www.santoshraut.com: FORENSIC SCIENCE LINKs

FORENSIC SCIENCE LINKs

Introduction

"The forensic sciences refer to a group of subspecialties in science and medicine that apply their principles and methods to legal questions of a criminal or civil nature" (Nash and Faraino 1999, p.59). Forensic science includes, but is not limited to, pathologists, psychiatrists, odontologists, toxicologists, molecular biologists, entomologists, and criminalists. Practitioners are finding themselves increasingly in demand in the courtroom as expert witnesses. With the advent of shows such as {CSI: Crime Scene Investigation}, forensic science sites on the Web have multiplied exponentially. Sites are produced by government and professional organizations and forensic specialists, as well as by forensic scientist aspirants.

Audience, Scope & Methodology

This webliography is written for librarians who serve a scientific or technical clientele, and any person interested in learning more about forensic science information services.

The scope of this webliography is to point people to some of the best resources on the web for forensic science research and information. This is by no means comprehensive, and is focused on web sites based in the United States. Some of the annotations for the resources were drawn from the organization providing the resource. Since many of the metasites do not provide much of an annotation nor a description of a resource, a webliography such as this will provide more information about the content of a web site.

Much of the information for this webliography was found by browsing many of the existing web sites, links and pointers that others have provided. Some of the links and resources were found using articles listed in the References section (Nash and Faraino 1999 and Killoran 1996). I also used the search engine Google -- http://www.google.com/ -- to verify changed URLs for some of the resources.

Starting Points

Zeno's Forensic Site
http://forensic.to/forensic.html: Zeno Geradts is a forensic scientist at the Netherlands Forensic Institute of the Ministry of Justice at the Digital Evidence section in the area of forensic (video) image processing and pattern recognition. This comprehensive page is one of the most complete sites in the field. Zeno has links to an extensive collection of sites arranged by subspecialty, including, but not limited to, DNA, hair and fibre, firearms, handwriting, forensic entomology, and forensic anthropology.
Reddy's Forensic Page
http://www.forensicpage.com/: Reddy P. Chamakura is a forensic scientist with the Police Laboratory, New York City Police Department. Links to sites including, but not limited to, forensic science organizations, forensic science journals, colleges/universities with forensic programs, job opportunities, forensic science laboratories, law enforcement agencies, forensic home pages, forensic chemistry/narcotics, mass spectrometry, fingerprints, ballistics/firearms, microscopy, crime scene processing/investigation/photography, arson, DNA, toxicology, questioned documents, digital photography/imaging, image enhancing, web publishing/internet, and forensic mailing lists.
Forensic-Evidence.com
http://www.forensic-evidence.com/: An information center in forensic science, law and public policy for lawyers, forensic scientists, educators, and public officials, maintained by Andre A. Moenssens, a Douglas Stripp Missouri Professor of Law Emeritus.
Kruglick's Forensic Resource and Criminal Law Search Site
http://www.kruglaw.com/: Created by Kim Kruglick, a criminal defense lawyer in Mill Valley, California, this site pulls together resources arranged by forensic subspecialty. To see the forensic science categories from the main page, click on "Links to Over 1,000 Forensic Sites". The "A Beginner's Primer on the Investigation of Forensic Evidence" link on the main page leads to some useful primers in forensic sciences. Each of the subject pages provides a link to a bibliography in that area, although they are sometimes out of date.
Kulesh's Forensic Page
http://vip.poly.edu/kulesh/forensics/list.htm: With the increasing growth of computer crimes in the world, forensic sciences has seen the establishment of a new breed of forensic scientist, the cybercrime specialist. Kulesh Shanmugasundaram, a graduate student in the computer science department at Polytechnic University in New York, has created a growing list of digital/cyber/computational forensic related resources. Although it may not be flashy and it lacks annotations, it is extensive. Resources are arranged into the categories: Conferences, People, "R&D Groups//Projects//News Groups", "News Groups//Mailing Lists, Papers, Articles//FAQs//Talks", Forensic Books, Tools, Other Forensic Links, and Organizations and conferences.
Yahoo Directory of Forensic Science Resources
http://dir.yahoo.com/Science/Forensics/: Resources in this Yahoo directory are arranged by broad subject categories: College and University Departments and Programs, Companies, Forensic Anthropology, Forensic Entomology, Forensic Nursing, Forensic Odontology, Forensic Psychiatry, Forensic Ps ychology, Forensic Toxicology, Government Laboratories, Organizations, Research, and Web Directories. Yahoo is a searchable directory built by humans. They have a team of real live humans (Yahoo! Surfers), who visit and evaluate suggested sites and decide where they best belong.
Google Web Directory in Forensic Sciences
http://directory.google.com/Top/Science/Science_in_Society/Forensic_Science/: Resources in the Google Web Directory in Forensic Sciences are arranged in a similar manner to the Yahoo directory. Google is a true search engine in that it has a robot or a software program that searches and indexes the Web. The Google Web Directory integrates Google's sophisticated search technology with Open Directory pages. Web Directory pages are enhanced with importance ranking. The web pages in the Google directory have been selected by thousands of volunteer editors from the Netscape Open Dir ectory Project, a large public directory managed by Netscape.

Journals, Magazines & Newsletters: Indexed & Fulltext

Indexed

There is no one index to the forensic sciences literature making finding where a journal is indexed often a challenge. Several key forensic science journals are only indexed in one index, only on the publisher's web site, or are selectively indexed by multiple indexes (e.g., in the journal Science and Justice, a publication of The Forensic Science Society, PubMed indexes biological related articles -- such as DNA analysis, and Web of Science indexes non-biologically related articles -- such as firearms topics).

