DISCIPLINES AND QUALIFICATIONS
Field Science | Medicine | Laboratory Science
The purpose of
this section is to provide basic information about the various disciplines and
the qualifications which are most appropriate for obtaining employment within
those disciplines. It is not
exhaustive, but should give a clear indication of the type and enormous variety
of work available in forensic science/medicine.
As mentioned in
the ‘Overview of Forensic Science in
It should be
noted that there is overlap between some of the laboratory and field
disciplines. For example, a varying
degree of the work undertaken related to fingerprint, firearm, marks and
impression examination will be shared between the field (the scene) and the
laboratory.
Field Science
Specific Disciplines
Field sciences will include for example crime scene
investigation which incorporates not only investigation of crimes against the
person, such as murder and assaults, but other crimes such as fires and
explosions.
Scene
investigation involves recording details of the scene using still and video
cameras, collecting evidence such as fingerprints and shoeprints, locating and
collecting relevant items of physical evidence such as blood stains and stained
garments, and analyzing the crime scene in order to ascertain the likely cause
and progression of a fire or reconstructing the sequence of events surrounding a
shooting. Crime scene investigators take great care to ensure that crime scenes
are secure, that trace evidence does not get inadvertently transferred from one
item to another, and that all relevant detail at a scene is recorded.
In many States
and the
Appropriate qualifications:
Medicine
Specific Disciplines
Disciplines will include pathology, psychiatry,
psychology, forensic medicine and odontology (dentistry).
Pathology
involves post mortem examinations and determinations such as time and cause of
death and wound interpretation.
Psychiatry and
psychology is concerned with whether a mental state may be a mitigating
circumstance in the commission of an alleged crime, whether a person is mentally
fit to stand trial and treating those convicted of crimes who are mentally ill.
Those involved
in forensic medicine examine victims of crime and suspects who may have
sustained an injury while allegedly committing a crime.
They give interpretations of their findings such as possible causes and
timing of wounds.
The role of the
odontologist is to identify bodies and skeletal remains from dental records,
reconstruct faces from skulls and where possible, interpret bite marks.
Appropriate qualifications (minimum):
Laboratory Science
Specific Disciplines
Laboratory sciences will include, for example, chemistry,
biology, toxicology, firearm examination, fingerprint examination, questioned
document examination and the examination of marks and impressions.
The role of the
forensic chemist can vary enormously. There
are a number of different areas in which they are involved.
These include, the detection and identification of:
Biology
includes DNA profiling where it is possible to distinguish between individuals
because of differences in their DNA. Samples
used include blood, saliva, semen and hair.
It is also possible to distinguish between individuals by looking at
other characteristics of hair. Other examinations include the detection of
biological material and the interpretation of the manner in which the material
was deposited.
Toxicology
involves the detection and identification of illicit and pharmaceutical drugs
and poisons in the body, interpreting toxicity levels and the effects on the
functions of the body.
Firearm examination is the study of firearms and
ammunition and the identification of particular firearms from fired cartridge
cases and projectiles. It also
involves the determination of the angle and distance a gun was fired from to hit
a specific target.
Fingerprint
examination is perhaps the best known of the forensic sciences.
It involves the detection of fingerprints on a vast range of different
surfaces using a variety of detection techniques.
It also involves the identification of fingerprints and their ability to
categorically link suspects to or exclude suspects from a crime scene.
In
The discipline
of questioned document examination incorporates examination and identification
of handwriting and handwriting impressions, and machine generated documents
(e.g. from typewriters, printers, fax machines etc) in an attempt to determine
the origin and of materials such as paper, inks and toners. There is a
significant amount of forensic document examination taking place outside
traditional law enforcement laboratories, such as in private companies,
financial institutions, and government agencies such as the Department for
Immigration, Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs.
Marks and
impressions are left at scenes by implements such as bars and screwdrivers and
by shoe soles and vehicle tyres. Detection
and identification of these marks and impressions is another discipline within
forensic science.
With the
emergence of e-business has arisen an increase in fraud and identity theft. IT
specialists are increasingly being called upon to examine computer hardware and
software to investigate these crimes. IT specialists are also called upon to
recover evidence from mobile telephones and to investigate criminal misuse of
the internet.
Appropriate qualifications (minimum):
Related Pages;
Overview of Forensic Science | Careers | Forensic Courses | Forensic Service Providers
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