Ident - The name used to refer to the Identification team, which generally does fingerprinting

Identification memory - The typr of memory used to pick something out, as in a lineup

Impression evidence - Anything that leaves an impression at a crime scene that links someone to the crime; tire tracks, footprints, fingerprints,tool marks, and bite marks

Indictment - Accusation issued by a grand jury that charges an individual with criminal misconduct

Inductive thinking - A type of reasoning based on probability

Inorganic compound - A chemical compound not based on carbon

Insanity - A legal term for a mental disease or defect that, if present at the time of the crime, absolves the person of responsibility

Interrogation - The art of getting suspects to tak, possibly confess

Intuition - The flash of inspiration that can help to shape an investigation

Intent - Mental state ranging from purpose to awareness of consequences

Iodine fumes - A technique used for bringing up latent fingerprints

Ion detector - A device that detects the presence of accelerants in the air via an electric charge

J

Jurisdiction - The authority to exert power over individualsor legal matters within a defined geographic area

K

Kastle-Meyer test - A presumptive blood test, used to determine if blood is present

K-9 - A special evidence response team that uses dogs to trail scents, used in cases of arson, missing persons, corpses, drugs, chemicals, and others

L

Laceration - Splitting or tearing of skin from blunt-force trauma

(LASER)Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation - A device that produces coherent beam of optical radiation by stimulating electronic, ionic, or molecular transitions in order to create energy

Latent evidence - Refers to evidence that is present or potential, but not evident or active

Latent fingerprint - A fingerprint made by deposits of oils and/or perspiration. not usually visible to the human eye. Various technologies, including lasers, can be used to identify latent fingerprints

LCN - Low copy number, a new technique for getting a DNA profile from a small amount of tissue evidence or a fingerprint

Lie detector - see "Polygraph"

Ligature - A tie or binding, often used in bondage or to strangle someone

Liminology - The study of fresh waters (lakes and ponds -- both natural and manmade), including their biological, physical, and chemical aspects

Livor mortis - See "lividity"

Livescan - Fingerprint techology that allows the fingertips to be scanned rather than to be rolled in ink

Lividity - Discoloration of the body after death, when red blood cells separate and settle to the lowest point of gravity; postmortem discoloration caused by the gravitation of blood to various parts of the body. Can be used to help determine time of death, and placement of the body after death; also known as "liver mortis"; see also hypostasis

Locard's exchange principle - The theory that anyone entering a crime scene leaves or takes something, or both

Low explosive - An explosive with a velocity of detonation less that 100 meters per second -- gunpowder is a low exlosive

Luminol - A chemical reagent that makes invisible blood flouresce in darkness; capable of detecting blodstains diluted up to 10,000 times. Luminol is used to identify blood that has been removed from a given area. It is an invaluable tool for investigators at altered crime scene.

M

Malingering - Deliberate simulation of a mental illness to obtain personal gain

Manner of death - An explanation of the way in which death is caused. Medicolegal manners of death are homicide, suicide, accidental, natural, and undetermined

Mass killer - Someone who kills a lot of people at the same time

Mass spectrometry -A way to identify elements of a compound, by bombarding it with electrons; this device can identify constituent parts too small for the gas chromatograph to detect

Medical examiner - In some jurisdictions, the person who runs a death investigation; in others, the person who performs the autopsies for death investigations; determines cause of death and acts as an expert witness in criminal and civil trials cause and/or manner of death are relevant

Micro-spectro photometry - the use of an electronic microscope in which electrons are beamed onto the specimen. The analyst then charts the electron emissions that are created in order to identify the specimen

Miranda warning - The required statement that a police officer gives to a suspect upon arrest, informing that person of the right to remain silent (not to self-incriminate) and to have legal representation before questioning

Misdemeanor - A lesser crime than a felony generally, punished by a fine or a short sentence in jail

Missing person - Someone gone longer than twenty-four hours, or whose disappearance is suspicious, as in the case of a child or mentally incompetant person

Mitigating circumstances - Factors such as age, motivation, duress or unstable homelife that can diminishthe degree of guilt in a criminal offense

