Forensic science is any field of science applied to the law, with a forensic expert providing testimony to a court. They can be involved in any area of scientific research and collect physical evidence from crime scenes, analyze evidence in a laboratory, and use software or databases to match DNA or fingerprints. Both prosecution and defense in criminal trials and both defendant and plaintiff in civil trials may request their testimony. Special training is available for forensic scientists who will be asked to appear in court.
Forensic comes from a Latin word meaning “public” or “forum” and in English can mean “used in the courts”. Forensic science, therefore, is any field of science as it applies to the law, and a forensic expert is a forensic scientist from any field who provides testimony to a court or tribunal.
A forensic expert can be involved in any of the areas of scientific research. May be an anthropologist, biochemist, chemist, dentist, medical examiner, psychologist, psychophysiologist, toxicologist, or expert in areas such as ballistics, computers, crime scene reconstruction, fingerprints, firearms, explosives , handwriting, textiles or tool marks.
A forensic expert is often involved in criminal cases shortly after the crime is discovered. She or he may be present at the crime scene and involved in examining and collecting physical evidence from the site, using appropriate fingerprint and biological evidence kits, collecting fingerprints, and collecting samples of other pertinent evidence. Documenting the scene with written documents and photographs is another aspect of the job.
The forensic scientist’s role often includes working in a laboratory, examining and analyzing evidence with tools and techniques specific to his or her specialty. Depending on that specialty, the forensic scientist may use certain tools that are standard in many laboratories. Examples include instruments such as chromatographs, spectrographs and scanning electron microscopes, depending on whether the scientist is, for example, analyzing drugs, chemicals or comparing very small amounts of questionable material with known material, respectively.
There are also tasks that are more specific than forensic science. Often, this may involve analysis performed with or through software or database interfaces. For example, when trying to match unidentified DNA found at a crime scene, the forensic scientist could draw on resources such as DNA sequence analysis software and the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS). When trying to establish fingerprint identity at the crime scene, fingerprint identification systems, such as the Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) or Integrated Automatic Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS), may be used.
Both the prosecution and defense in criminal trials and both the defendant and the plaintiff in civil trials may request the testimony of a forensic expert. The findings or opinions of forensic experts may be presented as reports or they may be invited to appear in court. Special training is available for forensic scientists who will be asked to appear in court.
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