AFTE Journal Keyword Index (May 1969-Present)
http://www.afte.org/ExamResources/journalindex.htm: This volunteer created database is the only index to the AFTE Journal. Scroll down to "download" and choose either MS Word or Adobe Acrobat format.
American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology (2001-Present)
http://www.amjforensicmedicine.com/: Published by Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins, the official journal of the National Association of Medical Examiners "features original articles on new examination and documentation procedures, as well as provocative discussions of the forensic pathologist's expanding role - in human rights protection, suicide and drug abuse prevention, occupational and environmental health, and other key areas. Unique special features include case reports, technical notes on new examination devices, and reports of medicolegal practices worldwide." Abstracts are available, as well as some whole issues available free in fulltext, for non-subscribers from 2001 to the present.
Canadian Society of Forensic Science Journal
http://www.csfs.ca/journal/journal.htm: The Canadian Society of Forensic Science Journal "is published quarterly and is devoted to the publication of original papers, comments and reviews in the various branches of forensic science. In particular, these are considered to include forensic chemistry, forensic toxicology (including blood and breath alcohol analysis), questioned documents, forensic odontology, firearms examination, forensic pathology, forensic biology (including serology, hair and fibre examination and molecular genetics) and forensic anthropology." Abstracts are available free to the public online from 1995 to the present. The fulltext of all book reviews is also available online.
Forensic Science International (1995-Present)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/03790738: Forensic Science International "is an international journal publishing original contributions in the many different scientific disciplines pertaining to the forensic sciences. Such fields include, for example, forensic pathology and histochemistry, chemistry, biochemistry and toxicology (including drugs, alcohol, etc.), biology, (including the identification of hairs and fibres), serology, odontology, psychiatry, questioned documents etc., as well as investigations of value to public health in its broadest sense, and the important marginal area where medicine and the law overlap." It is published by Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. Volume 70 to the present are available fulltext online on ScienceDirect, Elsevier's online journal platform, to subscribers. Indexing and abstracting access to the journal is available free to all.
Forensic Science Review Indexes (1989-varies)
{http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/Galaxy/2044/index.html}: "Rapid advances in forensic science have created a need for a review journal to bridge the gap between research-oriented journals and reference volumes. The goal of Forensic Science Review is to fill this void and provide a base for authors to extrapolate state-of-the-art information and to synthesize and translate it into readable review articles." Indexes to this bi-annual journal are available by author and subject.
Journal of Forensic Identification
{http://www.theiai.org/publications/jfi.html}: "A scientific journal that provides over 115 pages of articles related to forensics. Such articles are written by either the IAI editor himself, and/or by forensic authorities from around the world employed in forensic science fields. Examples of articles include dispositions of the Daubert Hearings, exhaustive case studies of closed criminal cases, minutes of IAI business meetings, air disaster identification articles, field evidence instructions, crime scene processing covering blood pattern interpretation and latent print identification articles, forensic photography field examples to DNA analysis studies." The JFI also offers information specific about training and educational events, job postings and announcements as well as information about the business of the IAI. Only volumes from 1998-99 are indexed online presently although the fulltext of all issues from 1988 to the present are available on CD-ROM in pdf format.
Science & Justice (formerly Journal of the Forensic Science Society)
{http://www.forensic-science-society.org.uk/publications/saj.html}: Science & Justice is published quarterly by the Forensic Science Society. The table of contents for volume 36 to the present, as well as the fulltext of volume 37 and "recent articles of interest", are available online. Articles can be searched through a {keyword searchable index}. Book reviews from 1996 to 2001 are available fulltext through a searchable index.

Fulltext

Many forensic science related journals are published by associations, therefore they have been slow to appear fulltext on the Web or are only available fulltext online to members. Below are some publications that are available free to all.

Crime and Clues: The Art and Science of Criminal Investigation
http://www.crimeandclues.com/index.htm: Edited by Daryl W. Clemens, a Crime Scene Technician, this collection contains articles in various fields of forensic sciences written by experts.
FACESforward
{http://www.ga.lsu.edu/faces/forward.html}: The online version of the FACESforward newsletter, published by the Louisiana State University FACES Lab, explains how forensic anthropology and computer imaging (rather than old-fashioned clay reconstructions) are used to locate missing persons (by age-progressing old photographs) and how faces can be reconstructed from recovered bones. It also details advances in various subcategories of forensic anthropology, including forensic odontology, the science of identifying remains from dental records. As a warning, this page is very graphics intensive.
FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin
http://www.fbi.gov/publications/leb/leb.htm: The FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin is published monthly by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The fulltext of articles from 1989-present is available on the FBI site. Issues from 1989-1995 are in ZIP format.
Forensic Science Communications
http://www.fbi.gov/hq/lab/fsc/current/index.htm: A forensic science journal published quarterly by FBI Laboratory personnel. The articles, relating to all aspects of forensic sciences (from cipher systems to mitochondrial DNA), are quite long and informative.
In the Spotlight: Forensic Science
http://www.ncjrs.org/forensic/summary.html: "In the Spotlight" is a bi-monthly Web-based feature located on the National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS) Web site that focuses on crime, public safety and drug policy.

Books

FORENSICnetBASE
http://www.forensicnetbase.com/: This subscription service from CRC Press, although not free, is an extremely important resource in forensic sciences as it provides online access to a growing list of fulltext books in forensics, criminal justice and law, and law enforcement.
Handbook of Forensic Services
http://www.fbi.gov/hq/lab/handbook/intro.htm: The purpose of the Handbook of Forensic Services is to provide guidance and procedures for safe and efficient methods of collecting and preserving evidence and to describe the forensic examinations performed by the FBI Laboratory.
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Electronic Reading Room
http://foia.fbi.gov/room.htm: The fulltext of selected FBI investigation files are available in this electronic reading room through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Some portions are withheld under exemptions allowed by FOIA. The files are viewed using Adobe Acrobat and are often split into several files because of their size.

