Introduction to Forensic Science

Who is the father of toxicology?

Mathieu Orfila

Who provided advice on how to distinguish the determination of cause of death by examination of a corpse

Song Ci

Who is the father of criminal identification

Alphonse Bertillon

Who was the first to definitively study fingerprints

Francis Galton

Who devised a simple procedure for determining the blood type of a dried bloodstain

Dr. Leon Lattes

Whose expertise established comparison microscopes as an indispensable tool of modern firearms examiners

Calvin Goddard

Who developed the fundamental principles of document examination

Albert S. Osborn

Who educated forensic scientists in the application of microscopic techniques

Dr. Walter C. Mcrone

Who authored the first treatise describing the application of scientific disciplines to the field of criminal investigation

Hans Gross

Who wrote the first book on the sexual abuse of children

Auguste Ambroise Tardieu

The forensic scientist who analyzed blood spatter evidence and an AAFS award named after him is

Paul Leland Kirk

What is Locard's Exchange principle

every contact leaves a trace

What are the four major crime labs in the U.S

FBI

DEA

BATFE

U.S Postal Inspection Service

What is criminalistics

The application of science through the analysis of physical evidence, with the enforcement of the law

What is criminology

An area of sociology that focuses on the study of crimes and their cause, effects, and social impact

What are forensic scientists responsible for

Documenting/preserving evidence

Analysis of physical evidence

Maintaining chain of custody

Providing expert testimony

What are the basic services provided by full-service labratories

Trace Evidence / Physical Science unit

Biology unit

Firearms unit

Toxicology unit

Drug analysis unit

Document Examination Unit

What is the difference between the medical examiner system and the coroner system

A medical examiner system provides high‑quality, physician‑led death investigations insulated from local politics and resources; a coroner system relies on officials who may lack training, leading to variable investigation quality and a higher risk of conflicts of interest.

What is the primary role of the forensic pathologist

to determine cause and manner of death

What is considered the most ambitious commitment to forensic science

The formation of the FBI's national laboratory, 1932

What is the oldest forensic lab

LAPD, 1923

This discipline primarily identifies and examines human skeletal remains

forensic anthropology

What is forensic entomology

The study of insects and their relation to a criminal investigation

What is forensic psychiatry

examines how behavoir related to legal proceedings

i.e compentency to stand trial

What discipline uses dental records and bite mark analysis for the identification of victims in an unrecognizable state

forensic odontology

What is forensic engineering

analysis of failures, accidents, fires, and explosions via examining scenes, photos, and mechanical inspection

What does forensic pathology entail

The investigation of sudden, unnatural, and unexplained or violent deaths

Which death investigation system involves highly trained professionals appointed to their posstiion

medical examiner system

T or F, Coroners are always qualified pathologists

False

T or F, The medical examiner system is typically less than that of a coroner system

false

Are coroners able to perform full autopsies

No, only limited external autopsies; it will have to be contracted out to a medical examiner

In what ways can the medical examiner estimate the time of death

rigor mortis - stiffening of muscles

livor mortis - settling of blood in areas close to the ground

algor mortis - loss of body heat