Since the Industrial Revolution, criminal prosecution has moved from the police interrogating everybody present at a crime scene to utilizing forensic science to determine what transpired and who the potential suspect is.
Forensic science goes a long way in legal processes, especially in cases involving manslaughter and murder. It helps solve cases and bring justice to victims and their families. One of the main advantages of forensics is its objectivity. Unlike witness testimony, which can be subjective and influenced by several factors, forensic evidence depends on scientific techniques, making it a more credible and reliable form of evidence in court.
This blog discusses forensic science's critical role in solving criminal cases and why it is an indispensable tool.
What Forensic Science Means
Forensic science is the application of physical and natural scientific techniques during a crime-solving investigation. It involves collecting, analyzing, and interpreting physical evidence discovered at crime scenes. The evidence can be critical in determining a suspect’s innocence or guilt and providing key insights into the case facts. Equipment is utilized to analyze the evidence to link a suspect to an offense and the victim involved.
A forensic scientist will review physical evidence collected at the scene of the crime, like DNA, drugs, tire tracks, blood, firearm residue, clothing fibers, and other chemicals. They will then administer tests in a lab to analyze and interpret the data so the prosecution can present it before the court.
Forensic science involves various study areas, each focusing on specific evidence analysis. Forensic pathologists, for example, conduct autopsies to establish the manner or cause of death. However, forensic engineers analyze materials to determine the sources of materials or defects related to the offense.
Forensic scientists can assist police in tracking down even the most slippery perpetrators by utilizing high-tech equipment.
Forensic science—a combination of technology, chemistry, and biology—has transformed how crime scenes are interpreted and evidence assessed in criminal investigations. This scientific technology has enabled the judicial system and law enforcement officers to unravel the truth that could otherwise stay hidden, resulting in just rulings and accurate conclusions.
An Impartial Witness That Is Forensic Science
Forensic science gives an objective, impartial narrative of an offense. It provides facts that human witnesses may distort, forget, or overlook. As far as solving manslaughter, murder, and other criminal cases is concerned, forensic science is indispensable. Forensic evidence, be it fingerprints, ballistics, or DNA, can disprove or prove links between a victim, suspect, and crime scene.
The Relationship Between Criminal Investigations and Forensic Science
Forensic science is also called criminalistics. It is a relatively new field in the broader landscape of taught sciences. Generally, forensic scientists or experts are tasked with analyzing evidence from various crime scenes to generate objective findings that can be utilized in court. There are especially multiple specialties under the forensic science umbrella, each possibly being utilized differently to build a compelling case against suspects.
The link between criminal investigations and forensics is critical. It may make all the difference between prosecuting a criminal and absolving an innocent individual of wrongful sentencing.
Forensic science gives the prosecution evidence it could use to have a suspect convicted even when eyewitnesses are not available. The prosecution can use forensic experts during initial crime scene investigations, collecting the evidence for thorough analysis in a lab. Then, the experts perform specialized tests on the evidence per the current testing standards to ensure the evidence meets the court’s requirements.
Various forensic science techniques and experts may be utilized to determine facts that can be admitted in court. The essential relationship between the law and forensics ensures exonerations and convictions happen without injustice or bias.
Additionally, forensic science is regulated by scientific protocols and legal procedures supported by professional communities like the American Academy of Forensic Sciences. Police officers might lack a complete understanding or background on the importance of criminal investigations. That is why the need for forensic experts continues to rise, leading to the need for interdisciplinary forensic study programs countrywide.
Forensic Science Challenges
Although forensic science techniques have proven to be invaluable tools, they are not error-free. Interpreting forensic evidence depends primarily on human judgment and expertise, which are bound to have errors. It is critical to understand that, whereas fingerprint or DNA evidence can be compelling, it is only a piece of the puzzle in an intricate criminal investigation.
There have been cases whereby misunderstanding or misusing forensic evidence has resulted in wrongful convictions. This is, therefore, a reminder that whereas forensic science can reveal the truth, its misuse may also lead to doubts and injustices.
Forensic Science Techniques
Forensic science incorporates various techniques to collect, analyze, and interpret evidence. Prevalent techniques utilized in murder, manslaughter, and other multiple cases in California include the following:
Tool Mark and Ballistics Analysis
Tool mark and ballistic analysis entails examining ammunition, firearms, and the markings left on casings and bullets to establish their link and connect them to the murder. By comparing the markings, forensic scientists can establish whether a given weapon was utilized in the murder, giving critical evidence for connecting the suspect to the weapon and the crime scene.
