FORS 6600 - Fundamentals of Forensic Biological Evidence

This course presents an overview of forensic biological evidence and how it relates to forensic investigations from the crime scene to the crime lab. The recognition, preservation, identification, individualization, evaluation, and reconstruction of biological evidence will be covered. Students will be introduced to the forensically relevant biological evidence types typically encountered in forensic investigations, such as hair, skin cells, teeth, bone, blood, semen, saliva, etc. The biological origins, processing, identification, and interpretation of these evidence types will be examined. The fundamentals of traditional Forensic DNA profiling (STR profiling) and an overview of criminal DNA databases will also be covered. 3 credits.