Societies, Associations & Government Organizations

Included in this section are societies, associations and government organizations which cover multiple specialties. For specialty specific organizations, refer to each specialty's section in this webliography.

American Academy of Forensic Sciences

http://www.aafs.org/

A professional society dedicated for over 50 years to the application of science to the law. The AAFS publishes the Journal of Forensic Sciences. The Resources section includes forensic science programs at Universities and Colleges worldwide, information on forensic sciences as a career (an excellent overview of the various subspecialties in forensic sciences), and links to forensic science organizations and publications.

American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors

http://www.ascld.org/

The American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors (ASCLD) is a nonprofit professional society formed in 1974 devoted to the improvement of crime laboratory operations through sound management practices. In the Forensic Links section are links arranged into three categories: Forensic related links, Advocacy related links and Safety related links. The Forensic Students section has an overview of what is needed to become a forensic scientists as well as information on the career itself (how much do they make, the type of work environment). For the practicing forensic scientist, the Employment section lists current job postings.

Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (AFIP)

http://www.afip.org/

"The Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (AFIP) is a tri-service agency of the Department of Defense specializing in pathology consultation, education and research." The site provides instructions on submitting consultation requests in surgical pathology and autopsy through an online form. All AFIP departments are represented on the site. The Office of the Armed Forces Medical Examiner presents autopsy diagrams and information on the Department of Defenses DNA specimen repository and Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory. Its Forensic Toxicology Division provides guidelines for collection and shipment of toxicological analysis. The site also provides information on its medical education courses for physicians and professionals in other interrelated medical disciplines, some of which are available through the Internet.

Canadian Society of Forensic Science

http://www.csfs.ca/index.htm

The Canadian Society of Forensic Science (CSFS) is a non-profit professional organization incorporated to maintain professional standards, and to promote the study and enhance the stature of forensic science. The CSFS publishes the Canadian Society of Forensic Science Journal. The STR DNA Data link is particularly interesting as it leads to the Population Studies Data Centre, which provides raw DNA data and frequency tables by ethnic groups from the Royal Canadian Mo unted Police and the Centre of Forensic Sciences in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

http://www.fbi.gov/

The FBI web site provides access to thousands of pages of frequently requested FBI documents (case files) through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Electronic Reading Room. Documents are accessible through an alphabetical index and crime type categories.

"Since its founding in 1908, the FBI has been involved in many famous cases. The Office of Public and Congressional Affairs (OPCA) has prepared monographs on some of the most frequently requested, closed investigations." The monographs, arranged alphabetically and by crime, "should be considered to be overviews rather than exhaustive treatments."

The web site is home to three publications of the FBI: Forensic Science Communications (the journal of the FBI Laboratory), the FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin and the Handbook of Forensic Services.

The Forensic Science Society

http://www.forensic-science-society.org.uk/

Founded in 1959, this British multidisciplinary society is dedicated to the application of science to the cause of justice. The Forensic Science Society publishes the journal Science & Justice. The Web Links section allows you to search the Forensic Science Society's WebLinks Database by keyword to find links. In the Bibliography section is a keyword searchable index to articles in the Journal of the Forensic Science Society and Science & Justice.

International Association for Identification

http://www.theiai.org/

The International Association for Identification was incorporated in 1919. The Association publishes the Journal of Forensic Identification. The Links section lists a hodgepodge of identification links. The Job Listings section contains current job ads.

National Institute of Justice (NIJ)

http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij/

"NIJ is the research, development, and evaluation agency of the U.S. Department of Justice. NIJ provides objective, independent, non-partisan, evidence-based knowledge and tools to meet the challenges of crime and justice, particularly at the State and local levels." The NIJ publishes many of its reports fulltext online. Follow the Publications link on the lefthand menu bar to access these publications. NIJ also produces the National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS) Abstracts Database, an index to more than 170,000 criminal justice publications.

Forensic Anthropology

"Forensic anthropology is the application of the science of physical anthropology to the legal process. The identification of skeletal, badly decomposed, or otherwise unidentified human remains is important for both legal and humanitarian reasons. Forensic anthropologists apply standard scientific techniques developed in physical anthropology to identify human remains, and to assist in the detection of crime. Forensic anthropologists frequently work in conjunction with forensic pathologists, odontologists, and homicide investigators to identify a decedent, discover evidence of foul play, and/or the postmortem interval. In addition to assisting in locating and recovering suspicious remains, forensic anthropologists work to suggest the age, sex, ancest ry, stature, and unique features of a decedent from the skeleton." (Carpenter 2003).

International Association for Craniofacial Identification (IACI)
http://www.forensicartist.com/IACI/index.html: The IACI, formed in 1988, is an organization comprised mainly of medical and scientific professionals throughout the world who specialize in Forensic Odontology, Forensic Anthropology, 2 and 3-dimensional Skull Reconstruction Techniques, Computer Based Skull Reconstruction, Facial Aging for Law Enforcement, and Facial Mapping, as well as Composite Sketching. The Craniofacial Identification Links are particularly useful. Craniofacial Identification Links are arranged into two columns with no annotations. Links range from traditional to computerized methods of craniofacial reconstruction.
Forensic Art
http://www.forensicartist.com/index.html: The site covers the various facets of forensic art, giving a brief description of each. This site is maintained by Wesley Neville, a forensic artist and polygraphist with the Florence County Sheriff's Office in Florence, South Carolina, and a member of the International Association for Identification (IAI) forensic art sub-committee. The abundance of graphics makes the site slow to load, but a lot of images are to be expected on an "art" site. The red print on black background and tiny font size might make the site somewhat hard to read for some folks but persevere as there are some excellent resources here.
OsteoInteractive
http://medstat.med.utah.edu/kw/osteo/index2.html: A great introduction to human osteology, forensic anthropology, paleopathology, and histology by experts in their fields. Topics include age, sex, stature, race, pathology, trauma, taphonomy, identifying characteristics, and graduate education in forensic anthropology.