Mitochondrial DNA - A type of DNA found in particular structures of the body and passed on intact through the female line of descent

(MO) Method of Operation - From the Latin, Modus Operandi; Refers to the method by which crimes are committed. Most often used on an individual basis to establish the pattern with which a perpetrator carries out a crime or series of crimes

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) - A short sequence found outside of the cell nucleus in cells. Called mitochondria, this material is used in the absence of quality genetic material like blood, semen, or saliva. It is passed only from mother to a child; siblings share maternal mitochondria. Hairs and fingerails are good sources of mitochondria

Monochromatic light - light having a single wavelength or frequency

Multiple personality disorder - now called dissociative identity disorder, this is a psychological condition in which people seem to have two or more distinct personas in the same body/mind

Mummification - in essence, it is either the complete desiccation of the body due to dry hot heat, or complete exposure to a very cold temperature; mummification is also the second principal modification of putrefaction

N

Narcotic - Analgesic or pain-killing substance that depresses vital body functions such as blood pressure, pulse rate, and breathing rate

(NCAVC) National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime - A subdivision of the FBI's Behavioral Science Unit, which also runs the Vicap and profiling programs

Neutron activation analysis - A technique used on trace evidence that bambards the substance with neutrons in a nuclear reactor

O

Odontogram - The file containing all the dental information for a person

Odontologist - The bite expert who can identify bite mark impressions and match dental records to corpses

Odontology - The study of the natomy, growth, and diseases of the teeth. In the absence of other factors, odontology can be used to identify human remains

Organized offender - Persson commiting a crime in a planned, premeditated manner, leaving few or no clues

Orthotolidine solution - A chemical solution that will determine whether a given stain contains blood

Ouchterlony test - A test that determines if a blood stain is human or animal

P

Palynology - The study of pollens

Pathology - The study of the essential nature of diseases and especially of the structural and functional changes produced by them

Pattern evidence - Evidence that can be read from a specific type of pattern, such as the impression of a shoe or the forceable contact between two surfaces; includes such things as shattered glass fractures and blood spatter patterns

Perimortem - The time interval right before death

Perspective analysis - In order to deterine the size of objects within a given photograph, analysts will identify one item in that photograph and measure the distance between that item and the camera used to make the photograph. The perspective allows them to measure everything in the photograph

Petechial hemorrhage - Small, pin-like hemorrhages that occur beneath the skin. Usually observed on the lining of the inner surface of the eyelids. This is a common result of death by asphyxiation/smothering or strangulation

Phenolphthalein - a substance used with hydrogen peroxide to test for the presence of blood at a crime scene, which ia revealed as a deep pink color

Photograph analyst - A specialist who breaks down photographic images to identify suspects, and to measure items and people within those images

Phrenology - A later discredited theory first proposed in 1796 that the shape of the head revealed different facets of the individual's personality through the presence of bumps and irregularities

Physical evidence - Any object that can establish that a crime has been committed, or can provide a link between a crime and its victim, or between a crime and its perpetrator

Plasma - The basic fluid constituent of blood, which carrie the different blood cells

Point-by-point analysis - When comparing a known object to one that needs to be identified, analysts will break down photos of each into small quadrants, and compare the respective similarities within those quadrants

Polygraph - A machine that charts how respiration and other bodily functions change as questions are asked of the person being tested. An attempt to knowingly provide false answers can cause changes in bodily functions. Lie detector tests are not admissable in court.

Polymer - A complex long-chain molecule containing many repeated units or monomers

Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) - A technique that replicates part of a DNA strand outside a living cell, eventually producing millions of copies from the smallest original sample

Portrait Parle - A system for regularizing verbal descriptions of a suspect's facial features introduced in the 1890's to aid positive identification

Postmortem - After death

Postmortem interval (PMI) - The time since death, as determined by several factors

(PCR) Polymerase chain reaction - The method used to replicate small amounts of DNA so it can be futher tested

Precipitin test - The test that determines whether blood is animal or human by treating it with human anti-serum

