Drug Analysis

Being able to identify different types of drugs is useful in a crime investigation. The victim could have possibly been administered the drugs or simply overdosed themselves. In this investigation the 6 drug samples of Cocaine, Methamphetamine and LSD were identified using pH strips and identifying reagents.



Footprinting

Footprints are commonly left behind in crime scenes while the perpetrator attempts to quickly get away or carelessly leave the tracks behind. They can lead toward a hidden body or be analysed to find out who left the footprints by size, grove marks, and type of shoe.

1. Collecting Dirt Samples
2. Each member provides a footprint sample

3. Group Analysis of each Footprint
~Fill out provided charts
~Similarities and Differences between footprints

Filled out Chart

Lipstick

Lipstick is a great vehicle for lip prints to be left behind. Lip prints have distinctive characteristics that can be unique to certain people and can be carelessly left behind on cups, cigarette butts, and potentially the victim's body. Analysis through chromatography allows a forensic scientist to analyse the major components of the lipstick. Lip fullness, grooves, dips, etc. are distinguishing characteristics found in lips.

Creating a Profile

Creating a Profile is the act of using the clues left behind at a crime scene to identify possible victims and perpetrators. While creating the profile hair samples, blood samples, or a murder weapon may be found. In this experiment clues were tested using the techniques learned in previous experiments.

Clue 1: Multiple Fingerprints
1: Plain Whorl
2 and 3: Central Pocket Whorl
4: Radial Loop

Clue 2: Asian Hair

Clue 3: Torn up note
"You'll never find her"



Clue 4: Caucasion Hair



Clue 5: Blood Sample



Handwritting and Forgery Practice

 Reassembling the torn pieces of a document can prove useful in a case matching the common strokes and words to make the document more valid. We assembled into groups to try to use forgery techniques and acurratelly forge their handwritting using the sentence "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog".

Handwriting and Forgery

Handwriting

History

"(1901) Meyer, G. Die Wissenschaftlichen Grundalgen der Grapholgie, Berlin. A systematic study of factors of handwriting correlating with specific characterological features of identity was conducted, e.g., artificality, spontaneity, slant, size, simplifiction, elaboration, propensity toward roundedness, angularity. etc"

(1919) Downey, J. Graphology and the Psychology of Handwritin=study of handwritting gestures,

(1936) Roman, K. Studies on the variability of handwriting=study of writting pressure

(1948) Wolff. W. Diagrams of the Unconscious= full range of studies mostly signatures

List of 12 Handwriting Characteristics

Line quality. Are the pen marks smooth and free flowing or shaky and wavering? This can be connected to the speed that the document was written at.

Spacing of words and letters. What is it the spacing between letters and words? Is it consistent?

Ratio of the relative height, width and size of letters. What is the ratio? Is it consistent?

Pen lifts and separations. Does the person stop to form new letters and begin words? Forgeries may have lifts in unusual places.

Connecting strokes. Are capitals connected to lowercase letters and are there connecting strokes between letters and words?

Beginning and ending strokes. Are these straight, curled, long or short, an upstroke or a down stroke?

Unusual letter formation. Are there any unusually formed letters such as backward, letters with a tail, or unusual capitals? Shading or pen pressure. Is the pen pressure on the upward or the downward strokes?

Slant. Is slant left or right or straight up and down?

Is there consistency between the slant of letters.

Baseline habits. Is the writing above or below a line?

Flourishes and embellishments. Are their any? If so what are they?

Diacritic placement. How are the t’s crossed? Take note of the dotting of i’s, j’s. For example are the dots to the right or left of the letter?

Pictures and Analysis of Handwriting Analysis Template.  State how the free handing forgery and tracing forgery differ using the 12 Handwriting Characteristics.  In other words, how would you tell that they are forgeries?  Which do you think is easier as a forgery technique:  free handing or tracing?