Forensic Botany

Forensic botany is the application of plant science to the resolution of legal questions. The use of botanical evidence in legal investigations is relatively recent. Today, forensic botany encompasses numerous subdisciplines of plant science: palynology (pollen), anatomy and dendrochronology (the study of tree rings), limnology (study of freshwater ecology, including diatoms), systematics (systematic expertise is required when the identity of suspected drug species, notably marijuana, is in question), ecology (ecological knowledge of plant species is useful to investigators in two main ways: to determine whether plant fragments recovered from a victim or object came from where it was found or from some other area, and in locating clandestine graves) and molecular biology. (Forensic Botany 2003).

Forensic Chemistry and Toxicology

"Forensic Toxicology is, quite literally, the use of toxicology in courts of law. This is most often understood to mean the analysis of alcohol, drugs, and poisons in body fluids and the interpretation of those analytical results for the benefit of the courts. There is considerable overlap between forensic toxicology and clinical toxicology, criminalistics, forensic psychology, employment drug testing, environmental toxicology, forensic pathology, pharmacology, sports medicine, and veterinary toxicology. Consequently there are few 'pure' forensic toxicology sites on the Internet." (The World Wide Web Virtual Library: Forensic Toxicology 2003).

The International Association of Forensic Toxicologists (TIAFT)

http://www.tiaft.org/

Founded in 1963, this association groups over 1400 members from all regions of the world. The aims of this association are to promote cooperation and coordination of efforts among members and to encourage research in forensic toxicology. The members come from the police force, medical examiners and coroners' laboratories, horseracing and sports doping laboratories, hospitals, departments of legal medicine, pharmacology, pharmacy and toxicology. Enter the Open Area for resources for non-members. The Observatory provides a list of websites arranged by categories (on the left menu bar). Also useful is the MS Library, collecti ons of home-made reference electron impact mass spectra of derivatives produced by TIAFT members and made available freely on the Internet. "The intention is to complete commercial databases with new upcoming or uncommon substances or less frequent d erivatives of drugs."

The Society of Forensic Toxicologists (SOFT)

http://www.soft-tox.org/

SOFT, officially incorporated in 1983, is an organization composed of practicing forensic toxicologists and those interested in the discipline for the purpose of promoting and developing forensic toxicology. The Toxilinks section is particularly useful.

http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/primer/index.html

Microscopy is a very important in forensic sciences as microscopes are used extensively in crime labs. For forensic science students, this site, created by Michael W. Davidson, Mortimer Abramowitz, Olympus America Inc., and The Florida State University, provides an excellent introduction to Optical Microscopy, Digital Imaging, and Photomicrography . Topics covered include the physics of light and colour, an anatomy of the microscope, specialized microscopy techniques, digital imaging in optical microscopy, photomicrography, concepts and formulas in microscopy, fundamentals of stereomicroscopy, and interactive tutorials.

Guidelines for the Interpretation of Analytical Toxicology Results and Unit of Measurement Conversion Factors

{http://www.leeds.ac.uk/acb/annals/Webwise/Webwise97-1.html}

This alphabetical table contains details of over 700 compounds. The table has been compiled within the limitations currently imposed by the restricted character set implemented on the World Wide Web. This limitation should be understood by all who make use of the table. This site was posted as a web table addition to an article appearing in the Annals of Clinical Biochemistry in 1998 (Flanagan 1998).

ChemFinder.com

http://chemfinder.cambridgesoft.com/

Individual access to ChemFinder is complimentary on a limited basis. "ChemFinder has been providing free chemical searching to hundreds of thousands of scientists since 1995." This free database includes chemical structures, physical propert ies, CAS Registry Numbers, and links to other web sites with information about your compound.

Mass Spectrometry Databases

http://www.ualberta.ca/~gjones/mslib.htm

Created by the Mass Spectrometry Database Committee of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences Toxicology Section, this site provides zip files of a comprehensive drug mass spectral library and the latest version of the mini-library of full mass spe ctra of newer drugs, metabolites and some breakdown products. This library is a "subset" of one that has been compiled over a period of many years by Dr. Graham Jones and colleagues in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Pure drug spectra, plus a few breakdown products and pure metabolite standards have been edited into a single library. The libraries use the Hewlett Packard DOS ChemStation and UNIX ChemSystem MSD operating systems.

Crime Scene Investigation

"Crime Scene Investigation involves the use of scientific methods, physical evidence, deductive reasoning, and their interrelationships to gain explicit knowledge of the series of events that surround the commission of a crime." (Carpenter 2003).