Fingerprint Analysis
Fingerprinting has been used for identification for over a century. Everyone's fingerprints have a distinctive pattern of ridges, making them highly reliable evidence.
That said, analyzing fingerprints is another critical forensic science technique. It entails gathering and comparing fingerprints discovered at the crime scene with the suspect’s. Analyzing fingerprints can establish whether the suspect was at the crime scene and connect them to the murder. Where a suspect is yet to be determined, forensic scientists can match the fingerprints discovered at the crime scene to those in the fingerprint database, helping investigators narrow their list of suspects quickly.
Carbon Dot Powders
Fingerprint analysis is essential for analyzing many murder scenes. However, there are several reasons why it might be challenging to see fingerprints clearly, including high toxicity, low contrast, or low sensitivity. Forensic scientists have developed a fluorescent carbon dot powder that they can apply to fingerprints to make them fluorescent under UV light. This has subsequently made it easier to analyze fingerprints. Carbon dot powders make fingerprints glow orange, yellow, or red.
DNA Analysis
DNA profiling is a prevalent forensic science technique used to identify suspects in murder, manslaughter, and other criminal cases. It has been instrumental in identifying murder suspects and exonerating the innocent.
Forensic scientists gather DNA evidence from the crime scene, including bodily fluids, skin cells, or hair, and then they analyze and compare it to the suspect’s DNA to establish if they were present at the crime scene. The distinctiveness of DNA profiles, coupled with technological advancements, has made DNA evidence highly powerful in establishing a perpetrator’s identity.
Physical Evidence Matching
The matching of physical evidence may range from an easy task, such as matching a torn piece of cloth to the cloth from which the piece came. Forensic experts could also use scientific testing to look for and find different types of physical evidence, including bodily fluids such as semen, urine, blood, ballistics, tire tracks, fingerprints, shoe prints, glove prints, broken glass, tool impressions, trace evidence of gunshot residue or fire debris, et cetera. Forensic experts conduct two kinds of analysis: accidental characteristics and class characteristics.
Accidental characteristics refer to unique marks and features that form on an object due to wear and tear. The physical evidence-matching process requires more expertise with objects such as broken glass and plastic fragments. Some processes even require microscopic examination and photographic overlay comparison.
Class characteristics involve various items such as tool impressions, show prints, glove prints, and tire prints. Forensic scientists can categorize and sort out these objects depending on pattern, model, size, and type. If, for example, a shoe print belongs to a given class, forensic experts will narrow their search to individuals with shoes that fall under that class category.
Toxicology Testing
Toxicology testing aims to determine whether the murder incident involved controlled substances or other toxins. Forensic scientists analyze the victim’s bodily tissues and fluids to determine whether any substances are present. Toxicology reports can disclose the specific drugs or poisons that might have played a role in a victim’s demise.
Forensic Pathology
Forensic pathology is another critical subset of forensic science that involves examining a victim’s body to establish the manner and cause of death. This field of forensic science is especially relevant in manslaughter and murder cases, assisting in piecing together the events leading to the victim’s death.
Forensic pathologists establish the manner and cause of death by examining medical records, conducting autopsies, and analyzing evidence. The manner of death means the circumstances under which the death occurred, like natural, accidental, suicidal, or homicide. In contrast, the cause of death is the injury or medical condition that resulted in the individual’s demise.
Autopsies are the primary tool forensic pathologists use to establish the manner and cause of death. During the autopsy process, the pathologist assesses the body to find any indications of injury, disease, or trauma. They might draw samples for toxicology and other lab testing. The autopsy findings are then utilized to establish the cause of death and generate evidence for criminal investigations.
Digital Forensics
The digital forensic technique is relatively new to forensic science. However, this technique is increasingly critical in murder and manslaughter investigations. It entails forensic scientists analyzing digital devices like computers, cameras, and smartphones to collect evidence that may be utilized to unravel the case.
Digital forensics science relies on the concept of the digital footprint. We may not know it, but everything we do online leaves a trace. You leave a paper trail every time you tweet, shop online, or log in to a website. Everyone has a digital record of their internet activity on the World Wide Web.
To identify a criminal suspect, computer forensic experts can collect the suspect’s data online, analyze it, and generate solid evidence linking the suspect to the crime. The experts may request a cyber investigator to recover all the deleted files, crack encrypted passwords, restore damaged hard drives, determine the source of a security breach, et cetera.
