History of Forensic Science

   
 Early Forensics
both old and young field
The "Eureka" legend of Archimedes (287­212 
BC) can be considered an early account of the 
use of forensic science. In this case, by 
examining the principles of water 
displacement, Archimedes was able to prove 
that a crown was not made of gold (as it was 
fraudulently claimed) by its density and 
buoyancy.

   
 Washing Away the Wrongs
The first written account of using medicine 
and entomology to solve (separate) criminal 
cases 
1235: Sung Tzu solved a murder by instructing all 
suspects to bring their sickles to one location. 
Flies, attracted by the smell of blood, eventually 
gathered on a single sickle.  In light of this, the 
murderer confessed.
The book also offered advice on how to 
distinguish between a drowning (water in the 
lungs) and strangulation (broken neck cartilage).

   
 Identification of remains 
(odontology and anthropometry)
1447: Missing teeth of French Duke of Burgandy used 
to identify body
1776: False teeth of US General Warren used to 
identify his body
1849: Bones and teeth used as evidence for murder 
victim
1879:  System of measuring people by body 
measurements developed by Bertillon of France
1940’s: Dental records and teeth from corpse were 
compared
1957: Skeletal growth stages developed by Mocker 
and Stewart
   
 Early Pathology
In sixteenth century Europe, medical practitioners in 
army and university settings began to gather 
information on cause and manner of death.
Ambrose Paré, a French army surgeon, systematically studied 
the effects of violent death on internal organs. 
Two Italian surgeons, Fortunato Fidelis and Paolo Zacchia, 
laid the foundation of modern pathology by studying 
changes which occurred in the structure of the body as the 
result of disease. 
In the late 1700s, writings on these topics began to appear. 
These included: "A Treatise on Forensic Medicine and Public 
Health" by the French physician Fodéré, and "The Complete 
System of Police Medicine" by the German medical expert 
Johann Peter Franck.

   
 Weapons identification
1784, in Lancaster, England, John Toms was 
tried and convicted for murdering Edward 
Culshaw with a pistol. When the dead body 
of Culshaw was examined, a pistol wad 
(crushed paper used to secure powder and 
balls in the muzzle) found in his head wound 
matched perfectly with a torn newspaper 
found in Toms' pocket.
1889: Bullets were matched to gun they were 
fired from, advent of ballistics
   
 Father of toxicology
1814: Scientific paper on poison 
published by Matthieu Orfila of 
Spain
•the first person to systematise the 
study and classification of toxic 
substances when he found traces of 
poison in the liver of a dead dog.

   
 Arsenic Detection: 1836, Marsh
Arsenic was popular poison since arsenic trioxide is tasteless
and easily dissolved.
suspect fluid would be mixed with sulfuric acid (H2SO4) and
passed through a U-shaped tube with a piece of arsenic-free
zinc at the end. If even a trace of arsenic was present, arsine
(AsH3) gas would result.
As2O3 + 6 Zn + 6 H2SO4 2 AsH3 + 6 Zn(SO4)2 + 3 H2O
When ignited the arsine gas would first decompose into
arsenic trioxide and hydrogen. When he held a cold ceramic
bowl, the arsenic would form a silvery-black deposit on the
bowl due to reduction by carbon
2 As2O3 + 3 C 3 CO2 + 4 As
Not only could minute amounts of arsenic be detected (for as
little as 0.02 mg), the test was very specific for arsenic.
   
 Fingerprinting
1628: Birth of Italian Marcello 
Malpighi, first to notice patterns of 
skin on fingers is distinct
1823: Whorls, ellipses, and triangles 
identified by Jan Evangelista 
Purkinjie
1880: Fingerprints used by Henry 
Fauld to identify criminals
1892: Scientific classification of 
fingerprints developed by Galton
   
 Fingerprinting (cont’d)
1896: System of matching fingerprints to 
identify people developed by Ed Henry
1900: Scotland Yard adopts the Henry system 
of fingerprinting
1902: First person was convicted on 
fingerprint evidence
1903: NYC police began fingerprint files of 
arrested persons
1930: National fingerprint file set up by FBI
1960: First laser design to identify fingerprints 
was developed
   
 Technology
1590: Microscope developed
1670: First powerful microscope created by Anton Van
Leeuwenhoek
1732: Luigi Galvani discovered human nervous system
transmits information electronically
lie detector test
1859: Spectroscopy was developed
1888: Hand held camera invented by Eastman
1921: First lie detector built by Larson, USA
1971: Photo-fit software enables witness to piece together
facial features
1978: ESDA (electrostatic document analysis) developed
document impressions
   
Blood-typing and DNA analysis
1901: Human blood groups were identified by
Karl Landsteiner
1909: Chromosomes discovered to carry
hereditary information
1980: Method for detecting DNA differences
developed
1984: Genetic profiling using DNA was developed
by Jeffries
1987: First time DNA evidence was used to
convict a person in the US

   
 Organizations
1807: Forensic Science Institute opened at the 
Univ. of Edinburgh, Scotland
1910: First forensic laboratory opened in 
France by Edmond Locard
1932: FBI forensic laboratory established
1967: FBI National Crime Information Center 
Established
1981: FBI Forensic Science Research and 
Training Center opened