The Forensic Teacher Magazine Issue 30

Page left intentionally blank This magazine is best viewed with the pages in pairs, side by side (View menu, page display, two- up), zooming in to see details. Odd numbered pages should be on the right. Arson/Fire Issue Special The

Forensic Teacher Magazine WWW NCSTL ORG WWW NCSTL ORG

●●Arson ●●Druggist Fold ●●Bird Forensics ●●Glass Lab

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FORENSIC DATABASE Better than a general search engine, the unique NCSTL database instantly pinpoints focused results about forensic science & criminal justice topics. Learn more about the database & about NCSTL. 3 Spring 2015 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 $5.95 US/$6.95 Can The Volume 10, Number 30, Spring 2017 The Forensic Teacher Magazine is published quarterly, and is owned by Wide Open Minds Educational Services, LLC. Our mailing address is P.O. Box 5263, Wilmington, DE 19808. Please see inside for more information. ForensicTeacher Magazine Articles 6 Interview 36 Sweating the Small Stuff By Mark Feil, Ed.D. By Tony Cafe John Lentini knows more about fire than the devil, but Setting up an arson crime scene for your students he works for answers, not convenient conclusions. We can seem daunting, but this article gives you inside talked to him about fire investigation and arson, and information about how dangerous certain appliances you’re going to sit up and pay attention when you read can really be. what experience has taught him. 40 Behind the Scenes With 22 Fire & Anthropology Lab the World’s Top Feather By Cheri Stephens This activity will let your students explore what happens Detective. to toolmarks left on bones when the bones are burned, By Chris Sweeney like when a killer starts a fire to hide evidence. A close-up look at one man’s fight to stop the trade in suffocated hummingbirds.

30 Enhancing Footware Impressions in Blood 48 Using Origami to Learn By Chris Bily Forensics What can a CSI do with bloody footprints? This lab will By Ted Yeshion and Anthony Bertino give your students practice in visualizing this hard to Druggist’s folds can solve a boat load of evidence master skill. storage problems if you’re doing them right. We show you how.

52 Glass Density Lab By Jeanette Hencken There’s often glass evidence at a crime scene, but Features knowing how to tell the difference in glass types even 2 Editorial when they look alike could be crucial. This lab will make 4 Mini-mystery experts out of your students. 5 New Products 20 Photo Crimes 35 Crossword Puzzle 56 Morgue Guy 56 What’s Going On? 57 Just For Fun 58 Stoopid Crooks

1 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 Editorial The ForensicTeacher Magazine Editor-in-Chief Mark R. Feil, Ed.D. Getting Hot Assistant Editor Tammy Feil, Ed.D. As you can probably tell from the cover of this issue we’ve decided to focus on arson this time. Fires cause hundreds of millions of dollars in damages and take the Book Editor Enrico Pelazzo lives of over a million people every year. And many of those fires are deliberately set. Firemen are concerned with putting out the fire (as they should be), but not Science Editor about preserving evidence. Fortunately, dedicated fire investigators know how to T. Ann Kosloski find clues among the ashes and get to the bottom of the issue. The field used to be full of misconceptions, and innocent people went to prison because of faulty Copy Editor Tammy Feil reasoning, but our interview with John Lentini clears up what and why changes have come to forensic fire investigation. But there’s more. Contributing Editor We’re also happy to offer labs on glass density and bloody footprints, as well as Jeanette Hencken a primer on making a druggist fold. We’re committed to publishing four issues this year, but we need your help Layout/Graphic Design Mark Feil if you want to take advantage of such a rich schedule. Readers sign up for a subscription, which means when a new issue is ready we’ll send you an electronic Circulation postcard to let you know. Unfortunately, some of you never receive the postcard Don Penglioni because you change schools, districts, or retire. The email you give us is the one we send notice to. If September comes and you have a different email than you did Editorial Assistant Sandy Weiss six months earlier our distribution service sees the bounced email and you won’t receive any further notices. But you can change that. Please, please, please think of us when you start a new school year. If Editorial Advisory Board you’ve moved we can’t reach you. The best thing you can do is sign up for a new subscription so we have your current email address. Lt. John R. Evans Section Chief of the Delaware State Keep an eye on our site too. We want to hear from you about how we’re doing, Police Homicide Unit what you’d like to see, and we always have a drawing or two running. We’re also Head, DSP Crime Lab and Forensic planning upgrades to our site and, as always, we promise no annoying popup ads or Services Unit irrelevant commercial videos, ever. Jeanette Hencken The end is in sight. Then it’s the most magical time of the year: summer. Forensic Science Teacher Webster Grove High School, Webster Groves, MO Richard Saferstein, Ph.D. Chief Forensic Scientist of the New Dr. Mark Feil Jersey State Police Laboratory (Ret.) Consultant and textbook author Cheri Stephens Forensic Science Teacher Washington High School, Washington, MO Volume 10, Number 30, Spring 2017 Adjuct faculty at St. Louis U. The Forensic Teacher Magazine (ISSN 2332-3973) is published quarterly and is owned by Wide Open Minds Educational Services, LLC. Our mailing address is P.O. Box 5263, Hugh E. Berryman, PhD, D-ABFA Wilmington, DE 19808. Letters to the editors are welcome and should be sent to admin@ Forensic Anthropologist wideopenminds.com. Submissions are welcome and guidelines are available, as is a Director, Forensic Institute for Research rate sheet for advertisers at our website www.the`forensicteacher.com. If you sign up for a subscription you will receive an email when it is ready for download provided your spam and Education filter doesn’t screen it out; sign up at our website. Back issues are available singularly on our Middle Tennessee State University website, or all on CD priced as per the website. The Forensic Teacher is copyrighted 2012 Wide Open Minds Educational Services, LLC, all rights reserved. All opinions expressed by contributors represent their own views, and not necessarily the views of the staff or editorial Ted Yeshion, Ph.D. board. Professor - Criminal Justice & POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Forensic Teacher, P.O. Criminalistics, Gannon University Box 5263, Wilmington, DE 19808. 2 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com Congrats!

Forensic News (continued on p. 23) 3 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 Mini-Mystery A Slaying in the North End

WELL Matt, what big-city crimes are testing the skills and glanced over Walker’s notes and then handed them back. An trying the patience of Royston’s finest this week?” Thomas P. amused twinkle lit his eye as he watched Walker give a gaping Stanwick, the amateur logician, grinned at Inspector Walker yawn. “What you need,” he said, “is a little more sleep. If you as he dropped into the visitor’s chair of the inspector’s weren’t so tired, I’m sure you’d see that there’s easily enough chronically cluttered office. Stretching his long legs toward information here to deduce the identities of both the leader the desk, he fumbled for his pipe. Walker looked up wearily. and the killer.” “Good to see you, Tom. I thought you were all tied up with that geometry textbook revision.” Who is the leader? Who is the killer? “That should be finished by Friday,” replied Stanwick, lighting his briar. “By next Wednesday, I’ll be off to London The answer is on page 50. and Cambridge for two weeks of loitering, puttering in musty bookshops, and reminiscing about student days. What’s up, though? You look frazzled.” “I sure am.” Walker pawed through a pile of papers on his desk and pulled out four. “These are my notes on the Minot Street shooting. I’ve been up all night compiling them. There are still several gangs fighting up there in the North End. Les Chaven, the leader of the Blackhawks, was shot and killed last Friday afternoon by a member of the Leopards, apparently in a turf fight over Minot Street.” “So both gangs love Minot, eh?” said Stanwick. Walker winced. “The members of the Leopard gang,” the inspector continued, “are Al Foster, Bruce Diskin, Charlie Jensen, Damon O’Keefe, and Eddie Lyons. Their gang is pretty new, so we don’t know yet which one is the leader. Nor do we know which one is the killer. So far, all I’ve been able to dig up are these facts: “1. The killer and the leader had a fierce argument about whether to kill Chaven before deciding to go ahead with it. 2. Jensen works the evening shift as a machinist in the local plant on weeknights and is thinking of working at his brother’s handbag factory in San Francisco. 3. The leader’s wife is a teller at the Second National Bank. Foster, an only child, works part-time as a janitor there. 4. The leader and Diskin play poker every Tuesday night at eight over Hiller’s Saloon. Foster picks them up there after midnight and drives them home. 5. Jensen is married to the killer’s sister, who was once engaged to O’Keefe. 6. O’Keefe, a bachelor, is the best lockpick of the five.” Stan Smith was the author of three books of Stanwick mini- Stanwick, fingering the tip of his mustache, quietly mysteries that have been published in nine languages and sold over 120,000 copies. 4 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com New Products Crime Scene Training Mannequins are excellent tools for setting the stage, adding authenticity and the ability to teach and demonstrate mechanisms of injury and wound identification, without the odors and pathogens associated with reality. Fully customizable, made to your specifications including, but not limited to gender, age, hair, and wounds/ injuries. www.lynnpeavey.com 800-255-6499

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5 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 He Didn’t Start the Fire By Mark R. Feil, Ed.D. 6 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com John Lentini knows fire. He’s spent his life working with what’s left after a blaze has gutted a home, business, or a car. He’s made a career out of seeing beyond the scorch marks and the innuendos of burn patterns others shrug off as accepted dogma. He has taken and given hundreds of hours of training in fire investigation in the last 40 years. He has nearly as many pages printed in journals, technical reports, books, and standards as J.K. Rowling has with the Harry Potter books. He’s done hundreds of presentations, investigated thousands of fires, analyzed tens of thousands of fire debris samples, and testified in court too many times to count. When John finishes with a fire scene it’s so clean you can eat off it. We caught up with the man even Chuck Norris calls when things burn down, and talked to him about the fires, ashes, and wrongful convictions he’s seen.

The Forensic Teacher Magazine: How did you first become interested in the field of arson investigation?

John Lentini: Well, unlike most of the people in the field, I was never a fireman. I started my career as a forensic scientist with the Georgia State Crime Laboratory, and my first six months was training. They put me in the microscopy laboratory and taught me how to do paint and fibers and hairs. When it came to microscopic hair comparison, I was just really uncomfortable with the amount of what I perceived to be subjectivity in the discipline. And it turns out, I was right. But back then it was, you know, a skill I didn’t have.

FT: What year with this?

JL: 1974. I just made it known that I wasn’t comfortable doing microscopic hair comparisons. And they said, “Well maybe you’d like arson.” I said, “Show me,” and they showed me and it was really straightforward stuff. Back in those days, what we would do with fire debris was we would boil it and then condense the vapors. And if there was any oily liquid in there, like petroleum products, then that product would float on top because oil and water don’t mix. So, that was pretty straightforward in terms of the separation procedures. And then we would inject that oily liquid into a gas chromatograph He Didn’t Start with a flame ionization detector, and we learned pattern recognition. So, they set me in a room and gave me a whole bunch of samples of petroleum products and asked me to run them. Then, later on, they gave me some that I didn’t know what they were and they said, “Now run these and tell us what they are.” So, it was pretty simple pattern recognition. I mean, the Fire they were complex patterns because some of the liquids have hundreds of compounds in them, of which we see 30 or 40 in 7 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 on the floor, which is where the bad guy is going to pour the gasoline, so you have to shovel. You absolutely have to shovel a fire scene. My dad told me that if I went to college, I wouldn’t need a shovel to make a living, but it didn’t work out that way.