Crime-Scene-Investigation.net
http://www.crime-scene-investigator.net/index.html: One-stop shopping for crime scene investigation links, articles, crime scene response and evidence collection guidelines, information on crime scene and evidence photography, training and employment and a bookstore. Links are arranged at the top level by broad categories and by subcategories within the pages. The site is maintained by The Crime Scene Investigator Network based in Temecula, CA.
Bloodstain Pattern Analysis Tutorial
http://www.bloodspatter.com/BPATutorial.htm: Bloodstain pattern analysis "is the examination of the shapes, locations, and distribution patterns of bloodstains, in order to provide an interpretation of the physical events which gave rise to their origin." This is an introduction to bloodstain pattern analysis by J. Slemko, a forensic consultant in Alberta, Canada.
Footwear & Tire Track Impression Evidence
http://members.aol.com/varfee/mastssite/index.html: Presented by C.A.S.T. (Chesapeake Area Shoeprint and Tire track), this site includes an interactive footwear examination tutorial for investigating shoeprints recovered from a crime scene. As well, there are extensive links on outsole evaluation, shoe and tire manufacturer contact information, tire web sites and instructions for evidence gathering. C.A.S.T. is a consortium of Footwear & Tire Track examiners organized as a Multi-Agency Forensic Cooperation (MAFC) group.

Criminalistics and Trace Evidence

"Criminalistics and Trace Evidence are both catch-all terms that apply to all types of physical evidence that may be circumstantial evidence in the trial of a case. Most often, the term is meant to include a variety of types of trace evidence analyzed by experts who are sometimes identified as 'microanalysts,' sometimes as 'trace evidence examiners,' or as 'criminalists,' or indeed by several different specialists. Microanalysts determine the nature of small items of trace evidence and compare it with known materials for the purpose of determining the origin of the trace evidence." (Carpenter 2003).

Latent Print Examination: Fingerprints, Palmprints and Footprints
http://onin.com/fp/: An extensive web site devoted to links on latent fingerprints, including articles and a comprehensive list of legal challenges to fingerprints. This site is maintained by Ed German of the US Army Criminal Investigation Command, US Army Criminal Investigation Laboratory.
http://www.swgfast.org/: A scientific working group of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to create consensus standards for fingerprint analysis and technology. Guidelines are provided in pdf format.
Ridges and Furrows
http://www.ridgesandfurrows.homestead.com/: "This web site is the culmination of many hours spent researching topics related to forensic science" and the author's particular areas of interest: embryogenesis of friction skin (Histology of Thick Skin), enhancement of latent prints using digital technology and latent print identification. Categories include history, friction skin anatomy, scientific research, fingerprint patterns, and identification. This site was created by Mary Beeton, an A.F.I.S. Fingerprint Technician with the Durham Regional Police Service in Ontario, Canada.

Forensic DNA Analysis

"DNA forensic analysis relies on one key characteristic of DNA: the configuration is the same in all cells of an individual. Altogether each person carries around 200,000 genes in each cell, comprising three billion 'base pairs' -the chemical building blocks of DNA. Analyzing all these base pairs and genes in order to identify an individual would be impossible, with current technology. Instead, forensic scientists focus on certain genetic sequences called 'markers'. Here, the arrangement of genetic information is highly variable and particular to each person." (Carpenter 2003).

MITOMAP: A Human Mitochondrial Genome Database
http://www.mitomap.org/: A searchable "compendium of polymorphisms and mutations of the human mitochondrial DNA." The Mitomap Quick Reference section includes an extensive bibliography (Mitochondrial References) arranged alphabetically by author; the fulltext of the Mitochondrial Human Genome Report; Amino Acid Translation Tables; The Human Mitochondrial Sequence; a link to the Human Mitochondrial Protein Database; and Illustrations.
STRBase
http://www.cstl.nist.gov/biotech/strbase/: Database of literature on Short Tandem Repeat DNA intended to benefit research and application of short tandem repeat DNA markers to human identity testing.
National Center for Biotechnology Information
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/: Established in 1988 as a national resource for molecular biology information, NCBI creates public databases, conducts research in computational biology, develops software tools for analyzing genome data, and disseminates biomedical information.
Forensic Mathematics
http://dna-view.com/: Charles Brenner has been a consultant in forensic mathematics, which mostly pertains to DNA identification, since 1977. His well organized site presents discussions on topics in forensic mathematics, software, data, a bibliography with links to the full text of articles, and links to other sites in forensic DNA analysis.

Forensic Entomology

"Forensic Entomology, or Medicocriminal Entomology, is the science of using insect evidence to uncover circumstances of interest to the law, often related to a crime. The time of death, for example, can usually be determined using insect evidence gat hered from and around a corpse, provided the evidence is properly collected, preserved and analyzed by an appropriately educated forensic entomologist. Insect scientists, or entomologists, are being called upon with increasing frequency to apply their kno wledge and expertise to criminal and civil proceedings. They are also recognized members of forensic laboratories and medical/legal investigation teams." (American Board of Forensic Entomology 2003).

American Board of Forensic Entomology (ABFE)
http://www.missouri.edu/~agwww/entomology/: The ABFE constitutes the first step toward a professional organization with strict educational, ethical and maintenance standards. The ABFE site provides a short but informative overview of the science and history of forensic entomology, as well as case studies in forensic entomology.
Forensic Entomology Pages, International
{http://folk.uio.no/mostarke/forens_ent/forensic_entomology.html}: Created by Morten Stærkeby, a graduate student in entomology at the University of Oslo, who is now an independent consultant in forensic entomology in Norway. This web site provides a comprehensive overview of the many uses of insect and arthropod evidence as evidence. The organized site lists sections describing protocol and information regarding entomology in establishing time of death, movement of corpses, common insects found on bodies and case histories.
Forensic Entomology: Insects in Legal Investigations
http://www.forensicentomology.com/index.html: Created by Dr. J.H. Byrd of the Department of Criminal Justice at the Virginia Commonwealth University, this site includes definitions, death scene procedures, life cycles, information on entomological collection equipment, an entomological field notes death scene form in pdf, and further links.

