Forensics 240: Comprehensive Course Notes and Introduction to Forensic Science

Course Overview and Administrative Policies

• Course Designation: Econ 330 / Forensics 240.

• Course Purpose: Designed strictly as an introductory overview of criminal justice and forensic science. It covers instances and concepts related to criminal justice without laboratory work or hands-on lab experiments.

• Educational Progression: Forensics 240 represents the highest level of forensic coursework offered at this institution. Students seeking to specialize or conduct deeper lab work in forensic science must transfer to a four-year university.

• Syllabus and Course Canvas Requirements:

  • The syllabus is available in both paper format and within the Canvas course shell.
  • Students must complete two mandatory tasks before remaining course modules will unlock: complete the initial student introduction post and read the syllabus.
  • The initial introduction assignment locks after Friday. Failure to complete it before the lock deadline prevents subsequent weekly modules from opening.
  • Canvas serves as the primary portal for all assignment submissions and bi-weekly module pushes.

• Classroom Expectations and Learning Culture:

  • The course operates on a bi-weekly module schedule within a hybrid learning format.
  • In-person attendance requires active engagement, dialogue, and participation during class presentations, review sessions, and discussions.
  • Dialogue policy: Topics in criminal justice can be controversial. Students are expected to maintain respectful communication, exercise thick skin, listen attentively, and demonstrate the capacity to "agree to disagree."
  • The overarching operational philosophy in criminal justice and the classroom is to remain firm, fair, and consistent.

Instructor Background and Personal Introduction

• Law Enforcement Career:

  • The instructor is a retired police commander who served for $34\text{ years}$ with the Tacoma Police Department, retiring in the year $2010$
  • Patrol Officer and Motorcycle Traffic Unit Officer.
  • SWAT Team Member.
  • Field Training Officer (FTO).
  • Promoted to Sergeant, then retired at the rank of Lieutenant / Commander.

• Investigative Management Experience:

  • Managed detectives across both violent crimes and property crimes divisions.
  • Primary responsibilities included managing detective call-outs for high-profile scenes at all hours ($3:00\text{ AM}$ to $4:00\text{ AM}$ call-outs), including homicides, officer-involved shootings, infant deaths, drive-by shootings, gang-related homicides, domestic violence homicides, and bridge jumpers.

• Community Relations Leadership:

  • Served as a Sector Commander (Sector 1) overseeing the Hilltop Tacoma and Downtown Tacoma areas.
  • Managed the Community Relations Unit, working directly with local citizen groups and community leaders.
  • Overcame initial community hostility (where police were viewed as mean and purely authoritarian) by extending an olive branch during the first year to build long-term community trust.

• Personal and Military Background:

  • Military service: Served as an $88\text{ Mike}$ ($88\text{M}$) Heavy Vehicle Driver in the U.S. Army.
  • Family updates: Son, Zachary, graduated from West Point in May $2025$. Stationed in Alabama, Zachary completed the Venture introductory helicopter flight course and is transitioning to flying UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters.

Course Grading, Assessment Breakdown, and Standards

• Point-Based Grading Structure:

  • Grades are awarded strictly on total points earned. There is no grade curving and no grade padding.
  • Total points available in the course: $515\text{ points}$.
  • Extra Credit Opportunity: A single extra credit assignment worth $50\text{ points}$ is offered at the end of the quarter to supplement the point total.

• Grade Thresholds and Criminal Justice Standards:

  • Minimum passing requirement for Criminal Justice majors: A grade of $2.0$ (corresponding to $74\%$ to $76\%$) is required to apply the course toward a Criminal Justice degree or certificate.
  • Benchmark Point Total: Students must earn a minimum of $375\text{ points}$ out of the $515\text{ total points}$ to achieve the $2.0$ GPA requirement ($370\text{ points}$ equates to a $1.9$ GPA and fails to meet degree requirements).
  • The $2.0$ standard mirrors the minimum benchmark required in police academies (e.g., Indiana Police Academy).