FT: (laughs)

JL: Anyway, by the time I did it for three years there was a need for a private sector laboratory in the Atlanta area to do fire debris analysis, and I also had an idea of what to look for at a fire scene, so I went into the private sector and sold my services to insurance companies because insurance companies still run the fire investigation business.

FT: No kidding.

JL: Yeah, they support it.

FT: I guess that makes sense.

JL: There’s a lot of forensic science that has no private sector equivalent other than working as a defense consultant a typical chromatogram, and they come off in a very distinct in criminal cases. There’s nobody looking at bullets, for pattern and we can match the patterns. example. But the insurance industry has an interest, a serious Back then, when we were boiling the stuff, it was not a financial interest, in catching people setting their own houses very sensitive technique. I mean, if you couldn’t smell the on fire for the insurance money. There weren’t then, but there ignitable liquid in the sample, then chances were you were are now a lot of private sector fire investigators. So, I became going to end up with a negative. one of the few fire investigators who could do both laboratory analysis of fire debris as well as fire scene inspection. What FT: Really? I learned was that most people were working too many fires and not working them thoroughly enough. They did what we JL: Yeah, it just wasn’t sensitive. A drop–if you had had a call a windshield job, where they drive by, take a few pictures, drop in a gallon–that was about the level of sensitivity. and then go on to the next one. And I developed a reputation for being thorough. When I got done with the scene, you FT: Well, it was the 70s. could eat off it.

JL: Right. If there were 50 microliters in a gallon, no FT: No kidding. problem, we would find it, but that resulted in a lot of false negatives. Fire marshals would bring me samples and I would JL: And people would know that. Sometimes there would run them and they would come up negative and they would be a second insurance company or product manufacturer say, ”Dammit, John, I know there was something in there.” I involved, and they would come to a fire scene, and they would was in my 20s; I was a smart ass, and I would say, “Well, if send someone else out. They would know I had been there you knew there was something there, what did you need me because the scene had been cleaned off. for?” So, they started to invite me to come out to fire scenes, I did between 100 and 150 fire scenes a year for insurance particularly large scenes, or scenes that involved a fatality. I companies and almost all of them were suspicious fires; figured out pretty quickly what was going on–there was an they thought their insureds were trying to rip them off, and arson wave going on in Georgia and these guys were just it turned out to be the case in less than half the fires I looked overloaded. They were getting more than one fire scene a day at. About 40% of the time I knew it was arson and I could to look at and a lot of times it would involve driving three prove it. I would do things like, if I found the gun collection or more hours to the scene, then looking at it, then getting had disappeared, or the coin collection was in the trunk of the getting in the car and driving to another scene. guy’s car, or half their clothes were out in the chicken shed. Why did the TV set they said was brand new had vacuum FT: Wow. tubes in it, things like that.(sentence fragment) People are stupid, you know? Go to the prison and give them an IQ test JL: Well, if you think about it, if the fire gets going pretty and the average is not a hundred. good, there’s going to be a lot of building materials that fall 8 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com So, I caught a lot of bad guys. I also figured out a lot of college because they didn’t like school. So, there’s a lot accidental fires, but about 20% of the time I said, I can’t tell. of people who got into fire investigation who don’t have And there’s some insurance companies that just didn’t like any kind of scientific background. In the 1980s, we started that at all. They’re going to pay me $1000 or $2000 to go figuring out some techniques for analyzing fire debris that to a fire scene to get out and look at it because they didn’t were way more sensitive than what we had before. And we know if it was arson or not. And coming out, some inspectors are talking three or four orders of magnitude more sensitive. felt bad if they couldn’t tell. So, in other words, there were Before I said we could detect a drop, now we can detect 1/500 people who just made stuff up just so they didn’t have to say of a drop. undetermined, because if you say undetermined, you have failed. FT: How many microliters is that?

FT: Oh, I see. JL: Zero point one.

JL: You have not succeeded in doing the job you were hired FT: Wow! to do. So, people don’t like saying undetermined. I didn’t like saying undetermined; sometimes you just don’t know. Here’s JL: And that’s without working up a sweat. If you want to the thing: firemen, and most of the investigators out there are kick it up a notch, there are some tricks we use: you can inject retired firemen, or part-time firemen—a lot of firemen work more than you usually inject, or you can magnify the signal, one day on and two days off. Well, on your two days, off you or you can clean up the signal with what’s called selected ion can work for a fire investigation company. But firemen never monitoring, or you go to a GC mass spec. That’s the other fail. Sometimes people die in fires, but when fire trucks leave thing that happened–we went from GC-FID to mass spec. that scene, the fire is out. They’ve got a mindset–there’s a job, there’s a task, and when you’re done, and when the task is FT: I hear you. done, you’ve succeeded. It’s hard, given that experience base, to be willing to say, “I don’t know.” JL: That’s the standard today. GC-FID is no longer accepted by the majority of fire debris analysts. It has to be done with FT: Okay, now I understand. GC mass spec. So, we are way more sensitive than we used to be. And the other thing that happened in the late 1970s, was a JL: And most firemen or police officers, they’ve got no survey of arson and arson investigators done by the Aerospace college; they’ve got no science. In fact, they didn’t go to Corporation ,working for the Justice Department. It asked people how they determined if a scene was arson, and they made a list of things that were suspicious, but there was no scientific explanation for any of it.

FT: So, what sort of things would they say?

JL: Well, if you see big shiny blisters, char blisters, that look like alligator skin, they call it ‘shiny alligatoring’, that means a very rapid fire, whatever that means. And if you see a dull, flat, baked-on appearance, that means a slow fire.

FT: So, a big, fast fire would indicate an accelerant?

JL: Yes, that’s what it did at the time. It either burned hotter than normal or faster than normal and that was supposed to indicate accelerants. But there’s really no way to measure that unless you want to quantify what you mean by a fast fire. And nobody did that.

FT: So, everyone went with their gut, their first impressions.

JL: Yup. So, after this survey comes out in 1977, the writers of the survey realized this, and said that fire investigators need to do some really good science and develop a handbook. And three years later the handbook came out, but nobody had done any good science in the meantime.

9 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017

A still photo of a mail sorting machine that can sort thousands of pieces per minute. FT: Oh, no. FT: What?

JL: Oh, no. The book is put out by no less of an authority JL: Nobody liked that. than the National Bureau of Standards. And they listed six things, like the shiny alligators, the spalling of concrete, FT: (Laughs) Because now they had to educate themselves. crazing of glass, melting of metals to indicate high temperatures, and low burning, which is where they said that JL: Right. And they don’t want to be educated. And they in a normal fire, whatever that means, it should be three times didn’t want to do science and there was a fight for most of hotter at the ceiling than on the floor. And this was based on the 90s about whether NFPA 921 should be followed, and one test on a fire that didn’t burn very long. whether we should really be doing science, but the Supreme Court decided that for us in 1999. They said we don’t care if FT: And what’s the standard height of a ceiling? it’s a science, or technical, or experiential, expert testimony is expert testimony and it has to be reliable. They had come JL: Right. So, anyways, they print this book and it’s NBS. out with a Daubert decision in 1993, [Ed. Note: for more on People don’t question NBS. It’s like the Pope talking to Daubert please look at sidebar on the next page], but a lot Catholics. So, every textbook for the next 10 years cited of people just didn’t get that. There was a fire investigator the NBS, and they repeated all of these myths and trained excluded from testifying under Daubert in 1997, and some thousands of investigators on these myths. And the myths, people said, “You shouldn’t be holding us to a Daubert by the way, had been relayed to NBS by the National Fire standard because we’re less scientific.” And I think it was Academy, which trains fire investigators. There’s all these 1996, when they came out with the Joiner decision, that said circular citations, and the profession just got eaten up by these if a judge admits evidence or excludes evidence, the standard errors. And there were lots and lots of people falsely accused of review is abuse of discretion, which means the judge pretty of arson for having accidental fires. Then, in the mid-80s, much has the final word. the National Fire Protection Association became concerned with the level of quality in the business and they convened FT: Okay. a technical committee to write a real handbook. It took them seven years to come out with it, and that was in 1992, when JL: Abuse of discretion is very, very difficult to prove. And they came out with NFPA 921, Guide for Fire and Explosion then in 1999, came the Kumho Decision, and that was the Investigations, and it blew up most of the myths except for third leg of the Daubert trilogy, and it said look, we don’t one thing. want the trial judge trying to decide what is science and what is not. If it’s all expert testimony, it all has to be reliable. And at that point, the fire investigation profession realized they were going to be held to a scientific standard and started trying to educate themselves. But there’s still a lot of people who couldn’t tell you what a watt is.

FT: Really.

JL: Really. Maybe half the people who investigate fires don’t have even a fundamental understanding of the concept of energy and power.

FT: And these people are still practicing today?

JL: Yep.

FT: And this is why they featured you on an episode of Forensic Files–because up until the point where you appeared on the screen, fire investigators we’re claiming it was an open and shut case against a woman who claimed it was an accident, and she didn’t know how the situation got the way it did. If it wasn’t arson, why was the gas can outside? Why was the door locked? Why was her husband’s body spread out if he wasn’t murdered?

JL: That’s right. He put gasoline in a hot kerosene heater.

10 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com Daubert

In Daubert, seven members of the Court agreed on the following guidelines for admitting scientific expert testimony: ●● Judge is gatekeeper: Under Rule 702, the task of “gatekeeping”, or assuring that scientific expert testimony truly proceeds from “scientific knowledge”, rests on the trial judge. ●● Relevance and reliability: This requires the trial judge to ensure that the expert’s testimony is “relevant to the task at hand” and that it rests “on a reliable foundation”. Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharms., Inc., 509 U.S. 579, 584-587. Concerns about expert testimony cannot be simply referred to the jury as a question of weight. Furthermore, the admissibility of expert testimony is governed by Rule 104(a), not Rule 104(b); thus, the Judge must find it more likely than not that the expert’s methods FT: But your explanation, over the next five minutes, made are reliable and reliably applied to the facts at hand. perfect sense against the crazy pot of theories the original fire ●● Scientific knowledge = scientific method/ investigators used to indict the woman. Their investigation methodology: A conclusion will qualify as scientific was based on thinking fires probably do this, and fires usually knowledge if the proponent can demonstrate that do that, and then you came along and said this happens, it is the product of sound “scientific methodology” derived from the scientific method.[3] then that happens, and you have to use science to look at the ●● Illustrative Factors: The Court defined “scientific sequence of events, and what really happened is a totally methodology” as the process of formulating different story. And it horrifies me that fire investigators like hypotheses and then conducting experiments to those people are still out there working fires. Wow. prove or falsify the hypothesis, and provided a set of illustrative factors (i.e., not a “test”) in determining whether these criteria are met: JL: Oh, yeah. When I speak to civilian audiences that’s ●● Whether the theory or technique employed by usually their reaction. the expert is generally accepted in the scientific community; FT: How often do you testify? ●● Whether it has been subjected to peer review and publication; ●● Whether it can be and has been tested; JL: I’ve testified about 200 times. ●● Whether the known or potential rate of error is acceptable; and FT: What do you think about the CSI effect? ●● Whether the research was conducted independent of the particular litigation or dependent on an intention JL: I don’t know if it really exists. Jurors have come to expect to provide the proposed testimony.[4] ●● In 2000, Rule 702 was amended in an attempt to it; prosecutors think the jurors are expecting it so they try and codify and structure elements embodied in the put stuff in. You know that forensic science is nothing like it “Daubert trilogy.” The rule then read as follows: is on CSI. ●● Rule 702. Testimony by Experts(As amended Apr. FT: Absolutely. I ask it of everyone I interview because some 17, 2000, eff. Dec. 1, 2000.) In 2011, Rule 702 was again amended to make the language clearer. The people think it’s a pain in the ass, some people like it, and rule now reads: some people don’t think it’s a factor. ●● RULE 702. TESTIMONY BY EXPERT JL: I don’t think it’s a big factor. WITNESSES ●● A witness who is qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education FT: What do you think are the biggest misconceptions the may testify in the form of an opinion or otherwise if: public has about arson? ●● (a) The expert’s scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge will help the trier of fact to JL: That a trained fire investigator can easily determine how understand the evidence or to determine a fact in and where a fire started. Most of the time it’s really difficult. issue; ●● (b) The testimony is based on sufficient facts or data; If you can figure it out without any training at all, then that’s ●● (c) The testimony is the product of reliable principles not a difficult fire, and you really don’t need a trained fire and methods; and investigator. But if a room is fully involved in a fire for more ●● (d) The expert has reliably applied the principles and than three minutes, it’s almost impossible, by reading fire methods to the facts of the case. patterns, to figure out where the fire started. Think of Marisa Tomai in My Cousin Vinnie 11 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 find an accidental cause at the origin, then the fire must’ve FT: No kidding. been set.

