Forensic Science Blog http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu University of Florida Forensic Science Blog Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:25:23 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0.12-alpha en The Magic of Forensic Art http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2008/01/12/the-magic-of-forensic-art/ http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2008/01/12/the-magic-of-forensic-art/#comments Sat, 12 Jan 2008 17:43:15 +0000 webmaster Professional Happenings http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2008/01/12/the-magic-of-forensic-art/ This story was passed on to me recently: Police Identify Victim with Forensic Sculptor
About 5 years ago, I attended my first American Academy of Forensic Sciences annual conference and picked up a text on Forensic Art. This mixture of science, artistic ability, and incredible aptitude for the human form always amazed me - especially when the results are spot on to the subject in question. This is case in point. This story ran on 48 Hours Mystery on December 15 and should be available from the link above.

Here is the written story: CBS News.

Here is the entire video online: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6

]]> http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2008/01/12/the-magic-of-forensic-art/feed/ Alumnus Brad Baugh Speaks Out! http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/10/15/alumnus-brad-baugh-speaks-out/ http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/10/15/alumnus-brad-baugh-speaks-out/#comments Mon, 15 Oct 2007 14:42:21 +0000 webmaster Professional Happenings http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/10/15/alumnus-brad-baugh-speaks-out/ Brad Baugh - graduate of the UF Forensic Science Distance Learning Programs - answered questions for students interested in forensic science studies at Oregon State University on Friday. Forensic Science seems to be such a hot topic these days any information sessions like this easily generate a lot of interest on college campuses. It will be interesting to hear the kinds of questions that were raised while Brad was visiting the campus. I, for one, am interested to know if more people are beginning to better understand that forensic science education requires a strong background in hard sciences. Many of my liberal arts students still ask me how to gain access to a criminalist position without really knowing the necessary prerequisites. Unfortunately, many are too advanced in their undergraduate careers to take on much of the coursework necessary to begin a masters degree in forensic science as well.

Brad - hope it went well! Keep us posted…

]]> http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/10/15/alumnus-brad-baugh-speaks-out/feed/ UF Forensic Science at Upcoming Conferences http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/10/02/uf-forensic-science-at-upcoming-conferences/ http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/10/02/uf-forensic-science-at-upcoming-conferences/#comments Tue, 02 Oct 2007 13:34:44 +0000 webmaster Professional Happenings http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/10/02/uf-forensic-science-at-upcoming-conferences/ Fall Annual Meetings

The UF Forensic Science Program is visiting two conferences this fall. We hope to meet forensic professionals who may be interested in learning about the award winning UF Forensic Science Online Programs. We also hope to meet up with some of our students who live across the U.S.

The 18th International Symposium on Human Identification

October 1- 4, 2007

Sponsored by Promega, the meeting is being held in Hollywood, CA at The Renaissance Hollywood Hotel.

Changing technologies, legislation and social issues continue to influence the field of human identification. Promega is sponsoring the International Symposium on Human Identification to facilitate the dissemination of information that impacts the forensic community.

This year’s symposium features:
- A keynote address by Sir Alec Jeffreys
- Presentations on the latest technologies in DNA typing
- Breakout sessions including “interesting cases” and “moving towards the paperless lab”

The American College of Forensic Examiners

October 2-6, 2007

ACFEI is hosting two back-to-back meetings at the Hyatt in Kansas City, MO. The American Board for Certification in Homeland Security meets Oct. 2-4, and the Forensic Examiners meeting is Oct 4-6.

Update!! Here is a video of Darrell Barr, one of our students, at the conference saying hello:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oAy0-ISyJw

]]> http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/10/02/uf-forensic-science-at-upcoming-conferences/feed/ Employment thoughts… http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/06/06/employment-woes/ http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/06/06/employment-woes/#comments Thu, 07 Jun 2007 03:31:15 +0000 webmaster Professional Happenings http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/06/06/employment-woes/ One of the major aspects of a Blog is that of exchanging ideas and looking for a topic that might cause the hormones of different individuals to become excited about wishing to express their emotions.

The world is full of questions. For instance I was reading the list of ideas individuals had for preparing for a job interview. How many times have you applied for a job knowing full well that the job was already gone, and your efforts were just meeting the companies quota for applicants to be interviewed? When I started off I use to save my rejection letters (don’t ask me why … I am a pack-rat)but it got to be so many boxes full that I decided it wasn’t worth it.

OR … even though I am not looking for a job (I read the job market to actually see what the economy of the country is like … beats listening to politicians [From either party]. Anyhow, you see certain jobs come open over and over again. You have to wonder if the job is that poor, the employer is not paying, or the position is a perfect steping stone for a new position.

