The Real CSI

Author: Kate Bendelow
Publisher: The Crowood Press
ISBN: 0719822297
Category : Reference
Languages : en
Pages : 233

Book Description
Who is allowed access to a crime scene? What happens when a body is discovered? Will a blood transfusion alter DNA? How can the distribution of gunshot residue inform your plot? The Real CIS - A Forensic Handbook for Crime Writers answers these questions and more in a unique and exclusive insight into crime scene investigation. Using real-life examples and case studies, experienced CSI Kate Bendelow shines a light behind the yellow tape and debunks the myths popularized by the 'CSI Effect'. Each chapter explores the latest procedures in contemporary practice including: Crime Scene access and preservation; fingerprints and DNA profiling; footwear; trace evidence; fire scenes; drugs and toxicology and, finally, firearms. Packed with insider knowledge, handy tips and compelling storylines, this is the definitive guide for all crime writers who wish to write with authenticity and authority."Every crime writer should have a copy of this book on their desk." Lynda La Plante. Illustrated with 59 colour images.

Crime Scene

Author: Larry Ragle
Publisher: Harper Collins
ISBN: 0380773791
Category : True Crime
Languages : en
Pages : 429

Book Description
One of the nation's top forensic scientists, Larry Ragle has investigated countless brutal and baffling crimes during his forty-year career. Now he takes us behind the yellow police tape and into the medical examiner's laboratory for a fascinating look at his most sensational cases, revealing how cutting-edge science and medical technology were used to shed brilliant light on the criminals and their transgressions. Here is the real world of C.S.I. -- where astonishingly detailed portraits of malefactors are painted with a single drop of blood, and a microscopic fiber can direct the police to even the most careful and elusive of murderers.

The Father of Forensics

Author: Colin Evans
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1440684723
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 334

Book Description
Before there was CSI, there was one man who saw beyond the crime and into the future of forensic science. His name was Bernard Spilsbury—and, through his use of cutting-edge science, he single-handedly brought criminal investigations into the modern age. Starting out as a young, charismatic physician in early twentieth-century Britain, Spilsbury hit the English justice system—and the front pages—like a cannonball, garnering a reputation as a real-life Sherlock Holmes. He uncovered evidence others missed, stood above his peers in the field of crime reconstruction, relentlessly exposed discrepancies between witness testimony and factual evidence, and most importantly, convicted dozens of murderers with hard-nosed, scientific proof. This is the fascinating story of the life and work of Bernard Spilsbury, history’s greatest medical detective, and of the cases that not only made him a celebrity, but also inspired the astonishing science of criminal investigation in our own time.

The C.S.I. Effect

Author: Katherine M. Ramsland
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780786293551
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 466

Book Description
Inspired by the popularity of the CBS television show "C.S.I.: crime scene investigation," the author, who has a master's degree in forensic psychology, goes behind the crime-solving techniques dramatized on the show to examine the reality of these cutting-edge procedures.

Crime Scene

Author: Connie Fletcher
Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks
ISBN: 1429990201
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 416

Book Description
Most people who work as actual crime scene investigators will tell you two things: Television doesn't always show the truth...and science never lies. But how do DNA experts, trace analysts, medical examiners, forensic pathologists, and cold case detectives work together to produce evidence and solve a case—beyond the shadow of a doubt? In this fascinating, true-life account, America's leading crime experts share their personal, unforgettable stories. From powder burn to fiber analysis, blood spatter to skeletal remains, New York Times bestselling author Connie Fletcher takes you into a world of crime-solving that's even grittier, more bizarre, and more shocking than any TV show. It's a thrilling ride into the dead center of a crime scene.

Blood, Powder, and Residue

Author: Beth A. Bechky
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 069120585X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 248

Book Description
A rare behind-the-scenes look at the work of forensic scientists The findings of forensic science—from DNA profiles and chemical identifications of illegal drugs to comparisons of bullets, fingerprints, and shoeprints—are widely used in police investigations and courtroom proceedings. While we recognize the significance of this evidence for criminal justice, the actual work of forensic scientists is rarely examined and largely misunderstood. Blood, Powder, and Residue goes inside a metropolitan crime laboratory to shed light on the complex social forces that underlie the analysis of forensic evidence. Drawing on eighteen months of rigorous fieldwork in a crime lab of a major metro area, Beth Bechky tells the stories of the forensic scientists who struggle to deliver unbiased science while under intense pressure from adversarial lawyers, escalating standards of evidence, and critical public scrutiny. Bechky brings to life the daily challenges these scientists face, from the painstaking screening and testing of evidence to making communal decisions about writing up the lab report, all while worrying about attorneys asking them uninformed questions in court. She shows how the work of forensic scientists is fraught with the tensions of serving justice—constantly having to anticipate the expectations of the world of law and the assumptions of the public—while also staying true to their scientific ideals. Blood, Powder, and Residue offers a vivid and sometimes harrowing picture of the lives of highly trained experts tasked with translating their knowledge for others who depend on it to deliver justice.