Preliminary hearing - a hearing held before a judge to decide whether there is sufficient evidence to go to trial

Primary Flaccidity - When death has taken place, immaterial of its cause, there is a general relaxation of the entire muscular syste; the eyelids and the lower jaw will relax, the upper and lower extremities are flexible and the joints are easily moveable; the state of primary flaccidity will generally last only from two to eight hours, depending upon the cause of death and the surrounding circumstances

Probe - A fragment of DNA that carries the complementary code for a base sequence to help establish identity

Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) - A substance contained in human seminal fluid that allows a tst to confirm the presence of human semen

Psychological autopsy - methods used to determine state of mind of a person when a suicide is questionable

Psychological profile - A tool used to aid investigators by providing speculative information about a perpetrator's psychological makeup. Information from crim scenes is integrated with psychological theory and then cross-referenced against similar crimes. The result is a hypothetical model of the suspect that can include age, occupation, appearance, and personal information ranging from sexual preferences to dietary habits

Pychological stress evaluator - A device that measures stress levels in a recorded voice

Pychopathic personality - A person whose behavior is largely amoral and asocial, and who is characterized by perverse or impulsive behavior, and a lck of remorse for the consequences of this behavior

Pychopathy - Personality disorder defined by long-term antisocial behavior by a person who feels no guilt or remorse and is not inclined to stop

Psychosis - A major mental disorder in which a person's ability to think, respond, communicate, recall, and interpret reality is impaired. Psychotics show inappropriate mood, poor impulse control, and delusions. Often confused with insanity, whichis a legal term, and psychopathy, which is a character disorder

Pump Action - A shotgun carrying several cartridges in an internal magazine, and which can be reloaded by simply pushing a slider backwards and forwards

Puncture wound - A wound that is neither an impact wound nor one caused by a projectile; a piercing of the body, usually by a hendheld object

Putrefaction - This is one of three possible final changes that take place in the dead body. Extreme heat will also arrest putrefaction. The micro-organisms for putrefaction are many, and in order for these micro-organisms to be effective, they must have an environment of moisture, warmth, and air. The early signs of putrefaction are as follows:

a) a green discoloration will appear over the right lower quadron of the abdomen, and will continue to spread
b) the face and scrotum/vulva will swell and become discolored
c) there will be marked distention of the abdomen, due to generation of gases
d) blood-stained fluids will exude from the mouth and nostrils
e) the finger and toe nails, as well as the hair, will shed easily
f) the cavaties of the thorax and abdomen will burst open
g) a general dissolution of all the tissue into a soggy mass takes place

Q

Questioned documents - Any object that contains writing, handwritten or typed, that needs analysis for origination, authorship, or authentication of source or authenticity are not known, but which is still relevant to the outcome of a legal proceeding

R

Radial - A loop formed as part of a fingerprint pattern which opens towars the thumb

Radial fractures - Fractures thatform a star shape when a sheet of glass is pierced by a bullet, and which originate on the side opposite the initial impact

Rape kit - A collection of instruments and evidence analysis items used to process the victim of a rape; if a suspect is found, some of the items are used on him

Red creeper - Grissom's special adhesion powder used for dusting for fingerprints

Refractive index - A ratio measurement found with a refractometer with liquid or glass to help determine its source

(RFLP) Restriction fragment length polymorphisms - The original method for getting a DNA profile, which splits the molecule and cuts it into pieces; length differences associated with strands of DNA. These differences vary from person to person, thus providing a means to further identify DNA

Reverse paternity DNA - A method by which a person's blood can be identified by comparing the DNA profiles of individuals believed to be that person's parents. Individual DNA makeup is a combination of parental DNA. Siblings will share these patterns while retaining unique DNA markers

Rhesus factor - An additional way of differentiating between the blood of different individuals, who may be Rhesus positive or Rhesus negative, according to the presence or absence of a particular antibody

Ridge characterisitcs - Ridge endings, bipurifications, enclosures, and other ridge details, which must match in two fingerprints for their common origin to be established

Rifled weapons - Guns with "lands" and grooves cut into the barrels for balance and range when firing a bullet; includes rifles and handguns