JL: It’s very difficult because what happens is that as a fire FT: So, if a fire investigator can’t do their job then someone develops inside, it behaves differently than it does outside. must be guilty. And everybody thinks they know fires because they’ve seen campfires and brushfires and trash fires. And then a fire JL: Yes. investigator says heat rises so what we look for is the lowest and deepest charring, and that will tell us where the fire FT: And if they’re not willing to say undetermined then started. Well, that’s bullshit. But it’s easy to sell a jury with someone must be guilty. that. You give them a simplistic version of how a fire behaves and they’ll agree with it. JL: Yup. But what happens when room becomes fully involved is it goes through a thing called flashover, and this is a FT: Unbelievable. What do you like best about the job? transition from a fire in a room to a room on fire. And when this transition takes place, it uses up all the oxygen in the JL: Well, it used to be catching bad guys, but now it’s helping room. So, you’ve got all this hot fuel in the room that can’t innocent people falsely accused from going to prison, collect burn because there’s no oxygen; so the only place you’ll have their insurance money, or get out of prison. I’ve actually fire is where there’s oxygen and that will be associated with gotten about a dozen peoples’ convictions overturned. windows and doors. You might get a lot of extra burning around a doorway, or on the wall across from the doorway, FT: Good. What do you hate most about the field? and that will look like the lowest and deepest char, which is where the fire must have burnt the longest. JL: The ignorance.

FT: I see. FT: I can imagine. I had no idea.

JL: And it’s very difficult to separate intensity and duration. JL: Yes, there’s so much ignorance and so many people that, So, fire investigators believe and people believe they can do not only don’t they know the science behind fire, but they it, that they can go find the origin of the fire and if they don’t resent being told they should learn it. 12 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com ”You should take her to this camp in Hebron, Pennsylvania, FT: Because I’ve worked as a fireman for my whole life and I where she can get counseling with some people, from other know fires, something like that? ministers.” So he did. He drives her from New York to Hebron, which is in the Poconos, and she’s still in a terrible JL: Right. And the skill set for extinguishing fires is way. She runs out into the lake at this camp and says, “This completely different from the skill set for investigating fires. camp will be my tomb.” Don’t get me wrong, firemen are heroes, if a building catches on fire they run in. I run out. I don’t want to be in any burning FT: Oh, my. building. They run into burning buildings; they’re heroes, but that doesn’t make them good investigators. JL: And they came, and they had to wrestle with her to get her out of the water. FT: What was your most memorable case? They performed an exorcism on her and they really had a hard time with this girl. Anyway, they go to bed in this cabin, JL: The Beverly Long Case was pretty memorable; I’ve just the father and daughter. Then he wakes up at two in really got a lot of them. There’s one we worked on for 21 the morning and the cabin is on fire and he can’t get to his years before we got the guy out of jail and that was a year daughter, but he gets out of the cabin with no injuries. The fire ago, December. That made the cover of the ABA Journal burns for twenty minutes, and then they start investigating. [American Bar Association]; that was a very memorable case. And they find out that the daughter only had 9% carbon monoxide in your blood. FT: Walk me through it. FT: How much is lethal? JL: Well, this Korean gentleman from Brooklyn had a daughter who was mentally disturbed and she’d had several JL: 50 percent. episodes. She was supposed to be taking lithium, but didn’t. And, I think, the day before the fire she was at his shop. FT: This doesn’t look good. The apartment is above the shop in Brooklyn, and she starts throwing stuff from the apartment out the window onto the JL: You can die from the thermal shock. Most people sidewalk. She’s having a real episode. And his pastor says, die from smoke, but you can die from the burns. So, the

13 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 JL: The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (laughs). Anyway, we finally got a federal appeals court judge to look at it, and he said there’s something wrong here. He sent it down to another federal judge, who got a federal magistrate to look at it, who wrote a wonderful decision about it, about how long it had taken, and it might have been necessary for it to have been that long because our understanding of fire has changed so dramatically over 20 years. But their finding was bullshit in 1989, (laughs) no less than it was bullshit in 2012. So, we got him out and my son sent me the Dead Windmill Award.

FT: Like Don Quixote?

JL: Like I had been tilting at that windmill for 21 years. My son was 10 when I start working on that case. He has always known about this case, and he was 32 when he sent me the investigator immediately decides this is a crime scene, not Dead Windmill Award. a fire scene, but people who are intimate with the ignition sometimes have low carbon monoxide levels in their blood. FT: But unlike Don Quixote you nailed the windmill! But this guy is seeing all kinds of low burning because the floor is burned. And he is seeing multiple origins, and he JL: I did! looks at the bed springs and the bed springs are not annealed. And he thinks that annealed bed springs are a sign of a slow- FT: That’s amazing! That’s wonderful! But Heaven forbid a moving fire, like from a cigarette, and this girl did smoke. DA actually admitted he or she made a mistake, that he or she And he decides it’s arson, and it might have been–the girl erred. might have set it, but he decides that the guy set it. Then they bring in the engineer who does all these calculations—if you JL: They never admitted it. In fact, they threatened to appeal, go to my website there’s a story about it called “A Calculated but they said they couldn’t try him again and they had to let Arson.” And one of the things they calculated was that Mr. him go. Lee used more than 60 gallons of fuel to set the fire. FT: That’s mind blowing. 21 years. FT: 60 gallons? Why not? I know a lot of people who carry around 60 gallons of accelerant with them all the time. JL: Oh, I’ve got a list of about 65 cases involving 75 people that were wrongly accused, that I was able to save. JL: Right! And it was mixed–it was a mixture of gasoline and kerosene. It was not. And the chemist said that he found three FT: We should all be glad that you, and people like you, are different samples that had the same range of hydrocarbons able to think beyond the old-boy mentality to apply science on them. And then the prosecutor said, “See, they’re all and common sense and do the right thing. It still amazes me identical,” in his closing argument. Well, I asked for the that the caveman mentality is still out there. charts; I wanted to see those charts, but the prosecutor said he lost them. He took possession of them, which is really JL: Yup. unusual, and lost them, which is also really unusual. So, I go to get the charts, which is 20 years later, in 2012, FT: Besides GCMS, what other advances have been made in before I got the samples. We fought and fought and fought the field of fire investigation? and they didn’t want me to have them, but they didn’t trust me; they thought I would do this; they thought I would do JL: Dogs. In 1982 the ATF started training Labrador that. Finally, I said I would come into their lab and watch retrievers to smell accelerants. They’d already trained them to them test them. smell drugs and explosives. And this made it way, way more likely that fire investigators could find accelerants if they FT: Cool. were present. And then, of course, the bad apples in the law enforcement community decided to misuse this wonderful JL: Oh no, they said, we can’t have a non-sworn officer in our new tool. laboratory–that would be terrible. That’s against our policy. At one point Mr. Lee filed a motion for relief and the state didn’t FT: How did they do that? respond for six years. JL: They would take samples and if the laboratory came FT: Whoa. This is the state of Pennsylvania? back negative they would say, “I don’t care—my dog 14 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com said something was there.” And they would proceed with the different kinds of accelerant signatures where you can unconfirmed alerts. One famous case was Nancy Grace’s tell that it’s not only gasoline, and not kerosene, but the very last conviction in Georgia, in 1994. She introduced a K-9 brand of gasoline and where it was sold? handler who said his dog alerted 12 times at a scene. Well, they took the 12 samples and the crime lab said there was JL: I wish. Once it is exposed to a fire, a lot of the unique nothing in any of them. Then Nancy went down to the characteristics, such that they exist at all, go away. laboratory, took possession of the samples, and took them to private laboratory, who also said there’s nothing in any of FT: I didn’t think of that. the samples. But the judge allowed the dog handler to testify that he believed that there was something in those samples JL: And the other thing is that the identity, the chemical because his dog had told him so. fingerprint, of gasoline in a service station is only the same until you have another truckload of gas come in. A new FT: Even though the labs, with their much more sophisticated truckload comes in and adds to that tank, and that’s going to equipment, said there was nothing in the samples. slightly change it. If you have a guy who is delivering gas to a Shell station on one side of the street and he’s got an extra 300 JL: Yes, much more sophisticated, but they took the position gallons of gas he doesn’t want to take back to the terminal, that the dogs were more sensitive, and that may be true, but he might sell it to the Exxon station on the other side of the it’s not relevant because the dog can’t tell you what he’s street. smelling. So, until we could learn to speak dog, we need the laboratory to tell us exactly what’s there. In the lab FT: I thought gasoline was unique to that brand, you know, we now have the ability to detect the mineral spirits in the Exxon gas is a little bit different from Shell gas which is a polyurethane of the varnish on an existing hardwood floor. little bit different from Texaco gas, and each would have their own slightly different chemical signature. FT: That’s amazing. JL: No, and even if they were, you can’t tell the difference JL: It really is. It lasts indefinitely. between them when it starts burning. Now, I worked on a couple cases where the tanks were leaking, and this is fresh FT: Does somebody, maybe the FBI, have a database of all

15 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 gasoline; we could look at the dyes in the gasoline and say, And he’s still looking for his compensation from the state of now this is a dye Exxon uses to mark its premium gas, so California. They’re still saying he’s guilty. sometimes you can do that, but generally not. The only thing you can do in terms of source attribution is to look at your FT: Heaven forbid we admit we made a mistake, that we potential source, and look at your fire-exposed source, and screwed up. sometimes you can tell by the amount of evaporation. I had one case in California, where mineral spirits were found at a JL: No, we don’t make mistakes. We do everything perfectly scene and mineral spirits were found on the suspect’s shoes. in the criminal justice system. And the prosecutor said, “The shoes tell the tale.” Well, it turns out that, you know when you walk into FT: Now, regarding arson investigators, are most of them a shoe store? You know that smell? That’s hydrocarbons. independent or do they work for agencies like the Georgia And shoes are made with all kinds of hydrocarbon products Bureau of Investigation, or the FBI, or state police labs? including mineral spirits. So, the mineral spirits on the guy’s shoes were more evaporated; it had a higher average JL: Most states have a state fire marshal typically supported molecular weight then the mineral spirits from the fire scene. by insurance companies. There’s usually a special tax on And I was able to say, and no one was able to contradict insurance to pay for the state fire marshal’s office. And most me, that they had to have a different source and the stuff on big city fire departments will have an arson squad or fire his shoes probably just came from the factory. I don’t know investigation unit. New York City probably has 50 guys; that’s where the stuff at the fire scene came from, but it was lighter probably the biggest one, but you go to a lot of cities and in weight than the stuff on his shoes. they’ll be about a dozen guys in an investigative unit. And a lot of fire departments have somebody attached to them who FT: Wait a minute – hold on! You’re not supposed to use does fire investigations. That’s your public sector. science; you’re supposed to go with your gut feeling. Isn’t Your private sector is probably half guys like me who that what everyone else in the industry is doing? are sole practitioners, and half guys who work for the big box companies that sprang up in the 1980s, and they will JL: Well, this guy was convicted and he served 17 years. employ retired firemen, or retired fire marshals, or retired fire investigators, and that’s where you find the hacks.

