This creates a DNA fingerprint for identification.
There are many good and bad aspects to including the DNA profiles of non-convicted suspects to the database. On the positive side, having more profiles in the database will make it much easier for police to find a positive identification of a suspect and link him or her to a crime. Also, with more profiles there will be less of a chance for the wrong people to be convicted of a crime. Also, many feel that having their profile in the database but not being convicted will put their DNA information out for people to see, but since the profile uses the 26 numerical values they are biologically meaningless and only poses identification purposes. Once the profiles are taken the DNA is destroyed so that only the profile on the database is left. The database may also begin to use a technique called a familial search. This exploits the fact the close relatives share substantial fractions of the DNA. The problem with this method is that it is not very exact and sometimes results in a match with people that are not related.
Some of the negatives to this database are mainly that it is genetic profiling. With more profiles of African Americans being on in the database than whites it may be seen as an act as racism. Some ideas to stop this are to have everyone provide a DNA sample and have a DNA profile in the database. With this there will never be any false identification or false convictions since all people DNA will be on file. These DNA samples can be taken when a person is born. Once this biological sample is obtained, its use must be limited to generating a DNA profile only, and afterward the sample must be destroyed and the access to the database must remain limited to law enforcement officers investigating serious crimes.
If the privacy of people remains secure than there is no excuse to use the science that we posses to successfully fight against crime with great accuracy and success. But all must play their part in this fight.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/15/opinion/15seringhaus.html

New DNA method

2010-03-17T21:13:00.002-04:00

DNA samples often convict criminals. But many of today's forensic tests are so polluted by soil, tobacco and food remains, for example, that they can not be used. Now researchers at Lund University in Sweden, working together with the Swedish National Laboratory of Forensic Science, SKL, have improved a critical part of the analysis process. This article particularly interesting because of all the work we have been doing with DNA in class recently. according to this article DNA traces have been harder to obtain because of contamination. this article explains how the new methods of doing such things have become easy thanks to leaps in technology.

Police identify body as missing Michigan man

2010-03-16T22:47:00.001-04:00

Police have confirmed a body recovered Sunday is that of a Michigan man who jumped to his death from the Blue Water Bridge last November. Lambton OPP say dental records were used to positively identify the remains of 27-year-old John Paquette of Port Huron. His body was located by a passerby on the shore of the St. Clair River in the 600 block of the St. Clair Parkway.An autopsy was conducted Monday at London Health Sciences Centre. The cause of death is inconclusive at this time due to the condition of the body, police said. There were no obvious signs of trauma. Paquette had been missing since Nov. 3, 2009.When he disappeared, Paquette was working as a licensed practical nurse at Yale, Michigan, and had just celebrated his sixth anniversary with his partner.He had just purchased a home, had no financial problems and seemed to be in good mental health, his sister, Christen Nowosislosky, said in November.

http://www.theobserver.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2493599

XBox Forensics

2010-03-10T21:37:00.003-05:00

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090430101445.htm

This article was probally the most interesting forensics article. I found it so interesting because it has to deal with Xbox something I find very interesting. A forensics toolkit for the Xbox is described by US researchers in the International Journal of Electronic Security and Digital Forensics. The toolkit could allows law enforcement to search the inbuilt hard disk of such devices and find illegal hidden materials easily. Basically in a shorter explanation the toolkit works like this, the analyst can use shell commands (no idea what those are) to browse the directory tree, open files, view files in hex editor mode, list the contents of the current

directory in short or long mode and expand the current directory to list all associated files. Scientist have developed this tool for the xbox because it is a device that criminal often think will be over looked as a potential place to store data.

North Carolina lab to be examined

2010-03-10T17:57:00.001-05:00

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/06/us/06brfs-CRIMELABTOBE_BRF.html

A North Carolina crime laboratory is going to be examined by two former assistant directors of the FBI. More specifically, its operations in relation to cases dating back to the early 1990s are going to be reviewed. This is happening because recent revelations about practices there led to freedom for man who had wrongly been convicted of murder. The article does not specify what those revelations were, but explained about the case. Last month, Gregory F. Taylor was freed after a three judge panel found convincing evidence that he was innocent. His conviction was on the basis of flawed evidence and unreliable testimony. Taylor had served 16 years in prison before his release.

