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The History of Forensic Science

  • 3000 BCE

    Organ Removal and Autopsy.

    Organ Removal and Autopsy.
    A practice of the removal and examination of internal organs of humans after death by the Egyptians can be cited as one of the earliest examples of autopsy. https://ifflab.org/history-of-forensic-science/
  • 44 BCE

    The First Autopsy

    The First Autopsy
    A Roman physician named Antistius, performed the first ever recorded autopsy on the Roman Politician, Julius Caesar. https://ifflab.org/history-of-forensic-science/
  • 1248

    Autopsy and the Chinese Court

    Autopsy and the Chinese Court
    Song Ci wrote Washing Away Of Wrongs, which introduced regulations for autopsy reports in Chinese Courts https://www.forensicscolleges.com/blog/history-of-forensics
  • Ballistics Analysis

    Ballistics Analysis
    Eugene Vidocq founded a plainclothes investigative unit called the Brigade De La Surete. By 1813, Eugene had Napoleon's blessing and using his own perspective as a former criminal, Eugene introduced the concept of ballistics analysis, undercover investigation, and footprint analysis.
    https://www.forensicscolleges.com/blog/history-of-forensics
  • The Father of Toxicology

    The Father of Toxicology
    Mathieu Orfila worked to make chemical analysis a routine part of forensic medicine, made studies of asphyxiation, the decomposition of bodies, and exhumation.
    https://www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/visibleproofs/galleries/biographies/orfila.html
  • Henry Goddard

    Henry Goddard
    Henry Goddard developed the science of identifying fired bullets and empty cartridge cases, known as forensic ballistics. Henry proved that no two revolvers are made exactly the same. He showed that every weapon has characteristic marks on a bullet and cartridge shell.
    http://stvalentinemassacre.com/article/ballistics
  • Edmond Locard

    Edmond Locard
    Lyon police department offered Edmond the opportunity to form the first police laboratory in a few small attic rooms, where evidence collected from crime scenes could be scientifically examined. In 1912, that police department officially recognised the laboratory, then the first forensic science laboratory was officially formed.
    http://aboutforensics.co.uk/edmond-locard/
  • Frances Glessner Lee

    Frances Glessner Lee
    Frances used her own money to help the start of Harvard University's Department of Legal Medicine. She even then went to later on form Harvard's Associates in Police Science. Prior to Ms. Lee's help, very little training existed for forensic investigation.
    https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3956&context=jclc
  • Sir Alec Jeffreys

    Sir Alec Jeffreys
    Alec Jeffreys was one of the first to discover inherited variations in human DNA, then he went on to invent DNA fingerprinting. He showed how DNA fingerprinting can be used to to resolve issues of identity and creating the field of forensic DNA.
    https://le.ac.uk/dna-fingerprinting/biography
  • How Covid-19 is affecting Crime

    How Covid-19 is affecting Crime
    A new set of assessment tools shows promise of capturing how Covid-19 affects patterns of criminal activity. They used resilience theory as the start for developing a set of quantitative tools, mathematical models, that can be used to analyze how the pandemic impacts criminal activity.
    https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/10/201014141142.htm