• Breakdown of Course Assessments:

  • Weekly Discussion Posts: $9\text{ posts}$ worth $10\text{ points}$ each, totaling $90\text{ points}$. Requires $1\text{ main post}$ analyzing a CJ/forensics topic or news article (opinion and critical evaluation required, not a summary) and $2\text{ responses}$ to classmates.
  • Quizzes: Multiple-choice assessments consisting of $25\text{ questions}$ each.
  • Forensic Paper: Major individual research writing assignment worth $100\text{ points}$.
  • Final Examination: Comprehensive final exam covering all course material, worth $100\text{ points}$. The exam is open-textbook.
  • Group Assignments: Two assignments require group work: the Community Group Project and the Student-Led Quiz Review (a pre-quiz presentation, paper, or review guide).

• Group Work Grading Policy:

  • Groups are randomly generated by Canvas based on class size.
  • A single grade is awarded to the entire group for each group project to mirror real-world teamwork and collaboration required in policing and corrections.
  • Exception: If a group member refuses to participate or contribute equally, team members must send an email notification to the instructor detailing the non-contribution. The non-contributing student will receive a score of $0$ for that assignment.

Academic Writing and Citation Standards

• Citation Formatting:

  • All written submissions must adhere to American Psychological Association (APA) style guidelines (Modern Language Association / MLA format is acceptable, but APA is strictly preferred for social sciences).
  • The syllabus provides a direct link to the Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) for proper APA formatting rules.

• Paper Structural Requirements:

  • Introduction: Must include an attention-grabbing hook detailing the issue, thesis statement, and problem context.
  • Body Paragraphs: Delivers supporting evidence and arguments. Every factual or declarative claim must include proper APA in-text citations formatted as: (Author, Year).
  • Conclusion: Summarizes key points and provides a comprehensive final wrap-up for the reader.
  • Reference Page: Placed on the final page of the document, listing all cited sources in alphabetical order by the author's last name.

• Page Count and Formatting Mechanics:

  • A required $3\text{-page}$ paper equals a total submission length of $5\text{ pages}$: Page 1 (Title Page), Pages 2–4 ($3\text{ full pages}$ of written content containing intro, body, and conclusion), and Page 5 (Reference Page).
  • Text formatting: Must be $12\text{-point}$ font size and double-spaced throughout.
  • Prohibited formatting tricks: Leaving half-page gaps, double-spacing between lines while inserting $10\text{ lines}$ of blank space between paragraphs, or manipulating margins to fake length will result in point deductions. Text must flow continuously from top to bottom margin.
  • Resource Utilization: Students are strongly advised to utilize the campus Writing Lab well in advance of deadlines for proofreading and clarity editing.

Introduction to Forensics and the Criminal Justice System

• Etymology and Historical Context:

  • The term "forensics" derives from the Latin word forensis, which translates to "of the forum."
  • In ancient Rome, the forum was a public meeting place used by scholars and citizens to debate, argue, and settle differences of opinion. Crimes were debated publicly, but formal public debate itself does not constitute forensic science.

• Structural Placement of Forensics in Criminal Justice:

  • The criminal justice system consists of three main pillars: Police $\rightarrow$ Courts $\rightarrow$ Corrections (with Diversion programs branching off from the courts).
  • Forensics acts as the glue or bridge between the Police and the Courts, linking crime scene investigations directly to judicial proceedings.

• Core Definition of Forensic Science:

  • Forensic science is the application of scientific disciplines—including chemistry, biology, physics, and physiology—to examine evidence and help resolve legal matters and crimes.

Forensic Roles, Specialties, and Types of Evidence

• Forensic Investigators and Agency Relationship:

  • Forensic investigators are generally civilian employees embedded within law enforcement agencies, working in a professional partnership alongside sworn police officers.
  • Role: Respond to crime scenes to identify, collect, examine, and log physical evidence.

• Forensic Specialties:

  • Forensic photography.
  • Fiber analysis.
  • Bloodstain spatter analysis.
  • Forensic horticulture (botanical analysis).

