Murders and assaults typically include one, or a combination of, stabbings; shootings; physical assaults involving repeated kicking, stamping, and punching; and the use of other weapons such as bats and metal bars.
Other instances include murder whereby a house fire is deliberately started when the occupants are inside.
During the Police investigation into the incident there might be a crime scene examination and of course various Forensic examinations might take place involving items recovered from the scene(s), suspected weapons, and clothing of victim and suspect(s).
The Forensic techniques that are often used in the examination of the various items include:
- DNA profiling on body fluids
- Blood Pattern Analyses on clothing, footwear & weapons, and the crime scene
- Footwear impressions at the scene, possibly in blood, or the clothing / body of the victim who has been subject to a kicking attack.
- Fibre transfer
- Particulate material transfer
- Fingerprints at the scene or on a weapon
- Firearms discharge residue in cases involving shooting
- Fire Scene examination and associated laboratory examinations including accelerants at the seat of fire and on clothing / footwear, and evidence of transient flame / heat damage on clothing / footwear.
Our experts can deal with all of the above Forensic techniques, and if any of these are to be relied upon by the Prosecution support of allegations against a defendant(s), we can conduct a thorough, robust and critical evaluation of every aspect of the forensic evidence including undertaking our own examination of the items and scientific case records, checking the continuity of items / evidence, in-house laboratory procedures and techniques, and of course the reliability, validity and conclusions of the forensic evidence that is to used in Court by the Prosecution.
This almost invariably requires our experts to attend at the Forensic Laboratory utilised by the Police to conduct our own examination of exhibits and thoroughly evaluate the scientific case records / analytical results.
In some cases, a defendant may either deny any involvement in the crime, or alternatively provide an account of their involvement, and in the latter, the interpretation of the Forensic evidence might have to be re-evaluated in light of the information provided by the defendant.
Our report can deal with one specific issue or, if several aspects of the Forensic evidence are to be independently assessed, we can deal with the issues in a single report or alternatively two or more reports.
In addition, we can undertake an examination of items that have not been examined and evaluate the crime scene evidence by either attending the crime scene (if appropriate), or based on statements and photographs / DVD images.