Vindication now arrives after a battle of 28 years

2010-03-09T22:01:00.002-05:00

He had proclaimed his innocence, to no avail, at his trial and sentencing and in his five years behind bars. And when he was released from prison, Freddie Peacock, a churchgoing Rochester, N.Y., man with severe mental illness, persisted in what would become the defining mission of his difficult life: convince the world that he was not, in fact, guilty of rape. “He talked about it all the time,” said his older sister, Edith Leonard. “Sometimes I would say to myself, ‘He needs to let it go,’ because it would constantly eat him up and it worried me.” But for the next 28 years, Mr. Peacock refused to drop the subject, professing his innocence to anyone who would listen: family and friends, those who never doubted him and those who were not so sure. He even begged his parole officer not to release him from state supervision, fearing the action would undermine his many appeals. On Thursday, sitting stoically in the same courthouse where long ago he was convicted of a rape he did not commit, Mr. Peacock, 60, received the exoneration he so passionately sought. With barely a comment, Judge David D. Egan of the State Supreme Court in Rochester vacated the 1977 conviction in the face of new DNA testing that proved Mr. Peacock’s innocence. Neither the judge nor the prosecutor directly addressed Mr. Peacock during the five-minute procedure, and neither offered an apology. Mr. Peacock spoke only once, at the end. “Thank you, Your Honor,” he said. It was not until leaving the courtroom that Mr. Peacock, dressed in a gray suit, was overtaken by the emotion of the moment. He sat down and began to cry. He walked to the courthouse lobby, where the tears resumed and he sat down again to compose himself. “He wouldn’t let this go,” Ms. Leonard said on behalf of her brother, who declined to speak to reporters. “Maybe now he can go on with his life.” Ms. Leonard said she was not sure whether the family would file a lawsuit. “We’re going to get through today,” she said. “After that, I really don’t know.” The Innocence Project at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, a nonprofit group that uses DNA evidence to exonerate the wrongfully convicted, took on Mr. Peacock’s case after receiving a nine-page, handwritten letter from him seven years ago. The letter contained a plea that easily could have been lost in the disturbed writing surrounding it: “I would like to clear my name.” The Innocence Project said that the decision holds several distinctions. Mr. Peacock was the 250th person nationwide to be exonerated by DNA evidence, according to officials. His request for help was the only entreaty for assistance the legal team had ever received from a person who had already completed a sentence and been taken off parole. The case also nearly triples the record for the most time that passed between a prisoner’s release, which occurred on May 13, 1982, and his exoneration, according to the project’s lawyers. “His spirit to never give up in his quest for justice, it’s remarkable, it’s inspirational,” said Peter J. Neufeld, a co-director of the Innocence Project. “Most people would just walk away from it. Most people would just go on. He made it the single-minded objective of his life to clear his name and say ‘I am not a rapist.’ ” Mr. Peacock was arrested in July 1976 when a woman who was attacked and raped outside her Rochester apartment building identified Mr. Peacock, who also lived in the building, as the assailant. After initially denying involvement, Mr. Peacock, who had received diagnoses of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder and had not taken his medication in five months, confessed during a police interrogation that was not recorded. Mr. Peacock was unable to provide any details of the crime, including where, when or how it had occurred, and later recanted his confession. A jury convicted him in six hours. Mr. Peacock appealed the case unsuccessfully six times. He was taken off parole in 1992, against his wishes, after years of refusing to be considered for early release. “When he talks about his case, it feels like he’s talking about something that didn’t happen that long ago,” said Olga Akselrod, who handled the case for the Innocence Project. “He knew he was innocent, and to have the system not believe him was very painful. So he kept fighting.” On Thursday, after the hearing and a short news conference, Mr. Peacock skipped his usual Bible study class to attend a small party his sister had planned so he could celebrate with friends who had heard his proclamations of innocence over the years. “I remember his words,” said the Rev. Juanita Sheffield, 58, a childhood friend and the pastor of God’s Holy Temple in Rochester, where Mr. Peacock attends church. He said, she recalled: “I just want my name cleared, even though I served my time and they let me go. I just want my name cleared.”

SUMMARY:
this article is talking about a case that hit really close to home for me. The case is a rape case that had a man who lived in Rochester, NY arrested. However after many years and many failed appeals he was found non-guilty of this crime by DNA evidence. This article was interesting because it showed that even after 28 years a case can be overturned do to DNA evidence.

New DNA Method Makes It Easier to Trace Criminals

2010-03-09T20:28:00.003-05:00

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091029155956.htm

DNA samples are often used to convict criminals. However, many of today's forensics tests are polluted so they cannot be used. Researchers are working together at the Lund University in Sweden in order to improve a critical piece in this analysis process. Some of the findings indicate that the new DNA method strengthens DNA analysis so that previously negative samples can now yield positive and usable DNA profiles. As genetic information grows increasingly more common within forensic analysis, the analysis flow starts with taking a sample with a swab from a drinking glass or blood spot. The cells from the swab are then dissolved in water, and the DNA is extracted. The next step is the copying step. This step finds the best chemical environment and replaces a key enzyme with a DNA polymerase. This yields a clearer genetic footprint, or DNA profile, to use. Also, new mathematical models that makes it easy to interpret that DNA analysis are being devises. If the copying phase is improved, stronger DNA evidence can be shown from the crime scenes, which is very important since this can ultimately link a person to a crime scene with greater certainty.