16 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com years you have to demonstrate that you’ve taken continuing ed. courses. There’s another outfit that operates similarly FT: What are the names of these companies? called the National Association of Fire Investigators, but they teach courses, and if you go to one of their courses JL: An example is EFI, which used to be called Engineering for a week, they’ll let you take a test, and you can become Fire Investigations, but I now think it’s called Executive Fire certified through them. For them I think you need two years Investigations; another is Unified. There’s SEA Limited, and experience. they’ve got several dozen. These companies set up offices around the country. They hire managers and a lot of times FT: Okay, but you’re still painting a scary picture for me. these guys will hire locals as contractors and they’ll pay their people $50 or $75 an hour, and then bill the insurance JL: Well, it’s all scary because you get your experience on the company $150 dollars per hour. job and it’s a mentor–apprentice sort of system, and they pass on their belief systems to their students. FT: And I’m guessing some of them are trained, and some of them are old-school, right? FT: Exactly! And if you get partnered with a good old boy who was in the fire department for 40 years and he thinks he JL: There you go. Most of these big companies insist that can spot the low burn and accelerants, then you get a tainted their people be certified, but I haven’t noticed that certification education. makes a big difference. JL: Yup. FT: Who certifies them? FT: Is there anything in your background or your childhood JL: There’re two places you can get certified. The first is that predisposed to you to figuring out mysteries or solving the International Association of Arson Investigators, where puzzles that helped with fire investigation? you fill out an application telling them about your education, training, and experience, and if you have enough points, JL: My dad was a cop and his daddy was a cop. My mom they let you take a test. And if you get 70% on the test, and made flags. And they both valued education. My dad started the test is pretty lame, you get certified. And then every five his career as a desk sergeant and he was hurt on the job 17 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 JL: I was the principal author of the Innocence Project work on that case. The Innocence Project didn’t get involved on his case until after he was dead.

FT: Wow. Let’s shift gears; how do you learn best? You pick things up better when you hold them in your hands, or when you see them?

JL: Pictures and videos are good in terms of getting the ideas across. I don’t know what I would do without PowerPoint. I’d give much shorter presentations, I think.

FT: Any tips for students who think they might be interested in a career as arson investigators?

JL: I would suggest they learn to be fire protection engineers. If they can’t find a job that pays enough as a fire investigator, they can become fire protection engineers and do investigations on the side. I would suggest an engineering curriculum, while keeping in mind that undergraduate school is not a trade school. You want science and engineering courses specializing in fire protection engineering, and there will always be a great market for that. and they let him retire early. So he went and finished his bachelor’s degree and became a teacher, and later a college FT: During this interview you brought to light a lot of things professor. I never thought about or knew, and I’ve learned a hell of a lot about the field. I think I know the answer to this next question FT: What is it about putting the pieces together on an arson I’m going to ask anyway; how busy are you? investigation that really speaks to you? FT: As busy as I want to be. I refer quite a bit of work to JL: It’s such a big challenge when you look at a burned-up colleagues. I don’t go to a lot of fire scenes anymore. Most my building, and if you can figure out to the nearest millimeter work is grading other peoples’ papers. I consult on fire. I only where the fire started, that’s pretty rewarding. But most of the go to about four or five fire scenes a year now. time it’s frustrating (laughs).

FT: And you have to be willing to say, ”undetermined,” something a lot of people aren’t willing to do.

JL: Yes, but it’s getting better.

FT: When you were in college and taking both undergraduate and graduate courses, were there any teachers who, pardon the pun, really lit a fire under you?

JL: I have to say my organic chemistry teacher. Whenever someone would screw something up in the laboratory, or do something dangerous, he would stand over them and say, “Think about what you’re doing.” And now when I’m talking to fire investigators, I manage to say that: ”Think about what you’re doing, and think about how important this is.” If you get it wrong, you can really screw somebody’s life up.” There’s a guy in Texas who lost his life. He was executed for killing his three girls. To watch an episode of Forensic Files that featured FT: I remember that. The Innocence Project was trying to get John Lentini go to https://www.youtube.com/ him out. watch?v=PyKdenJSgCQ 18 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com “A fun and engaging way to support NGSS!”

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Try a free demo at MurderAtOldFields.com Photo Crimes he images on the next two pages comprise a crime. The idea is to present them to your students and challenge them to solve the crime by looking at the Tphotographs and reading the descriptions. If you want to make a class set of the pages and have your students work on them in pairs, you’re going to need a printer (and then a copier) capable of printing in color or gray scale. A printer or copier that only turns out black and white products just isn’t going to work. OR, you could transfer the images to a projector that allows every student to see them all at once.

These pages are from Scotland Yard Photo Crimes, used with permission of Dorling Kindersley Publishers. The answers are on page 29.

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19 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 20 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The answer is on page 50.

21 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 Fire & Anthropology Lab Getting hot has never been so cool Text & photos by Cheri Stephens

rson is the willful, deliberate, and malicious burning backyard or on school grounds, with student participation and of property. In 2008 there were approximately periodic observation. Get them involved! 30,500 arson fires, with an associated 315 deaths Aand property loss near one billion dollars. Many of the deaths Materials: were due to the fire alone, but sometimes the arson is a cover for murder. Contrary to popular belief fire does not generally •• Fresh bones (pork or beef) preferably long bones such as destroy all evidence. Bones, for example, are rarely completely femur. Most butchers will provide these at nominal cost if destroyed and evidence of traumatic injury can be observed by any, especially if you mention you’re a teacher. experienced anthropologists. A house fire sustains an average •• Fire pit/grill. Can use bare ground or small portable grill/ of 1100oF for only 27 minutes, whereas for human cremation fire pit. temperatures between 1400-1800oF must be maintained for 1.5 •• Variety of tools/weapons (saw, axe, Phillips screwdriver, to 3 hours. hammer, etc). Only make 2-3 injuries per bone. Fire first causes skin to shrink and even split, mimicking blunt •• Charcoal or wood fuel. Wood fuel is most similar to trauma injuries. It also causes the muscles to contract, flexing structural materials. the joints of the body. This can create the pugilistic pose, which •• Lighter fluid. Use only for ignition of fire fuel. If used on has been mistaken for a defensive posture of a victim being a murder victim the accelerant would have burned off with attacked. Sometimes the severe flexion of joints from thermal the soft tissue and not affected the bones directly. effects can even fracture the long bones. Similarly, skulls do crack, often along the suture lines, as a result of the swelling of Procedure: brain tissue or expansion of gases inside the skull as the body heats. Heat reduces recognizable features of the body’s original 1. Prepare sample bones by using one tool per bone to inflict appearance by systematically destroying soft anatomy of skin, injury on long bone shaft. Remember to include control bone fat, and muscle that protects underlying bone. without injury. I used a hammer, Phillips head screwdriver, Our skeleton is the best survivor of heat-related changes and saw, and an axe. can provide information about the victim, particularly evidence 2. Set up fire site. Light fire, use lighter fluid, if necessary, to of how they died and their identity. A majority of fire-related establish sufficient burn. Try not to use light fluid on bones. deaths result from unforeseen accidental situations, but for (A secondary experiment may use accelerant on the bones others, fire can be used to destroy evidence of a crime. For either themselves to compare effect. You may want bones with meat, situation, it is important for the investigator to understand that or maybe cover in material to simulate clothing) evidence of a body survives for forensic analysis. Taphonomic 3. Place bones on top of fire (remember to label position). research can be used to replicate and empirically document the Carefully monitor fire until natural extinction. The fire I did reductive process of thermal destruction to human remains in took about 4 hours to completely burn out. archaeological and forensic contexts to provide investigators 4. Recover bones when cool. Carefully collect bones in separate with an informed idea of what to expect for different structural, labeled containers (paper bags or boxes). I collected the bones vehicular, or other types of fire scenes. Knowing how the the next morning. human body is transformed by heat and what physically 5. Examine bones for evidence of injury. survives, demonstrates that fire is not always a destructive force, which serves to challenge long-standing misconceptions Data: about burned human remains and elevate the analysis of fire victims past the phrase “burned beyond recognition.” A good •• Draw sketch of each bone before burning in the fire. source for more information is “The Effects Of Fire On Human Carefully note injury appearance and location. Photos may Remains: Characteristics Of Taphonomy And Trauma”, by also be taken, but not to the exclusion of sketches. Elayne Juniper Pope. •• Make observation notes as the fire burns. The purpose of this article is to examine injuries to bones •• Draw sketch of each bone after recovery from the fire after burning in a fire, and show you how you can do it for again noting injury appearance and location. Photos may your students. The procedure I followed can be done in your also be taken, but not to the exclusion of sketches. 22 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com to determine if the victim was in fact murdered? Discussion Questions: 6. In some cases the victim dies as a result of fire; what tissues would be most useful to confirm the person was 1. What bones, if any, would you expect to find after a fire, alive at the time of the fire? Explain. and why? 2. Could you tell if a burned body was facing up or down? Bonus: 3. We used bare bones in this lab. Would bones with tissue allow the injuries to be more or less apparent after burning? Often victims of fire are found in an unusual position which Explain. suggest they were fighting when they died. What is this position 4. How would (did) an accelerant affect the burning of the called and explain why it occurs. Does it indicate a fight was bones? happening? 5. Sometimes a person is murdered and a fire is set to cover the crime. How would information from this lab help you

Bones at the start of the fire

23 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 The Whole Burn

Photos, clockwise starting at top left: bones in the fire soon after ignition, closeup of the early burn, late burn, a view of the entire fire pit late in the burn, another view of the entire pit halfway through the burn.

24 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com Photos, clockwise starting at top left: bone before burning that’s been attacked with a hammer (note the bone shards), the remains of the bone post-burn when it was recovered, a closeup of one of the fragments (note the cracks in the bone).

Dropping The Hammer

25 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 Seeing The Saw

Photos, clockwise starting at top left: bone before burning that’s been attacked with a saw, the bone on the pyre as the fire was started, the bone after the fire went out and it was recovered, a closeup of the bone post-fire. Note the injuries.

26 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com Controlling For The Burn

Photos, clockwise starting at top left: bones before burning (note the labels) including a control bone wth no injuries, bones after burning, bones on the fire, the control bone after burning, a closeup of the control bone with no injury, the control bone at more of a distance.

27 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 Axing Good Questions

Photos, clockwise starting at top left: bone before burning that’s been attacked with an axe, a closeup of the bone as the fire begins, the bone recovered from the extinguished fire, a closeup of the burned bone, the bone on the pyre as the fire is started.

