Forensic sciences play a pivotal role in the criminal justice system by giving investigators scientifically based information through the collection and analysis of physical evidence.

During an investigation, forensic materials can be collected from various people, places and objects. The obvious primary source for forensic evidence would be the original crime scenes, but in some cases the primary crime scene may not be known. Forensic materials can also be collected from secondary crime scenes, victims, suspects, animals, or anything else that investigators feel may have come in contact with anything I just mentioned. After the materials have been collected and cataloged they are then analyzed in a laboratory and prepared to be presented in a court of law. Each crime scene is unique, and each case presents its own challenges. Complex cases may require the collection, examination and analysis of a large amount of evidence. These cases may involve multiple forensic experts with backgrounds in biology, chemistry, physics, computer science and other disciplines. These forensic scientists work separately to analyze the evidence in a particular case. For example, one forensic examiner might analyze a latent print, another may compare carpet fibers using a microscope, and a third may identify a white powder that was collected at the scene. The investigators will then combine all of the examiners’ objective results to build a case.