Rigor mortis - The stiffening of the body after death; following primary flaccidity, there is gradual stiffening. Itis a chemical action that takes place in the muscles and affects the muscle plasma. It generally appears between two and eight hours after death has taken place, and lasts approximately sixteen to twenty-four hours. The time element will vary if the body is:

a) in a cold environment for a longer period b) in a warm environment for a shorter period The gradual process begins in the musculature of the eyelids, then descends to the lowerjaw, thorax, upper extremities, abdomen, and lower extremities. Both voluntary and involuntary muscles are affeced, immaterial to the individuals age. The passing off of rigor mortis is then reversed, beginning at both feet and ascending until both eyelids are flexible

S

Saponification - This condition is one of the two principle modifications that may occur in the process of putrefaction. The body, or parts of the body, under certain conditions will be converted into adipocere, a yellowish-white substance which is greasy to the touch. Saponification frequently occurs in bodies that have been exposed to running water, the discharge from soil pipes or moist soil, and, on a number of occasions, it has been found in very obese bodies.

The onset time of saponification varies a great deal, and is dependant upon a number of factors, e.g., in temperate climates, adipocere will result in apprximately 6 - 9 months if the body is in moist soil; 3 - 5 months if the body is in running water, however, the process is greatly accelerated in hot, tropical climates. It has been reported that adopicere is formed more rapidly in infants than adults.

Scent pad - Used to store a scent for working with trailing dogs

Sciatic notch - Characteristic shape of part of the hipbone which can indiate whether a skeleton is male or female

Secondary flaccidity - The relaxing of all the voluntary and involuntary muscles of the body. It follows the passing off of rigor mortis and precedes putrifaction. The body does not necessarily become as relaxed during secondary flaccidity as it was during primary flaccidity

Secretor - An individual who secretes his/her blood-type antigen(s) in bodily fluids. Before DNA technology, blood type from bodily fluids other than blood could only be obtained from secretors, who make up about 80 percent of the population

Serial Crimes - Any type of crime occuring in a pattern that indicates a single offender

Serial killer - Someone who kills three or more people and takes a cooling-off period in between

Serology - The analysis of body fluids like blood, semen, and saliva; A technology dealing with the properties and actions of serums in blood; also known a "blood analysis". This was the preferred method of typing blood before the advent of DNA

Serum - The liquid that separates from the blood when a clot is formed

Short tandem repeats (STR) - A method for getting a DNA profile after replicating it by means of PCR (polymerase chain reaction)

Signature analysis - The method used to "read" crime scenes that indicate a serial offender who leaves a personal mark

Signature crime - A crime scene that bears a personality stamp of an offender, characteristics of a eed for ritual or theme. These acts ae not necessary to complete the offense

Single-action - A type of revolver which needs to be cocked before each shot by pulling back the hammer (see "Double action")

Slippage - The sloughing off of the flesh on a dead body

Sound spectrograph - The device used to make a voiceprint

Spalling - The cracking of concrete in a fire that indicates how hot it burned

Spectrograph - A technology that measures how a given object responds to frequencies within the light spectrum. objects can be identified and their properties visually clarified by use of this technology

Spectrometry - The detection of various wavelengths of light, which can be done with different pieces of spectrographic equipment. Some measure wavelengths emitted, some measure wavelengths absorbed

Spree killer - Someone who murders people in a frenzied succession with no cooling-off period in between

Staging a crime scene - Making a crime scene look like something other than what it is, to deflect the investigation

Statement analysis - An open-ended technique for getting a witness or suspect to describe their version of an event, in which the interrogator looks for signs of deception

Stimulents - Drugs which increase the activity of the central nervous system, creating feelings of confidence and energy

Stippling - Burn marks and tiny hemorrhages left by the gunpowder that follows a bullet; also called tattooing

Striations - The linear markings on something that can be compared with another piece for a match; Fine lines in the internal rifling of a firearm caused by the cutting tool. which impart an individual identity to the gun, and to any bullets fired from it

