Dealing with real crime scene evidence

Division of Crime Laboratories

The division of crime laboratories became a very important part in forensics over the past few years. Crime laboratories can be found at the federal, state and or local level. The FBI maintains the largest crime laboratory in the world through the Department of Justice. Whatever can not be done the police headquarters is sent to a specific or larger crime lab for further testing. The four major crime labs are the physical science, firearms/ballistics, document analysis, and biology unit. Within these specific crime lab divisions are scientists that specialize in certain fields of work: geologists, ballistics and linguistics specialists and serologists (Kurland 22).

Edmond Locard

“Wherever he steps, whatever he touches, whatever he leaves, even unconsciously, will serve as a silent witness against him. Not only his fingerprints or his footprints, but his hair, the fibers from his clothes, the glass he breaks, the tool mark he leaves, the paint he scratches, the blood or semen he deposits or collects. All of these and more bear mute witness against him. This is evidence that does not forget. It is not confused by the excitement of the moment. It is not absent because human witnesses are. It is factual evidence. Physical evidence cannot be wrong, it cannot perjure itself, and it cannot be wholly absent. Only human failure to find it, study and understand it can diminish its value.”

Edmund Locard is well known for his famous principle, “Every contact leaves a trace.” Locard’s exchange principle is also referred to as Locard’s Theory which was established in 1904. Six years after Locard’s theory was established, he became the director of the first crime laboratory in existence in Lyon, France (Delich 6).

Karl Lansteiner

Karl Landsteiner is a very important figure in forensic science.
Landsteiner identified the human blood groups which are still to this day A, B, AB, and O. He was awarded The Nobel Peace Prize 1930 for his work.