Rapid DNA Sequencing Can Help Doctors Track Cancer Treatment

2010-03-08T21:54:00.002-05:00

Researchers at Johns Hopkins University have discovered a new way to track a patient's progress with their cancer treatment using a method of rapidly analyzing and decoding large amounts of DNA. They have also discovered that people don't have just one strain of mitochondrial DNA, but several variations that occur in small quantities as well. These discoveries have had a large impact of the scientific community, as they have mad DNA analysis faster as well as rewriting a widely accepted fact about mitochondrial DNA. These discoveries were made by colleagues of Dr. Bert Vogelstein, who is heading a project to try and unlock more secrets of human DNA and other such things. Essentially how the technique works is by analyzing blood for repeating strains of DNA, which (if they repeat a growing number of times) are easily visible markers for cancer cells, and allow doctors to have a better idea of the progress of the cancer treatment a patient is receiving. Dr. Vogelstein's study also showed that there are multiple variations of mitochondrial DNA in roughly 80% of all cancer subjects. But while these progresses are awe-inspiring and astounding, the team working on them will be unable to continue unless the price of DNA typing drops. Otherwise, a full clinical study would simply be too expensive to be carried out effectively.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/09/science/09gene.html?ref=science

New Sensors for Chemical agents and Drugs

2010-03-03T14:29:00.000-05:00

Scientists at Queen's University Belfast are developing new sensors that will detect chemical agents and illegal drugs which will provide aid against the terrorist smugglers and attacks. The new devices will use special gel pads to ”swipe” an individual or crime scene to gather a sample which is then analyzed by a scanning instrument that can detect the chemicals within seconds.

This will allow better, faster decisions to be made in response to terrorist threats.
The scanning instrument will use Raman Spectroscopy which involves shining a laser beam onto the suspected sample and measuring the energy of light that scatters from it to determine what chemical compound is present. It is so sophisticated it can measure particles of a miniscule scale making detection faster and more accurate.
Normally this type of spectroscopy is not sensitive enough to detect low concentrations of chemicals, so here the sample is mixed with nanoscale silver particles which amplify the signals of compounds allowing even the smallest trace to be detected.
Dr Steven Bell from Queen's University Belfast who is leading the research said:
"Although we are still in the middle of the project we have finished much of the preliminary work and are now at the exciting stage where we put the various strands together to produce the integrated sensor device. For the future, we hope to be able to capitalise on this research and expand the range of chemicals and drugs which these sensors are able to detect."
It is hoped the new sensors will also be the basis for developing 'breathalyzer' instruments that could be of particular use for roadside drugs testing in much the same way as the police take breathalyzer samples to detect alcohol.
At present, police officers are only able to use a Field Impairment Test to determine if a person is driving under the influence of drugs. The accuracy of this method has been questioned because of concerns that it is easy to cheat.
To ensure the technology is relevant, senior staff members from FSNI (Forensic Science Northern Ireland) will give significant input into the operational aspects of the technology and give feedback as to how it might be used in practice by the wider user community.
Stan Brown, Chief Executive of FSNI said:
"We consider the work being carried out by researchers at Queen's University extremely important and potentially very useful in driving forward the effectiveness, efficiency and speed of forensic science practice. The combination of leading edge research and hands-on experience of FSNI's practitioners has already proven very fruitful and is likely to lead to significant developments in forensic methodologies across a range of specialisms."

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091005102708.htm

'Smell of Death' Research Could Recover Bodies in Disasters and Solve Crimes

2010-02-28T20:41:00.001-05:00

For years, cadaver dogs have been trained and used to detect and recover bodies in natural disasters. They are considered the gold standard but the time and effort put into training each dog is huge. As a result, forensic scientists have been trying to develop a portable device that uses the chemicals given off by decomposing bodies to find human bodies buried at crime scenes and in disasters. At the 238^th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS), Dr. Dan Sykes stated, “if there was a device that was as effective [as cadaver dogs] for a fraction of the cost, that would be something worth pursuing.” Dr. Dan Sykes has collaborated with Sarah A. Jones, a graduate student, to create this device that is so desperately needed.

In order to create this device scientists must first identify the gases that are given off by decomposing bodies not only under “perfect” conditions, but also under a variety of natural environmental conditions. Along with the identification of these chemical gases, a time sequence by hour and day must be included to figure out how long the body has been decomposing. When bodies go through decomposition, more than 30 chemical compounds are released such as putrescine and cadaverine, which both develop relatively early in the decomposition process.

