forensic science

Who is known as the father of forensics?

Dr. Edmond Locard

What year and where was the first forensic laboratory established?

1910, Lyon, France

What principle is Locard known for?

Locard’s Exchange Principle

What does Locard’s Exchange Principle state?

When a person comes into contact with an object or another person, a cross

What do exchanged materials indicate?

That the two entities were in contact.

What type of witness does evidence act as?

A silent witness to the crime.

What factors affect the amount of transfer?

Intensity, duration, and nature of contact.

What principle is forensics built upon?

Cross

In what forms can evidence be found?

Many forms (physical, biological, etc.).

What must investigators be able to do with evidence?

Classify it as circumstantial or direct.

What is direct evidence?

Firsthand observations.

Examples of direct evidence?

Eyewitness accounts, police dashboard footage, video surveillance, voice recordings, signed ransom notes, lab reports.

What is circumstantial evidence?

Indirect evidence that implies a fact but does not directly prove it.

Examples of circumstantial evidence?

Prints (fingerprints, bite marks, tire prints), DNA, ballistic evidence, fibers, hair.

What are the two categories of circumstantial evidence?

Physical and biological.

Examples of physical evidence?

Prints, bullets, weapons, synthetic fibers.

Examples of biological evidence?

DNA, hair, natural fibers.

What is class evidence?

Evidence that narrows to a group of people/items.

Examples of class evidence?

Shoe prints, blood type, hair (without the root).

What is individual evidence?

Evidence that narrows to one person.

Examples of individual evidence?

DNA, hair (with the root), fingerprints.