Summary
When Edmond Locard established the Laboratoire Intérregional de Police, the world's first crime lab, in Lyon, France, in 1910, he had only two instruments—a microscope and a spectroscope. Over the next 100 years, scientific developments such as the electron scanning microscope, chromatography, DNA identification, and neuron activation analysis made the modern crime lab possible. In the world of law enforcement, the role of the crime laboratory has become crucial, especially if a case goes to trial. Prosecutors recognize that one of the best ways to impress a jury—and thereby win a case—is to introduce science-based evidence that links the accused to the crime. Crime Lab explores the work performed by crime lab personnel and its importance in the context of a criminal investigation.
Key topics covered include:
- Edmond Locard and the first crime lab
- Toxicology
- Ballistics
- DNA typing
- Anthropological Research Facility at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville (The "Body Farm")
- Arson investigation
- Fingerprint identification
- Trace evidence.
Specifications
Full-color and black-and-white photographs. Sidebars. Chronology. Endnotes. Bibliography. Further resources. Index.
About the Author(s)
Colin Evans is a writer specializing in criminal investigations and forensics. He has written numerous articles and books, including Blood on the Table: The Greatest Cases of New York City's Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, The Casebook of Forensic Detection, A Question of Evidence, and for Chelsea House, Crime Scene Investigation, Evidence, and Trials and the Courts. He has been a major contributor to Courtroom Drama; Great World Trials; Sex, Sin, and Mayhem; and Great American Trials. Evans lives in the United Kingdom.