Although some human bodies have been donated for testing, all the chemical compounds released cannot be recorded because the bodies are usually two to three days old. As a result, scientists have used pigs as models. According to Jones, pigs are good models because “they go through the same phases of decomposition as humans, as well as the same number of stages. And those stages last about as long in pigs as they do in humans before complete decomposition occurs and only the bones remain.” To perform their experiment, Sykes and Jones placed multiple pigs in different environmental conditions in specially designed odor-collecting units. Each unit was equipped with sensors known as solid phase micro extraction (SPME) fibers to capture gases. These fibers have been used in the past to sample the chemical composition of air. Odor data from the pigs was collected every six to twelve hours over the course of one week. From this testing, Sykes and Jones found that in days one to three precursors to indole are found and on the third day indole and putrescine are found. Sykes’ and Jones’ research is still on going (they are doing more experiments and tests) using a variety of different scenarios to re-construct the different ways human bodies could decompose, creating a more concrete picture of decomposition.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090816211837.htm

Court Told of Possible Origin of DNA on a Police Baton By Kareem Fahim Feb 3, 2010

2010-02-28T19:54:00.000-05:00

The news article “Court told of Possible Origin of DNA on a Police Baton” is a story about how a Police officer is on trial for sexually assaulting a Brooklyn man. It was said that he used his Police Baton to beat the man and assault him sexually. In Court Sarah Phillips a DNA specialist claimed that there was blood and genetic mix on the baton that could directly link the baton to the man who was beaten, Michael Mineo. Three New York Police officers are facing chargers. So far this piece of evidence seems it will be the key factor to put them away. Still, one of the lawyers for the officers stated that this find was “meaningless”. Phillips said that she was able to find the blood and DNA by swabbing the retractable portion of the Baton. She said that the DNA on the baton came from at least three contributors. This evidence helps prove that the Officers sexually assaulted Mineo by inserting the baton between his buttocks. It looks as if the police officers will be convicted due to this find in DNA. DNA has become extremely effective in solving cases.

Vindication Now Arrives After a Battle of 28 Years

2010-02-28T16:07:00.001-05:00

The article “Vindication Now Arrives after Battle of 28 years” is about the story of Freddie Peacock and how he was found guilty of raping a woman outside his Rochester, NY apartment complex in 1976. He was convicted based on the woman’s testimonial evidence saying that he was her assailant and because of the fact that he had “confessed” during an unrecorded interview. The confession supposedly came about because he had not taken his schizophrenia and bipolar medication in five months and he later recanted his confession. Peacock was sentenced to 5 years in prison and since getting out had spent his time trying to clear his name. His name was only cleared after he had written to the Innocence Project, a group that works to clear the names of those wrongfully convicted using DNA evidence. On February 5, 2010, Freddie Peacock became the 250^th person to be cleared, by DNA evidence, of wrongful convictions.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/05/nyregion/05dna.html

Forensic Identification of Tattoos

2010-02-28T15:21:00.001-05:00

Forensic Identification of Tattoos

Biometric software helps to identify both perpetrators and victims. Tattoo recognition software can aid in these comparisons. The science of biometrics involves identification of people based on physical and behavioral characteristics. This includes facial recognition software, voice identification software and retina scanning. Biometrics is used commonly in forensic science with fingerprinting, handwriting analysis, hair analysis and blood identification.

For example, tattoos have been used for identifying bodies in mass disasters like 9/11 and homicides. This is often necessary when partial remains are found or other identifying biometrics like fingerprints are removed. Residual markings from tattoos remain in the skin even after burns or decomposition. Tattoos are also used to identify suspects in custody who may be using a false name.

Biometric scientists from Michigan State University developed software to aid in photographic tattoo identification. Tattoo images taken by law enforcement can be matched to existing images in photo databases which is much more efficient than a text-based search. The tattoos are matched using complex mathematical algorithms that compare similar characteristics. This allows matching when pictures may be blurred, such as those taken by a surveillance camera. Images are compared based on color, texture and shape of the tattoo.

http://forensicscience.suite101.com/article.cfm/forensic-identification-of-tattoos

DNA Deception

2010-02-22T23:26:00.001-05:00

Last year Texas State officials were sued for storing infant blood sample without parental consent. The blood sample were said to have been for medical research into birth defects and childhood cancer. However, it has recently been learned that many of these sample where actually being used by the federal government to build a vast DNA database. Hundreds of blood sample were sent to the Armed Forces lab to build a national and, someday, international mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) registry, to hopefully one day help crack missing persons and cold cases. Up until 2002 blood sample were simple thrown away but starting that year, the state health department began storing blood spots indefinitely, for “research into causes of selected diseases.” “State health officials never notified parents of the changes; they didn’t need consent for the birth-defect screening, so they didn’t ask for it for research purposes.” This has caused and uproar by many parents
From the parents point of view they are unaware of where their children’s DNA may end up. Unfortunately it might end up in the wrong persons hands and could come back to haunt there children later in life. As far as the database is concerned, it was a great idea to start up a new DNA database to be able to help forensic investigators solve cases later own down the road, if just should have been started with the parents consent.
Throughout the article they only talked about the database and how affective if could be briefly, it should have talked about the benefits that this database could provide more. In addition, the article doesn’t specifically state who was sued and by whom it just states that state officials were sued.

http://www.texastribune.org/stories/2010/feb/22/dna-deception/

Interesting Research on Pre-natal Embryos

2010-02-08T21:42:00.001-05:00

Scientists at The Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS) and The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI), have developed some very interesting and new news. This study led an international effort to build a map that shows in detail how the human genome is modified during embryonic development. This is how the genetic code in humans is changed or modified in the pre-birth state. This detailed mapping is a significant move towards the success of targeted differentiation of stem cells into specific organs, which is a crucial consideration for stem cell therapy. Stem cell therapy in pre-natal embryos is and interesting forefront which could in time have the power to cure or determine genetic disorders in embryos. Scientists mapped a major component of the epigenome, DNA methylation, for the entire sequence of human DNA, and went further by comparing three types of cells that represented three stages of human development: human embryonic stem cells, human embryonic stem cells that were differentiated into skin-like cells, and cells derived from skin. With these comprehensive DNA methylome maps, scientists now have a blueprint of key epigenetic signatures associated with differentiation. DNA methylation causes specific subunits of DNA to be chemically modified, which controls which areas of the genome are active and which ones are dormant. DNA methylation is critical to the process in which embryonic cells change from "pluripotent stem cells," which have the ability to turn into hundreds of cell types, to "differentiated cells," distinct types of cells that make up different parts of the body, such as the skin, hair, nerves, etc. In reviewing the data produced by the study scientists were able to identify previously unknown patterns of DNA methylation. They identified cases in which DNA methylation appeared to enhance, rather than repress, the activity of the surrounding DNA, and found evidence to suggest a role for DNA methylation in the regulation of mRNA splicing.

The iris of the beholder

2010-01-22T14:09:00.002-05:00

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091104101628.htm

Recent scientific innovation have shown that the eyes reveal a persons true identidy. A new report by computer scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) demonstrates that iris recognition algorithms can maintain their accuracy and interoperability with compact images, affirming their potential for large-scale identity management applications such as the federal Personal Identity Verification program, cyber security and counterterrorism. The iris indetification is quickly becoming the new method of IDing people and will most likely take over the fingerprint ID system as it is easier to fake finger prints than Iris ID.

Becoming a Forensic Pathologists' Assistant

2010-01-21T01:16:00.000-05:00

This article is related to the field of Forensic Pathology. More specifically, it pertains to becoming a pathologist’s assistant. This may not seem like the riveting job that someone of high potential may be seeking; however, it is surprisingly a very beneficial job economically. A forensic pathologist's assistant aids the medical examiner in obtaining and processing specimens during an autopsy and works in a team under the direct supervision of a forensic pathologist. Many pathologists' assistants have bachelor's or master's degrees though many were also trained on-the-job as laboratory personnel. Forensic Pathologists' assistants aid in autopsies by collecting the medical history of the deceased. They also work with the medical examiner to determine how best to perform the autopsy. Duties may include photographing the body as well as individual organs as the autopsy proceeds. Often, pathology assistants prepare sections of each organ for further testing and processing. They may even take xrays of bodies to determine any current or old injuries. They can also help to collect physical evidence such as fingernail scrapings from the decedent in the case of a suspicious death. Expected salaries in the United States average from $60,000 to $90,000 annually, depending on the area. Demand is anticipated to increase as forensic technology improves.
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Cold Case Is Closed by DNA Match: Green River Killer

2010-01-20T21:52:00.001-05:00

During the 1980 and 1990s there was a killer in the Seattle-Tacoma area that was stalking young women, mainly prostitutes. During this time, women were disappearing sometimes every other day, once a month or even one or two a year. The person that was committing these crimes was the “Green River Killer”. The modus operandi of the killer was to rape the victims and strangle them. Gary Ridgway was one of the top suspects for these crimes. The problem was that during this time DNA testing was in its infancy and much was unknown, this and the fact that police did not have a lot of hard evidence on Mr. Ridgway, caused the police to not arrest him.
In 2001 this all changed, scientist brought together the old evidence and used two distinctive tests to reexamine the evidence. The polymerase chain reaction test and the short tandem repeat test, these tests together allowed scientists to replicate enough DNA so that they could find out whose DNA it is. “It was a last-ditch effort,” Dr. Himick, a scientist that worked on the reexamination of the case, said. “We didn’t have a lot to work with, but we went through a lot of evidence again. We rinsed all the fingernails to look for trace evidence and swabbed the ligatures for cellular material. With one girl, we were able to find a few sperm clinging to her pubic hairs.”
Scientists took the DNA samples that they had and analyzed them. They received a sample of Mr. Ridgway’s DNA from a piece of gauze that he had chewed on in 1987. After analysis of the DNA, they saw that there were matches in the DNA to the three victims that they had DNA profiles for. When Gary Ridgway was confronted with the evidence he pleaded guilty and received 48 consecutive life sentences with no chance of parole.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/12/science/12file-dna.html

Microsoft's Photosynth: A Future Forensic Tool?