Sublimation - A physical change from a solid directly into a gaseous state

Subpoena - A command to appear at a certain time and place to give testimony to a certain matter

Super Glue fuming - A technique used to bring out latent fingerprints in a lab from surfaces that don't respond well to powders, such as non-porous surfaces; cyanoacrylate ester fumes react with and adhere to the finger oils when heated and makes the print(s) visible

T

Tape lift - An adhesive used to pick up trace evidence at a crime scene

Tattooing - A characteristic pattern in the skin caused by particles of unburned and partly burned powder from a shotgun blast at very close range

TESTED - A mnemonic used by air accident investigators searching for the main parts of a crashed aircraft (Tips of the wings and tail surfaces, Engines, control Services, Tail assembly, External devices like landing gear and Doors)

Testimonial evidence - What an eyewitness says about a crime

Thin-layer chromatography - Technique for separating a mixture into itsconsituent parts by the speed of which they move capillary action up a plate coated with a thin layer of silica gel

Tibia - The shin-bone, which can be used as a guide for calculating the height of a person

Toxicology - The study of poisons and drugs and their effect on human and animal populations

Trace evidence - The smallest pieces of evidence at a scene, including fiber, hair, grass fragments, seeds, dust, and soil; Material deposited at a crime scene that can only be detected through a deliberate processing procedure. An individual entering any environment will deposit traces if hi/her presence, and this material can be used as evidence.

Trajectory - The path of a (fired) projectile

Trophy - A personal item taken from a victim and kept by the offender as a memory aid to relive the crime, also called a souvenir

Toxicology - The section of the lab that tests tissues or products for contamination by drugs, poisons, and alcohol

U

Ulnar - A loop pattern on a fingerprint which has its open end towards the little finger (see "Radial")

(UV) Ultra violet (light) - Many types of evidence are viewed under ultra violet lighting in the lab; Semen, saliva, and urine will absorb UV rays and flouresce. Some fibers also stand out, and UV light can indicate when writing on a document has been erased. The coroner, too, can examine a cadaver for bruising, bite marks, fibers, and hair

V

Variable number of tandem repeats (VNTRs)

Verdict - The decision of a judge orjury after hearing and considering the evidence

ViCAP - Violent Criminal Apprehension Program, the FBI's nationwide data information center, designed for collecting, sorting, and analyzing information about crimes

Victimology - A study of victim information to find clues about the offender's opportunity and selection process

Visceral temperature - temperature of the internal organs, esp. those contained within the abdomen and thorax

Vitreous humor - the fluid that fills the eyeball and shows changes after death, which can be used s an accurate way of identifying time of death

Voiceprint - The pictorial graph made electronically of the amplitude and vibrations of the human voice

W

Walking the grid - See "Grid search"

Whorls - Fingerprint patterns where the ridges turn through at least one complete circuit

Wick effect - When a person's body fat feeds a smoldering flame and burns the person to ash without burning items in the immediate area

Y

Y incision - During an autopsy, it is a cut into the body from shoulder to shouder, meeting at the sternum and then going straight down the abdomen into the groin -- creating a Y-shaped incision. This exposes the internal organs and provides easy access

Z

Zoology - The biological science of animals; the animal life of a particular area; the characteristics of an animal group or category

http://www.forensicart.org/glossary.html

SMHAI Home | About Suicide | About Mental Health | Suicide Prevention | Suicide Survivors
Suicide Attempters | Self-Injury - Cutters | Crisis | Donate | SMHAI Library | Online Support & Resources
Speakers & Presentations | Memorials, Remebrances & Celebrations Of Life | Healing Music
Suggested Reading - Survivors | Suggested Reading - Attempters & Self-Injurers | Mental Health Pros.
Upcoming Events | Dr. Roerich's Welcome | Ann Gay's Welcome | Legal & About SMHAI
Privacy Policy | Copyright Notice | Awards Honoring SMHAI | SMHAI Awards Program | Contact

© SMHAI 2004 - 2006 All Rights Reserved.
No copying or redistribution without expressed written permission of SMHAI.
Logo Design by Allen R. Jacobson.
Site launched July 01, 2004.