What Everyone Ought to Know About Building a Forensic Career

 Forensic science is the application of scientific methods and principles to investigate criminal and civil actions of interest to the legal systems. All the clues collected from a crime scene are analyzed in a crime laboratory and converted into evidence worth producing in law courts.

 

 A Day in a Forensic Science Technician's Life:

 On a typical day a forensic science technician might perform some of the following duties:

• examine, test, and analyze tissue samples, chemical substances, physical materials, and ballistics evidence, using recording, measuring, and testing equipment;
• interpret laboratory findings and test results to identify and classify substances, materials, and other evidence collected at crime scene;
• collect and preserve criminal evidence used to solve cases;
• confer with ballistics, fingerprinting, handwriting, documents, electronics, medical, chemical, or metallurgical experts concerning evidence and its interpretation;
• reconstruct crime scene to determine relationships among pieces of evidence;
• prepare reports or presentations of findings, investigative methods, or laboratory techniques;
• testify as expert witness on evidence or laboratory techniques in trials or hearings;

 

Eligibility For Forensic Science Career

A bachelors degree in forensic science, biology, chemistry, criminalistics or a related natural or physical science discipline is required for most positions. College courses should include physics, organic chemistry, physical chemistry, biochemistry and biology with laboratory time. Some labs are moving toward requiring a masters degree in forensic science or criminalistics. Graduate level work will payoff in the long run, opening up opportunities for advancement and higher pay. Entry-level positions generally require a bachelors and some laboratory experience, preferably in a forensic lab environment. Laboratory experience in college course labs or working for a professor in a lab during college can often suffice for the required lab experience. Interning in a forensic lab is the best option. There are no certification requirements for this profession, though certain related professional boards do offer certification programs that can be professionally and personally beneficial. 

 

 

Key Skills

Inquisitive nature, strong communication skill, ability to work in team, organizational ability, an eye for detail, and skill in interpreting scientific results are desired skills

Remuneration

Remuneration state forensics departments is as per government pay scales. The state department salaries begin around Rs. 4000 and increases according to the rank and years of experience. Forensic scientists with postgraduate qualifications have starting salary of Rs.6000 - Rs.8000 depending on the nature of the organisation. Private forensic laboratories offer lucrative pay packages to scientists with a few years of experience. A freelancer in the field can charge according to requirements of the individual case.

No jobs for forensics diploma holders: RTI

An RTI reply has debunked higher and technical education minister Rajesh Tope's claim that students of the Institute of Forensic Science are hired in reputed organizations with good paychecks. The authorities, however, maintain that most students have got plum jobs, and that no lofty claims have been made.

Students of the institute have learnt through RTI that not a single student has been placed after completing the one-year post-graduate diploma course in digital and cyber forensic science and forensic science and related laws. The college authorities denied this, saying that they had not organized campus recruitment drives.

The diploma courses launched in 2009 had garnered much enthusiasm, especially in the wake of the investigators' increasing dependence on forensic science to crack cases.

Maharashtra became the first state in India to launch such a course and had around 55 takers right after it was announced. But, students were in for dejection after completion of the course in May-June last year. Neither corporates nor government or policing agencies showed any interest in hiring them.

"Many companies said we were not skilled enough to be hired just after a year's diploma," said a student. Another student added that they were hopeful of getting hired in the state forensic laboratories that have around 306 vacancies currently. "But, we were later told we cannot be hired as the recruitment rules did not permit that. No efforts have been made to change the recruitment rules so far," said the student. 

SOURCE: TOI

Opportunities in Forensic Science

Career Opportunities in Forensic Science

Opportunities in Forensic Science Careers

Careers as a Medical Examiner (Careers in Forensics)

The FBI Career Guide: Inside Information on Getting Chosen for and Succeeding in One of the Toughest, Most Prestigious Jobs in the World

Careers in Forensics (Forensic Science Investigated)

What is Forensic Psychology? Famous Cases

Forensic psychology is the interaction of the practice or study of psychology and the law. Psychologists interested in this line of applied work may be found working in prisons, jails, rehabilitation centers, police departments, law firms, schools, government agencies, or in private practice, to name a few. They may work directly with attorneys, defendants, offenders, victims, pupils, families, or with patients within the state's corrections or rehabilitation centers. Other psychologists interested in forensic psychology focus on the study of psychology and the law. They may work in colleges, universities, government agencies, or in other settings interested in researching and examining the interaction of human behavior, criminology, and the legal system.

There are many famous cases that have been solved by the use of forensic psychology and others in which the science of forensic psychology has been used to great advantage. Three of these cases are highlighted in this below.

The Lindbergh Kidnapping

Charles Lindbergh was a world-renowned aviator. In the spring of 1932, his infant son was kidnapped and never seen alive again, even though a huge ransom was paid for the child’s safe return. The kidnappers used a make-shift ladder to get into the second story of Lindbergh’s home and snatch the child from his crib. The body of 20-month-old Charles Lindbergh Jr. was found two months later, very close to the Lindbergh home. The Secret Service traced the bills from the ransom.

This led to Bruno Hauptmann. About a third of the ransom was found in a shed attached to Hauptmann’s home. Bruno Hauptmann told authorities that he was holding the money for a friend, but testimony from experts in handwriting analysis confirmed that the ransom notes were penned in Hauptmann’s handwriting. Forensic analysis also determined that the wood used to build the homemade ladder was culled from wood discovered in the attic of the Hauptmann home.

