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| A series of forensics science
class are off to a successful start, thanks to creators David
Tate, in the School of Health Sciences (left), and Ralph Williams,
professor of entomology. |
“When I go to testify, that’s the
most stressful thing I do,” says Haskell. “You’ve
got to be a good scientist before you can be a good forensic scientist.
You must know entomology inside and out, and my job is to help uncover
the truth.”
Haskell’s interest in insects began at
the age of 11, when he completed his first insect project in 4-H.
After earning an undergraduate degree in entomology at Purdue in
1969, he returned home to take over his family’s 800-acre
farm. While on the farm, he continued his interest in entomology,
and in 1981 became involved in his first case—accompanying
a local detective to a crime scene to collect evidence.
Former classmates in the 1960s, Williams and
Haskell reunited in the mid-198.0s after Haskell had a lunch conversation
with some old entomologist friends. It seems that Williams was among
a small group of experts who were starting to see the value of insects
in crime investigation. “They told me that Ralph was looking
for a graduate student to work in forensic entomology,” relates
Haskell. “I ran over to campus and told him, ‘I’m
here to be your new forensic entomologist.’”
While Haskell no longer farms, he still uses
the farm as a research laboratory to study insect development in
varying environments. Haskell’s workshops there also benefit
Purdue students and law enforcement professionals.
Student attraction
Although studying bugs at crime scenes isn’t
for everyone, students in the forensics classes can’t seem
to get enough of it. “We take their interest very seriously,”
says Williams. “The students are very sharp. Some have changed
career paths due to the classes.”
Last year, some 200 Purdue students started the
Forensic Science Club. Co-founder and vice-president Nichole Mott,
a junior health sciences major, says they established the club so
that students could bring in guest speakers and learn more about
different criminal case studies.
Mott, a Riverside, Calif., native, also spent
last summer working with Haskell on case investigations and research.
“My main work is to raise the maggots,” she says. “We
receive maggot specimens, which we keep in ‘maggot motels.’”
She says that this is done so that the species can be positively
identified, something that’s difficult to until the maggots
mature into blow flies.
While working with Haskell, Mott also helped
gather evidence from a real crime scene and witnessed an autopsy.
“It’s all been very exciting. The class prepared me
well for the experiences, but photos can’t totally relay the
sights, the smells and the scene of a real investigation,”
says Mott.
Still, she’s uncertain as to whether her
interest will develop into a career. “This has all been very
interesting, but I don’t know what I’ll do in the future,”
she says. For right now, knowing that she’s helping—despite
the sometimes unpleasant working conditions—seems to be enough.
“I tell myself this is for research, and it will be worth
it all in the end.”
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