Evolution Of Forensic Evidence

Forensic Evidence is the most critical aspect in a criminal investigation, but it is often underrated. The reason being is that it provided critical details that tells a story of what happened at a crime scene. Forensic science has been around for centuries and has even been used by the Chinese as early as the 6th century. Over the centuries, Forensic Science has evolved and has become more effective in solving every day crimes, to included unsolved crime. Forensic Scientists need to have a vast knowledge in multiple areas of science to be able to effectively analysis evidence. Forensic science uses multiple areas of science to discover different types of evidence and like all other sciences, forensic science is not always right and does have

Mathieu Orfila is known as the father of toxicology, because he was the first to study blood and semen stains with a microscope. In the late 1800s Alphonse Bertillon established the first scientific system that was used to identified people though bodily measurements. Francis Galton was the first person to study fingerprints and the first to be able to file them though classification. Fingerprinting would eventually replace the Bertillon identification system in the 1900s. Leone Lattes discovered that blood can be categorized into four groups. Calvin Goddard determined that each bullet fired from a gun is different, like fingerprints. Like fingerprints Goddard determine that bullets found at a crime scene can be compared though ballistics. Albert Osborn was the first person to develop a principle that documented examinations. Walter McCrone furthered the development of microscopic techniques that helped solve crimes by analyzing evidence. Hans Gross was the first to develop principles of criminal investigation. Edmond Locard enhanced Gross’s principles by using the scientific method for criminal investigations. Though all these men, forensic science has developed into a system that is able to use forensic evidence to convict a person that committed a

Forensic science is acceptable to human error and is not always perfect. Some of the disadvantages to forensic science is that it is inconsistent. Since forensic laboratories uses different techniques it is hard to have consistent evidence. Since there is no standard on how forensic scientist produce their findings, it causes inconsistency which can affect the case by being misinterpreted. Besides the inconsistency, forensic science need to be precise and accurate in order to provide evidence that will be able to be used. Even the simplest error can have a devastating toll in a case, which could affect the evidence that is brought to court. Some people believe that DNA analysis is unethical because it reveals private information of an individual. Another factor that affects forensic science is that the equipment used are expensive and are always being updating. In order to provide the courts adequate information and precise evidence, it is vital that all the equipment is properly taken care of and updated when it is needed. With all of the disadvantaged that forensic science has, it does have its advantages. Through forensic science, scientist are able to pinpoint an exact cause of death which allows them to determine if it was accidental, homicidal, or natural causes. It also proves the innocence of a person by analyzing the DNA found at a crime scene. Along with