Dialogue
A: What is the first thing you do when arrive at the crime scene?
B: Well, first of all, it is necessary to secure the area with crime scene tape.
A: How important is it?
B: That’s very important because we need to prevent anyone from disturbing the evidence. The next thing is to talk to any victims who are at the scene to get important information.
A: Can you give an example, please?
B: A burglary victim, for example, might need to tell us about areas he or she knows the burglar has disturbed, or if there is anything at the scene that doesn’t belong there and which the perpetrator might have left behind – anything to help us.
A: Now, I see. What’s next?
B: The next thing to do is the walk through. We document the scene by taking photos, video, and sometimes by drawing as well. You can sketch the whole scene more easily than you can take a photo of it. A sketch can show the complete layout of rooms or furniture.
A: So, you can leave the crime scene, can’t you?
B: Far from it. Finally we begin retrieving and recording what evidence we can. This can include dusting for fingerprints and lifting them with a special tape, swabbing blood and body fluids and casting for tool, tyre or shoe marks.
A: It is a difficult work, I think.
B: Right you are. It is a delicate, methodical process and takes a long time. Every item is tagged, that is, it has a tag or label put on it, logged – information is written down about it in a record or log book – and bagged, put into individual plastic bags. All the evidence goes to the crime lab to be analyzed.
A: Thank you for answering my questions.
Add three more questions to the dialogue and learn it by heart.
Want to be a forensic scientist?
Get acquainted with more detailed information on the topic.
What is CSI? Crime scene investigation is a science known as forensics. For every crime there is a series of evidence left behind that can lead authorities to the facts behind the incident. Skilled professionals analyze every bit of the area until they know all the details of a crime including, sometimes, who did it. Let’s take a look at this fascinating job and the science behind it. |
|
||||||||||
|
Forensics The word forensic comes from the Latin word “forensic” meaning public or to share with the public as in sharing the crime with the court system. Any science that is used for the intention of law related issues is a form of forensic science. |
||||||||||
The Process A forensic scientist studies lots of evidence at the scene. Their first line of fact finding is to talk to anyone who was a witness or might have been a witness without realizing it. This can give them important clues. Sometimes the victim makes a good witness. But because people can forget or remember events incorrectly, physical evidence is usually more reliable.
The Evidence Some of the evidence that exist at a crime scene:
These are just a few of the things that a forensic scientist might find and study at a crime scene. |
Try this with a partner
Show your partner a photograph containing a number of people doing something in a location not familiar to your friend. Allow them to look at the picture for under a minute. Don’t tell him (her) why. Then ask them detailed questions about the picture. What color was the hair of the tallest person in the picture? What was the person wearing that was sitting? Which person has a hat? See if your friend caught all the details you are searching for? See why witnesses don’t always get everything right. They didn’t realize they were going to be a witness when the event was happening. Fear and other emotions can also affect a person’s memory. |
||||||||||
Cross Contamination When studying a crime scene, it is extremely important that evidence doesn’t get cross contaminated. This means that evidence doesn’t get mixed with other evidence or touched by people who are on the scene. For this reason crime scene tape is placed on the sight to keep people from walking or touching the area being investigated. Investigators take other precautions too, like wearing gloves so their own fingerprints don’t end up on the evidence. Each piece of evidence that they collect is stored in a separate plastic container before taking it into the crime lab to study further. |
|
||||||||||
|
Other Challenges Outdoor crime scenes present some difficult challenges for investigators. Animals or other humans can accidently cross through a crime scene and destroy before the investigators get word that a crime has been committed, especially in public outdoor areas likes parks. Time is crucial and having to investigate an outdoor crime scene at night when it is dark may cause forensic experts to overlook important events. But waiting until morning light means that weather conditions like rain or temperature changes can alter evidence. |
||||||||||
When is it used? TV programs would have most people thinking that crime scene investigators are hunting for clues in a murder or a kidnapping. That is often done, but forensic scientists can solve cases of burglary, break-in, carjacking, poaching, bank robberies, fraud, forgery, traffic accidents, and many other crimes. Forensic scientists have even been called on to identify dinosaur bones, crimes committed centuries ago or to determine the cause of death for historical celebrities such as ancient kings and pharaohs. |
|
||||||||||
|
