Forensic Sci Int
September 2023
Bloodstains are typically encountered in violent incidents involving the use of a weapon or physical actions, such as punching, kicking, or stamping. Bloodstain pattern analysis can provide inceptive evidence or intelligence about what happened in an alleged incident, the sequence of events, along with indicating possible suspects if blood is analysed through DNA profiling. This research project focused on the differences in patterns created on footwear during a violent action, such as stamping on a person, and a non-violent action, such as walking through a pool of blood.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLaboratory work is essential in forensic science degree courses. They provide students with an opportunity to put theory into practice, as well as develop relevant professional laboratory skills through a case-based learning framework. Traditional laboratory instruction involves the use of a written laboratory script or manual that details the laboratory procedures and techniques for an experiment.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFForensic genetics comes under critical scrutiny when developments challenge previously accepted legal, ethical, social, and other boundaries. Forensic geneticists continue to build a knowledge culture within a community of practice that acknowledges ethical standards of conduct in both research and the societal application of forensic genetics. As the community further cements and extends its societal role, and in that process often pushing at ethical and legal boundaries, it requires a strong, resilient, and responsive ethos that, in setting clear parameters for conduct, fosters the field's sense of purpose.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe use of forensic science continues to grow across the world. In Ghana, major advancements took off in 2011, including the introduction of modern DNA profiling and the establishment of an automated fingerprint identification system. These developments have led to some positive impacts on the delivery of justice, including the exoneration of a wrongly incarcerated individual.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDNA can be useful corroborative evidence in establishing familial relationship in immigration cases. Presently, there is no specific law in the UK regulating the use of DNA in this domain. This has led to inconsistencies in policy guidance and the rejection of some immigrant applications solely or partly due to a lack of DNA evidence.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSince the emergence of forensic DNA profiling and the corollary creation of DNA databases, efforts to maximise the efficiency and utility of DNA technology have intensified. Such efforts are expedient given the imperative that expenditure on DNA should be cost-effective and the benefits demonstrable. The practice of retaining DNA profiles in databases, either obtained from individuals involved in criminal investigations, or retrieved from suspected crime scenes, has spread globally.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe transnational exchange of forensic DNA data has become a modern trend in fighting cross-border crime, terrorism and illegal immigration. Forensic DNA data allow the police to identify, eliminate or link individuals associated with a crime. Additionally, different crime scenes can be linked via the DNA profile to identify serial offenders or determine crime patterns.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis review analysed public perspective studies on forensic DNA retention in the United Kingdom and around the world. The studies generally show strong public support for the long-term or indefinite retention of DNA from convicts and suspects. There is considerable support for the retention of DNA from all or some arrestees and potentially the entire population.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn 2008, the European Court of Human Rights, in S and Marper v the United Kingdom, ruled that a retention regime that permits the indefinite retention of DNA records of both convicted and non-convicted ("innocent") individuals is disproportionate. The court noted that there was inadequate evidence to justify the retention of DNA records of the innocent. Since the Marper ruling, the laws governing the taking, use, and retention of forensic DNA in England and Wales have changed with the enactment of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 (PoFA).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe scientific capacity in many African countries is low. Ghana, for example, is estimated to have approximately twenty-three researchers per a million inhabitants. In order to improve interest in science among future professionals, appropriate techniques should be developed and employed to identify barriers and correlates of science education among pre-university students.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF© LitMetric 2025. All rights reserved.