When performing freehand or tracing forgery if you follow the 12 Handwriting Characteristics you try harder to replecate the original handwritting you have a higher chance of better chance of messing up a characteristic. Certain lifts of the pen and the constancy of words and letters would be clear signs that the document is a forgery.I believe that the easier forgery technique is tracing.

Reflection on the Check Forgery Activity (Explain the steps/process of your check forgery?  Did you and your group identify the proper person/persons who did the forgeries?  Which characteristics were the most distinguishing in your analysis?)

In the Check Forgery Activity we formed groups and each person wrote a personal check. The checks were torn so that as a group the checks could be put back together. We tried our best to match strokes and spacing of letters to make the checks easily put back together.

Research a famous forgery case and explain how forensic handwriting analysis was used to expose the forgery.

National Guard Records of George W. Bush  was a questioned document that had discovered to have forged signatures and dates from the 1970s and was exposed on 60 Minutes to be forgeries.

Hair and Fiber Practice

We used a microscope to observe the hair samples.



As a group we created a chart where we analysed different hair samples for color, condition of tip, and characteristics



Hair and Fiber

Hair and Fiber Analysis

 History of Hair/fiber analysis

A French police officer, Edmond Locard established the principle that every contact left behind is evidence in 1910. John Hick's "Microscopy of Hairs: A Practical Guide and Manual" was a guide on hair analysis in 1977.

Edmond Locard
microtracescientific.com

Picture and labeled parts of a complete hair

Major types of fibers (other than hairs), for instance, polyester, cotton, etc.  Include at least 5 fibers

·         Nylon

·         Rayon

·         Cotton

·         Wool

·         Silk

Hair/Fiber collection techniques:

Collected from crime scene and victim. Collected in various vials, grip bags, and tubes. Fibers or hairs that do not match the victim are received. Scraping underneath fingernails to retrieve samples.

Typical Hair/fiber analysis: How do scientists analyze and use hair/fiber data?

Infrared spectrophotometry and also observe the unique patterns, colors, and distinctive appearance.

Reliability of Hair/fiber crime scene data:

Hair samples will remain long after a crime has been committed allowing them to be revisited in an investigation and many fibers have different characteristics due to the manufacturing. Hair and Fiber analysis is fairly reliable in a crime scene.

Research any notable or famous case where hair/fibers were used to convict or exonerate a suspect:

The Atlanta Child Murders of 1980s
Wayne Williams was convicted in the murder of 2 children, while this specific case involved the murder of 29-31 African-Americans. Dog hairs and fibers were matched to fibers inside Williams parent's house.

Fingerprinting Practice

When identifying the characteristics of unique fingerprints you would refer to the basic fingerprint patterns:

While laying down finger firmly rolling from left to right to form a print.

Fingerprinting

Fingerprint Analysis

History:

The fact that no two person’s fingerprints are the same was first discovered and written about by Sir Francis Galton in the 1890s and has been used in crime investigations ever since.

Types:

Direct: Collect directly from the subject normally in processing and placed into a system. Collected with ink or fingerprint software rolled from edge to edge.

Latent: Prints that are allowed processing by the residue left behind that made the fingerprint (sweat, oil, etc.). Can be smudged and less detailed ridges than that of other prints.

Plastic: Clearly visible prints left on a material that retains shape and ridges of finger. Left behind carelessly on candles, putty, or some moldable material.

Techniques/Chemicals:

Livescan devices, Latent fingerprint detection, ethyl cyanoacrylate polymerization, Vacuum metal deposition, application of fine powders, and work by adhesion, argon ion lasers: fluorescent techniques



Whorls



Shapes and Patterns:





loops



arches

"IIHA Beginner's Hand Analysis: The Four Fingerprint Types." International Institute of Hand Analysis. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Nov. 2011. <http://www.handanalysis.net/beginners

Lifting and Collecting Procedures:

Hinge lifters, rubber lifters:  and cellophane tape: clear adhesive tapes are used to remove prints. Clear prints should be placed on a dark contrasting background.