Forensic Science: A Beginner's Guide

Description

The most remarkable weapon in the fight against crime, forensic science turns bullet trajectories, bodily fluids, and the very structure of our DNA into damning witnesses of our every act. Jay Siegel tracks the journey of evidence from crime scene to courtroom and sweeps away the myths to reveal the incredible complexities and surprising pitfalls of a field that is crucial to our struggle for justice. Packed with examples from real-life cases, this revised and updated edition covers all major areas of forensic science, including drugs, trace evidence, and crime scene investigation. Pathology, anthropology, and the laws that govern this evidence all come under the scalpel in a fascinating introduction to one of the most compelling elements of criminal investigation.

Jay Siegel is Chair of the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, and Director of the Forensic and Investigative Sciences Program, at Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis. He is also a recipient of the prestigious Distinguished Fellow award from the American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

'Easy to understand yet rigorous. His discussion of bias is outstanding and should be read by everyone with any interest in forensic science.' -- Professor Chris Tindall - Director of Criminalistics, Metropolitan State University of Denver