2010-01-20T17:56:00.000-05:00

http://www.forensicmag.com/newsletters/features/20091111/

This article describes a new technology and how it can potentially be used in forensic science. This technology, called Photosynth and made by Microsoft, is a way to organize photos of a particular object so that they are spatially oriented with respect to one another. This means that you can make a 3D image of something by using the 2D photos that were taken. While it was originally intended as a creative way to present photos, it can have an impact on forensics. First responders, forensic technicians, and investigators can put together a photographic image of the crime scene much easier, and without the need for expensive equipment or complicated software. Also, this technology could be used to get shoeprints without having to take molds. After several pictures are taken and put into the system, a 3D image is made. If this image is reversed, than they have a perfect shoeprint. However, this technology is far from becoming a forensic tool. This is because there is no indicator or accuracy. Also, it has to be put through a a lot of testing and validation before it can ever by used.

DNA Evidence Can Be Fabricated, Scientists Show

2010-01-18T21:39:00.001-05:00

In Israel, scientists have proven that it is now possible to fabricate DNA evidence. They have fabricated blood and saliva samples containing DNA from a person other than the donor of the blood and saliva. As well as that, they have demonstrated that if they had access to a DNA profile in a database, they can construct a sample of DNA to match that profile without needing any tissue from that person. Dr. Frumkin, founder of Nucleix, developed a test to distinguish real DNA samples from fake ones that he hopes to sell to forensics laboratories.
The scientists fabricated DNA samples in two ways. One requires a tiny DNA sample, such as a strand of hair or a drinking cup. They then amplify the sample into a large quantity of DNA using a standard technique called whole genome amplification. One woman had a blood sample taken, which was then centrifuged to remove the white cells, which contain DNA. To the remaining red cells, they added DNA that had been amplified from a man’s hair. Since red cells do not contain DNA, all the genetic material in the blood sample belonged to the man. The other technique relies on DNA profiles, a series of numbers and letters corresponding to variations at 13 spots in a person’s genome. From a pooled sample of many people’s DNA, the scientists cloned tiny DNA samples representing the common variants at each spot. To prepare a DNA sample matching any profile, the scientists mixed the proper samples together.
This test proves if a sample has been fabricated because it relies on the fact that amplified DNA lacks certain molecules that are attached to the DNA at specific points, usually to inactivate genes. Dr. Frumkin’s design has proven to be very helpful and will be of great assistance for forensics scientists.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/18/science/18dna.html

India's Novel USe of Brain Scans in Courts is Debated

2010-01-18T19:25:00.000-05:00

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/15/world/asia/15brainscan.html?pagewanted=1

New technology has been released that could possibly revolutionize the forensic world. A program has been invented that takes the lie detector test to a whole new level. This test, a brain scan test, could possibly eliminate lying. The way the test works is, when the crime’s details are recited, the brain lights up in specific regions. The areas that show measurable changes when experiences are relived, their smells and sounds summoned back to consciousness. The inventors of the technology claim the system can distinguish between people’s memories of events they witnessed and between deeds they committed. The Brain Electrical Oscillations Signature test, or BEOS, was developed by Champadi Raman Mukundan, a neuroscientists. So far, this test has yet to be used in the United States but has already been used to convict several criminals in India. The test does however, contain much controversy. Some believe it could transform investigations as much as DNA evidence has but many experts in psychology and neuroscience were troubled that it was used to win a criminal conviction before being validated by any independent study or reported in a respected scientific journal.

In forensic science, this test could really turn things around because it could be able to help prove a case more so. Many people have their doubts about collected forensic evidence, they believe forensic science has yet to prove itself. With this brain scan test, evidence could be made stronger. Many practice runs have been done with this test and in one particular case, a woman was convicted of the murder of her husband due to the memory section of her brain buzzing when certain events were recounted.

I am curious to know more about this software and if it could possibly be used in the United States. Polygraph tests are not always reliable for they measure levels of anxiety and a good liar would not feel anxious. This particular test can be beaten by no one for it goes beyond anxiety and into physical, uncontrollable brain movements. It is amazing how far technology has come and the potential for it to grow more in the future.

How to find a missing person using NAMUS database.

2010-01-14T14:14:00.000-05:00

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, there are approximately 100,000 missing persons cases active nationally each year. In addition to this, 4,400 bodies are found that are not identifiable. The National Institute of Justice, along with the University of Central Florida and the National Forensic Science Technology Center, have developed a free database to help identify remains and find missing people.Creating the NamUs Database for Forensic Investigation of Missing Persons CasesThe U.S. Department of Justice has combined two databases to create the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs). One database is for unidentified deceased persons while the other is for finding missing persons. The two programs work together to cross-reference and ideally, match missing persons cases with unidentified bodies or vice versa.Using the Unidentified Decedents Database to Find Missing PersonsThe Bureau of Justice Statistics reports that of the 4,400 unidentified bodies found annually, 1,000 of them are still not identified after one year. The Unidentified Decedents database offers a way to match these people with missing persons cases. This database was started by the National Association of Medical Examiners and contains information on deceased bodies found without identification. It is designed to be used primarily by law enforcement investigators such as:medical examiners and coroners forensic anthropologists case managers policeIt can also be used by the general public to search for remains that might match a missing person. Information in the Unidentified Decedents database includes:demographic information such as approximate age, gender, race, height, weight year of death location where body was found identifying information such as fingerprints, tattoos, scars, dental impressions clothingSketches or photos are also sometimes available. As of December, 2009, more than 5,900 records were contained in the database.Read more at Suite101: How to Find a Missing Person with NamUs Database: Website Makes it Easier to Search for Lost Relative or Crime Victim http://forensicscience.suite101.com/article.cfm/how_to_find_a_missing_person_with_namus_database#ixzz0ccEKJiEv

