Forensic Science

Forensic Science

The word Forensic comes from the Latin forensus, meaning of the

forum.1 In ancient Rome, the forum was where lawmaking debates were

held, but it was also where trials were held just like modern day

courthouses. From that, forensic science has come to mean the

application of the natural and physical science to the motion of

matters within a legal context2. Forensic Science can be viewed as a

tripartite structure consisting of a Collection, which pertains to the

science investigation, Examination, which pertains to the medical

investigation and, Presentation, which pertains to the courts. A

forensic case will involve all aspects of each of the three structured

elements, each being as important as the other. It is obvious that

there needs to be a shared approach for the successful end of each

case. Each step in forensic science must be done in an exact order;

therefore it can be assured that the investigation can have few doubts

about what is being debated. In this paper I will focus my attention

on the first aspect of the three-step structure, Collections and

Scientific Investigation. I will show what should be done at crimes

scenes, how crime scenes should be handled and what steps must be

followed to ensure that all evidence is uncontaminated as when the

crime was committed.

The purpose of crime scene investigation is to help establish what

happened at the crime and to identify the responsible person or

people. Carefully documenting the situation at a crime scene and

recognizing all-important physical evidence do this. The ability to

recognize and properly collect physical evidence is often times vital

to bo...

... middle of paper ...

... keep tract and record everything in which they

recover from a crime scene. Searching a crime scene is a long and

thorough process, however, it will surrender many clues when done

properly. Once the evidence is found, recorded and packaged, it must

be sent to a crime lab for further processing. Each item when shipped

should be recorded, logged and accounted for from person to person so

when used in a trial, the evidence has been accounted for from

beginning to end. The final thing investigators must make sure is that

all evidence was seized properly and with probable cause. This is the

main reason why in so many court cases evidence is thrown out,

improper searches and seizures. If any investigator is in doubt on

whether or not a place or person can be search, it is always best to

obtain a warrant for that such reason.