28 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com Using The Screwdriver

Photos, clockwise starting at top left: bone before burning that’s been stabbed with a Phillips head screwdriver, a closeup of the same bone (note the stab wounds), the same bone after the fire has burned out, the bone in the pyre after it’s been lit.

29 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 Enhancing Footwear Impressions in Blood Practical Applications of Bloodstain Pattern Enhancement Reagents By Chris Bily

consideration. The substrates where footwear impressions can Background be found are divided into two general categories: porous and Early on in my forensic science teaching career, I had two non-porous. Porous substrates consist of carpeting, fabric, mentors from the forensic science community , Bill Sherlock unfinished wood, and paper products. Non-porous substrates from the Illinois State Police, and Marty Ludas from Forensic consist of tile, concrete, plastic products, and finished wood. Press. Both were footwear impression evidence examiners. The nature of the substrate will dictate the type of BPER that It was because of these two individuals that I developed is used. a love, respect, and fascination with footwear impression BPERs are chemicals that are used to 1) enhance visible evidence. I sought out formalized training in footwear impressions in blood, 2) reveal latent impressions in blood, impression evidence through various agencies. During the and 3) increase the amount of contrast between impressions course of one of these trainings, I was taught how to enhance in blood and the substrates on which they are found. BPERs footwear impressions in blood utilizing a variety of chemical can be classified into two categories: protein enhancement techniques formally known as bloodstain pattern enhancement reagents, also referred to as dye stains, and catalytic color reagents. [For the sake of brevity, from this point forward, reagents. We’re only concerned with the former in this bloodstain pattern enhancement reagents will be referred to as article. Protein enhancement reagents react with the protein BPERs.] I learned how to replicate the exercises we used in component of blood to produce a colored product that class and adopted them for my own educational purposes. is the same color as the reagent. Some examples of this I have used this particular laboratory exercise with classification of reagents are Amdio Black, Hungarian Red, students from middle school, high school, college, and and Coomassie Blue. Figure 1 illustrates the before and after scientists from forensic laboratories. Regardless of their age effects of Amido Black. Catalytic color reagents are colorless or experience, these students appreciate the ability of BPERs or near colorless and react with components of blood such as to reveal, often with great detail, faint visible impressions or hemoglobin or amino acids to form a colored product. Some latent impressions. examples of catalytic color reagents are Leuco Crystal Violet (LCV), Ninhydrin, and Diaminobenzadine. Figure 2 illustrates Introduction the before and after effects of Leuco Crystal Violet (LCV). Footwear impression evidence is a valuable form of physical evidence at a crime scene. A questioned impression can Photography be identified to a particular shoe in much the same way a Taking examination-quality photographs of footwear fingerprint can be identified to a particular finger. Footwear impressions in blood prior to any type of enhancement is an impressions in blood take on even more significance in absolute must. The enhancement process can be destructive violent crime scenes where blood has been shed. Impressions and photographs may be all that the examiner has to work in blood not only demonstrate that a particular shoe or shoes with if things go wrong. Examination-quality photographs are were present at the scene, but the shoes were present at the photographs that are of a high enough quality for a footwear time blood was shed or in a relatively small window of time examiner to conduct a comparison to known footwear. These thereafter and that they were in direct contact with the blood. photographs are taken with a camera on a tripod or copy stand In addition, these bloody impressions can potentially provide with the plane of the camera sensor parallel to the evidence. information in regard to the minimum number of perpetrators, An FBI L-scale is used to frame the impression. The L-scale the direction of travel, and the size, brand, and style of allows the photographs to be enlarged to natural size, which footwear. means that the impression in the photograph and the actual Footwear impressions in blood constitute a classification impression are the same size. In a natural-size photograph, if of evidence that is complex and requires special 30 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com Enhancing Footwear Impressions in Blood Practical Applications of Bloodstain Pattern Enhancement Reagents

Figure 1 Figure 2

you were to physically place a scale next to the ruler in the Fixing Impressions photograph, one inch would equal one inch. There should It is worth noting that prior to the application of BPERs, be approximately a one inch margin between the impression a fixative called 5-sulfosalicylic acid should be applied and the scale. The lens of the camera should be zoomed to footwear impressions in blood. This fixative maintains in so that the impression and the scale fill the frame of the the integrity of the impression and keeps it from bleeding camera. Oblique light from an external source is used instead upon application of the BPERs. Many of the commercially of the camera flash. The setup for this type of photography is available BPERs have begun to incorporate 5-sulfosalicylic depicted in Figure 3 and a properly taken examination quality acid directly into their reagents to avoid the preliminary fixing photograph is depicted in Figure 4. step. Research has shown that fixing an impression prior to This sophisticated setup is rarely found in middle school application of BPERs, even those with 5-sulfosalicylic acid and high school. However, this type of photography can integral to the reagent, produces superior results. However, still be accomplished with nothing more than a cell phone for the purpose of conducting this laboratory exercise, fixing camera and a scale or ruler. It is more important that students impressions can be foregone and adequate results are still understand the concept of this type of photography than it is achieved. for them to execute it in the same manner that is required in actual case work. It’s never too early to introduce students to technically correct procedures and to develop good work habits.

Figure 4 Figure 3

31 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 Obtaining Reagents BPERs can be prepared or purchased from forensic science or crime scene supply vendors. While some people prefer to make their own reagents, most do not. For the sake of expediency, it is much more efficient to order from a vendor. If the choice is made to prepare BPERs in the laboratory, a comprehensive list of formulae are available in a book titled Forensic Footwear Impression Evidence by William J. Bodziak. Formulae are also available at the following web site: Footwear.

Application BPERs are typically applied by immersion in a tray, or dispensed with a spray bottle or wash bottle. The immersion method works best in a laboratory with smaller objects, i.e., sections of cut out flooring, plastic bags, envelopes, etc. Figure 5 (Figure 5). Spray bottles work better at crime scenes where large areas need to be covered fairly quickly, i.e., floors and walls (Figure 6). Wash bottles can be used in the laboratory or at crime scenes (Figure 7). Protein enhancement reagents will require a de-staining step in methanol, water, or both, depending on the formula of a given BPER. This is typically done in the same fashion as the application of the reagent. De-staining is performed in order to remove any excess reagent which may be adhering to the surface, which in turn yields a clearer impression. This step is not required when using catalytic color reagents.

Choosing the Proper BPER Bloody footwear impressions on non-porous surfaces such as tile and plastic products, respond best to protein Figure 6 enhancement reagents such as Amido Black, Coomassie Blue, and Hungarian Red. Bloody footwear impressions on non- porous surface such as carpeting, fabric, and paper, respond best to catalytic color reagents such as LCV, Ninhydrin, and Diaminobenzadine.

Safety Considerations Amido Black and Coomassie Blue use methanol as a solvent. Use of these two BPERs in the classroom/laboratory is discouraged. Several years ago a formula for water based Amido Black was developed that is considerably safer and ideal for a classroom/laboratory. Regardless of the reagents that are chosen, always conduct this experiment in a well ventilated room, preferably under a fume hood, and follow standard laboratory safety practices. Figure 7

32 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com Bloody Footware Impression Laboratory Exercise enough accommodate all of the substrates when laid out in a linear fashion. The Materials substrates should be separated by a normal, walking stride length. This will vary from ●● Animal blood (sheep, pig, cow, chicken, etc…) student to student based on their height and ●● Substrates (tile, carpeting, plastic bags, fabric, gait. 5. Saturate a paper towel with blood and lay it envelopes, magazines, etc…) down onto the cookie sheet. ●● Sharpie marker 6. Position the pan containing the blood ●● Large cookie baking pan soaked paper towel to the side or just behind ●● Paper towels the first substrate (Figure 8). ●● Butcher paper 7. Step onto the blood soaked paper towel ●● 10% bleach solution once and then onto each substrate until each ●● Scrub brush has received a footwear impression in blood ●● Forceps (Figure 9). ●● Trays for immersion and de-staining 8. Clean footwear outsoles used to make ●● Steam iron (only required if using ninhydrin) depositions with a 10% bleach solution 9. Allow the substrates to dry overnight. ●● BPERs (amino black, coomassie blue, 10. Have students take examination quality Hungarian red, leuco crystal violet, ninhydrin, photographs with their cell phones of each diaminobenzadine) impression prior to enhancement. ●● Safety glasses 11. Allow students to experiment with the ●● Nitrile or latex gloves supplied BPERs. 12. Have students take examination quality Procedure photographs with their cell phones of each impression after enhancement. 1. Cut substrates into sections that are no larger than 6” X 6”. Teaching Suggestions 2. Distribute 10-15 representative samples per ●● When seeking substrates, look to students and other group of students. teachers. They will often have material in abundance such 3. Have students decide the order in which as flooring material, old clothes, plastic bags, junk mail, they would like to step on their substrates etc. Anything that can be stepped on will work for this and number them sequentially on their exercise. backsides accordingly. ●● If using the immersion method, make sure that your trays 4. Roll out a length of butcher paper long are large enough to accommodate your substrates.

Figure 8

Figure 9

33 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 ●● I order defibrinated sheep blood from a supplier. Many laboratory exercise can also be used with fingerprints in teachers have had success getting blood for free from blood. their local butcher. ●● If you choose to use Ninhydrin, and you have some left ●● If your school will not allow the use of animal blood over, you can use it to develop latent fingerprints on products most forensic vendors sell a product called paper in your fingerprint unit. synthetic blood which is artificial blood that will react ●● LCV is far and away the best BPER for developing with all of the BPERs. Do not confuse this with spatter bloody footwear impressions on carpeting. blood. Spatter blood is artificial blood used for teaching bloodstain pattern analysis and will not react with Obtaining Supplies BPERs. The general supplies for this laboratory exercise are ●● It isn’t necessary to have full footwear impressions for available around school or the home. The forensic specific this laboratory exercise. Partial footwear impressions are supplies can be obtained from forensic science or crime scene more representative of the type of impressions that are supply vendors. Most vendors carry very similar products. encountered in crime scene work. ●● You can substitute newspaper for butcher paper. ●● The lighter substrates such as paper and fabric tend to Implementation stick to the outsole of the shoe when it’s contaminated This laboratory exercise can be used in several different with blood. It’s useful to have a second student kneel places in the curriculum. I primarily use this in a footwear down and hold down a corner of the substrate. module of instruction. I save this laboratory exercise for last ●● In order to create more faint and latent impressions, step so that students have a more complete understanding of the on a clean paper towel after stepping on the paper towel impressions that they’re developing. This laboratory exercise saturated with blood then proceed with the depositions on could also be used as part of a crime scene investigation class the substrates. (Figures 10 and 11). Finally, this laboratory exercise could be ●● If you choose to use a methanol-based BPER you can use used in conjunction with a mock crime scene water as the rinse in place of methanol. This will reduce the amount of exposure students have to methanol and Remarks reduce the cost of lab supplies. Concluding ●● This laboratory exercise should be conducted over the I have used this laboratory exercise numerous times over course of 2 days. The first day should be devoted to the course of my 16 year career and not once have students making the impressions and allowing them to dry. The been disappointed with the results. It’s hands on, engaging, second day should be used to conduct the exercise. and rich in science. The results are typically from good to ●● If you have limited funds and can only purchase one excellent and are illustrative of how effective BPERs are. I protein enhancement reagent and one catalytic color encourage you to incorporate this into your curriculum. reagent, I would choose Amido Black and Leuco Crystal Violet. Acknowledgements ●● Have students use their best photographs to do a poster or I would like to thank Dr. Gerald Lang and Samantha Neal PowerPoint Presentation. of the West Virginia University Forensic and Investigative ●● To keep the cost of supplies down, have students work in Sciences Program, and Bill Sherlock of the Illinois State larger groups of 4 or 5 individuals. ●● All of the chemicals and procedures used in this Police Forensic Science Center at Chicago, (retired) for their editorial work on this article.