Experimental Validation Tool for Cell Phone Forensics Developed

2010-01-12T14:34:00.001-05:00

Cell phones reveal much about our daily communications -- the who, when and what of our calls and texts. A small chip card within most phones, called an identity module, stores this and other data for a subscriber. A subscriber identity module (SIM) accommodates phonebook entries, recently dialed numbers, text messages and cellular carrier information. Forensic examiners use off-the-shelf software tools to extract the data, allowing them to "connect the dots" in a criminal case such as identifying affiliations or detecting mobile phone activity around the time of an event.
But for this information to be used as evidence in court or other formal proceedings, the software tools that forensic teams employ are normally validated to determine suitability for use. Currently, preparing test materials for assessing cell phone tools is labor intensive and may require learning new command languages to perform the process.
They also developed an experimental application, called SIMfill, and a preliminary test dataset that follows the methodology described in the report. SIMfill can be used to automatically upload cell phone data such as phone numbers and text messages to "populate" test SIMs that can then be recovered by forensic cell phone tools. In this way, examiners can use SIMfill as one method to assess the quality of their off-the-shelf tool.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091202091032.htm

Innocent but Dead

2009-12-17T07:14:00.000-05:00

Forensic science has once again disproved facts about the past that were assumed to be true. Cameron Todd Willingham was sentenced to death in the state of Texas for the murder of his children by means of arson, but forensic evidence has recently proven that he was completely innocent. The fire broke out on the night of December 23rd, 1991. Cameron and his children were at home, and since his family was poor, his wife went out to get the children presents from Salvation Army. The fire, now proven to be completely accidental, broke out and he awoke to the sound of his screaming children. He tried to save them but was pushed back by the intense smoke and fire. Willingham, who was later convicted of capital murder, had to be restrained and handcuffed as he continued to try to get into their room. During testimony, the prosecution convicted him of killing his children on the basis that “they were getting in the way of his drinking and dart playing”, even though there was no real evidence to go by. Only until a few weeks before his death, however, did evidence show that there was no sign of arson. Craig Bayler, a forensic scientist who was hired by private commission, said that the fire marshall who testified on Willingham’s case “seems to be wholly without any realistic understanding of fires”. Forensic scientists who examined the case recently systematically knocked down every indication that the fire was caused by arson. Unfortunately, it was too late for Mr. Willingham.

-Luke Nichols
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/01/opinion/01herbert.html?_r=1

DNA Evidence Can Be Fabricated, Scientists Show

2009-12-16T17:14:00.001-05:00

DNA Evidence Can Be Fabricated, Scientists ShowCLO

By ANDREW POLLACK

Published: August 17, 2009

Scientists in Israel have demonstrated that it is possible to fabricateDNA evidence, undermining the credibility of what has been considered the gold standard of proof in criminal cases.

The scientists fabricated blood and saliva samples containing DNA from a person other than the donor of the blood and saliva. They also showed that if they had access to a DNA profile in a database, they could construct a sample of DNA to match that profile without obtaining any tissue from that person.

“You can just engineer a crime scene,” said Dan Frumkin, lead author of the paper, which has been published online by the journal Forensic Science International: Genetics. “Any biology undergraduate could perform this.”

Dr. Frumkin is a founder of Nucleix, a company based in Tel Aviv that has developed a test to distinguish real DNA samples from fake ones that it hopes to sell to forensicslaboratories.

The planting of fabricated DNA evidence at a crime scene is only one implication of the findings. A potential invasion of personal privacy is another.

Using some of the same techniques, it may be possible to scavenge anyone’s DNA from a discarded drinking cup or cigarette butt and turn it into a saliva sample that could be submitted to a genetic testing company that measures ancestry or the risk of getting various diseases. Celebrities might have to fear “genetic paparazzi,” said Gail H. Javitt of the Genetics and Public Policy Center at Johns Hopkins University.

Tania Simoncelli, science adviser to the American Civil Liberties Union, said the findings were worrisome.

“DNA is a lot easier to plant at a crime scene than fingerprints,” she said. “We’re creating a criminal justice system that is increasingly relying on this technology.”

John M. Butler, leader of the human identity testing project at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, said he was “impressed at how well they were able to fabricate the fake DNA profiles.” However, he added, “I think your average criminal wouldn’t be able to do something like that.”

The scientists fabricated DNA samples two ways. One required a real, if tiny, DNA sample, perhaps from a strand of hair or drinking cup. They amplified the tiny sample into a large quantity of DNA using a standard technique called whole genome amplification.

