|
|
| Students in the Advanced
Criminalistics lab work with the same techniques and equipment
that forensic scientists use to analyze evidence. Caitlin Shaunnessey
looks through a stereo microscope to make a side-by-side comparison
of two bullets.. |
The introductory class covers topics ranging
from the lowly maggot and its role in criminal investigation to
a variety of crime-solving techniques, such as toxicology, DNA,
blood splatter patterns and crime scene management. It’s also
one of the few classes that comes with a warning, alerting students
to the graphic nature of some of the content. “We let them
know that they will see some explicit material during class, and,
if they have concerns, they should discuss them with the instructors,”
Williams says. “Fortunately, we’ve not grossed any of
them out yet.”
The initial class proved so successful that Williams
and David Tate, director of clinical and continuing education in
the School of Health Sciences, developed a second course, Criminalistics,
which was offered spring semester 2003. A third course, Advanced
Criminalistics/Analytical Laboratory Techniques, debuted this fall.
In the lab course, students can use two stereo microscopes, purchased
with a $65,000 grant, to make side-by-side comparisons of documents,
hair and fiber samples and bullets. There are only about 10 of these
microscopes in the state.
A forensic first
Joining Williams and Tate in teaching Purdue’s
classes is Neal Haskell, a certified forensic entomologist and one
of the nation’s first and foremost forensic entomology experts.
Haskell was the first person in the United States to receive a doctorate
in forensic entomology, earning all his degrees at Purdue. He has
worked on some 600 cases, including several high-profile murder
cases, and has shared his expertise on more than a dozen international
television programs.
Haskell agrees with Williams that a headless,
legless larvae can indeed be an investigator’s best friend.
Of particular interest are the large, metallic-colored blow flies,
which are among the first insects attracted to the scene of a crime.
“There are 100 species of blow flies in
North America, with 45 to 50 of forensic importance,” says
Haskell, who is also a biology professor at St. Joseph’s College,
located about 50 miles north of Purdue in Rensselear, Ind. Other
insects of note include grubs, caterpillars, beetles and gnats.
“I like to be at the crime scene before the body is moved,”
he says. “I collect a lot of evidence and point out insect
damage to the investigators. You never know if it’s important
or not until later.”
Haskell’s caseload includes testifying
in the highly publicized murder case of Danielle van Dam, a 7-year-old
California girl who was abducted from her home in February 2002.
Her body was found about one month later in a remote area near San
Diego. A neighbor was ultimately arrested and convicted of the murder.
|