About the Author Chris Bily is the Instructional Coordinator for the Next Generation Forensic Science Initiative at West Virginia University. He can be reached by email at Chris. [email protected].

Figures 10 and 11. Students from the West Virginia University Department of Forensic and Investigative Sciences conducting enhancement of footwear impressions in blood as part of their Crime Scene Investigation 2 class. 34 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com Arson Terminology Name______1 2

4 5

6 7

8 9

Across Down 4. A mixture of potasium nitrate, carbon, and 1. The heat involved when something is burned in sulfure. Used for hunting way back in the day the presence of oxygen 5. A explosion with a detonation velocity of less 2. Heat, chemical, and thermal are examples of than 1,000 meters per second this 6. The decomposition of organic matter by heat 3. To start a very fast oxidation followed by a Across Downpowerful, rapid shockwave 8. A cord containing a center of black powder used 7. When a fire ignites from a combination of air, to carry a flame to an explosive charge at a fuel, and a heat-producing process uniform rate 9. A criminal's pattern of behavior 10. When oxygen combines with other substances 11. A rope-like explosive, also called primacord to create new products 13. Any material used to start or sustain a fire; 12. A chemical or mechanical action resulting in the gasoline is an example rapid expansion of gasses 14. Where a fire starts 14. A high explosive easily detonated by heat or shock 15. A substance that supplies oxygen to a chemical reaction 16. A chemical reaction where heat is absorbed The answer is on page 39 from the environment 17. The minimum tempurature at which a liquid fuel produces enough vapor to burn 18. Something that explodes with a detonation velocity of greater than 1,000 meters per second 19. A molecule made of only hydrogen and carbon 35 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 Sweating the Small Stuff If you’re setting up an arson crime scene for your class it’s best to get the details right by Tony Cafe

hile most electrical appliance manufacturers need and weeks before the fire and some useful information could convincing their products can cause fires, the ex- come to light. Wperience of most fire investigators is that electrical When examining the fire scene, the most reliable physi- appliances frequently do cause fires. One of the most common cal indicators of an electrical appliance fire cause are: the burn reasons for appliance fires is through misuse by the owner, patterns indicate the area of origin being near the appliance; however in my experience another prevalent factor is compo- the appliance itself suffers severe fire damage; and arc damage nent fatigue. Design faults are also a common fire cause and is found on the conductors either inside or near the appliance. this is reflected by the significant number of recall notices is- Two of the major causes of appliance fires are moisture sued for CRT television sets, heaters and cooling fans in recent contacting the electrics or a readily combustible material com- years. ing into close contact with a heat emitting part of an appliance. Appliances such as dishwashers, Introduction washing machines, hot water heaters and outdoor appliances have a high The aim of this article is to out- probability of fire caused by moisture, line some of the ways that fires can while heat emitting appliances such originate from electrical appliances as heaters, transformers and clothes and to describe evidence the inves- dryers have a high probability of fire tigator should look for at the scene. caused by ignition of a nearby com- There have been very few articles bustible material. Appliances that published dealing with appliance draw a large amount of current for fires and apart from a recent article by an extended period of time such as Terry Casey there has been virtually heaters and air conditioners have a nothing published here in Australia. high probability of fire being caused Maybe some of our highly qualified by a hot connection or an overloaded electrical engineers (who are only too circuit. A fire hazard associated with willing to turn up in court claiming to be fire experts) should heavy appliances such as freezers or refrigerators is a short cir- put pen to paper and share some of their expertise. cuit at the power cord caused by some recent moving that left the appliance sitting on top of the cord. Background The following notes on appliance fires should be viewed as a general guide because the design of appliances is continu- Identifying whether an electrical appliance has caused a ally being improved to reduce fire risks, so some of the faults fire firstly requires a thorough interview with the persons who discussed below may not be relevant to current models. For ex- were last at the premises before the fire. The most important ample, refrigerators once employed electrical heating elements questions that should be asked are: what appliances were sup- around door seals to prevent icing up but now utilise reticulated plied with power before the fire; and most importantly were waste heat, which not only reduces fire risk, it is also much there any recent problems or incidents with these appliances? more energy efficient. These questions when asked of the occupants soon after they Air conditioners that are operating continuously in a dusty en- have learnt of the fire will often yield little information of value vironment can cause fires because the dust can settle over elec- because they are still in a state of shock. However once they trical components such as capacitors and cause tracking faults. have settled down and begin to ask themselves what may have The top plastic surface of the capacitor can also break down caused the fire their minds will begin to sift through the days thermally leading to a tracking fault. 36 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com the polyurethane insulation that is blown into the heater jacket Clothes dryers have a large element running around either the during manufacture is found very close to the electrics and pro- rear or the front of the drying drum and any combustible ma- vides a nearby readily combustible material that can ignite and terial that comes into contact with the element can ignite and then smoulder for hours. The presence of polyurethane in close cause a fire. The element is surrounded by non-combustible proximity to the electrics should be of some concern to the au- materials however combustible materials can reach the element thorities particularly when these heaters are installed inside a in certain circumstances and cause a fire. If the lint filter is not house. cleaned on a regular basis then lint can blow back into the interior of the dryer cabinet and settle across the base and eventu- Heaters are one of the greatest causes of fires, although it ally reach the element and ignite. should be pointed out that electrical heaters are one of the saf- Clothes dryers have a flexible bearing that the drying drum est forms of heating. Heaters use large currents and so the fire rests upon and the bearing is a composite of PVC and other risks associated with large currents apply. synthetics or cotton. If this bearing comes out of position it Electric heaters that are fan forced can cause a fire if some can contact the element and ignite. Because PVC retards fire combustible material such as plastic wrap is sucked into the spread, these flexible bearings can smoulder for very long pe- heater. The element can become detached through rough han- riods before they ignite the clothes inside the drum and the fire dling and later ignite the plastic casing. If the inlet air is partial- is then discovered. This can lead to a fire originating from a ly restricted and the over-temperature sensor is not affected by clothes dryer many hours after the dryer has been disconnected the restriction the element can overheat and ignite the plastic from power. For an excellent casing. technical explanation of the The fire risks associated causes of dryer fires, a simple with radiant heaters are that Google search will yield plen- a combustible material is left ty of information. too close to the heater or the heater falls over and ignites Dishwashers. As previously the floor coverings. mentioned, the major cause of fire from dishwashers is Television sets and com- moisture contacting the con- puter monitors. There have ductors. The controller for been several recalls for tele- most dishwashers is at the top vision sets and computer of the door and moisture can monitors in recent years reach this area if the interior mainly because of solder- of the door leaks. The plastic ing defects and faults in the components that release the transformers. These solder- detergent or finishing agents ing defects are called dry on the interior of the door can joints and are caused by the become brittle over time and solder failing to run correctly then crack and start to leak. When the door is opened to a hori- during manufacture, which leaves a high resistance pathway zontal position, the water inside the door can reach the control- which progressively worsens with use. Dry joints are a major ler at the top of the door and cause a fire. problem for the electronics industry. Another fire cause is the wiring loom passing through Television sets are manufactured using fire rated plastics the base of the door becoming stressed due to the door open- that do not easily ignite. However because so many different ing and closing over time and the insulation breaking down, plastics are used in the manufacture of a television set and their resulting in a short circuit. Dishwashers can also cause fires if fire ratings vary, it is still possible for electrical faults to cause a combustible material contacts the element during the drying a television set to catch fire. cycle. Combustible materials such as plastic cups, paper plates or a towel accidentally left inside the machine can ignite. Electrical chip cookers (deep fryers) are normally found in food outlets however there are smaller models that can be used Fax machines. The older generation of fax machines generate in the home. The temperature of the cooking oil is normally a lot of heat on standby mainly because they have a thermal controlled by at least one thermostat, however if this thermo- print head. If the fax machine is covered with a combustible stat fails the oil can then overheat and ignite. The evidence that material and the heat from the print head cannot dissipate a fire indicates the oil has overheated and caused the fire is a charred could occur. or blackened residue found in the cooking vat. Failure of the thermostat can be due to a number of rea- Hot water heaters. The main cause of fires from hot water sons, however one of the most common is that the capillary line heaters is moisture contacting the electrics. Because of corro- connecting the temperature probe in the vat to the thermostat sion, heaters can leak from several areas such as around the ele- has broken, either through corrosion or through over-vigorous ments or from the water inlets and outlets. In many instances cleaning of the vat prior to the fire. Manufacturers could re 37 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 duce the risk of fire by designing their appliances so that they erate significant heat that can damage the socket and associated ‘failed safe’ in the event of the capillary breaking. This could wiring causing a short-circuit and possibly a fire. The ballast in be achieved by cutting off power to the cooking elements when fluorescent lights can overheat due to internal short-circuiting pressure in the thermostat is lost. and ignite combustible ceiling materials. Quartz halogen lights have a filament that is very hot and if the globe is not installed Refrigerators & freezers. As previously mentioned, freez- horizontally or there is finger grease present, the globe can ers and refrigerators can cause fire if they have been left sit- break and the hot filament may ignite combustible materials ting on their power leads. For this reason it is important to ask below. Down lights also generate significant heat and if the top the occupants if they recently moved these appliances. Also of the down light is covered by insulation the insulation could previously mentioned was the fire hazard associated with the ignite. Down lights installed in bathrooms are susceptible to door seal elements. If water does penetrate moisture accumulating at the terminals the door seal then a short circuit can be cre- which can lead to short-circuits. ated resulting in a hot spot that can ignite the plastic door seal. Evidence of hot spots Microwave ovens. A recent fire hazard in the element can sometimes be detected associated with wheat bags heated in mi- by the occupant before the fire because the crowave ovens was reported in Firepoint unusual odours produced by the pyrolysing magazine. Microwave ovens emit radia- door seal inside the refrigerator led them to tion that will excite water molecules and believe that some food had been going off. if there is no moisture available, other One of the major causes of moisture less volatile molecules will absorb the problems with refrigerators is that the drain radiation and start to heat. Therefore any tube from the freezer becomes blocked. If material which has dried out can over- the tube is blocked and the freezer goes into heat and ignite in a microwave oven. the defrosting cycle, the water can then run Also, any metal objects inside a micro- out of the front of the refrigerator and reach wave oven can cause severe sparking the electrics underneath and cause a fire. which could lead to a fire. Modern refrigerators use waste heat to evaporate the defrost water on a tray Cooling fans. There have been several mounted above the motor. Older refrigera- recalls of cooling fans in recent years, tors sometimes have a plastic tray embed- one of which involved a hazard associ- ded with elements to evaporate the defrost ated with a capacitor that overheated and water. If the drain valve becomes blocked caused the plastic casing near the capaci- this tray can over heat and over a long pe- tor to ignite. Problems with fan motors riod of time can start to crack and expose the are common, however fires originating elements. When the blockage clears, water from motors are rare because the motors fills the tray and a short circuit and fire can are well ventilated and the heat gener- occur because of the exposed elements. ated from a fault is readily dissipated. http://www.thehomescientist.com/kits/FK01/fk01-main.html Water jugs and urns. Failure of the safety Sink disposal units do not normally cut-out device on water jugs and urns is the present a fire hazard because many are most common reason these appliances cause equipped with overload devices that cut fires. Another problem is, as the electrics are the power if the motor becomes seized. normally located underneath the water res- However, the power for most “sinkera- ervoir any leaks will allow water to reach tors” is supplied from a power outlet them, possibly causing a fire. installed under the sink and these sockets are susceptible to moisture, particularly if there is a leak at the back of the sink. Power strips and extension leads. The larger the current flow- ing through a power strip or extension lead, the greater the risk Stoves and ovens are normally made of non-combustible ma- of fire because of poor connections or due to thermal break- terials that significantly reduce the fire hazard. However, if a down of the insulation. Extension leads exposed to moisture combustible material such as a towel or some cooking oil is left at a point well away from the power socket can cause a fire on the stove or in the oven and there is a fault with a controller, back at the socket. If extension leads are exposed to an outdoor fire can occur. environment, rain water can run back along the lead and reach the power socket and cause a fire. Electric blankets continually emit heat and do not have any over-temperature sensors. If the heat cannot escape because the Lights emit heat that can ignite some nearby combustible ma- bed is too well insulated, the bedding material can ignite. An- terial and lead to a fire. High wattage incandescent lights gen- 38 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com other fire hazard associated with electric blankets is when the bed is made the leg of the bed could be placed onto the power lead or the controller, causing a short circuit and eventually a fire.

