Significance of Forensic Evidence - Research Paper Example

? Significance of Forensic Evidence Introduction Forensic evidence is anything that has been collected in a scene of crime that gives the description of the way the crime was done. This can also confirm the description stories that are given by the eyewitnesses. Another definition of forensic evidence can be evidence that can be used by a law court, especially the evidence that has been obtained via scientific methods like DNA tests, blood tests and ballistics (James & Nordby, 2009). Forensic evidence has, therefore, assisted the law sector through shaping the justice in the globe, fuelling investigation of crimes and signifying the advancement of current technology. Forensic evidence usually involves factors like modern computer, DNA fingerprints, forensic anthropology, toxicology, autopsy techniques and much more. Forensic evidence, therefore, has some significance to criminal justice and has some impacts on law. However, forensic evidence raises questions as to whether there are enough constitutional safeguards to help in maintaining the privacy of people. Moreover, forensic evidence has some great assets and liabilities. Forensic evidence has appreciable significance to criminal justice. For instance, forensic evidence has assisted in the arrest of people who commit rape crimes. In the past, when someone was raped, it was not simple to establish who did the rape. This was because the technological level was not so advanced. With forensic science, test can be carried out on a victim of rape to determine the person who did the rape. This technology simply collects some fluids from the rape victims for example semen and then it is taken for the DNA test. The results from such tests are in most cases accurate. This has therefore, been of positive significance to criminal justice. Another significance of forensic evidence to the criminal justice is in the accounting sector. Since the sector of accounts majorly deals with finances, it is prone to criminal activities. The sector of accounts has in the past lost many finances because of fraud cases by those in management, especially the accountants. Presently, forensic technology is also used in the financial sector to detect fraud cases. Financial sectors are, therefore, employing forensic accountants who assist in the detection of fraud. This has helped the courts in judging the cases that involve mismanagement of funds because before, such judgments were not easy to make. The judgments were not easy to make because in most situations there was no clear evidence. Forensic accounting has, therefore, contributed significantly to criminal justice. In crime scenes, the police investigators or rather the technicians of crime scenes usually examine all available evidence carefully and dust the scenes of crime purposely to retrieve some fingerprints in case of existence. These fingerprints are usually used to detect the individuals who were present at the time the crime occurred. These individuals can, therefore, help in the investigation process or if they are the criminals then the law acts on them. The detection of the characters with the same fingerprints like the ones collected the scene of crime is usually done with the assistance of forensic science. The evidence from this method is in most cases accurate hence the law courts find it easy to sentence such criminals. This forensic method, therefore, has helped in criminal justice significantly. Forensic evidence is also significant to the criminal justice because it gives the law courts clear evidence on the murder cases. Forensic science can be used in testing the bloodstains at a crime scene. Bloodstains and spatter analysis engages the examination of a crime scene, extension and trajectory of the blood in the crime scene (Kiely, 2001). It can, therefore, be used to determine a death cause, a victim’s location and the weapon used or the perpetrator. These collections are then taken to the forensic laboratory for analysis and finding of the results. It is the result from the laboratory that will be used in the law court as evidence since these results are in most cases accurate. Forensic toxicology is also evidence that is applicable in the law court. Forensic toxicology involves the biological samples analyses purposely for the detection of presence of toxins with the inclusion of drugs. The report of toxicology can be used to give information of the kind of substances that is present and whether the quantity of the substance is reliable with the curative dosage or above a level, which is harmful. These results are significant because they can be used as inferences in the determination of the potential effect of a substance on an individual illness, mental impairment or death. For instance, results from forensic toxicology can be used to analyze the blood of a driver who has had an accident so that it can be known whether that the driver was inebriated when the accident occurred. From this it is evident that forensic toxicology assists in criminal justice. Forensic science can also be used in the provision of trace evidences to the law courts. Examples of trace evidences can be fibers, soil, gunshot residue, hair and pollen that might have been transferred amid various people, objects or the surroundings during the moment of crime. Investigators can, therefore, potentially link a victim and a suspect to a joint location via trace evidence. For instance, hair sample obtained at the scene of crime can be used in the identification of a suspect via scientific analysis. Hair analysis can assist in the determination of whether the victim and the suspect were at the same place. The results obtained can be used in law courts to ensure that the crime victim receives justice. This is therefore, significance to criminal justice. Forensic evidence is considered to be advancement to modern technology. However, questions arise as to whether the continued advancement of technology and science in the future will have greater or lesser impact on forensic evidence in criminal justice. From most people’s perspective, the advancement in technology and science will most likely have a greater impact on forensic evidence in criminal justice (Pyrek, 2007). The technology and science advancement will have the greater impact on forensic evidence because a relationship exists between the two factors. For instance, forensic science is considered advancement in to technology hence as technology and science will be advancing, forensic evidence will automatically be greatly impacted. The impact might either be positive or negative. An impact that may occur is the increase in the efficiency of the forensic evidence. For example, since the technology will be well advanced, forensic science will be more perfect hence the forensic evidences will be significantly accurate. The forensic evidences provided in the courts will, therefore, make the courts to guarantee faultless ruling without getting biased. The advancement in technology and science might also have a great effect on forensic evidence offered in criminal justice because the process through which forensic processes are done entirely involve other technologies. For instance, the machines used for identification of the DNA of a criminal, suspect or victim of crime are technological. This therefore, indicates that improvement in such machines because of advancement in technology will ensure that the results obtained as forensic