NCJ Number
125407
Date Published
1990
Length
203 pages
Annotation
Using cases from FBI and police files to illustrate recent breakthroughs in criminal investigation, this book discusses what these investigative techniques are, how they are used, and how they might be abused.
Abstract
The book describes how psychological profiling was used to identify George Metesky, the Mad Bomber of New York; how DNA "fingerprinting" techniques were used to trap a rapist in Narborough, England; how a bite mark convicted Ted Bundy; and how Wayne Williams, the serial killer in Atlanta, was convicted on the basis of carpet fiber analysis. The book also discusses how international data bases, electrophoresis, serology and toxicology, magnetic resonance imaging, and a host of other sophisticated scientific procedures are being used by law enforcement worldwide. Included is a history of forensics, from its ancient beginnings through the development of recent, more exacting technologies. The development of specific forensic techniques -- many developed in Europe in the late 19th and early 20th centuries -- is also traced. An examination of key moral and ethical implications of technologically advanced criminal investigation considers increased possibilities for State control of individuals and the collection of detailed personal information. Subject index. (Publisher summary modified)