Chp 8 Flashcards
The application of any science of law.
Forensic science
For any science to be recognized by a court as a legitimate forensic science it must be generally accepted by a relevant scientific discipline.
Known as general acceptance standard
What are the two prominent tests or standards that all courts rely upon for scientific science
The Frye and Daubert test
Under Dobbert guidelines for any given forensic science to be recognized as valid by the court it must be based on scientific evidence
1) is testable
2) is able to establish error stats
3) has been peer reviewed and published in scientific journals
4) is generally accepted by experts who have training needed to evaluate the particular science in question.
What is the Daubert test also referred to as
Scientific evidence standard
12 sub disciplines of forensic science are recognized by the national Institute of Justice
1) general toxicology
2) firearms/tool marks
3) questioned documents
4) trace evidence
5) controlled substance
6)fire debris/arson
7) impression evidence
8)biological/serological screening
9)blood pattern analysis
10. Crime scene investigation
11) medico-legal death investigations
12) digital evidence
Pg 219
What are the primary goals of all crime labs
1) to identify physical evidence
2) to determine its origin
What are the procedures to carry out the crime lab goals
1) searching for and locating the evidence to be analyzed
2) performing a presumptive test(i.e. Controlled substance test)
3) performing a confirmatory test(i.e. DNA test)
4) reporting the results
The following tests/analytical methods can be used for presumptive and confirmative Tess
1) microscopic analysis- both presumptive and confirmatory
2) color tests-presumptive in nature
3) chromatography -separation of gases / blood from drugs-confirmatory results
4) mass spectrometry -confirmatory test
5) biological test-confirmatory tests
A graphic display representing the molecular structures in the substance being tested
Mass spectrum
Infrared spectrometry(is)
For inorganic chemicals and substance most often used as a breath test method for determining blood alcohol levels
Visible spectrometry(vs)
For identifying and examining coloring agents
Atomic absorption spectrometry(as)
Can be used to identify metals hazardous waste another solid compounds
Medical investigation of death by criminal means
Forensic pathology
The physiological and medical reasons for why death occurred are referred to as
Cause of death
Manner of death refers to the circumstances under which the death occurred and is classified as one of the following
Natural Accidental Suicidal Homicidal Undetermined
Ages best determined by examining what
Teeth
The fully developed Dentition of an adult male consists of how many teeth
32
The fully developed Dentition of a child consist of how many teeth
20
All childhood deciduous teeth are replaced by adult permanent teeth by the age of 12 yoga except for
With exception of third molars or wisdom teeth
What bone is used to determine adults age under 40
Pelvic bone
What bones are used for determining for people over 40
Rib bones
What is the most important skill to part for gender identification
Pelvis
What facial bones are used to determine Ethnicity
The eyes cheeks nose and jaw are used by experts to classify remains can you do
The following characteristics can help individualize human skeletal remains
1) dentistry
2) disease
3) surgery
4) trauma
5) use patterns
What is the study of insects as applied to criminal matters
Forensic entomology
And normal weather conditions and how many hours after eggs have been deposited do they hatch
24 to 48
Examples of how persons working in the field of forensic psychology and psychiatry can assist criminal investigators
Criminal profiling
Competency assessment
Eyewitness identification & recall
Interviewing techniques
New forensic testing methods
Fingerprint testing for lifestyle Fired cartridge casings Virtual autopsies Micro stamping Blood age identification Blinking evidence Pg. 239
What areas are in need of improvements by innocent project
Training Oversight Uniformity Independence Test results Backlogs
