History of Forensics Notes PDF

**CRCJ 4387-003: Careers in Forensics** ======================================= History of Forensics **Forensic Science: That scientific and professional discipline directed toward the recognition, identification, evaluation, and individualization of physical evidence by the application of the nat...

**CRCJ 4387-003: Careers in Forensics** ======================================= History of Forensics **Forensic Science: That scientific and professional discipline directed toward the recognition, identification, evaluation, and individualization of physical evidence by the application of the natural, life and social sciences to law-science matters.** **Criminalistics vs. Criminology -- two different areas of study** **Criminalistics -- same as Forensic Science -- study/evaluation of physical evidence** **Criminology- area of sociology focusing on crimes and their causes, effects and social impact** **Chinese -- one of the first to use fingerprints as identification** **Marcello Malpighi -- 1686 -- first noted fingerprint characteristics and documented** **Carl Wilhelm Scheele -- 1775 -- devised 1^st^ test for arsentic in corpses** **Valentin Ross: 1806 -- more precise method for arsenic in stomach lining** **Sir Arthur Conon Doyle** -- Creator of Sherlock Holmes **Mathieu Orfila** (1787 -- 1853) - Father of Forensic Toxicology - A Spaniard who became a Teacher of Medicine in France - Published the first scientific treatise on the detection of poisons and their effects on animals **1828: Polarized light microscopy** **1863: 1^st^ presumptive test for blood** **1839: James Marsh -- first scientist to ever testify in a criminal trial (over arsenic)** **1850's-60's: Advances in photography that simplified its use for prisoners (mugshots) and crime scenes.** **Alphonse Bertillon (1853 -1914)** - Developed the first scientific method of identification known as Anthropometry - Father of Criminal Identification - Anthropometry was used for two decades before being replaced by fingerprints in the early 1900's **Francis Galton (1822-1911)** - Developed the first definitive study of fingerprints and developed a classification system for filing - In 1892, Galton published the book *Finger Prints* which contained the first statistical proof on uniqueness. **Karl Landsteiner** - In 1901 he discovered human blood groups. Awarded the Nobel Prize in 1930 for his work. - Blood types: A, B, AB and O **Leone Lattes (1887 - 1954)** - **A professor at the Institute of Forensic Medicine - University of Turin in Italy** - **In 1915, Dr. Lattes developed a simple procedure for determining the blood group of a dried blood stain.** **Calvin Goddard - (1891 -1955)** - **U. S. Army Colonel** - **Albert Osborn - (1858 -- 1946)** - This man was responsible for the acceptance of documents as scientific evidence by the courts. - In 1910, Osborn authored the first significant text in the field -- this text was entitled *Questioned Documents.* This text is still used as a primary reference by forensic document examiners today. **Hans Gross (1847 -- 1915)** - Worked as a public prosecutor and judge in Austria. - In 1893, he wrote the classic work entitled *Criminal Investigation* in which he detailed how investigators could expect assistance from the fields of microscopy, chemistry, physics, mineralogy, zoology, botany, anthropometry, and fingerprinting. - Introduced the forensic journal *Kriminologie* which still serves as a medium for reporting scientific crime detection methodologies. **Edmond Locard (1877 -- 1966)** - Educated in both medicine and law. - In 1910, he obtained two rooms and two assistants and developed a police crime laboratory in Lyon, France. - The founder and director of the Institute of Criminalistics at the University of Lyons. - Developed "Locard's Exchange Theory" which states that whenever two objects come into contact, there is always a transfer of material. The methods of detection may not be sensitive enough to demonstrate this or the decay rate may be so rapid that all evidence of transfer has vanished after a given time. Nonetheless, the transfer has taken place. **Walter McCrone, Ph.D.** - World's preeminent microscopist - Founded McCrone Research Institute in Chicago -- educated thousands of forensic scientists - Worked on the Shroud of Turin **J. Edgar Hoover - Was director of the FBI in 1932 when the Federal Bureau of Investigation organized the first national laboratory offering forensic services to all law enforcement agencies in the country.** **August Vollmer** - **In 1923, this man (a police chief) started the first forensic laboratory in the United States in Los Angeles Police Department.** - **In the 1930s, Vollmer headed the first U.S. university institute for criminology and criminalistics at the University of California at Berkeley.** ***Paul Kirk:*** - ***In 1948, the criminology department at the University of Berkeley, was formed under the direction of this famous criminalist.*** - ***The Criminalistics section of the AAFS bestows its highest award in honor of this man.*** *Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States (2009)* - ***Publication by the National Academy of Sciences*** - ***Served as a catalyst for improvements in the forensic science in the areas of:*** - ***Quality of Research and Development*** - ***Standardization*** *NIST (National Institute for Standards and Technology)* - ***Commission of Forensic Science within the Department of DOJ (2013)*** - ***The Charter for the above commission expired in 2017*** - ***OSAC (Organization of Scientific Area Committees)*** ***FRYE v. UNITED STATES -- 1923*** "Just when a scientific principle or discovery crosses the line between the experimental and demonstrable stages is difficult to define. Somewhere in this twilight zone the evidential force of the principle must be recognized, and while the courts will go a long way in admitting expert testimony deduced from a well-recognized scientific principle or discovery, the thing from which the deduction is made must be sufficiently established to have gained general acceptance in the particular field in which it belongs." **FEDERAL RULES OF EVIDENCE RULE *702*** "If scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge will assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue, a witness qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education, may testify thereto in the form of an opinion or otherwise." ***DAUBERT v. MERRELL DOW --* 1993** The trial judge will act as the "gatekeeper" and will use the following guidelines to gauge the veracity of scientific evidence. ***Daubert Criteria:*** - 1\. Whether the scientific technique or theory can be (and has been) tested; - 2\. Whether the technique or theory has been subject to peer review and publication; - 3\. The technique's potential rate of error; - 4\. Existence and maintenance of standards controlling the technique's operation; and - 5\. Whether the scientific theory or method has attracted widespread acceptance within a relevant scientific community. ***KUMHO TIRE CO., LTD v. CARMICHAEL*** The court ruled that the "gatekeeping" role of the trial judge applied not only to scientific testimony, but to all expert testimony. ***COPPOLINO v. STATE OF FLORIDA -- 1968*** "The tests by which the medical examiner sought to determine whether death was caused by succinylcholine chloride were novel and devised specifically for this case. This does not render the evidence inadmissible. Society need not tolerate homicide until there develops a body of medical literature about some particular lethal agent." ***EXPERT WITNESS - An individual whom the court determines possesses knowledge relevant to the trial that is not expected of the average layperson.*** ***All the above information is from the following sources unless otherwise noted:*** Saferstein, R. (2015). *Criminalistics: An Introduction to Forensic Science.* Boston: Pearson.Saferstein, R. (2018). *Criminalistics: An Introduction to Forensic Science.* Boston: Pearson.