Ethics in Forensic Science

Ethics in Science
{http://www.chem.vt.edu/chem-ed/ethics/}: A hypermedia page residing in the Department of Chemistry, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA, with links to fulltext articles, bibliographies and selected essays on ethics in science. This page is no longer updated on a regular basis but most of the links are not dependent on their currency.
American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Ethical Guidelines for the Practice of Forensic Psychiatry

http://www.ascld.org/ethics.html: The major responsibility of the Ethics Committee is to handle all ethics complaints brought before the ASCLD Board of Directors and apply them to the Code of Ethics via the Enforcement Procedure of the Code of Ethics.

Explosives

International Association of Bomb Technicians and Investigators (IABTI)
http://www.iabti.org/: Founded in 1973, the IABTI "is an independent, non-profit professional association formed for countering the criminal use of explosives." The site provides information on the organization and links to {explosives manufacturers}. Links to explosives manufacturers are limited to advertisers in The Detonator and exhibitors at the International Association of Bomb Technicians and Investigators (IABTI) regional and international conferences. Links to bomb squad web sites are only accessible to members.
Analysis and Detection of Explosives: Published Papers, Reports and Presentations, 1988-1998
{http://www.ncfs.ucf.edu/twgfex/docs/Analysis%20and%20Detection%20of%20Explosives.pdf}: A reference bibliography compiled in 1999 by Charles R. Midkiff of the Technical Working Group for Fire and Explosives (TWGFEX).

Firearms, Tool Marks & Ballistics

Ballistics is the "study of a projectile in motion" (Brenner 2002) while firearms identification is primarily concerned with determining if a bullet, cartridge case or other ammunition component was fired by a particular firearm (Brenner 2002). These terms are often confused. Tool marks, or toolmarks, are marks left on an item by a tool; in the case of firearms, marks left by a part of the firearm on a cartridge case.

Association of Firearm and Tool Mark Examiners (AFTE)
http://www.afte.org/: Formed in 1969 to address the requirements of firearms and toolmark examiners, the AFTE publishes the AFTE Journal. This site includes: Ammunition Manufacturers/Distributors , an alphabetical list of ammunition manufacturers and distributors; Firearm Manufacturers/Distributors, an alphabetical list of firearm manufacturers and distributors; and Ballistics Links, an alphabetically arranged metasite of ballistics links.
firearmsID.com
http://www.firearmsid.com/: firearmsID.com is a non-profit web site maintained by Jeffrey Scott Doyle (Firearm and Tool Mark Examiner with the Kentucky State Police Jefferson Regional Forensic Lab), that exists solely as an educational and/or investigative aid. This web site provides an extensive introduction to firearms identification. It is arranged by broad categories: Firearm identification, distance determinations, firearm function testing, expert witness testimony, new technologies - INIS, DrugFire, case profiles, the history of firearms ID, and career information.

Forensic Odontology

"Odontology is the study of teeth. Forensic odontology is a specialized field of dentistry where, in a death investigation, identity has sometimes been established through analysis of the teeth and accompanying dental prosthetics, fillings and compou nds" (Virginia Institute of Forensic Science and Medicine 2003).

American Board of Forensic Odontology (ABFO)
http://www.abfo.org/: The American Board of Forensic Odontology was organized in 1976 under the auspices of the National Institute of Justice with the mission to establish, enhance, and revise as necessary, standards of qualifications for those who practice forensic odontology, and to certify as qualified specialists those voluntary applicants who comply with the requirements of the Board. Detailed ABFO guidelines on human identification, bitemarks, development of a dental ID team and missing person and unidentified body cases are available in the ID & Bitemark Guidelines section.
Bureau of Legal Dentistry (BOLD)
http://www.boldlab.org/: The Bureau of Legal Dentistry provides current bibliographies on "Human, Animal Bites", "DNA Methods", "Mass Fatalities", "Human Identification", "Domestic Violence", and "Dental Jurisprudence" in the Research area.
Forensic Dentistry Online
http://www.forensicdentistryonline.org/: A web site by the International Organisation for Forensic Odontostomotology (IOFOS) devoted to forensic dentistry. Includes information on identifications, bitemarks, journals and books on this fascinating subject. The links on the right side of the page are particularly useful. Many lead to fulltext articles. The IOFOS publishes the Journal of Forensic Odontostomatology.
Issues in Human and Animal Bite Mark (Bitemark) Management
http://www.forensic.to/webhome/bitemarks/: Created by Mike Bowers, a forensic odontologist, this site provides a comprehensive overview, accessible through a hyperlinked table of contents, of bite marks in forensic sciences.

Questioned Document Examination

"A document is any material that conveys a message whether visible, invisible, or partially visible. Where a question, such as authorship or authenticity, arises in reference to a document, the document should be submitted to a Questioned Documents Examiner" (Mid-Atlantic Association of Forensic Scientists 2003). "The application of allied sciences and analytical techniques to questions concerning documents is termed forensic document examination. The examination of questioned documents consists of the analysis and comparison of questioned handwriting, hand printing, typewriting, commercial printing, photocopies, papers, inks, and other documentary evidence with known material in order to establish the authenticity of the contested material as well as the detection of alterations" (Document Examination Consultants, Inc. 2003). "The terms forensic documents examinations (examiners) should be considered interchangeable with the terms questioned documents examinations (examiners) in light of the fact that 'forensic' is typically defined as 'pertaining to legal proceedings' " (Mid-Atlantic Association of Forensic Scientists 2003).

