The 30th International Symposium on Human Identification: Elevating DNA Forensics
In the fall of 1989, a small group of forensic scientists, law enforcement officials and representatives from Promega Corporation gathered in Madison, Wisconsin, for the very first International Symposium on Human Identification (ISHI). At the time, DNA typing was in its infancy and had not yet been validated as a forensic method. The available technology […]
Forensic Science Isn’t ‘Reliable’ or ‘Unreliable’ – It Depends on the Questions You’re Trying to Answer
Claude Roux, University of Technology Sydney After recent criticism in the US and the UK, forensic science is now coming under attack in Australia. Several recent reports have detailed concerns that innocent people have been jailed because of flawed forensic techniques. Among the various cases presented, it is surprising that the most prominent […]
This Week in Forensic Science
No one has hours to scour the papers to keep up with the latest news, so we’ve curated the top news stories in the field of Forensic Science for this week. Here’s what you need to know to get out the door! Identical Triplets Who ‘Tried to Exploit Their Identical DNA’ Jailed for […]
This Week in Forensic Science
No one has hours to scour the papers to keep up with the latest news, so we’ve curated the top news stories in the field of Forensic Science for this week. Here’s what you need to know to get out the door! If You’ve Been Sexually Assaulted, Here’s What Doctors and Nurses Do […]
Genetic Genealogy – What Does the Future Hold?
Across the United States, and increasingly internationally, detectives are closing cases that have long since grown cold using investigative genealogy. Killers and other predators who have managed to escape justice due to a lack of leads are now finding themselves behind bars. Investigative genealogy relies heavily on open-source DNA databases, such as GEDMatch, […]
Humanitarian Forensic Scientists Trace the Missing, Identify the Dead and Comfort the Living
Ahmad Samarji, Phoenicia University and Dina Shokry, Cairo University The word “forensic” is typically associated with crimes and legal disputes. Forensic medicine, for example, applies medical knowledge to establish the causes of injury or death. But forensic science can have a humanitarian role, too. Working under international humanitarian law rather than local or […]
This Week in Forensic Science
No one has hours to scour the papers to keep up with the latest news, so we’ve curated the top news stories in the field of Forensic Science for this week. Here’s what you need to know to get out the door! How a DNA Database Helped Solve a Horrific Double Murder (NY […]
Under the Microscope – Nicole Novroski
De-convolution of complex mixtures can be challenging. Various improvements in polymerase chain reaction coupled with capillary electrophoresis (PCR-CE) and massively parallel sequencing (MPS) chemistries coupled with downstream statistical analyses have been developed and implemented to better resolve two or more person DNA mixtures. However, current genotyping outputs describe STR variation solely based on allele size […]
Under the Microscope – Brittney Chilton
In her presentation at ISHI, Brittney Chilton (Criminalist II at the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office Forensic Science Division) will share the story of Washoe County employee, Chris Long. In 2014, Chris was diagnosed with AML/MDS Leukemia. He underwent a stem cell/bone marrow transplant and volunteered to participate in a case study led by the Washoe […]
