Description
(formerly Criminalistics: Theory and Practice)
The accumulation and processing of physical evidence is an essential component of criminal and civil investigations. This course will introduce the student to the techniques of scientific criminal investigation and the forensic photographing, collection, processing and documentation of crime scene data, such as: fingerprints, hair, blood and body fluid samples, footwear outsole patterns, tire tracks, gunshot residues, cordage and glass and textile fibers. Case illustrations will be drawn from leading criminal cases. The role of the forensic scientist as ?expert witness? in trial proceedings will be examined. Higly recommended: One course in the Natural Sciences.