Machine Gun Kelly

George Kelly aka “Machine Gun Kelly” was a famous criminal during the days of prohibition. He participated in many crimes, such as armed robbery, bootlegging and kidnapping. In the summer 0f 1933, Kelly and an accomplice kidnapped an oil magnate, Charles Urschel, who lived in Oklahoma City. The kidnappers let Urschel go about a week later, uninjured, after demanding, and receiving, the largest ransom in history.

Charles Urschel was a smart man. He took note of everything during his ordeal and was able to provide police with many details. He had been able to discern day and night through his blindfold and approximate the time when several events occurred. He remembered a terrible storm and gave the time and date; he noted airplanes flying over the location where he was being held hostage, and he described the noises from the various animals he heard.

Urschel’s memories enabled the FBI to discover that he had been held in a farmhouse owned by a relative.

However, what really sealed the case was that the oilman had planted his fingerprints in the house, in as many places as possible! Kelly was convicted and sentenced to life without parole.

The Green River Killer

A series of homicides can be laid at the door of Gary Ridgway, aka the “Green River Killer.” Most of the victims were prostitutes. The alleged 48-90 murders were committed in the 80s and 90s, near the Green River in Washington state. Law enforcement personnel pinpointed Gary Ridgway as a likely suspect early on and took his DNA fingerprint. but the technology forensics have today was not available at that time, and there was not enough evidence to arrest him. But in 2001, new techniques enabled the DNA sample to be re-examined, and this led to the arrest of the “Green River Killer.” After realizing he had been hopelessly incriminated, Gary Ridgway confessed and entered a guilty plea in order to avoid the death penalty. He received life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Important Links:

http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/criminal_mind/profiling/index.html

Forensic Psychology

Introduction to Forensic Psychology: Research and Application

Criminal Psychology: A Beginner's Guide

Forensic Psychology: Emerging Topics and Expanding Roles

HairConfirm™ Confidential Forensic Drug of Abuse Hair Testing

The HairConfirm™ personal forensic hair analysis drug of abuse testing service is the only at home drug testing kit that provides a *history (up to several months) of current or previous drug use for the five most abused illicit drugs and drug categories: Methamphetamines including Ecstasy , Marijuana, Opiates, Cocaine and Phencyclidines (PCP) without the need for urine specimen collection.

The only sample required is a small lock of the test subject's hair (approximately the size of a shoelace tip) taken at the scalp line.

Confidential and non-invasive, The HairConfirm™ drug test provides a qualitative determination of past drug use over a period of approximately three (3) months using forensic laboratory analysis.

PRINCIPLE
The presence of drugs in hair is based on a simple principle. Drugs which are ingested into the body circulate in a person's bloodstream which nourishes developing hair follicles. As a result, trace amounts of the target drug or drug metabolite are deposited in the hair follicle and become entrapped in the core of the hair shaft as it grows out from the hair follicle. Normal growth rates for human hair are approximately one-half inch per month. By testing for the presence of drugs in the hair shaft core on a given length of hair, a historical record can be achieved on past drug usage based on the length of the hair sample submitted measured from the scalp line. For example; if a 1.5" length hair sample measured from the scalp line is submitted, and knowing that on average head hair grows at the rate of .5" inch per month, then it can be assumed that a positive test result would imply that a drug was consumed sometime in the past 3 month period. Since target drug or drug metabolite residues are chemically and structurally stable for an extended period of time within the hair shaft core, they cannot be externally washed, bleached, chemically treated or flushed out of the hair structure. Consequently there is little possibility of sample contamination or manipulation. For this reason many courts and legal entities have chosen a forensic hair drug test as the preferred method of drug testing. Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) forensic laboratory analysis of the hair shaft from an individual can achieve highly accurate drug test results and provide a historical use record. Generally it takes approximately 5 days for drugs to show up in a person's hair and will continue to be detectable in new hair growth for several months

Source: Craig Medical

Careers in Forensic Entomology

Forensic Entomologists are typically employed by academic institutions and not law enforcement agencies. They can provide valuable information to law enforcement, Medical Examiners, and Coroners in establishing a portion of the postmortem interval. Entomologists are experts at determining the age of insects on human remains. Such information can be extremely valuable when law enforcement investigators are attempting to establish a time frame to support or refute suspect and/or witness statements.

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

I.F.O TURNS TWO TODAY!!!

Thank you one and all for your support

CHECK OUT OUR SECOND ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL ISSUE - "FORENSIC SCOOP"

Headquarters: D-88, Sarai Jullena, New friends colony, Opp Escorts Heart Inst. New Delhi-110025

 Lucknow Branch:    2/334, Vivekkhand, Gomti nagar, Lucknow

 Contact : +011-26320016 ; +91-98714 10821;  +91-99119 83335; +91-9819288253

IFO TURNS TWO On 13 April,2011

Dear All,

IFO turns two on April,13, 2011!!

We are glad to announce that today April, 13, 2011 is the day we celebrate two years of existence. Ifo Forensic Standards and Research Pvt Ltd have come across a young class of Forensic Experts who have been in a continuous stride to bring its forensic objectives in the limelight.

We will be Launching our Celebration Issue of IFSR Times;E-Magazine- "Forensic Scoop " on this auspicious occasion.

Please visit the following link to the E-Mag.

http://www.ifsr.in/press/ 

Thank you one and all for your continuous support.


--
Regards,
IFO Forensic Experts
IFSR Pvt Ltd. Delhi. India
Contact:011-26320016
Web: www.ifsr.in