Of course, a drinking cup or piece of hair might itself be left at a crime scene to frame someone, but blood or saliva may be more believable.

The authors of the paper took blood from a woman and centrifuged it to remove the white cells, which contain DNA. To the remaining red cells they added DNA that had been amplified from a man’s hair.

Since red cells do not contain DNA, all of the genetic material in the blood sample was from the man. The authors sent it to a leading American forensics laboratory, which analyzed it as if it were a normal sample of a man’s blood.

The other technique relied on DNA profiles, stored in law enforcement databases as a series of numbers and letters corresponding to variations at 13 spots in a person’s genome.

From a pooled sample of many people’s DNA, the scientists cloned tiny DNA snippets representing the common variants at each spot, creating a library of such snippets. To prepare a DNA sample matching any profile, they just mixed the proper snippets together. They said that a library of 425 different DNA snippets would be enough to cover every conceivable profile.

Nucleix’s test to tell if a sample has been fabricated relies on the fact that amplified DNA — which would be used in either deception — is not methylated, meaning it lacks certain molecules that are attached to the DNA at specific points, usually to inactivate genes.

Infra-red helps find hidden tattoo

2009-12-15T23:57:00.002-05:00

There is a new use for infra-red cameras that can help Forensic Scientists solve crimes. Forensic scientists look at tattoos as a way of identifying suspects in investigations, but criminals can easily have them changed or updated. Scientist at the University of Derby in England say that they can use infra-red cameras to determine if tattoos are originals or if they have been altered. Using a digital camera sensitive to infra-red, researchers can see if there are hidden layers or changes to the original tattoo deeper in the skin. In an experiment researchers were able to see that a student who had a tattoo of a butterfly on his back was actually covering up an original tattoo of an imp. With this new infra-red technology scientist will be able to find determine if there suspects were able to alter there tattoos to possibly get away with the crimes the committed.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5i00xsIi0OoXaL3y9lTo3LLfic_Iw

Scent Dogs to ID Perpetrators

2009-12-14T21:09:00.000-05:00

Matt McCarthy
December 13, 2009
Forensics
Dogs

This article discusses the controversial method of using trained dogs in “scent line ups” to link a suspect to a crime scene. This method has come under scrutiny because of the potential for cross-contamination of scents and the dog’s perception of a human’s attention to the container that holds their scent. Most of the FBI is against this method and says dogs should only be used to find a crime scene or suspect by using scents but shouldn’t be able to pick one out of a line up. However, Thomas Litner is a FBI agent who claims this practice is useful and has been around for a long time. This method is widely used in Texas where people are currently starting lawsuits against local sheriff departments for being sentenced because of a dog scent line up.

http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/04/dogs-forensic-science-and-scent-lineups/?scp=3&sq=forensic%20science&st=cse

Crime Scene Imperfections

2009-12-14T01:09:00.000-05:00

This article on “crime scene imperfections” was very educational and also very unsettling. This article talks about how crime investigation shows are sometimes far from the truth. The National Academy of Sciences has observed these shows and has found “various continuity errors” from the show to actual government proceedings. In addition to that, the National Academy of Sciences also discovered that the field of forensic science is “grossly deficient.”

One of the reasons for this is because many forensic labs are poorly funded and staffed with scientists who are poorly trained. The N.A.S. also said that the problem with forensic science is that there is little evidence of the accuracy and reliability of most forensic methods. Especially ones that rely on expert interpretation.

Some techniques such as “Nuclear DNA analysis” only have a miniscule likelihood of error, whereas, many other well known methods have no proof that they work consistently. Methods such as those that can identify a guilty person or link a weapon to a crime scene are those that are being called into question. It is believed that these processes can help focus an investigation but can not always provide infallible evidence of guilt. Even in fingerprint analysis, it is said that the final ruling can be biased because of an examiners knowledge of the case. These Examiners have sometimes disagreed wit their own past conclusions when viewing the prints in a different context.

In the end, the N.A.S. makes many suggestions for the improvement of forensic science but there appears to be a lot of work before it becomes a highly-respected field of science.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/21/opinion/21sat2.html

'Smell Of Death' Research Could Help Recover Bodies In Disasters And Solve Crimes

2009-12-14T00:14:00.000-05:00

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090816211837.htm

In this article, it focuses on a device that can help determine the time elapsed since death of victims in natural disasters. Currently the “gold standard” in this type of recovery is a specially trained kind of dog. While they are able to locate bodies in disasters such as hurricanes, tornadoes, and earthquakes, it takes a lot of money and manpower to train them and the time since death cannot be determined. The way these dogs can find the body is the scent of at least one of thirty compounds a body releases during its death. For a more cost effective method, as well as more knowledgeable discoveries, scientists are working on a device that would work by detecting one of these thirty compounds. Not only would it be able to locate the source, but also with its ability to identify the compound in the air, they process of determining the time of death would be much more accessible.