forensic investigations
Scientific criminal inquiry
Forensic investigations are systematic examinations that gather and analyze evidence for use in legal proceedings.
The term covers crime scene analysis, laboratory testing of physical evidence, digital forensics, and financial audits conducted to support prosecution or defense in court: The forensic investigation revealed traces of accelerant at the fire scene.
While forensic work extends beyond criminal cases to civil disputes and regulatory matters, popular usage often narrows it to crime-solving.
- fingerprintsRidge patterns identifying individuals
- DNA profilingIdentification via genetic sequences
- blood spatterDispersed droplets of blood
- forensic odontologyCrime-solving through teeth analysis
- ballisticsProjectile motion science
smoking gun · forensic anthropology · chain of custody · body bag · search warrants · trace evidence · cold case · courtroom procedures · forensic accounting · autopsy · lie detection · forensic pathology · criminal profiling · blood · evidence collection · forensic lab · evidence locker · victim
forensic investigationsguesswork
Conclusions drawn without proof
intuition · speculation · conjecture · gut feeling · hunches
forensic investigationscrime prevention
Stopping offenses before occurrence
forecasting · predictive policing · prognostication · threat assessment · prophesying
forensic investigationscover-up
Hiding wrongdoing from public
obstruction of justice · evidence tampering · concealment · whitewashing · stonewalling