evidence will be perfect. This will, therefore, improve the criminal justice since the evidences provided will be accurate and reliable. Another greater impact that the improvement of science and technology might have on forensic evidences is its total eradication. Advancement of science and technology can result to some new forms of evidences arising. In most cases, these evidences might be more beneficial to criminal justice than the forensic evidence. Since the new forms of evidences might be more perfect, it is automatic that the forensic evidences will be slowly eradicated not because they are poor but because at that time they might be outdated. Moreover, the advancement of technology and science will impact on forensic sciences because it will dictate the features and types of forensic sciences. For instance, as science and technology advances, the intelligence of humans also advances. The crimes committed may, therefore, be somehow unique and hard to detect. The technology in existence will be forced to be more perfect to detect these crimes. This is why the features and types of the forensic science will be dictated; it will be dictated purposely to suit the fast, accurate and efficient detection of crimes so as to ensure justice in the courts. The issue about constitutional safeguards for the maintenance of people’s privacy is also an issue that arises because of the existence of the forensic evidences in criminal justice. Most of the forensic evidences collected usually may involve various people. For instance, in a murder scene, the bloodstains or even the trace elements taken can be of different individuals hence when taken to the laboratory for examining, different people will be in the results list. Appearance of an individual in the result list will mean that the individual will have to be interrogated. Such an individual will in most cases feel that their privacy is receiving some interference. From this, it is evident that there are no constitutional safeguards for people’s privacy when it comes to the issue of forensic sciences. Moreover, it is also obvious that the implementation of rules that safeguard peoples’ privacy against forensic evidences is not might to some extent not be possible because the forensic science takes any significant factor at the crime scene that may be of benefit to the investigation. Furthermore, it is plain that no constitutional safeguard exists for people’s privacy because use of forensic sciences in the provision of evidence in the law courts seems to have no boundaries. For instance, if an individual has something that may provide evidence, the forensic science investigators will take the evidence for analysis without the individual’s permission. This is interference with the privacy of someone. This evidences that there is no constitutional safeguard for the privacy of individuals at the time when forensic science is being used to provide forensic evidence to law courts. As revealed by researches carried out, more forensic evidence is gathered compared to the level of its analysis, thereby resulting in substantial accumulations. The size and features of forensic evidence caseloads in law implementation agencies are not as much certain despite the forensic accumulations within crime laboratories. Law enforcement agencies continue facing substantial evidence of forensic caseloads, more so for property and rape cases. On top of that, the law enforcement personnel need more homogeneous procedures for submitting evidence, including some height of precedence founded on factors such as case genuineness, as well as training that is improved on the settlements and utilization of forensic analysis. Some law implementation officers may bear some degree of comprehending of the entire full benefits of forensic evidence, with a perception that forensic evidence is beneficial for crime prosecution but is not a technique for developing fresh leads when carrying out investigations. Other resource requirements include the lack of information schemes in law implementation agencies with the capability to follow forensic evidence connected with cases of criminals as well as the requirement to have supplementary homogeneous guidelines for evidence withholding. A forensic analysis is a very professional engagement that needs highly skilled members of the team who encompass familiarity not only for auditing and accounting techniques, but also of the legal structure that is relevant. There are several diverse kinds of fraud that a forensic accountant for example, could be called upon to investigate. In the event of investigations, it is probable it could ultimately result into legal procedures against a single or multiple suspects, and members of the investigative team ought to be comfortable, with making an appearance in courts to give explanations on the methodology applied when carrying out the investigation and how the evidence presented was collected. These forensic accounts must therefore receive specialized training in such related problems to ensure that their professionalism and credibility does not in any way become undermined. Most research efforts and financial investments have given a hand to the requirement to make better forensic evidence dispensation which is crucial for investigating, defending cases of criminals, and prosecuting. Nevertheless, while the movement and processing of forensic evidence in crime laboratories has been captured in reports and surveys, a limited amount of research to ascertain the present magnitude of forensic evidence caseloads in law implementation agencies, as well as to determine their depth when for gathering and processing forensic evidence. In the end, cases of accumulation must be quantified so that it can assist in giving estimations of the figure of unsolved cases of criminal activities that may benefit from forensic investigations that is timely. Evidence that is physical in nature is paramount for defending and processing cases of crimes, even though research affirms that several forensic evidence is gathered and then analyzed, thereby resulting in substantial backlogs (Liu, 2009). Conclusion Police agencies may as well to enhance their extent of accumulated cases through better organization and following up of unsolved cases. More homogeneous processes and procedures for submission and analyzing probative evidence such as prioritization of founded on factors such as cases earnestness ought to be carried out. Improving systems of information for tracking and assessing forensic evidence within the management of records management ought to be carried out. Additionally improved systems of information and adoption of additional systematic policies should be encouraged. Training of law enforcers should be increased from the level it is currently. References Constitutional law: Keyed to courses using farber, eskridge, jr., and frickey's cases. (2010). S.l.: Aspen Publishers. James, S. H., & Nordby, J. J. (2009). Forensic science: An introduction to scientific and investigative techniques. Boca Raton: Taylor & Francis. Kiely, T. F. (2001). Forensic evidence: science and the criminal law. Boca Raton, FL [etc.: CRC Press. Liu, D. (2009). Cisco router and switch forensics: Investigating and analyzing malicious network activity. Burlington, MA: Syngress. Pyrek, K. (2007). Forensic science under siege: The challenges of forensic laboratories and the medico-legal death investigation system. Amsterdam: Elsevier Academic Press. Read More