Return to The Crime Lab
| Intro | Evidence | Crime Scene | Fingerprints | Death/Decay | Ballistics |
| Injuries | Blood | Trace Ev. | DNA | Forens. Anth. | Careers |
NOTE: The only two change between this document and that published in the Westport Public Schools Science Curriculum are the order of some of the topics, and breaking up the unwieldy Forensic Pathology unit into the following three smaller units: (a) Death and Decomposition, (b) Injuries, and (c) Forensic Anthropology.
Knowledge
Describe the relationship of forensics and the law
Explain the relevance of specific court cases to current forensics practices
Describe typical courtroom proceedings
Explain the importance of the work of various forensics pioneers
Describe the development of technology important to forensics
Explain the importance of Locard’s “Exchange Principle” of evidence
Skills
Evaluate admissibility of various types of evidence
Evaluate the nature of forensics both with and without certain technologies
Evidence (Click here to see the comparable portion of the Syllabus)
Knowledge
Describe the different types of evidence
Explain how evidence is deposited
Explain why certain evidence may be more likely to be found than others
Describe the different values of certain types of evidence in court proceedings
Skills
Evaluate types of evidence law enforcement should search for in specific crimes
Evaluate the use of certain types of evidence in court proceedings
Crime Scene (Click here to see the comparable portion of the Syllabus)
Knowledge
Explain the reasons for isolating and protecting a crime scene from outside contamination
Explain the importance of the “chain of evidence”
Explain the steps for thoroughly recording the crime scene
Describe the proper procedures for conducting a systematic search of a crime scene for physical evidence
Skills
Be able to secure a crime scene
Search a crime scene
Collect evidence and retain the “chain of evidence”
Draw and use a crime scene sketch
Fingerprints (Click here to see the comparable portion of the Syllabus)
Knowledge
Identify the basic types of fingerprint classification
Describe the types of fingerprints found
Describe the reasons and importance of fingerprint databases
Describe the methods of retrieving latent fingerprints
Skills
Comparing fingerprints found at the crime scene with known samples
Process latent prints on a variety of surfaces using different methods
Death & Decomposition (Click here to see the comparable portion of the Syllabus)
Knowledge
Describe the nature of death and decomposition
Explain how determining time of death relates to decomposition
Explain how cause of death is determined
Describe the detailed nature of an autopsy
Skills
Determine time of death based upon multiple factors (using case studies)
Determine the cause of death (using autopsy case studies)
Ballistics (Click here to see the comparable portion of the Syllabus)
Knowledge
Identify the four basic types of guns
Describe the types and uses of different bullets
Describe the use of serial numbers for guns and bullets
Describe how powder burns are used to gauge the distance of the shooter from the victim
Skills
Compare tool marks on bullets and casings
Reconstruct bullet trajectories (using simulated bullet holes)
Gauge distance of shooter from powder burns (using case studies)
Injuries (Click here to see the comparable portion of the Syllabus)
Knowledge
Describe various types of injuries
Explain how to determine the cause of an injury
Skills
Determine the cause of injuries (using case studies)
Blood (Click here to see the comparable portion of the Syllabus)
Knowledge
Describe the various components of blood, and the evidence each part contains
Describe the nature of blood type, and its relative importance as evidence
Describe different blood stain patterns based on source, direction, and angle of trajectory
Explain the method of chemically isolating old, invisible blood stains
Skills
Identify each of the components of blood (using prepared microscope slides)
Determine blood type (using simulated blood)
Determine the direction and trajectory of blood stains (using red paint)
Process old blood stains (using non-human blood sources) with luminol
Trace Evidence (Click here to see the comparable portion of the Syllabus)
Knowledge
Describe the parts of a hair
Explain the lack of evidentiary value in hair comparisons
Describe the basic types of fibers in use today
Explain “energy of deformation”
Describe the types of tool marks
Skills
Use microscopes to compare hair, fiber, and tool mark evidence
DNA Evidence (Click here to see the comparable portion of the Syllabus)
Knowledge
Describe the nature of introns and exons in the human genome
Explain the importance of various DNA markers to criminal investigations
Describe the methods of DNA collection, amplification, and analaysis
Skills
Evaluate the use of various DNA markers
Collect a DNA sample
Use PCR to amplify a DNA sample
Compare and analyze DNA samples using gel electrophoresis
Forensic Anthropology (Click here to see the comparable portion of the Syllabus)
Knowledge
Identify the parts of a skeleton
Explain how gender, age, and race may be determined, and the limits of such determination
Explain the relationship of dental records to both the identification of remains and bite mark analysis
Skills
Determine the gender, age, and race of skeletal remains (using skeletal models)
Match bite marks in clay to casts of human teeth (using dental casts)
Career Paths & Other Areas of Forensics (Click here to see the comparable portion of the Syllabus)
Knowledge
Describe the possible careers available to students in forensics
List schools specializing in forensics
Describe other areas of forensics
Skills
Evaluate potential career paths based on interest and amount of schooling required
Go to the Forensics Philosophy Go to the Forensics Syllabus