Forensic Science

Introduction

The term forensic science is derived from term ‘forum’ which means ‘in the public’ and the fact that science revolves truth, spoken or seen. Forensic science can therefore be roughly defined as ‘to speak the truth in public’. In the modern world, forensic science is defined as speaking the truth in court. In this case, forum is being equated to the courts. It may be defined that while the role of science is to define what facts are, forensic science helps he legal system define those facts. It is therefore concluded that forensic science is the application of science to law that is used in both criminal and civil cases that is usually enforced by police agencies.

Scope of forensic science

The scope of forensic science is wide and keeps on growing. The physical science aspect of forensic science applies principles of chemistry, physics and geology to evidence biology. This branch deals with biological samples such as blood, bloodstains, botanical materials, fibers and firearms. This branch examines firearms and ammunition. They check cloths and other objects for gunshot residue. This scope of forensic science also deals with the examination of documents for handwritings, inks, paper and photography. Finally this scope is in charge of examining and recording physical evidence collected and presenting it to court (Siegel & Houck 2006).

The second scope of forensic science deals with toxicology. This scope examines body fluids and organs to determine whether there is the presence or absence of drugs or poisons. They also check for invisible fingerprints that cannot be easily identified by the naked human eye. This is known as latent fingerprinting. The scope also records polygraphs which act as lie detectors as well as conduct voiceprint analysis by using spectrographs in the identification of crime scenes. This scope generally deals with the collection of evidence.

The final Scope of Forensic Science specializes with forensic psychiatry. It examines relationship between human behavior and legal proceedings through forensic odontology, meaning they identify victims through dental evidence if body is left in unrecognizable state, bite mark analysis forensic engineering. This scope is concerned with failure analysis, accident reconstruction, causes and origins of fires and explosions (Siegel & Houck 2006). They also conduct forensic computer and digital analysis which is the identification, collection, preservation and examination of information from digital devices.

These scopes can therefore be divided into different departments that add up to the collection, analysis, documentation and presentation of the final report to court. Therefore, these scopes narrow forensic science into a few areas.

Criminalistics

This is a branch of forensic science that deals with the collection and analysis of evidence generated at criminal scenes. It includes areas such as blood and bodily fluids, drugs, footwear and general trace evidence. In this branch, trace evidence may include fire and explosion residue, plastics and other polymers, wood, chemicals to mention but a few (Ubelaker, 2013).

Forensic pathology

Forensic pathology is usually conducted by medical examiners. Their main function is to determine cause and manner of death in cases where the death occurred in suspicious circumstances or unknown circumstances. It deals with the autopsy of the body as a primary function and also involves toxicology, radiology, anthropology, and entomology. This section also involves going to the crime scene to gather evidence and for preliminary observations.

Forensic anthropology

It involves with study of humans and their ancestry. It deals with identifying people who cannot be identified through fingerprints or photographs. This field deals with the analyzing of skeleton remains to determine whether or not they are human. They also involve the use of further analysis such as x-rays to narrow down their findings. This section of forensics mainly deals with the reconstruction of and identifications of victims in mass fatalities (Ubelaker, 2013).

Forensic odontology

This branch of forensic science deals with the teeth. They mainly deal with the identification of human remains in mostly mass disasters. They deal with x-rays of the dental formulas as well as the bite mark comparisons.

Forensic engineering

This section of forensics mostly visits sites where construction of any kind has collapsed and probably caused death. It involves the investigation into the situations that caused the collapse and includes the analysis of the construction materials. They are also involved in the reconstruction of traffic accidents from scant oral evidence.

Toxicology

Toxicology involves the chemical analysis of bodily fluids to determine whether there is the presence of any drugs or poisons in a given humans body. It determines how much and to what effect the substance had on the individual.

Behavioral science/ forensic psychology

This branch of forensics deals the determination of whether individuals are fit to stand trial and to assist in the individuals’ defense. They usually determine the all too important ‘mental capacity’ issue with regards to forming an intention to commit a certain crime.

Document examination

This section deals with the examination of all sorts of documents whether they are handwritten, or typewritten to determine their authenticity.

Functions of forensic scientists

There are three major functions that forensic scientists play with regards to the law. These three major roles can be further subdivided into smaller functions, however, at the end of the day, all functions boil down to these three functions.

Analyzing of physical evidence

This is achieved through the analysis of confessions from both victims and perpetrators to a crime and by listening to eyewitness accounts of by victims or witnesses. They are also responsible for the evaluation of physical evidence often recovered from crime scenes. Once they have collected all this evidence, they use scientific inquiry and scientific methods to analyze the evidence collected (Girard, 2006).

Provision of expert testimony

Once forensic scientists have analyzed the evidence it is their duty to present this evidence in court. They are admitted into the courts as expert witnesses under rule 702 of the federal rules of evidence. The law is clear on this position and allows for strictly qualified expert witnesses in this field of forensic science. Therefore it is the duty of the trial judge to establish the authenticity of the forensic scientist before they can offer their testimony in court in that capacity.

They furnish the training in forensic science

Forensic scientists usually train law enforcement personnel on techniques that are involved with physical evidence recognition, collection and preservation (Cole & Smith, 2006). This in turn helps with the final case because the evidence is not tampered with as it used to in the past.

Conclusion

Forensic science has revolutionalised the law. The courts no longer have to suffer releases of known criminal offenders due to the lack of evidence that may link them with specific crimes. The incorporation of science into the law has taken the laws of evidence through transformations that have ensured that justice is efficiently bestowed upon those who deserve it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References

Cole, G. F., & Smith, C. E. (2006). The American system of criminal justice. Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth

Girard, J. E. (2006). Criminalistics: Forensic science and crime. Sudbury, Mass. [u.a.: Jones and Bartlett.

Siegel, J. A., & Houck, M. M. (2006). Fundamentals of Forensic Science. Burlington: Elsevier.

Ubelaker, D. H. (2013). Forensic science: Current issues, future directions. Chichester, West Sussex: Wiley-Blackwell.