American Society of Questioned Document Examiners
http://www.asqde.org/: "The ASQDE was formally established on September 2, 1942. The purposes of the Society and of its members are to foster education, sponsor scientific research, establish standards, exchange experience, provide instruction in the field of questioned document examination, and to promote justice in matters that involve questions about documents." The site has an up-to-date database of court decisions relating to expert testimony about handwriting and document comparisons. ASQDE publishes the Journal of the American Society of Questioned Document Examiners.
American Board of Forensic Document Examiners
http://www.abfde.org/index.htm: Established in 1977, this organization provides a program of certification in forensic document examination with the dual purpose of serving the public interest and promoting the advancement of forensic science. Current employment opportunities are listed in the Jobs section and the Links section has some interesting links to cases involving questioned documents and legal issues.
Questioned Documents Site of Emily J. Will
http://www.qdewill.com/: Created by Emily J. Will, a Certified Document Examiner, this is a useful place to start for an overview of questioned document examination.
Identifont
http://www.identifont.com/index.html: "Identifont uses a proprietary expert system to identify a typeface based on information about specific characteristics of the typeface." Identifont was designed and developed by Human-Computer Interface, a documentation and information desi gn company specialising in high tech products. Scan the text, upload the image, and this site will attempt to identify the font.
Virtual Typewriter Museum
http://www.typewritermuseum.org/: The Virtual Typewriter Museum was conceived, designed and produced by mmworks, a Dutch based web design company, and is edited by Paul Robert. A virtual museum, based on private collections from around the world.
The Classic Typewriter Page

Forensic Botany Glossary
http://www.dal.ca/~dp/webliteracy/projects/forensic/glossary.html: Created by the Forensic Botany site as a project in the Web Literacy For the Natural Sciences class at Dalhousie University, Halifax, Canada. All definitions are hyperlinked to their original source.

Miscellaneous Web Sites

Forensic Science Timeline
http://www.forensicdna.com/Timeline020702.pdf: This "work in progress" is compiled by Norah Rudin, a forensic consultant and expert witness in forensic DNA. It can also be found as an appendix in the book Principles and Practice of Forensic Science: The Profession of Forensic Science published by CRC Press in 2000 (Inman and Rudin 2000).

Forensic Science Education Consulting
http://www.forensicfutures.com/
Forensic Futures Education Group provides workshops and curriculum in forensic science for both the high school and univesity setting.
Ten years of teaching experience in forensic science as well as professional experience working on the World Trade Center Disaster.

Science clarified: Forensic sciences
http://www.scienceclarified.com/Ex-Ga/Forensic-Science.html
General description of forensic sciences provided in a detailed and coherent way.

Forensic Identification
http://www.kqed.com/quest/dfiles/102c_forensicidentification.pdf
Forensic Identification
Call them detectives of a different sort. Investigate the world of forensic anthropology with University of California, Santa Cruz doctoral candidate and “bone detective” Chelsey Juarez.
She has developed a novel technique to help identify the remains of migrants who die crossing the border between the United States and Mexico.
You may choose to watch the television segment twice with your students: once to elicit emotional responses and get an overview of the topic and again to focus on facts and draw out opinions.
Watch the online video at ...
www.kqed.org/quest/television/view/68

Vandalia Science Education
http://vandaliascied.com/
Vandalia Science Education
Forensic kits and teaching resources

The Mystery of Lyle and Louise (DNA Typing)
http://www.lyleandlouise.com/
A tragic car accident. A horrific cabin murder scene. Drug rings and business schemes. Let your students solve several gruesome murders through a modular set of lab exercises.
Welcome to Vandalia Science Education, where shipping is always FREE! Vandalia SciEd is pleased to offer a variety of education materials for high school and college-level science courses, the most notable of which is the Mystery of Lyle and Louise.
Identity Crisis! Two dead women are identified as Louise Mondelo. It is up to your students to determine who is actually Louise Mondelo using the latest in DNA typing technology. (US$149)

Who Did It?
http://www.teachersfirst.com/unitlist.cfm
Who Did It? is a multi-part science unit for middle or high school students that uses "crime" analysis and forensics to teach and reinforce basic laboratory skills.
Each lesson includes a laboratory and procedure component, along with handouts and study questions.
Extensive printable PDF files make this unit especially easy to implement in the classroom.

Firearm Identification educational kit
http://www.precisionforensictesting.com/
Precision Forensic Testing has developed a Forensic Firearm Identification resource kit.
The kit includes samples of actual fired bullets and cartridge cases, a Power Point lecture with detailed pictures to assist with lecturing, three laboratory exercises utilizing the 20 kit samples, an actual firearm barrel cut in half, an a teacher guide.
US$180 +

Forensic Science for High School
http://www.kendallhunt.com/forensics
Forensic Science for High School is a one-year introductory forensic science course for high school that focuses on practices and analysis of physical evidence found at crime scenes.

National Association of Teachers of Forensic Science
http://www.hstofs.org/
National Association of High School Teachers of Forensic Science
The source for teachers of Forensic Science to obtain and share authentic and professional information, techniques, and materials to aid in the teaching of Forensic Science on the high school level.

Reddy's Forensic Page
http://www.forensicpage.com/
Many links in forensic science

Forensic Entomology
http://www.maggotsfrommurders.com/
Forensic entomology kits for the science classroom from middle school to college

Explore Forensics
http://www.exploreforensics.com/
Explore Forensics.com is the number one stop for forensic information, crime scene analysis, featuring articles, information and products

American Academy of Forensic Sciences
http://www.aafs.org/
American Academy of Forensic Sciences

Forensic Science : Google Directory
http://directory.google.com/Top/Science/Science_in_Society/Forensic_Science?tc=1/
Forensic Science : Google Directory

Forensic Science Resource Manual for Teachers
http://www.forensicsinschool.com/
Two teacher resource manuals that each contain over 100 pages of 'ready-to-go' forensic science classroom activities (ie. worksheets, labs, readings, notes, case studies, research projects).
These manuals were written by two experienced high school teachers and edited by a veteran police officer and are now are available for purchase.

