FORENSIC-
Cost- make sure appropriate clothing used
When it comes down to criminal investigations there are several different investigative
techniques that personnelles are able to use in order to solve a case and catch criminals one
of these being
forensics, in which the application of science principles and methods are used in order
obtain evidence such as fingerprints, hair, fibres, footprints and blood. All of which can be
used to identify victims of crime, figure out how the crime was committed and link a
suspect/offender to a crime scene.
TRACE THEORY
Forensics is a highly regarded technique as it has several strengths which help contribute to
the prosecution of individuals and solving crimes. In 1910 at the University of Lyons,
Edmond Locard first recognised the significance of evidence in solving crimes and
developed a theory called the contract trace theory. This is the ideology that criminals will
always leave behind some trace of having been at the crime scene. This is due to every
individual having 46 chromosomes (23 pairs) which are long strands of genetic information
located in the nuclei of cells. Each chromosome is made of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid)
which carries units of hereditary information known as genes and is found in the nucleus of
the cell. It is our genetic code and determines our characteristics which are unique to every
individual.
Advancements in technology have revolutionised the field of criminology and hugely
improved the functioning of the criminal justice system as forensic science are now able to
use specific scientific procedures in order to identify offenders and used to implicate to
exonerate suspects in crimes with a high degree of certainty.
STRENGTHS
This can be seen as a huge strength as the innocence project has calculated that 375
innocent people had been wrongly convicted 102 which involved a false confession leading
to the real perpetrator being identified in 76 cases .
, With the use of forensic investigations they were able to be exonerated allowing them to
return to their normal everyday life alongside the victim receiving justice as the real offender
will be prosecuted.
DNA analysis is highly scientific meaning courts will regard this evidence highly, making it an
easier and quicker process to prosecute offenders serving as an advantage to courts and
prosecutors.
Although DNA within the present time is considered to be a vital part in criminal
investigation it is constantly evolving and becoming more detailed making the future look
bright for forensics.
WEAKNESSES
However, DNA evidence is not always conclusive. Samples can degrade with age, or become
contaminated depending on the environment in which they are found, transported or sorted.
At senses where the DNA is at low levels there is a chance that the analyses may become
confused with background DNA, DNA from another contributor or DNA within the labs .
CASE STUDY
This can be seen within the case of Adam Scott who was arrested and charged with raping
a women in Manchester in 2011. Forensics found traces of sperm which matched with
Scott. However, Adam claimed that at the time of the rape he was at home in Plymouth
which is over 200 miles away and that he had never been to Manchester in his life. Two
months after his arrest, mobile phone records were used as evidence which showed that his
phone had been used in Plymouth a few hours after the rape and Scott was released. An
investigation revealed that Adam has become implicated as a result of accidental
contamination of samples within the lab. The day before processing samples from the rape
victim, the lab had handled a DNA sample from Adam and the disposable plastic plate used
to analyse this sample had been inadvertently reused in the rape case, resulting in the
misidentification. And the real offender not being able to be found.
This is an extremely large limitation on the behalf of forensics due to how easy it is for these
incidents to come about and how hard it can be to defend the defendant if this does occur
due to how highly forensic DNA is regarded resulting in miscarriages of justice.
Cost- make sure appropriate clothing used
When it comes down to criminal investigations there are several different investigative
techniques that personnelles are able to use in order to solve a case and catch criminals one
of these being
forensics, in which the application of science principles and methods are used in order
obtain evidence such as fingerprints, hair, fibres, footprints and blood. All of which can be
used to identify victims of crime, figure out how the crime was committed and link a
suspect/offender to a crime scene.
TRACE THEORY
Forensics is a highly regarded technique as it has several strengths which help contribute to
the prosecution of individuals and solving crimes. In 1910 at the University of Lyons,
Edmond Locard first recognised the significance of evidence in solving crimes and
developed a theory called the contract trace theory. This is the ideology that criminals will
always leave behind some trace of having been at the crime scene. This is due to every
individual having 46 chromosomes (23 pairs) which are long strands of genetic information
located in the nuclei of cells. Each chromosome is made of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid)
which carries units of hereditary information known as genes and is found in the nucleus of
the cell. It is our genetic code and determines our characteristics which are unique to every
individual.
Advancements in technology have revolutionised the field of criminology and hugely
improved the functioning of the criminal justice system as forensic science are now able to
use specific scientific procedures in order to identify offenders and used to implicate to
exonerate suspects in crimes with a high degree of certainty.
STRENGTHS
This can be seen as a huge strength as the innocence project has calculated that 375
innocent people had been wrongly convicted 102 which involved a false confession leading
to the real perpetrator being identified in 76 cases .
, With the use of forensic investigations they were able to be exonerated allowing them to
return to their normal everyday life alongside the victim receiving justice as the real offender
will be prosecuted.
DNA analysis is highly scientific meaning courts will regard this evidence highly, making it an
easier and quicker process to prosecute offenders serving as an advantage to courts and
prosecutors.
Although DNA within the present time is considered to be a vital part in criminal
investigation it is constantly evolving and becoming more detailed making the future look
bright for forensics.
WEAKNESSES
However, DNA evidence is not always conclusive. Samples can degrade with age, or become
contaminated depending on the environment in which they are found, transported or sorted.
At senses where the DNA is at low levels there is a chance that the analyses may become
confused with background DNA, DNA from another contributor or DNA within the labs .
CASE STUDY
This can be seen within the case of Adam Scott who was arrested and charged with raping
a women in Manchester in 2011. Forensics found traces of sperm which matched with
Scott. However, Adam claimed that at the time of the rape he was at home in Plymouth
which is over 200 miles away and that he had never been to Manchester in his life. Two
months after his arrest, mobile phone records were used as evidence which showed that his
phone had been used in Plymouth a few hours after the rape and Scott was released. An
investigation revealed that Adam has become implicated as a result of accidental
contamination of samples within the lab. The day before processing samples from the rape
victim, the lab had handled a DNA sample from Adam and the disposable plastic plate used
to analyse this sample had been inadvertently reused in the rape case, resulting in the
misidentification. And the real offender not being able to be found.
This is an extremely large limitation on the behalf of forensics due to how easy it is for these
incidents to come about and how hard it can be to defend the defendant if this does occur
due to how highly forensic DNA is regarded resulting in miscarriages of justice.
