Bedbugs in Forensic Cases: Their Importance

Bedbugs (or bed bugs) are small, elusive, parasitic insects of the family Cimicidae. In common use, the term usually refers to one species, Cimex lectularius, that feeds preferentially on human blood

Bedbugs have been around for thousands of years; have a distinctive smell, unusual sex habits and strong immune systems; and are useful in CSI cases as the bloodsuckers are living repositories of DNA evidence.

Bloodsucking insects are useful for forensic science because human DNA can be extracted from the meals that the bugs have consumed. Scientists at Texas A&M and Virginia Tech have successfully been able to isolate human DNA from bed bugs. It's been amplified and sequenced, and the biological material is of sufficient quality that it can be used to identify individuals. Proof of principle came in a paper published in 2006 in the Journal of Agric. Urban Entomol. Engorged bed bugs were collected from a human volunteer and from field sites in New York and Texas. The scientists found that viable DNA was retrieved from those bed bug specimens that had been alcohol preserved, air dried, and frozen.

The big advantage that these creatures have over other bloodsucking bugs for forensic science is that they don't stay with the host. So if police are after a fugitive and believe he/she stayed at a particular location, they could examine the bed bugs - if there is an infestation - because they would still be in the room long after the suspect had fled.

Forensic Experts: Lost images of Ansel Adams found

Ansel Easton Adams (February 20, 1902 – April 22, 1984) was an American photographer and environmentalist, best known for his black-and-white photographs of the American West, especially in Yosemite National Park. One of his most famous photographs was Moon and Half Dome, Yosemite National Park, California. :)

When antiques enthusiast Rick Norsigian of Fresno purchased dozens of glass negatives at a garage sale a decade ago, he had no idea he had stumbled upon images believed taken by Ansel Adams.
Not everybody is convinced the negatives are authentic.
Adams' grandson said Tuesday he was doubtful the images were shot by his late grandfather.
Even so, the skepticism did little to dampen Norsigian's excitement.
"It's kind of beyond words," Norsigian, 64, said Tuesday. "After 10 years of my life, trying to prove this and finding the people that were not afraid (to authenticate the images). This day has been long coming. It's just like a relief."
On Tuesday, Norsigian, a painter for the Fresno Unified School District, and his attorney presented the findings of a team of art and forensic experts that they say have authenticated 65 images among thousands considered lost by Adams in a 1937 darkroom fire.

“Grim Sleeper” serial killer- In A Nut Shell

The "Grim Sleeper" did give some sleepless nights to the Los Angeles County. Being stated as one of the most startling cases to be solved; this case has opened avenues to be considered very seriously by the Forensic Officers.

The Preview: Grim Sleeper is the nickname for a serial killer in Los Angeles, California believed to be responsible for at least 11 murders and one attempted murder in Los Angeles since 1985. The attacker was dubbed the "Grim Sleeper" because he apparently took a 14-year hiatus from his crimes, from 1988 to 2002.

The Investigation and Arrest: Well the Wikipedia would give you more Information but in brief the investigation took 25years..with the arrest of Lonnie Franklin Jr., 57 The arrest was made on July7, 2010


What is gripping is the way he was caught! Heard of familial DNA??... Well if you haven't its the first Familial DNA Case- Familial coz it is the DNA of a very close RELATIVE!! YES..RELATIVE...NOT YOUR OWN..BUT YOUR CLOSEST RELATIVE...

The familial search in the Grim Sleeper case began at a lab of the state’s Bureau of Forensic Services in Richmond, Calif., where forensic scientists came up with a list of 200 partial DNA matches from a database that contains 1.3 million profiles.

To narrow down their list of 200, they analyzed the Y chromosome, the male sex-determining chromosome that is passed from father to son. One person, a man who had recently been convicted on a felony weapons charge, was an exact match to the Y chromosome of crime-scene DNA. Next, using corroborating information like birth certificates and Google mapping, researchers figured out that the matching person’s father would be a viable suspect.

But the advent of familial searches raises important questions that may be better answered with a more sweeping authority: national mandatory standards governing the method and appropriate use of the technique. But how might these technologies be mis-used in the future?

Want to know more: Check this website exclusively for "Grim Sleeper"
http://thegrimsleeper.com/

LATEST FORENSIC NEWS 26JULY,2010

Woman's long-lost son found buried in 'John Doe' grave



The body of Jacob Whitt was found buried since Sept. 22, 1998, in a "John Doe" grave on the outskirts of Dallas.

His body was identified only recently through DNA sampling, according to his mother, Theresa Freitas, who lives near Grenelefe Golf and Tennis Resort, southeast of Haines City.

"They found him in a wooded area in a sleeping bag, with his work boots and one bullet in his head," Freitas said by telephone Monday, explaining how her son came to be buried without identification. "There was a .44 (caliber) gun lying three feet away from him. He was two weeks shy of his 22nd birthday."

Freitas said a representative of the Ellis County Sheriff's Office in Texas called her June 23 and reported Whitt's DNA match to a DNA swab sample that was taken from her by a Polk County Sheriff's Office detective in October 2008.

"It took a long time for the two (samples) to meet in the system," she said. "DNA is solving a lot of cases. If it weren't for that, we may not know that was my son. That's not the way I wanted, but at least we can bring him home."

Freitas said the Ellis County Sheriff's Office is ruling her son's death a suicide, but she said she does not believe that.

"I'm telling you, my son didn't kill himself, and I'm not a hysterical mother," she said. "There is no way that he walked 30 miles to a wooded area from where he lived, because he didn't have a car, and got in a sleeping bag with his work boots on, and laid on his side and shot himself with a .44.