The tools utilized may be complex to do these tasks efficiently. Analysis tools across various communication platforms and devices, data scrapers, packet scrapers, file viewers, and data capture tools are some of the tools digital forensic experts use.
BPA (Bloodstain Pattern Analysis)
BPA is an emerging forensic science technology. It involves reconstructing a crime scene by analyzing blood and bloodstains. The technology can approximate the origin of a bloodletting incident, providing critical insights into what happened at a crime scene.
At a suspected murder scene, bloodstain pattern analysis can provide police with more information. For example, BPA can establish whether a deadly gunshot resulted from homicide or suicide. Alternatively, if an accused person has argued self-defense, a bloodstain pattern analysis may show whether a struggle occurred.
Proteomes
For years, forensic experts have relied heavily on DNA analysis to identify a victim or suspect. However, technological advancements in detecting proteins have made proteomes a critical forensic science technique. Proteomes refer to a full set of proteins an organism produces.
Forensic scientists can detect proteomes in bones, blood, tissues, and other biological materials. They analyze these proteomes to find the answers they need, like linking a sample of severely degraded body fluid to a suspect or whether the victim came into contact with an undetectable venom. Proteomes and DNA differ in one aspect. The difference is that proteomes change with time, giving forensic scientists valuable insight into victims’ age and other environmental elements at the time of their death that cannot be detected via other methods.
Nanotechnology
Molecular and atomic technology has been incorporated into forensics. Examining forensic evidence at this precise level can offer forensic scientists insights that were not accessible before. Nanosensors are used to analyze the presence of illicit drugs, biological agents, and explosive material at the molecular level. Particular advancements in the previous years have included forensic scientists’ ability to examine the presence of polymer and carbon-based nanomaterials to draw conclusions and help investigators.
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
While artificial intelligence has been utilized in several other fields for years, it is quite new to forensic science. This is mainly because all the analysis and evidence must be admissible in court. However, the latest technological advancements have enabled artificial intelligence to be used successfully in all forensic components of criminal cases. Whereas artificial intelligence is most frequently utilized in digital forensics, it is increasingly utilized to analyze murder crime scenes, draw conclusions from photograph comparisons, compare fingerprint data, et cetera.
Foldscope
The Foldscope refers to a tiny, disposable, affordable paper microscope that has been in use since 2014 and just recently found its way into the forensic science field. Because of its low cost and portability, forensic scientists use this paper microscope while out in the field to make instant determinations regarding forensic samples like soil, hail, and blood.
Even though the conclusions obtained from Foldscope are preliminary, they assist the police in the early stages of the investigation and hasten the discovery process. Utilizing a Foldscope while in the field can ease the workload for forensic labs, which are usually backlogged and may take considerable time to produce results.
What the Future Holds for Forensic Science In Solving Murder Cases
Advancements in forensic science, like digital forensics, continue to define the criminal investigation landscape. These technologies promise even more detailed and accurate evidence in manslaughter and murder cases. However, they also need careful interpretation and handling to ensure everyone involved receives the justice they deserve.
Other Crimes That Could Use Forensic Science
Apart from murder, other offenses that can be solved by forensic science include drug crimes and sex crimes. In drug offenses, forensic science helps establish the chemical composition of a controlled substance.
This enables law enforcement to determine whether a suspect possessed, manufactured, or sold a controlled substance. If the results of the forensic analysis come back positive, the prosecution can use them to charge a suspect with the relevant drug offense.
Forensic science techniques can also determine the controlled substance that led to a victim's demise in cases of death due to narcotics. It can also help narrow down the suspect who had the drug involved in the victim’s murder.
In sexual offense cases, for example, rape and sodomy, the victim's DNA could be utilized to find and penalize the perpetrator.
Contact a Skilled Criminal Lawyer Near Me
In general, forensic science evidence has proven indispensable in ensuring fair and unbiased administration of justice, particularly in murder and manslaughter cases. It assists in establishing the truth, removing doubt, and providing closure to the victims’ families. By capitalizing on the power of science and technology, forensic evidence has become invaluable for solving murder cases and increasing safety in our society.
At Leah Legal, our team of experienced attorneys is here to help you. We can assist in ensuring you undergo an impartial trial process with the most favorable outcome. We review all evidence, including forensic evidence. Contact us at 818-484-1100 if you have been charged in Van Nuys for a free consultation.