Waterbed heaters rely on good thermal conductivity between the heater and the waterbed to prevent them from overheating. If an insulating material such as a sheet is placed between the heater and the bed, the sheet can then ignite.

Reprinted with permission from Firepoint Magazine of the New South Wales Association of Fire Investigators Inc, Sydney,

Arson Terminology Crossword Answers (from p.35) Arson Terminology Name______1H 2E E 3D N 4B L A C K P O W D E R 5L O W E X P L O S I V E T T R O 6P Y R O L Y 7S I S G 8S A F E T Y F U S E 9M N P Y C 10O X I D A T I O N U 11D D T N M E U I T B T S O A U 12E X P L O S I O N N N S N P E 13A T 14P R I M A R Y E X P L O S I O N C I O T R U C 15O X I D I Z I N G A G E N T S E N N N N C L T G D O E O C I M R F O B A 16E N D O T H E R M I C U N R D 17F L A S H P O I N T I T G 18H I G H E X P L O S I V E I O N 19H Y D R O C A R B O N

Across Down 4. A mixture of potasium nitrate, carbon, and 1. The heat involved when something is burned in sulfure. Used for hunting way back in the day the presence of oxygen [BLACKPOWDER] [HEATOFCUMBUSTION] 5. A explosion with a detonation velocity of less 2. Heat, chemical, and thermal are examples of than 1,000 meters per second this [ENERGY] [LOWEXPLOSIVE] 3. To start a very fast oxidation followed by a powerful, rapid shockwave [DETONATION]

39 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 Behind the Scenes With the World’s Top Feather Detective

40 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com One of Pepper Trail’s more recent disturbing cases involves the illegal trade of chuparosas, dead hummingbirds sold as good luck charms. “It seems particularly cruel to kill a hummingbird, because they are so vulnerable,” he says. Here, Trail at the National Fish and Wildlife Forensics Laboratory in Ashland, Oregon. Photo: Tom Fowlks

Behind the Scenes With the World’s

Top Feather Detective By Chris Sweeney

41 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 s the country’s only criminal forensic ornithologist, Sometimes Trail receives a blob of black sludge from Pepper Trail has pieced together the demise of an oil pit containing a decomposed bird and has to extract Acountless birds—and saved many others. the feathers, restore them, and ID the species. Other times he Pepper Trail is the first to admit he has an unusual skill gets the smashed remains of an animal demolished by a wind set. Give him a single feather or a small fragment of a claw turbine. He has investigated high-end artifacts smuggled into or a cooked hunk of breast meat, and he’ll tell you the species the country—an indigenous Amazonian crown made from of bird from which it came. As the world’s leading criminal curassow body feathers, toucan throat feathers, and Scarlet forensic ornithologist, Trail is asked day in and day out to Macaw tail feathers, for example—and cheap dream catchers perform these exact tasks. Over the past 18 years he has peddled at tourist traps across the Southwest. The findings assisted with hundreds of investigations, testified in federal go both ways; the evidence in question might be made from court 15 times, and handled more bird carcasses than anyone perfectly legal turkey feathers or the feathers of a protected should. “All birders have life lists,” Trail says. “I have a death sub-adult Golden Eagle. list.” Trail isn’t joking. He opens a file on his computer and scrolls through a list of 750 species of dead birds he has identified throughout his career. The décor of his workspace at the National Fish and Wildlife Forensics Laboratory in Ashland, Oregon, blends bird-nerd kitsch with macabre relics of closed cases. A “Waddling Penguin Pooper” wind-up toy sits on a bookshelf still in its original packaging. Atop a filing cabinet is a confiscated necklace made from the claws and skull of a cassowary. Nearby is a long, sleek feather ripped from an Andean Condor wing and attached to a pin that customs agents seized from a polka dancer coming into Chicago. “There’s actually a trade in condor feathers from Peru to Germany to decorate polka hats,” Trail says. If a Fish and Wildlife agent ends up working a case that involves any sort of bird part, there’s a good chance the evidence will land on Trail’s desk for inspection. Because not all birds are protected equally, his IDs play an important Photo: Adobe Images role in the legal process that helps agents and prosecutors In 2013 Trail received a shipment of 43 hummingbirds. determine what laws are being broken and what charges The carcasses, which were each about the size of an index can be brought against the perpetrators. It should come as finger, had been dried out and stuffed into red paper tubes that no surprise that ornithological forensics is an exceedingly were decorated with matching satin tassels. Accompanying obscure career path. The field didn’t even exist until the each was a Spanish-language prayer meant to invoke the 1960s, when the late ornithologist Roxie Laybourne used mystical powers of la chuparosa, a colloquial Mexican name feather fragments to determine that a flock of European for the hummingbird, in order to help a man find his true Starlings had collided with an airplane and caused a fatal love. That the animals were intact—no birdshot wounds, accident. Yet the size and scope of Trail’s caseload—more no decapitations, and with minimal damage to the colorful than 100 cases a year, involving well over 1,000 pieces of plumage—led Trail to suspect that they had been gently evidence—attests to the fact that this little-known arm of law squeezed to death one by one in a human hand. enforcement plays a critical role in conservation. Trail didn’t know what to make of them. “When they first appeared, it was like, ‘Holy crap, what in the world is this?’ ” he says. A special agent had obtained the birds during an One of Trail’s initial undercover buy from a man who was smuggling them in from cases required Mexico. Following protocol, Trail unwrapped the birds from their ceremonial garb, identified the different species, and him to identify filed the necessary paperwork. A year later, another shipment arrived. And then another. The victims spanned at least 10 thousands of species, including Violet-crowned, Magnificent, and Blue- throated hummingbirds—dazzling border species that attract feathers from birders to southern Arizona each year. As familiar as Trail is with death, these hummingbirds different raptor pack an emotional punch. “Their very tininess makes them species. delightful and charming. Their extraordinary flying ability makes them impressive and awe-inspiring,” he says. “Our power compared to their power is so great that it seems 42 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com particularly perverse and cruel to kill them.” a secondary feather of a Red-tailed Hawk by merely glancing At age 63 Trail has identified enough dead birds for a at them. lifetime, and he is looking at the prospect of retirement with What started out as a temporary gig has blossomed into greater fondness. More uplifting pursuits surely await the a nearly two-decade-long career. The forensics lab where gentle soul who in his downtime pens award-winning poetry, Trail spends his days is an impressive facility equipped to dresses up as Charles Darwin to deliver scientific lectures, and analyze whatever evidence Fish and Wildlife special agents leads high-end birding expeditions to exotic locales around can uncover, whether it be illegal timber or a purported the world. aphrodisiac made from bear gallbladders. There is a ballistics But at the moment, Trail’s retirement would spell disaster expert on staff, genetics and pathology departments, as for the only wildlife-forensics lab in the world. “Pepper is well as an entire biosafety level-3 lab and DNA-sequencing one of a kind,” says Ken Goddard, director of the lab. “If technology that seems fit for an episode of CSI. something happens to Pepper, we’re S.O.L.” Trail’s tactics, however, are decidedly more analog. Pepper Trail didn’t set out to make a name for himself He’s a morphologist who makes identifications by carefully in the dark world of avian-associated crimes. He was born in studying and comparing anatomical characteristics of different Virginia—his great-grandfather was Paris Pepper Trail, and bird parts. In most cases, this approach is not only faster his great-uncle was Peach Trail—but grew up in the Finger and cheaper than booting up the sequencers and calling the Lakes region of New York. A boyhood spent exploring the genetics team; it’s equally as effective. It has to be. Much like outdoors and admiring wildlife led to a degree in biology and forensic evidence in a murder trial, the science behind Trail’s a Ph.D. in ornithology from nearby Cornell University. work needs to withstand the scrutiny of aggressive defense As a young ornithologist Trail plodded through South attorneys, diligent judges, and impartial juries. American rainforests in pursuit of the “Pepper’s job is to identify Guianan Cock-of-the-rock. Then he what the evidence is. That’s strung together a few postdocs, which easy to do when you have a full eventually landed him and his family carcass,” says Ed Espinoza, in American Samoa. Island life was deputy director of the forensics a formative experience, but with two lab. “But when you have bits young sons, priorities shifted, and and bones, or if you have Trail and his pediatrician wife moved pieces of feathers that have to Ashland, a crunchy college town in been matted, there’s a different southern Oregon that’s world-famous process, which Pepper has for its Shakespeare festival. “The old pretty much developed, led, Samoa-to-Ashland routine,” Trail and published on. Without him, jokes of the transition. those cases probably couldn’t The job market has never been Photo: US Fish & Wildlife Service be done.” friendly to ornithologists, so Trail split time during those first While from the outside the job can look like it’s all gloom years back in the States picking up contract work, raising his and doom, the analytical rigor it demands nourishes and sons, and writing a sci-fi eco-thriller for young adults. Out of inspires Trail’s inner scientist. Patterns in his caseload have the blue one day in 1998 he received a call from the National proven to be good fodder for research pursuits. For instance, Fish and Wildlife Forensics Laboratory, which happened after identifying thousands of birds that had died in oil pits— to be a short drive from his home. The lab’s first and only pools of runoff and waste that are found at oil-production ornithologist had left suddenly and cases were piling up—they sites—Trail collected the data, crunched the numbers, and needed a stopgap and wanted to know if Trail was available published the most comprehensive scientific review of the for a few months until they found a full-time replacement. issue, estimating that upward of 1 million birds perish in Trail didn’t know what he was walking into, or if he even these pits each year, the vast majority of which are protected wanted what amounted to a desk job. “When I first took the species. Moreover, Trail has devised and documented a job I was not sure how varied it would be,” he recalls. “And method for determining an eagle species based solely on the that was a concern I had about it long term—is this just going curvature of detached talon fragments. “He is a scientist in the to be the same small number of species that I’m looking at fullest sense of the word,” Espinoza says. over and over?” It didn’t take long for the work to dispel any Trail is prone to modesty when it comes to his fears of monotony. accomplishments, but he does perk up when given the chance One of Trail’s initial cases required him to identify to discuss the Feather Atlas, an online database for matching thousands of feathers from different raptor species. He pored feathers with species. The idea came to him after fielding over reference specimens and studied the most minor physical countless calls from special agents who were looking for differentiations for clues. The learning curve was steep. a quick way to determine if they had an eagle feather on “Looking at detached feathers and making an identification their hands. In order to streamline the process, Trail scanned isn’t something you’re expected to do,” Trail says. “Your feathers from Golden and Bald Eagles of various ages, training is never going to include that.” But before long he uploaded them to a website, and told the special agents about could tell a secondary feather of a Rough-legged Hawk from it. 43 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 Soon he expanded the site to include other birds of prey, and the project has since snowballed. “It’s now up to 360 species and over 1,500 scans,” he says. Nowadays the Feather Atlas, which doesn’t have any dedicated funding and is managed by a single volunteer and Trail, has grown into a digital destination that gets 1.4 million hits a year; its visitors include the law-enforcement community, inquisitive birders, teachers, and artists. It is an impressive display of beauty from what is an otherwise very ugly job. In the chain of command of wildlife law enforcement, Trail occupies a unique space. He doesn’t chase down the bad guys or trek around collecting clues. Instead he enters the fray in the middle of an investigation, identifies the evidence, and then moves on to the next case. Oftentimes he is intentionally kept in the dark with regard to the investigation’s details so Photo: Adobe Images that the circumstances of the alleged crime can’t influence his scientific judgment. Rarely does he have the bandwidth to What you order follow a case long enough to learn whether or to what extent the perpetrators are prosecuted. While from the outside the job can look like it’s all gloom and doom, the analytical rigor it demands nourishes and inspires Trail’s inner scientist. Patterns in his caseload have proven to be good fodder for research pursuits. For instance, after identifying thousands of birds that had died in oil pits— pools of runoff and waste that are found at oil-production sites—Trail collected the data, crunched the numbers, and published the most comprehensive scientific review of the issue, estimating that upward of 1 million birds perish in these pits each year, the vast majority of which are protected species. Moreover, Trail has devised and documented a method for determining an eagle species based solely on the Photo: US Fish & Wildlife Service curvature of detached talon fragments. “He is a scientist in the fullest sense of the word,” Espinoza says. What you get Trail is prone to modesty when it comes to his accomplishments, but he does perk up when given the chance to discuss the Feather Atlas, an online database for matching feathers with species. The idea came to him after fielding countless calls from special agents who were looking for a quick way to determine if they had an eagle feather on their hands. In order to streamline the process, Trail scanned feathers from Golden and Bald Eagles of various ages, uploaded them to a website, and told the special agents about it. Soon he expanded the site to include other birds of prey, and the project has since snowballed. “It’s now up to 360 species and over 1,500 scans,” he says. Nowadays the Feather Atlas, which doesn’t have any dedicated funding and is managed by a single volunteer and Trail, has grown into a digital destination that gets 1.4 million hits a year; its visitors include the law-enforcement community, inquisitive birders, teachers, and artists. It is an impressive display of beauty from what is an otherwise very ugly job. Photo: US Fish & Wildlife Service In the chain of command of wildlife law enforcement, Trail occupies a unique space. He doesn’t chase down the bad guys or trek around collecting clues. Instead he enters the fray What’s inside in the middle of an investigation, identifies the evidence, and then moves on to the next case. Oftentimes he is intentionally 44 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com kept in the dark with regard to the investigation’s details so of finality can seem elusive. “There are a couple of trade that the circumstances of the alleged crime can’t influence items that I’ve come across in my career that I feel are a little his scientific judgment. Rarely does he have the bandwidth to bit unresolved or that I would like to have some closure on,” follow a case long enough to learn whether or to what extent Trail says. “One is the chuparosas.” the perpetrators are prosecuted. Trail worries that the black market for these love charms may be vast. In Mexico, where the spiritual legacy of hummingbirds stretches back to the Aztecs, the trade appears robust. Among the more troubling clues he has come across is a small sticker on the packaging of some of the charms that says “Hecho en Mexico,” or “Made in Mexico,” a sign that there is some sort of commercial-scale operation. As for how many hummingbirds are killed each year, Trail worries that Trail can’t yet hazard a guess because the trade is so new to investigators and information is hard to come by. In the the black market only known study of the trade, researchers from the National Autonomous University of Mexico counted 655 charms for these charms during visits to Mexico City’s Sonora Market. Many of the vendors interviewed for the study said the birds are killed by may be vast. In slingshot and collected from the states near the center of the country, including Querétaro, Hidalgo, and Puebla. Mexico, where the Trail knows all too well that fighting any type of wildlife spiritual legacy trade comes with a host of logistical, financial, and cultural challenges. He has begun collaborating with Mexican of hummingbirds ornithologists who know of chuparosas, but have never considered them a conservation issue. Meanwhile, the U.S. stretches back to Fish and Wildlife Service has only 250 or so special agents throughout the entire country, which makes it difficult to the Aztecs, the devote resources to the problem. So far there’s no task force assigned to better understand the scope of the chuparosa trade appears trade, let alone choke off the supply. And then there’s the fact robust. that the demand for them is rooted in a centuries-old cultural belief that plays to one’s innermost desires. Trail doesn’t know for sure when he is going to walk away from the forensics lab, but he’s hoping that the service soon hires his replacement so he has at least a year or two to share the wisdom he has gleaned from the many cases that have passed across his desk. For a man who has devoted his career to protecting birds by identifying them in death, a sense

