The History of Forensic Science Timeline

By Analee.Guardiola
  • Period: 44 to 44

    Julius Caeser is assinated

    An autopsy is performed on Caeser and it was discovered that he was stabbed 23 times but only one was fatal.
  • Period: Jan 1, 600 to Jan 1, 600

    Use fingerprints for the first time

    Fingerprints first used to determine identity.
  • Period: Jan 1, 1248 to Jan 1, 1248

    First Forensic Science Book

    The Chinese create the first Forensic Science. First recorded instance of using medical findings to solve crime.
  • Period: to

    Physical evidence used in criminal case

    First recorded instance of physical matching of evidence leading to the murder conviction of John Toms from England. Evidence was a torn edge of newspaper in a pistol that matched newspaper in his pocket.
  • Period: to

    Chemical Testing Used

    James Marsh, a chemical scientist in England, determines arsenic is what killed someone for a murder trial.
  • Period: to

    First Uses of Photos In Identification

    San Francisco uses photography for criminal identification, the first city in the United States to do so.
  • Period: to

    Sherlock Holmes and the Coroners

    Coroners are used to establish if a person died of a violent, un-natural, or sudden death. Arthur Conan Doyle also publishes the first Sherlock Holmes book.
  • Period: to

    First school of Forensic Science

    The first school of forensic science founded by Rodolphe Archibald Reiss, in Switzerland.
  • Period: to

    First Crime Labs Built

    The first ever police station crime lab is built in Los Angeles.
  • Period: to

    Voice recording used as evidence

    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.
  • Period: to

    First National Crime System

    The FBI established the first ever National Crime System. With this new computerized system people can track wanted people, stolen vehicles, weapons, and much more.
  • Period: to

    Advanced Manual Fingerprints

    First fingerprint reader installed at the FBI
  • Period: to

    Advanced in DNA lead to conviction

    DNA fingerprinting led to conviction of Colin Pitchfork in the murder of two teenage girls. This evidence cleared the main suspect in the case, who likely would have been convicted without it.
  • Period: to

    DNA is Reliable

    The National Academy of Sciences tells the world that using DNA in Forensics is a reliable source.
  • Period: to

    Faster Dental Recognition

    Japanese scientists develop a new dental matching system that automatically recognizes dental matches. It can make positive dental matches in 4 seconds.
  • Period: to

    Facial Recognition Sketches

    The Michigan State University develops a new program that matches hand-drawn facial sketches to mugshots that are in the National Crime System