Why do you look for a job?????

Why does an employer ask questions that once you get the job you find have no meaning to the position?

]]> http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/06/06/employment-woes/feed/ The Backup and Needs Assessment in US Crime Labs http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/04/16/the-backup-and-needs-assessment-in-us-crime-labs/ http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/04/16/the-backup-and-needs-assessment-in-us-crime-labs/#comments Mon, 16 Apr 2007 15:50:32 +0000 webmaster Professional Happenings http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/04/16/the-backup-and-needs-assessment-in-us-crime-labs/ In 2003, research sponsored by the Bureau of Justice Statistics began to uncover an overall picture of what kinds of demands our publicly funded crime labs are facing. The Census of Publicly Funded Forensic Crime Laboratories has since retained its research grant to produce a second report due out in the next few months.

The first Census report revealed the most frequent submission for forensic laboratory processing – the identification of controlled substances. Add these requests to the submissions of toxicological samples and these two categories make up about 65% of the overall submissions to crime labs for processing. It seems highly doubtful that these types of submissions will wane in popularity given the trends in drug arrests and in the monitoring of probationers and parolees, among other things. In fact, the need for these services is on the increase – which I suspect the latest Census will give confirmation.

This is good news for those pursuing careers in forensic toxicology, and reports such as these may offer leverage to laboratories lobbying for additional funding. For example, the first Census asked respondent laboratories to retrospectively estimate the number of Full-Time Employees (FTEs) needed such that all submissions would have a 30-day turnaround in 2002. Nationally, it would take over 1,900 more FTEs to fill this need at a cost of around $70.2 million. Remember that this only covers publicly funded crime labs – the overall picture for the growth of the industry is vastly greater. This gives much credence to reports such as one from the Department of Labor suggesting that the growth rate in forensic science technicians is projected to outstrip all other scientific, technological, engineering, and mathematical positions in the United States through 2014.

But what the effects of the current crunch at the individual level remains hidden. I want to pose a question to this forum – what kind of issues have you been facing due to backlogged submissions and personnel shortages? The Census has done wonders in terms of uncovering numbers and trends – but the human element can enlighten us just the same. Please share!

]]> http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/04/16/the-backup-and-needs-assessment-in-us-crime-labs/feed/ The CSI-Effect Debate Continues http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/03/13/the-csi-effect-debate-continues/ http://blog.forensicscience.ufl.edu/2007/03/13/the-csi-effect-debate-continues/#comments Wed, 14 Mar 2007 03:02:28 +0000 webmaster Professional Happenings http://dev.webadmin.ufl.edu/forensicscience/2007/03/13/the-csi-effect-debate-continues/ At the AAFS conference in San Antonio, I had the pleasure to present my ongoing research on the CSI effect at a Breakfast Seminar. The session was well attended and I trust that our preliminary findings did not disappoint anyone. Unfortunately, the jury is still out on the validity of the CSI effect arguments. Thus far, neither I nor a co-presenter has been able to refute the existence of the CSI effect. However, we have noticed some interesting trends among the jurors we have interviewed in Florida, Tennessee, and Australia.

One of the most outstanding findings from the sample of Florida and Tennessee jurors is that everyone, regardless of fictional forensic science programming viewership (like the CSI series), is disappointed in the amount of forensic science testimony and evidence proffered at trial. It is unclear if this translates in acquittals, or significantly so, given the size of the samples thus far. This finding has been echoed by the vast majority of a sample of AAFS members and affiliates – jurors and the public are expecting much more from forensic scientists. For example, one respondent reported, “I think it’s universally held among those in the forensic community that the popularity of CSI-like shows has raised jurors’ awareness of forensic science as well as increased their expectations of what and how much evidence should be presented at trials.” While not all respondents felt this way, a large percentage had similar sentiments.

It should be noted here that this jury data was collect at run-of-the-mill trials where forensic testimony and evidence is not typically presented. Not one juror in both jurisdictions reported feeling satisfied at the level of forensic testimony and evidence presented at trial – and this is a bold finding. Much more data is being collected to see if this trend holds or is moderated/mediated by other variables such as trust in the police and in the people that collect scientific evidence.

My co-presenter’s focus was much broader. But, in summary, while reviewing these two projects that interview jurors post-trial, we have learned that jurors can be skeptical of forensic science testimony and evidence and have the ability to actively scrutinize what is presented to them in a meaningful way.

More information on this as soon as it comes. In the meantime, the upcoming NIJ national conference includes presentations on this very subject. For more information, please see their website.

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