True Stories of CSI

Author: Katherine Ramsland
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1440638942
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 292

Book Description
The bestselling forensic psychologist examines the true crimes that inspired the television smash hit, C.S.I. Katherine Ramsland follows the evidence and revisits some of the most absorbing episodes of the phenomenally popular C.S.I. television franchise, and explores the real-life crimes that inspired them. She also looks into the authenticity of the forensic investigations recreated for the dramatizations, and the painstaking real-life forensic process employed in every one of the actual cases?from notorious mass-murderer Richard Speck, to the massacre of Buddhist monks in an Arizona Temple, to a baffling case of apparent spontaneous combustion.

Forensic Science of CSI

Author: Katherine Ramsland
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1440673071
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 289

Book Description
The CBS television show, "C.S.I.: Crime Scene Investigation," has captured audiences - and ratings - with its unflinchingly realistic details of forensic science, tools, and technology. This fascinating new book - written by an acclaimed biographer with a master's degree in forensic psychology - goes behind the crime-solving techniques dramatized on the TV show to examine the reality of these cutting-edge procedures. From DNA typing and ballistics, to bitemark and blood pattern analysis, here are detailed accounts of the actual techniques used in today's crime investigations. Prominent experts in the field offer rare glimpses into cases ranging from missing persons to murder. For fans of the television show, as well as true crime buffs and science readers - this is the real thing.

American Sherlock

Author: Kate Winkler Dawson
Publisher: Icon Books
ISBN: 1785787063
Category : True Crime
Languages : en
Pages : 283

Book Description
' Kate Winkler Dawson is an unbelievable crime historian and such a talented storyteller. ' Karen Kilgariff, cohost of the My Favorite Murder podcast 'Heinrich changed criminal investigations forever, and anyone fascinated by the myriad detective series and TV shows about forensics will want to read [this].' The Washington Post 'An entertaining, absorbing combination of biography and true crime.' Kirkus ' Kate Winkler Dawson has researched both her subject and his cases so meticulously that her reconstructions and descriptions made me feel part of the action rather than just a reader and bystander. She has brought to life Edward Oscar Heinrich's character, determination, and skill so vividly that one is left bemused that this man is so little known to most of us. ' Patricia Wiltshire, author of Traces and The Nature of Life and Death Berkeley, California, 1933. In a lab filled with curiosities – beakers, microscopes, Bunsen burners and hundreds of books – sat an investigator who would go on to crack at least 2,000 cases in his 40-year career. Known as the 'American Sherlock Holmes', Edward Oscar Heinrich was one of the greatest – and first – forensic scientists, with an uncanny knack for finding clues, establishing evidence and deducing answers with a skill that seemed almost supernatural. Based on years of research and thousands of never-before-published primary source materials, American Sherlock is a true-crime account capturing the life of the man who spearheaded the invention of a myriad of new forensic tools, including blood-spatter analysis, ballistics, lie-detector tests and the use of fingerprints as courtroom evidence.

Csi

Author: William A. Kerns
Publisher: Createspace Independent Pub
ISBN: 9781484009826
Category : True Crime
Languages : en
Pages : 168

Book Description
Not every crime scene is a homicide... There are things to learn and humor to be found in a great many aspects of police and crime scene work. In short, life on the streets is oftentimes interesting and sometimes downright comical. This series is a compilation of stories gleaned from my years of serving and protecting the citizens of a moderate sized, mid-western city. The basic facts are true, although the names of those involved have been changed, not necessarily to protect any innocence, but rather to hopefully reduce any liability on my part. Unlike television, not every case is over in 52 minutes and not every crime is solvable. Not all evidence is perfect. The evidence is also not always as exciting, as shocking, or as damning as the evidence shown on television. Yes, I have seen fingerprints removed from feathers, DNA extracted from lip balm, and fracture evidence matched back to specific items which have sealed a conviction for those accused of wrongdoing. However, more prevalent are the number of cases which had little or no evidence, or which had little if any follow-up investigation due to there simply not being enough resources (time, money, personnel) to allocate to determining what really happened and who was to blame. While television may show what the forensic potential of evidence may be, and how cutting edge technology is assisting in the fight against crime, not every (in fact, few if any) departments, agencies, or labs have access to the types of technology which is often featured in evening forensic dramas. More oftentimes than not, cases are still solved through rudimentary investigative techniques, gut feelings, and basic evidence collection. While not always as sexy and plot twisting as on television, real life can prove to be quite interesting and somewhat entertaining. Welcome to crime scene investigation in the real world. Buckle up, because it's anything but like television...