Eyewitness Misidentification

Police LineupIf you were the victim of a crime, how good of an eyewitness do you think you would be? Would you be to identify the perpetrator(s)? Would you be able to remember what they were wearing? What color was their pants or shirt, were they wearing a hat? What did they look like… how tall were they, did they have any facial hair, what color were their eyes, hair, and skin tone. Continue reading

Dr. Edmond Locard

Dr. Edmond Locard

Dr. Edmond Locard

Dr. Edmond Locard (13 December 1877 – 4 May 1966) was a pioneer in forensic science and his contributions to the field have proved invaluable. Locard was one of the founders of the International Academy of Criminalistics and he has published over 40 books and articles in French, English, German and Spanish. Continue reading

Locard’s Exchange Principle

Dr. Edmond Locard

Dr. Edmond Locard

Locard’s exchange principle is a concept that was developed by Dr. Edmond Locard (1877-1966).  Locard speculated that every time you make contact with another person, place, or thing, it results in an exchange of physical materials. He believed that no matter where a criminal goes or what a criminal does, by coming into contact with things, a criminal can leave all sorts of evidence, including DNA, fingerprints, footprints, hair, skin cells, blood, bodily fluids, pieces of clothing, fibers and more. At the same time, they will also take something away from the scene with them. Continue reading

What is Ballistics?

Niels Noordhoek – Ultra-high speed photo of bullet coming out of a S&W revolver photographed with an air-gap flash

Ballistics involves the analysis of bullets and bullet impacts to determine information of use to a court or other part of a legal system. Forensic firearms examiners are trained to examine and analyze weapons, bullets, ballistics and how a bullet has behaved after being fired from a gun. Continue reading