READ THE WHOLE STORY HERE:
http://www.newschief.com/article/20100713/NEWS/7135042/1021

LATEST FORENSIC NEWS 25JULY,2010

Sharon Bio-Medicine Limited is looking for Head - Toxicology in Navi Mumbai

Employer Name: Sharon Bio-Medicine Limited
Employer Address: C-312, BSEL Tech Park, Sector 30(A), Vashi, Navi Mumbai- 400703
Email:
URL: http://www.sa-ford.com/
Phone: 91-22-67944000
Required Skills:
Required Experience: 7-10 Years
Required Education: UG - Other Graduate - Any Specialization PG - Other
Job Location: Navi Mumbai

Job Description

Candidate would be responsible for supporting of toxicology studies according to GLP, GMP, ISO 17025 and other relevant regulatory compliance guidelines and development of new testing procedures and associated validations and services for the department

About Employer

Sharon Bio-Medicine Limited is a fast growing Indian Pharmaceutical Company which specializes in manufacturing of Intermediates, Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients and Finished Dosage


First Indo-US Workshop on Forensic Engineering - at NIT - Tiruchirappalli in December 2010

Forensic Engineering is to develop practices and procedures to reduce the number of failures, to disseminate information on failures, and to provide guidelines for conducting failure investigations and for ethical conduct. Due to the increasing concerns of the current state of civil infrastructures and the need to enhance the performance of critical infrastructures through better inspection and repair techniques, there is an immediate need to equip young engineers with knowledge of forensic engineering practices.

The National Science Foundation of USA has awarded a grant to University of North Carolina at Charlotte to conduct the 'First Indo-US workshop in Forensic Engineering' in India at National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli as a coorganiser. The workshop will be organised during the month of December 2010.

Several eminent experts in forensic engineering from India and US will paticipate in the workshop. The people from all over the globe could participate interactively via internet or teleconferencing. The workshop will cover issues related to the practice of forensic engineering, including the investigation process, business aspects, and the legal system with an emphasis on the ethical issues.

Prof. Shen-en-Chen, Department of Civil Engineering, University of North Carolina at Charlotte and Prof. C. Natarajan, Department of Civil Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli will be the co-ordinators of the workshop.

Forensic Phonetics

Forensic linguistics is a field of applied linguistics involving the relationship between language, the law, and crime.

Area of phonetics that deals with questions in which speaker identification is relevant to solving a crime.

Prominent cases:
• hoax calls to emergency numbers
• sexual herrasment calls
• bank robberies in which robbers are masked but recorded
• telefone calls from kidnappers
• crimes (e.g. rapes) in darkness in which victim cannot see but hear the perpetrator

Links of Forensic Phonetics:
http://www-users.york.ac.uk/~pf11/Links%20for%20Forensic%20Phonetics.htm

In a New Article in the Economist

Volker Dellwo, a phonetic scientist from University College London, conducted a small study in which he asked an actor to read 25 sentences in either his natural voice or with an accent. Dr Dellwo found that the actor’s fundamental frequency went from 120 hertz to 170 hertz when disguised. Furthermore, phonetic experts found it difficult to say in many cases if the same person was reading the sentence.

Dr Dellwo thinks it would be better to focus on rhythmic aspects of speech, such as the way a person lingers over vowels. He has found that the percentage of speech that is vocalic, as opposed to consonantal, is not only highly idiosyncratic and stable regardless how fast a person is speaking, but also is not perceived by the ear, making it hard to disguise. In the same study he found that this aspect of the actor’s speech did not change much, whether he read in a normal or disguised voice.

This study needs to be replicated with many more subjects and types of speech, but the results hint that speech rhythm could be profitably tapped by voice analysts. One snag is that, at present, the visual representation of the voice has to be tediously annotated manually for its vowel and consonant content.

However, a slightly different approach, measuring the proportion of speech time during which the vocal cords vibrate, could be automated—since software for extracting that feature already exists. If this proves viable it could become useful in police work, prosecutions and courtrooms. Scientists may yet have the last laugh.

CRIME SCENE INSECTS

YES ITS CSI: CRIME SCENE INSECTS..

FROM BADLY DECOMPOSED BODY TO A FRESHLY DECOMPOSING CORPSE..THESE TINY LITTLE CREATURES TELL YOU ABOUT THE TIME OF DEATH AND THE BODY ITSELF...

Forensic entomology is a young subfield, which is the application of this science to medicolegal death investigations. Forensic Entomologists estimate the post-mortem interval (PMI)—the amount of time that passes after the death of the victim. These scientists use insects to make such determinations, as well as to help reveal the probable cause, location, and time of death. Forensic Entomologists are also able to glean other valuable information by studying the insects that live on dead bodies. For example, insect evidence can be used to:


• deduce if a body was disturbed or moved after death
• identify a body by analyzing the DNA of flesh consumed by insects
• determine whether a dead individual used drugs by analyzing accumulated toxins in the insects that fed on the body
• establish whether a suspect was present at the scene of a crime
• ascertain the presence or position of wounds in badly decomposed bodies

Forensic Entomologists have expertise about the life cycle of insects that feed on decomposing flesh. They know that certain insects eat specific parts of bodies at particular intervals. Insects also develop through their life phases from egg to larvae to pupae to adults within a constant timeframe according to each insect species.

CHECK VIDEO ON COOL JOBS: FORENSIC ENTOMOLOGY
http://blip.tv/file/1157050

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Forensic Entomology

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