Crime & Clues

The forensic community is bracing itself for change as we await the White House response to the NAS report on the state of forensic science. The National Science and Technology Council, the committee reviewing the report, is slated to release their findings on the practicalities of implementing the NRC's recommendations by September 2011.

The FBI's forensics examiners have noticed the uptick in fingerprint mutilations over the last few years, although advancements in forensics technology have made the efforts fruitless, as even severely damaged fingers provide investigators with clues.

As drunken-driving deaths are dropping, law enforcement are seeing an increase in cases of driving under the influence of drugs—namely prescription drugs. Unlike with alcohol, however, there is no agreement on what level of drugs in the blood impairs driving and behavioral effects of prescription medications vary widely.

Questions about the operations and efficiency of the San Francisco Police Department crime lab have arisen as DNA analysis automation equipment lies unused six years after purchase.

The machines were purchased with a federal grant, however the lab did not have the infrastructure to implement the equipment. The lab has now secured a $400,000 Homeland Security grant so it can update the software to start using the DNA testing machines in the next eight months.

Investigators at the Wabash Valley Correctional Facility in Terre Haute, Indiana, are leveraging Touch DNA to resolve cases of illegal contraband in the prison.

Since all convicted felons in Indiana are required to submit their DNA sample into a nationwide database, the DNA test will show any inmates in the facility who have come in contact with the item.

A University of South Florida anthropologist is joined by a team of graduate students helping Saint Petersburg Police excavate a trio of long-buried bodies, which will hopefully finally give the families of these unnamed murder victims some sense of closure.

From: University Beat

Extension cords should only be used when necessary and only for temporary use. If you have more than a few extension cords powering equipment in your lab, it is probably time to call an electrician to install additional strategically placed outlets or rearrange equipment.

Likewise, if you have any cords running through walls, up through the ceiling and down somewhere else, an electrician is definitely required.

In order to take advantage of the latest advances in technology and science, a crime scene officer needn't acquire the same level of knowledge as the experts, but must have enough knowledge to recognize what the experts can accomplish with the right evidence.

Think it’s always a good idea to put a lot of padding into a budget? You might want to think again.

One common reason managers pad a budget is because they believe the budget will be cut no matter how well justified all the requests for funding are. The padding is actually there to be cut.

We have all seen the headlines: Thousands of rape kits in law enforcement agencies are untested; crime laboratories that have substantial backlogs of DNA cases waiting to be analyzed.

Delays in submitting evidence to a forensic laboratory as well as delays in analyzing the evidence result in delays in justice. In worst-case situations, delays can result in additional victimization by serial offenders or in the incarceration of individuals who have not committed the crime they are accused of or charged with.