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1220 BCE
13th Century China
The first case ever recorded using forensic science. There was a murder in the village and the village people collected knives and they used flies to get the murderer to confess. -
Mathieu Orfila
He is known as the father of toxicology because he was the first chemist who published first scientific paper on the detection of poisons and their effect on animals. -
William Herschel
The first person to use thumbprints on documents to identify workers in India. -
Alphonse Bertillon
"Father of Criminal Identification". Developed anthropometry which uses body measurements to distinguish individuals. -
Henry Faulds
Uses fingerprints to eliminate an innocent burglary suspect. -
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Published first Sherlock Holmes story; Considered the first "CSI", featured in four novels and 56 short stories, popularized scientific crime-detention methods. -
Francis Galton
Published "Finger Prints". Conducted the first definitive study of fingerprints and their classification. Gave proof of their uniqueness. -
Hans Gross
Wrote the first paper describing the application of scientific principles to the field of criminal investigation. Published Criminal Investigation -
Karl Landsteiner
Discovered the ABO blood groups, later received Nobel Prize. -
Albert S. Osborn
Published "Questioned Documents". Developed the fundamental principles of document examination. -
Edmond Locard
Incorporated Gross' principles within a workable crime lab; became the founder and director of the Institute of Criminalistics at the University of Lyons, France. -
Leone Lattes
Developed a method for determining blood type from dried blood. -
August Vollmer
Established the first crime lab in the United States, located in Los Angeles. -
Calvin Goddard
Developed a comparison microscope; first used to compare bullets to see if fired from the same weapon.