• Evidence Logging and Courtroom Testimony:

  • Evidence must be meticulously logged, recording who found it, exact location, timestamp, and legal/scientific significance to maintain the chain of custody.
  • Forensic investigators are frequently subpoenaed to testify in court. Defense attorneys systematically cross-examine investigators regarding their credentials, methodology, handling protocols, logging accuracy, and scientific rigor.

• Categories of Data Collected:

  • Qualitative Data: Subjective, descriptive observations regarding physical attributes (e.g., color, shape, visual texture).
  • Quantitative Data: Objective, measurable numerical measurements (e.g., mass, weight, height, volume, dimensions).
  • Perishable Evidence: Physical evidence that degrades over time if exposed to environmental factors or improperly packaged. Improper handling destroys its evidentiary value in court.

Scientific Reasoning Models in Forensics

• Deductive Reasoning (Classical Scientific Method):

  • Step 1: Formulate a problem or state a testable hypothesis.
  • Step 2: Design and conduct an experiment.
  • Step 3: Collect quantitative and qualitative data.
  • Step 4: Analyze data and draw conclusions based on repeatable observations.
  • Goal: Ensures the methodology is solid, data is reliable, and conclusions are scientifically valid.

• Claim-Evidence-Reasoning (CER) Model:

  • Primary model utilized in active forensic field investigations and criminal trials.
  • Observations: Investigators walk the scene and ask foundational questions (e.g., cause of death, entry points).
  • Claim / Assertion: Formulating a statement based on initial scene observation (e.g., "The victim died from a low-caliber gunshot wound to the temple").
  • Evidence / Scientific Data: Gathering empirical data to support the claim (e.g., locating a firearm nearby, finding a chambered casing, conducting a paraffin test to detect Gunshot Residue [GSR] on a suspect's hands, hair, or clothing).
  • Reasoning / Justification: Synthesizing chemical, physical, and investigative findings to link the evidence conclusively to the claim for court presentation.

• Core Investigative Questions:

  • Forensic investigations seek to answer: Who, What, When, Where, How, and Why.
  • The "Why" (motive) often emerges after physical evidence and interrogations align, providing suspects the opportunity to confess.
  • Transference of Evidence (Locard's Exchange Principle concept): Suspects inevitably bring trace elements from the crime scene with them (fibers, blood, soil) and leave trace elements of themselves behind.

Observation, Perception, and Eyewitness Unreliability

• Mechanics of Observation:

  • Observation involves gathering sensory inputs through sight, hearing, smell, touch, and taste.
  • The human brain acts as an automatic filter, selectively processing environmental data based on stress, training, and past experiences.

• Perception vs. Reality:

  • Perception is the brain's interpretation of sensory observations.
  • Perception is inherently flawed, subjective, and frequently fails to reflect reality.
  • Under condition gaps or trauma, the brain automatically fills in missing visual details based on assumptions, leading to inaccurate recollections.

• Factors Impairing Eyewitness Accuracy:

  • High stress, panic, and anxiety (e.g., victims of armed robbery routinely perceive a standard handgun barrel as disproportionately massive due to extreme fear).
  • Fear and historical trauma, which distort memory consolidation.
  • Emotional states and medical conditions (e.g., heart conditions, shock).
  • Fatigue and physical exhaustion.
  • Distractions, especially electronic devices/cell phones.
  • Environmental contexts (e.g., whether an observer is alone or in a group).
  • Duration of observation time.

• Police Mitigation Strategies:

  • Eyewitness accounts alone are notoriously unreliable and cannot be relied upon exclusively to prove a case.
  • Officers immediately separate witnesses at a scene to prevent "groupthink" and peer contamination.
  • Investigators compare separate notes to find common descriptive denominators (e.g., approximate height, weight range, outer clothing, weapon type).
  • Uninvolved bystanders yield significantly more accurate, objective observations than direct victims overwhelmed by stress.

Practical Demonstration: Visual Perception Experiment

• Scene Setup:

  • Class participants were shown an image of an active crime scene for a few seconds and instructed to record all observed details.

• Discrepancies in Student Observations:

  • Entry point: Misidentified by students as a house window versus a greenhouse/garden door.
  • Suspect demographics and facial features: Debated whether the suspect was a Caucasian male, light-skinned Hispanic, or light-skinned Black male. Some students noted a black mustache and goatee, while others missed facial hair entirely.
  • Equipment: Students identified a crowbar (estimated at approximately $1\text{ foot}$ long), but missed that the suspect was wearing gloves.
  • Height estimation: Guesses ranged from short to slightly under $6\text{ feet}$ tall ($5\text{' }10\text{"} - 5\text{' }11\text{"}$).

• Analytical Takeaway:

  • The exercise proved that even in a calm, controlled classroom environment, eyewitness perceptions vary drastically. Under acute life-threatening stress, human perception degrades further, reinforcing the necessity of physical forensic evidence over verbal testimony.

Crime Scene Investigation Workflow and Documentation

• Initial Response and Scene Stabilization:

  • Patrol officers respond to priority calls (e.g., shots fired), clear the area for active threats/suspects, and render emergency medical aid.
  • Once the scene is safe and no active threats remain, the operational focus shifts from search-and-rescue/medical aid to a formal violent crime scene investigation.

• Scene Perimeter Management:

  • Outer Perimeter: Established to control public access, preserve potential external entry/exit routes, and conduct neighborhood canvasses (interviewing neighbors and bystanders).
  • Inner Perimeter: Encloses the exact physical location of the crime and all immediate evidence. Strictly limited to authorized investigators logged on the Crime Scene Log.

• Crime Scene Documentation Tools:

  • Traditional Method: Documenting the scene with high-resolution photography alongside manual tape measure distance calculations relative to fixed anatomical and architectural landmarks.
  • Modern Method (Total Station): Utilizing an architectural Total Station scanning device positioned centrally to generate exact 3D spatial measurements and digital maps of the crime scene, which are supplemented by forensic photography for court presentation.

Suspect Interrogation, Digital Evidence, and Case Resolution

• Interrogation and Evidence Confrontation:

  • Suspects are advised of their Constitutional rights (Miranda rights / Fourth Amendment protections).
  • Investigators utilize physical evidence—such as blood spatter patterns, gunshot residue (GSR), and transfer fibers—to establish physical connectivity between the suspect and the victim.
  • Interrogations utilize strategic confrontation with physical evidence and established inconsistencies to elicit voluntary confessions.

• Digital and Cellular Forensics:

  • Mobile Phones: Cellular devices are tracked by pinging cell towers, allowing investigators to map exact driving routes, turn-by-turn movements, timestamps, and locations.
  • Burner Phones: Burner phones are tracked by identifying point-of-sale store locations, retrieving video surveillance (e.g., 7-Eleven footage), matching time stamps, obtaining serial/PIN numbers, and tracing cellular tower activity.
  • Vehicle Forensics: Modern automobiles contain onboard computer microchips and location trackers that can be extracted and analyzed by law enforcement.

• Case Resolution Dynamics:

  • Major investigations (such as homicides or officer deaths) require continuous, 24/7 operations where command centers and detective units work around the clock without sleep until suspects are identified, tracked, and safely taken into custody.
  • Convictions require linking the suspect physical evidence, digital evidence, and valid statements to satisfy every element of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt in court.

Questions & Discussion

• Student Question: How old are the class members?

  • Responses: Class members disclosed ages of $17\text{ years old}$, $18\text{ years old}$ (including Running Start students), and $25\text{ years old}$.

• Student Question: Is eyewitness testimony considered reliable in court?

  • Instructor Response: No, eyewitness testimony is generally unreliable on its own due to perceptual distortions and stress. It is primarily useful when provided by neutral bystanders to establish general descriptions, or when corroborated by physical and digital forensic evidence.

• Student Question: Do detectives really work continuous multi-day shifts without sleep?

  • Instructor Response: Yes. On major violent crime scenes, homicides, or officer-involved incidents, detectives and command staff work continuously around the clock until a primary suspect is identified, located, or apprehended.