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Physical evidence used in criminal case
First recorded instance of physical matching of evidence leading to a murder conviction (John Toms, England). Evidence was a torn edge of newspaper in a pistol that matched newspaper in his pocket. -
Investigating poisoning
German chemist Valentin Ross developed a method of detecting arsenic in a victim's stomach, thus advancing the investigation of poison deaths. -
Chemical testing utilized
James Marsh, an English chemist, uses chemical processes to determine arsenic as the cause of death in a murder trial. -
Trace Evidence
A piece of evidence found at the scene of a crime will often be analyzed by several different methods to get the most information from it. For example, a shoe may be examined for bloodstains, trace evidence (broken glass or similar type of dirt found on suspects shoe and crime scene), gunshot residue (may be on suspect’s clothes or hands as well) etc. A person or persons at the scene when a crime is committed will almost always leave something behind and take something away with them. -
Fingerprint
Fingerprint evidence, although sometimes not as high-profile as other high-tech crime-solving methods like DNA typing, is still very much used in criminal investigations and cases. While the principle that no two people can have the same fingerprints cannot be scientifically validated, fingerprint evidence is generally considered to be highly reliable and is particularly accessible to juries: -
Lie Detector Test
A polygraph, popularly referred to as a lie detector, measures and records several physiological indices such as blood pressure, pulse, respiration, and skin conductivity while the subject is asked and answers a series of questions.[1] The belief underpinning the use of the polygraph is that deceptive answers will produce physiological responses that can be differentiated from those associated with non-deceptive answers. -
Voice recording, used as evidence (1960s)
A sound spectrograph discovered to be able to record voices. Voiceprints began to be used in investigations and as court evidence from recordings of phones, answering machines, or tape recorders. -
DNA
DNA evidence is generally linked to DNA offender profiles through DNA databases. In the late 1980s, the federal government laid the groundwork for a system of national, state, and local DNA databases for the storage and exchange of DNA profiles. CODIS can compare crime scene evidence to a database of DNA profiles obtained from convicted offenders. CODIS can also link DNA evidence obtained from different crime scenes, thereby identifying serial criminals. -
Facial sketches matched to photos
Michigan state university develops software that automatically matches hand-drawn facial sketches to mug shots stored in databases. -
4 second dental match
Japanese researchers develop a dental x-ray matching system. This system can automatically match dental x-rays in a database, and makes a positive match in less than 4 seconds.
