Forensic disciplines proliferate into footprints, tire tracks, hair samples and more.The dawn of the fingerprint era in Argentina.And, of course, the first person to be convicted because of DNA evidence.The first person to be exonerated by DNA evidence.“The courtroom didn’t turn out to be a very effective space for testing the limits of these sciences or making sure that we were going to work to understand weaknesses as well as strengths.” – Frederic Whitehurst, Former FBI Agent What you’ll hear in this episode: Will we ever get to a point where we can bring swift justice with pinpoint accuracy? Technology remains, as always, on the case. The FBI has loaded up on staff with scientists from a variety of fields in an effort to bring increased rigor and inquiry to its operations. Steps are, however, being taken toward making the investigation process more air-tight. And, yet, despite that report’s popularity and impact, one still does not yet exist. Striving for perfection.Ī 2009 report called for the establishment of a federal oversight body that accredits and standardizes forensic investigation processes in the United States. He was later released after another, more thorough, match was found elsewhere. As we’ve begun to poke holes in previously established forensic identification processes, we’ve found many cases of mistaken identity, including a high-profile case in which an Oregon man was labeled a prime suspect in the Madrid bombings of 2004, despite having never been to Spain. In the United States, DNA has freed over 350 people imprisoned for violent crimes, and yet there may still be many more. The potential for DNA evidence in forensics was the guide star that led to the creation of the Innocence Project in New York in the 1970s. These are their stories.ĭNA evidence exonerated and – in the same case, later convicted – their first suspects in 1987. From there, forensic disciplines would later proliferate to include footprints, tire tracks, hair samples and – the gold standard – DNA. The dawn of the fingerprint era occurred in Argentina, as fingerprints left by a mother at the scene of the crime freed authorities’ prime suspect and convicted the mother. The case for forensics.Īlthough fingerprint identification has been in use for centuries, it wasn’t until the 19 th Century that criminal investigators used it as protocol for prosecution or exoneration. Trailblazers takes a look at rigorous standards, improved inquiry, and how scientific breakthroughs have aided the investigative process over its history and into the future. How can we can ensure 100% accuracy in forensic science? Technology plays a role, sure, but so do those who use it. It’s one of the worst things you can hear as an investigator, and one of the most frustrating things to live through as the wrongfully convicted.
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