DNA and Fingerprints DNA is often used to identify victims or suspects or to rule out people involved in criminal activities. But what is DNA and how can it be used in such instances? DNA is like a secret code that exists in all of our cells. DNA is a microscopic plan that structures details about us such as what we look like, what hand we write with and even how tall we will grow to be. Everyone and every living thing have DNA. No two people have the same DNA unless they are identical twins. Because every DNA is different, it may someday be used for investigators to identify all details of a person from their hair color to their talents. Scientists are currently working on identifying all of the secrets that DNA holds. To learn more about how DNA is used in forensic work, check out this web site: http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/genetic/dna-evidence.htm |
||||||||||
In forensics, scientists can take a sampling from the inside of someone’s cheek or their blood and compare the DNA of the sample to the DNA of another sample to be able to tell if they came from the same person. This can be very helpful in proving that a suspect is actually NOT guilty. This method of crime solving has been used regularly since 1992. Fingerprints are small ridges on the tips of our fingers and are different on every person. When a person touches a table or another surface, they leave behind a telltale sign of their fingerprints. Forensic investigators can them remove this fingerprint using a special powder and some tape. They then compare this evidence with a fingerprint that has been collected from the person whom they are planning to compare. Fingerprint specialists evaluate the small curves and whorls of the fingerprints to determine if they are the same. There are a series of fingerprint patterns which are similar in all people. Take a look at these patterns to learn more about fingerprints: http://www.odec.ca/projects/2004/fren4j0/public_html/fingerprint_patterns.htm |
|
||||||||||
Want To Be a Forensic Scientist? Here are just a few of the possible jobs available in the world of forensic science:
handwriting expert – can determine handwriting patterns
Lots of other professionals can be called on in particular situations including plumbers, electricians, nurses, doctors, dentists, and anyone else who might have information specific to the details of a case. |
How can students learn about forensics? For many people, forensics is a fascinating but confusing field that is full of mystery and intrigue. Everyone should explore the world of forensics.
Please, refer to: http://www.examiner.com/article/how-can-students-apply-technology-to-learn-about-forensics http://www.exploreforensics.co.uk/
|
||||||||||
Be sure you know all the words printed in bold.
Match the words to their definitions:
1 |
a) a scientist who studies bones |
2. physical evidence |
b) exams of the bodies of dead persons or animals |
3. psychiatrist |
c) things left at a crime scene on purpose or accidently |
4. footprint
|
d) to move, mix, or transfer blood, germs, or fingerprints from one piece of evidence to another |
5. autopsies |
e) Latin for public - or related to law |
6. cross contamination |
f) the part of a cell that holds details specific to each person or animal |
7. anthropologist |
g) a person who looks into the details of a crime |
8. evidence |
h) evidence that can be seen or measured |
9. forensics |
i) mark left by a foot in mud, soil or sand |
10. investigator |
j) a doctor of the mind |
11. poaching |
k) a person who has seen a crime |
12. witness |
l) killing animals illegally |
.
DNA
Complete the following sentences:
Crime scene investigation is …
Skilled professionals who are called …… analyze ….
The Latin word “forensic” means ….
A forensic scientist may find some of the evidence that exist at a crime scene, such as …, …, ….
It is extremely important that evidence doesn’t get … …, i.e. that evidence doesn’t get mixed with other evidence or touched by people who are on the scene.
Forensic scientists can solve cases of burglary, break-in, …, …, ….
To analyze evidence or a body a forensic expert may use … ….
In the world of forensic science one may find such professions as …, …, ….
I want to be a forensic scientist because … ….
I’m really interested in … (a field of forensic science) because … ….
|
It is first Sherlock Holmes, the fictional character created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who used forensic science as one of his investigating methods. Conan Doyle credited the inspiration for Holmes on his teacher at the medical school of the University of Edinburgh, the gifted surgeon and forensic detective Joseph Bell. |
|
|
|
|
a car
Legal Skills in Action
Read in pairs and explain.
1. In the US a criminal obtained the fingerprint of a man, and reproduced it by means of a rubber stamp. He left four visible prints in grease when a garage was robbed. During the examination it was observed that each of the prints began and ended at specific ridges, and measurements with a ruler showed that the four prints were exact to the last millimeter. What does it prove?
2. A man attacked and robbed a woman. He was apprehended but he had somehow disposed of the results of his robbery. The woman was unable to identify him. An officer noted a trace of face powder on the man’s coat. The man explained that this was a trace of his wife’s powder. But later he was charged with the robbery. Why?
3. The body of a woman was found in a field. A suspect was apprehended by the police. There was much soil on his shoes and they were thoroughly examined. The man was accused of the murder. Why?
Scan the text