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Forensic Evidence and Its Types

Handley LLC July 22, 2019

Popular crime shows make you believe that the analysis of forensic evidence is essential to find the criminal. But is it reliable forensic evidence?  DNA evidence, bloodstains, bite marks, fingerprints and other kinds of prevalent forensic evidence were examined and some simply do not hold up.

Similarly, science has questioned or even discredited other methods of forensic analytics, but remains an essential element of the arsenal. Those methods offer a slam-dunk belief in the common imagination. But most public members from where a jury of peers is selected would have surprised or rejected that most forensic evidence is nothing but junk science. To overcome this bias, a criminal defense attorney in OKC who is scientifically aware and can communicate a reasonable doubt about the forensic evidence will have the persuasive to do so.

Science and Evidence

The scene like the above could have been of little use to the homicide detective allocated to the case before forensic research was a popular word for television dramas. Several techniques that can actually be used in the cleaned-up bathroom with the improvement of lighting speed in the forensic area. The forensic evidence of these methods could lead to important research findings!

Types of Evidence

The following list shows the various forensic evidence typically discovered in crime scenes. Forensic investigators will look for particular kinds of proof based on their type of crime. For instance, during a homicide inquiry, it makes sense to look for bloodshed. But finding fingerprints or touching DNA on a single-vehicle scene makes more sense.

DNA

The building block of every living thing is DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid). Each individual has a distinctive code or pattern of DNA found in most cells of the nucleus. In biological evidence left on a crime scene, investigators may discover the perpetrator DNA. Speck, blood, sweat, seminal liquid and hair may contain DNA. Forensics has achieved such an advanced level that DNA can be found on contact surfaces like door handles or light switches.

This progress is mainly made possible by a particular step now being used in DNA analysis. PCR is a technique that researchers use to copy samples of DNA (Polymerase Chain Reaction) So very small samples used in the testing process can now be copied several times to produce larger samples.

Blood-Stain Pattern Analysis

Another usual method for forensic analysis was called "blood-stain pattern assessment." It was commonly used in national courtrooms and was a major proof of many people's convictions, some of whom were later exonerated. This method examines the patterns of springing blood on a scene of crime to recreate the way in which the crime was committed. While the prosecutor continues to use it to this day, there are widespread questions about its lack of scientific reliability.

How can you ask whether our system of justice continues to allow and even rely on this evidence for a conviction when scientific validity is questionable? It is not readily answered as a complex issue. However, part of the response is the precedent of the tribunal. If an appeal tribunal allows this proof to stay unreliable or inadmissible after it is questioned, the ball begins to roll. One court of appeal after the other deferred previous decisions.

Our criminal defense attorney in OKC at Handley Law Center would help you to get the justice as they know how to work with forensic evidence.

** Disclaimer: This blog article is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship.