22,May 2024
The field of forensic science is an emerging one and is used widely by experts for solving crime mysteries and hence helps law enforcement agencies in today’s world. This field uses scientific methods to find new ways of solving crimes and hence reducing the crime rate in society. The investigators involved in the police department or the crime investigation department use traditional and modern techniques of forensic science to deal with the issues. Here in this blog, we have given complete details on forensic science techniques used in crime solving.
Before implementing techniques of forensics, the experts are required to first analyze the crime situation. It is done to ensure whether this science can be used for solving legal disputes or not. The scientific data analysis for solving crimes is known as forensic data analysis.
The techniques involved in solving crimes and proper handling of the evidence collected from the examined crime scene are known as forensic techniques. These techniques include several steps to protect the crime site, evidence collected, suspects, and victims of a case. One of the most important aspects of using these techniques is to preserve extremely important evidence, both biological and non-biological. Forensic experts must be fully focused while implementing these techniques in any case so that they can present the evidence collected in the court of law without being contaminated.
The techniques involved in the field of forensics are several and vary depending on the requirements of the case. There are many techniques that people are aware of while there are some that people even don’t know about. Some of the forensic techniques are given below:
1. PHENOM SEM:
One of the best tools used by forensic scientists is Phenom SEM. This system is easy to use and offers high-quality images that provide experts the ability to determine the composition of elements present in evidence. It is because of this system that such professionals are able to solve criminal cases faster and in an efficient manner. This system excels in cases where gunshot residues are required to be examined. This system is a combination of automated GSR analysis and element identification software and hence provides highly sensitive results.
2. ALTERNATIVE LIGHT PHOTOGRAPHY:
This technique is one of the fastest ways to detect the damage done to a body without touching the skin surface. The camera used for this purpose uses blue light with orange filters to see the bruises, bite marks, etc. on the skin’s surface. At the same time, infrared cameras are used to enhance the blood splatter marks which are difficult to trace on dark clothes or tattooed skin.
3. DIGITAL SURVEILLANCE:
There are cases where it becomes quite difficult to collect evidence against the offender instead of being sure about the identity of the criminal. Hence in such cases, the investigators use digital surveillance systems. It has been observed in many cases that criminals have used an Xbox to hide their illegal data as they assume gaming systems will not be seen as potential evidence hence they will be safe from the police investigation.
4. FACIAL RECONSTRUCTION:
In serious accidents like plane crashes, road accidents, and murder mysteries, criminals often damage the face of the victim to avoid their identification. Therefore, nowadays crime investigators have started using another technique known as facial reconstruction. Under this technique, these experts recreate the face of the body of the deceased from the skeleton remains. This reconstruction is done through two-dimensional (photographic prints or drawings), three-dimensional (sculpture or high-resolution 3D computer image), and superimposition. However, this method of forensic investigation is not full-proof and fails as well. It happens in cases where the victims are way too damaged.
5. DNA SEQUENCING:
DNA is a unique feature of each individual and it is inherited by a child from his parents. In criminal cases, it finds huge relevance since it is used to determine the identity of both criminals and victims. In cases of victim identification where facial reconstruction can’t be done DNA sequencing is done to determine the order of the four chemical blocks that make up the molecule. It allows forensic scientists to sequence short tandem repeat markers, resulting in an increased ability to differentiate between individuals.
6. FINGERPRINT IDENTIFICATION:
One of the most extensively used forensic investigation techniques is fingerprint identification. Forensic experts collect and analyze the fingerprints found at a crime site with the digital database they have as records of earlier cases. Since fingerprint identification has increased the success rate of identification of suspects, this system is widely used by crime investigation departments.
7. LINK ANALYSIS SOFTWARE:
It is a data analysis technique in the network theory system that examines the relationships between the network nodes to conclude the case. The connections can be between any type of node like people, organizations, etc. The link analysis software is used by accountants to figure out any kind of strange financial activity.
This system looks for financial transactions and identifies possible illegal transactions using statistics. This method is mostly used by financial institutes like banks, insurance companies, etc to discover criminal networks thus solve those cases as well that do not include direct involvement of criminals.
8. DRUG TESTING:
Cases that involve the consumption of toxicants by an individual that leads to his sudden demise. These toxicants can be in powder, liquid, or pill form. To indicate the presence of any kind of drug substance, forensic experts conduct various confirmation tests such as gas chromatography, mass spectroscopy, etc. Other tests that are done to conduct drug testing in the human body are ultraviolet spectrophotometry, gas chromatography, and microcrystalline testing.
9. LA-ICP-MS TECHNIQUE:
Laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry enables highly sensitive elemental and isotopic analysis on solid samples. This test is done with a laser beam directly focused on the sample to generate fine particles through a method known as laser ablation. Once the fine particles from a sample excite, the ions are introduced to a mass spectrometer detector that conducts elemental and isotopic analysis.
This technique is used to perform ultra-highly sensitive chemical analysis of a sample to ppb (parts per billion) level. You will be amazed to know that this technique is able to put minute pieces of glass together and helps forensic experts in the determination of the bullets used, the direction of firing, the impact force, the type of weapon used, etc.
10. FIRE TECHNOLOGY:
Fire is an exothermal reaction that produces heat and light. When criminals commit a crime, they try to fade away the evidence from the scene, and to do this they sometimes burn the crime site. Because of the burning of the scene, the evidence from the site is also burned and hence the chances of finding evidence are very low. The main focus of investigating the fire using this technology is to figure out the origin of the fire, the cause of the fire, the nature of the fire, etc.
11. 3D SCANNER:
This technology is one of the most expensive methods of crime investigation. This scanner is firstly placed at a crime scene and then it rotates 360 degrees to take the pictures of the entire crime site. It measures the distance between the objects present at a scene and the distance between the wall and the scanner. A 3D scanner is known for providing the concise information of the crime site within 10-30 minutes.
12. HIGH-POWERED MICROSCOPES:
One of the essential parts of forensic investigation is Microscopy. This technique is used to virtually trace evidence using polarized light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, x-ray spectroscopy and infrared microspectroscopy. We know most of the evidence collected from a crime scene is not easily identified by the naked eye and hence requires important metrics for analysis.
Apart from all the forensic techniques that we have mentioned above, there are numerous other tools and techniques as well that are used for the crime investigation. Forensic experts use forensic science methods to collect, record, preserve, and present the findings about evidence with appropriate facts in a court of law.
Forensic equipments are used to collect, analyze and examine the samples collected as evidence to solve the crime mysteries. The primary tasks of forensic experts for which these people use such techniques are evidence analysis, fingerprint and DNA identification, drug examination, presence of poison in the human body, and examination of body fluids like blood, semen, urine, etc. Those identifications of a crime that can’t be made with naked eyes, simple tests, etc can’t help to furnish enough information about the case. Hence, these techniques turn out to be important for crime investigation.
In today’s world technology has taken over almost every aspect of our life. These aspects include the use of Artificial Intelligence, the discovery of new technologies to increase the living standard of people, and even solving crimes. With the increase of technology spectrum solving crimes through this science is also becoming an important pillar of technology. Therefore if technology improves the techniques used in forensics should also improve.