Interactive Investigator - Forensic Science
http://www.virtualmuseum.ca/Exhibitions/Myst/
Interactive Investigator: Your Introduction to the World of Forensic Science
Welcome to the fascinating world of forensic science. This site has been developed for anyone with an interest in the different scientific methods used to solve crimes. You will be able to obtain general information and an introduction to the main aspects of forensic science from a database on the subject.
You can also explore a Historical Cabinet containing actual evidence gathered from crime scenes throughout this century. Or, test your deductive skills and your forensic knowledge playing our fun interactive game where you must help Detective Wilson and Detective Marlow solve a gruesome murder!

Was it murder or an accident ?
http://www.projectboxes.co.uk/murder/
Maybe more of a mystery rather than Forensic Science .. you decide ... this resource is NOT free
Police have discovered a body in the local park. Pupils are in role as police officers in an incident room trying to solve the murder. Using the Internet, the incident room receives various piece of information. There are many clues, many deductions to be made. Finally, by a process of elimination and intelligent guess-work, the "police officers" make a speculation to their Chief as to a solution to the case and attempt to reconstruct the last few hours of the victim's life.
The clear guidance in the teachers' pack suggests how you can organise the classroom, proposes when you need to make available each information sheet and advises on information to be gained at each stage. Sound curriculum-linked activities based on clear learning objectives, provide genuine assessment opportunities and act as a stimulus for further classroom sessions.

The Art of Crime Detection - Teacher's Guide
http://www.sanford-artedventures.com/play/crimedetection/teacher.html
The Art of Crime Detection - Teacher's Guide
"The Art of Crime Detection" is an interactive Web activity consisting of an introductory animation, two crime-solving scenarios, and a open-ended drawing tool
The player helps to solve annoying but rather innocuous crimes (e.g., toilet-papering a tree) by using both the left and right brain to draw composite sketches of a perpetrator.
While they play, players will readily experience the artistic effects and consequences of relying solely on the right or left brains. They will develop an understanding of what parts of the brain are appropriate to use for artistic expression.
There are two scenarios: The Toilet Paper Caper and Pushing Other People's Buttons. The player uses the PDArist, a PDA-type device that guides them through the process of using either side of the brain, or both sides simultaneously. Players can also use the PDArtist alone, as a creative tool for their own scenarios.
This is not really using science ... but why should they have all the fun?

Key Stage 3 (UK) - Who is it?
http://www.bgfl.org/bgfl/muscat_notes/530pks3.htm
Key Stage 3 - Who is it?
'Who is it?' is an interactive forensic investigation aimed at developing pupils' scientific knowledge, skills and understanding. It is primarily designed to be used within a CLC as a whole group activity....
A worksheet is available for downloading
CLC = (Birmingham) City Learning Centres

Key Stage 4 (UK) - Who is it?
http://www.bgfl.org/bgfl/muscat_notes/530pks4.htm
Key Stage 4 - Who is it?
'Who is it?' is an interactive forensic investigation aimed at developing pupils' scientific knowledge, skills and understanding. It is primarily designed to be used within a CLC as a whole group activity....
CLC = (Birmingham) City Learning Centres

Forensic Science Online Quiz
http://whodunit.planet-science.com/go/SleuthSchool/QuizStart
Forensic Science Online Quiz
Welcome to the Super Sleuth Training Challenge.
In order to complete your basic training as a forensic science investigator, this challenge requires you to demonstrate your superior knowledge of forensic science.
As part of the challenge you will be required to answer a series of questions. Upon submission of your results, you will be awarded a Certificate of Merit and entered into our Champion Super Sleuth prize draw!

Planet Science - WhoDunIt
http://www.planet-science.com/whodunit/home.html
Planet Science - WhoDunIt
The Planet Science Whodunit is a fun, free, forensic science activity suitable for students at KS2 and KS3 (years 4-9 only).
If your class missed the deadline, don't worry - although you can't submit your results, you can still win great prizes. Get your class online to try the mind-boggling Super Sleuth Training Challeng

Forensic science entomology links
http://folk.uio.no/mostarke/forens_ent/fs_links.shtml
Forensic science links - The ultimate guide to forensic entomology

Genetics / DNA / Forensics Curricula
http://www.kumc.edu/gec/forensic.html
Genetics / DNA / Forensics Curricula

CBS TV Official CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
http://www.cbs.com/primetime/csi/main.shtml
CBS TV Official CSI: Crime Scene Investigation

Forensic Science - Class Projects at Berkeley
http://www.forensicdna.com/
Forensic Science - Class Projects
In the forensic science classes we give through the University of California at Berkeley Extension, students are asked to present a project to the class. This project can be case-specific or topical. We thought it would be a useful service to provide reference lists for some of the projects. With their permission, we have also provided the e-mail addresses of students who can be contacted for more information.
Analysis of Explosive Residues and other Bombing Evidence | Latent Fingerprint Detection | Forensic Entomology | The Case of Stella Nickell |

Forensic Science Timeline
http://www.forensicdna.com/
Forensic Science Timeline

Other Links:

American Academy of Forensic Psychology (AAFP)

American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law (AAPL)

American Board of Criminalistics (ABC)

American Board of Forensic Anthropology (ABFA)

American Board of Forensic Document Examiners (ABFDE)

American Board of Forensic Odontology (ABFO)

American Board of Pathology

American Board of Forensic Psychology (ABFP)

American Board of Forensic Toxicology (ABFT)

American Board of Medicolegal Death Investigators (ABMDI)