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1325
13th Century China
The first case ever recorded using forensic science took place when a man in a Chinese village was stabbed. All the knives from the village were gathered together, and flies were then attracted to the knife with the blood remains. The killer was then identified and later confessed. -
Mathieu Orfila
In 1814, a chemist named Mathieu Orfila published the first scientific paper on the detection of poisons and their effects on animals. He is often considered the "Father of Forensic Toxicology." -
William Herschel
William Herschel was the first person to use thumbprints to identify workers in India in 1856. -
Alphonse Bertillon
In 1879, Alphonse Bertillon developed anthropometry, which uses specific body measurements to distinguish individuals. Bertillon is considered the "Father of Criminal Identification." -
Henry Faulds
In 1880, Henry Faulds used fingerprints to eliminate an innocent suspect accused of a crime. It was the first use of fingerprints as criminal evidence. -
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
In 1887, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle published his first Sherlock Holmes story. Sherlock Holmes was considered the first "CSI", featured in four novels and 56 short stories. His stories popularized many kinds of scientific crime-detection methods. -
Francis Galton
In 1892, Francis Galton published his book "Fingerprints," conducting the first definitive study of fingerprints and their classifications. In doing this, he was able to prove the uniqueness in everyone's fingerprint. -
Hans Gross
In 1893, Hans Gross published "Criminal Investigation." He wrote the first paper describing the application of scientific principles to the field of criminal investigation. -
Karl Landsteiner
In 1901, Karl Landsteiner discovered the ABO blood groups, later receiving the Nobel Prize. -
Edmond Locard
In 1910, Edmond Locard was the first person to incorporate Hans Gross' principles within a workable crime lab. He became the founder and director of the Institute of Criminalistics at the University of Lyons, France. -
Albert S. Osborn
Albert S. Osborn published "Questioned Documents," in 1910,developing the fundamental principles of document examination. -
Leone Lattes
In 1915, Leone Lattes developed a method for determining blood types from dried blood. -
August Vollmer
In 1923, August Vollmer established the first Crime Lab in the United States, located in Los Angeles. -
Calvin Goddard
In 1925, Calvin Goddard created the first comparison microscope. It was initially used to compare bullets to see if they were fired from the same weapon.
