CHE 107 Study Guide - Fall 2018, Comprehensive Midterm Notes - Forensic Science, Firearm, Fingerprint
12 Oct 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
CHE 107
MIDTERM EXAM
STUDY GUIDE
Fall 2018
• Forensic Science:
➢ Application of science to criminal & civil laws.
➢ Owes its origins to individuals such as:
o Bertillon
o Galton
o Lattes
o Goddard
o Osborn
o Locard
▪ Developed principles & techniques needed to identify/compare
physical evidence.
• Roles of Forensic Scientist:
➢ Perform scientific analyses on evidence for criminal/civil cases.
➢ Provide expert testimony on significance of findings.
➢ Furnish training in proper recognition, collection, & preservation of evidence.
• Criminalist:
➢ Crime Scene: any location where an act that broke the law has occurred.
➢ Crime Scene Investigators (CSI): collect & analyze evidence, info, or objects
relevant to solving the crime.
o Work w/ police & district attorney to utilize search warrants before
collecting & processing evidence.
o Employ practices & methods to ensure evidence collected is admissible in
court.
▪ Admissible: allowed to be presented during a trial.
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
➢ Other types of investigators that have an important role at a crime scene
include:
o Detectives: interview witnesses & follow leads.
o Medics: assist injured individuals.
o Medical Examiners/Death Investigators: determine preliminary cause
of death if crime involves a death.
o Photographers: document crime scene using cameras or other recording
devices.
• Evidence & Crime Scenes:
➢ For a piece of evidence to be considered admissible in a trial, it must be
based on a theory/technique that:
o Can be tested
o Has been offered for peer review
o Has an acceptable rate of error
o Has widespread acceptance
o Is relevant to the issue
➢ Evidence is classified into several categories based on characteristics & is
used as criminal proof.
o Direct Evidence: considered factual.
▪ Confessions
▪ Eyewitness statements
o Circumstantial Evidence: depends on inference to be considered factual.
▪ Forensic science is influenced by direct evidence.
▪ more often obtains & analyzes circumstantial evidence.
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Application of science to criminal & civil laws. Owes its origins to individuals such as: bertillon, galton, lattes, goddard, osborn, locard, developed principles & techniques needed to identify/compare physical evidence, roles of forensic scientist: Perform scientific analyses on evidence for criminal/civil cases. Provide expert testimony on significance of findings. Furnish training in proper recognition, collection, & preservation of evidence: criminalist: Crime scene: any location where an act that broke the law has occurred. Criminology: subdivision of sociology that deals w/ study of crime & criminal behavior. Criminalist: subdivision of forensic science: there are certain principles a (cid:498)criminalist(cid:499) must understand. Identification: grouping of like items based on class characteristics. Class characteristics: properties that all members of a certain class of objects/substances have in common. Individualization: proving that something is unique even among members of the same class. Ex: burglars will leave traces of their presence behind & will also take traces with them: scientific method.
