NCJ Number
71044
Editor(s)
W G Eckert
Date Published
1980
Length
253 pages
Annotation
In this overview of the topics that collectively comprise the forensic sciences, discussions are contributed by experts in their fields. The text is an introduction to forensic science.
Abstract
Following a discussion of the special areas of forensic science is a narration on the international practice of forensic sciences, with emphasis on the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Ireland, and Europe. The historical development of the forensic sciences, especially in the United States, is described. A chapter details the activities of the laboratory investigator through the process of collection and retrieval, identification and packaging, custody and control, and finally documentation of the scene by photographs, diagrams, and description. Chapters discuss criminalistics, forensic pathology, forensic toxicology, forensic anthropology, forensic dentistry, and serology and immunology. The special problems of the forensic psychiatrist are discussed, and questions which must be addressed by the documents examiner in courts are summarized. An appendix provides resources that include individual specialists, organizations specialized in a specific field, and the international literature in which there are general reference resources and specialized works dealing with specific fields of the forensic sciences or problems dealt with by these fields. Most chapters include references. Photographs, a glossary, and a subject index are provided. For related material, see NCJ 68920-32.