Reprinted with permission from Audubon Magazine, Chris Sweeney, and Tom Fowlks. Photo: US Fish & Wildlife Service 45 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 The

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46 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com PORTABLE. POWERFUL. VERSATILE. The perfect tool for on–scene and in-the-lab documentation and gathering of evidence, the FlipView™ LCD digital handheld microscope is designed for any scenario: handheld in the field, table-top in the lab, on the included stand, or on a standard tripod.

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By Ted Yeshion, Ph.D. and Anthony Bertino

CREATING A PHARMACEUTICAL completing a fold is to provide sufficient chain-of- FOLD custody information to support the admissibility of that evidence in a criminal proceeding. Background: There are many ways to create such a fold. This A pharmaceutical fold, also known as a druggist’s schematic represents one popular method. fold or bindle, is designed to secure trace evidence such as hair, fibers, paint chips, and crusted Directions: blood. Wet, sharp, or bulky evidence should never be collected by this method, but rather ●● Prepare a pharmaceutical fold per the step-by- placed in envelopes, paper bags, plastic bags (only step instructions as shown on the next page. temporarily in the case of wet biological evidence), ●● The fold must contain some sort of trace or cardboard boxes. Wet or damp biological evidence (baby powder, baking soda, sugar, evidence must always be air-dried prior to salt, pepper, sand, glitter, wood shavings, paint packaging. Paper bags and envelopes are not leak scrapings, etc.). Use any material that will indicate proof. As such, trace evidence may be lost when leakage if the fold was not properly prepared. not properly packaged. The pharmaceutical fold is absolutely leak proof when assembled according to ●● Once completed, seal the fold with scotch tape these or similar directions. (or other type of tape) and fill in important chain of custody information on a blank area to include A very important part in completing a fold is to your initials, a case number, exhibit number, date ensure that it is sealed with evidence tape and and time of collection, as well as a description of initialed across the seal, preferably in two locations. the contents and the location from which it was Initials and date should overlap the tape and the collected. paper fold itself. Another critical requirement for 48 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com ●● Photograph

●● Bang the fold on each side and corner onto a hard, smooth surface and note if any of the collected Using trace evidence leaked onto that surface. Photograph again and report your level of success with this Origami to assignment. Learn Forensics

Step 1. Start with a blank piece of Step 2. Fold paper into thirds Step 3. Open paper, rotate 90° and copy paper. lengthwise. fold into thirds again.

Step 5. Fold paper over evidence like Step 6. Tuck bottom (right) flap shown. into top (left) flap.

Step 4. Put evidence into center square.

Step 8. Seal with tape, sign over tape/paper boundary, and label. Optional: put fold into a Step 7. Press edges flat. labelled Ziplock bag. 49 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 A Slaying in the North End Mini Mystery Photo Crime (page 4) Slaying in the North End--Neither Diskin nor Foster is the Solutions leader (4). Since the leader is married (3), he isn’t O’Keefe (6), and since he plays poker Tuesday nights (4), he isn’t Jensen Death of a Lodger (from p. 20) either (2). The leader therefore is Lyons. The leader and the killer are different men (1), so Lyons isn’t the killer. Neither You might say that I caught the man red-handed in this case, Jensen nor O’Keefe is the killer (5). Since the killer has a sister although the actual colour was black. I was immediately (5), he isn’t Foster either (3). Therefore the killer is Diskin. suspicious of the sour old landlord when I spotted his ink- stained hand. The suicide note on Simmonds’ desk had been written with a pen dipped deep into an ink bottle, thus the long inky mark on the paper. But the dead man’s hands were spotless - he couldn’t have held that pen before he died. Peck’s hands were clean, too. The conniving Quigley must have planted Peck’s handkerchief in the hope of framing him.

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50 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com Continued from previous panel Issue 23: Our spring issue features an interview with forensic entomologist Dr. Neal Haskell, a maggot activity, a fingerprinting lab, a closer look at ninhydrin, an easy lab about hair, another about anthropometry. The By the Numbers: Issue 24: This is our ballistics issue. We interview Dr. Peter Diaczuk, a firearms expert from John Jay College, there’s a firearms quiz, a lab using barcodes to compare bullets, a trajectory lesson using marshmallow guns, an inexpensive bullet lab, a Mini Mystery, an exercise comparing evidence from the Lindurgh baby murder, A Day in the Life of a firearm examiner. Issue 25: Our spring issue features an interview with Joe Matvay—the real Gil Grissom, a peek inside the real CSI-Las Vegas crime lab, a great impression activity for your students, a virtual crime scene, a lesson on bone fractures, a checklist for critiquing forensic TV shows, some ideas of things to be on the lookout for when summer eventually arrives. ForensicTeacherMagazine 1,304 Pages 351 Articles The Forensic Teacher Magazine is produced by teachers for teachers. We’re a small volunteer staff working to make forensic education easier for everyone in the field, and to provide a place for educators to share original ideas. We can be reached 122 Labs/Activities at [email protected]. Feel free to make copies of the materials on this CD for your classroom, but please resist the temptation to copy the issues 25 Back Issues on this CD for others. Sales of this CD and back issues provide most of the income necessary for us to continue publishing the free online magazine. If you don’t encourage colleagues to purchase their own copies, we will eventually be forced to stop publishing all together. Don’t be a copier. 3 clicks to order The current and immediately previous issues are always available free at www.theforensicteacher.com, as are articles, 1 CD links, and how-to tutorials. Thank you for supporting us. Issues 1-25 Over 1,300 pages of cool, useful stuff $0 shipping fee

www.theforensicteacher.com $23.95 (That’s it!) Bloomin’ Easy! One of the best things about teaching forensics is watching your students mature intellectually. Benjamin Bloom first published his taxonomy of thinking skills in 1956. As teachers we have an obligation to help students learn to use their minds in more powerful ways. The chart below lists suggestions for you to push your students mentally to higher places. Give them a try; often the difference between an easy forensic assignment and a challenging one is what you ask of your students.

Chart courtesy of Dr. Alicia T. Wyatt, McMurry University, Abilene, TX 51 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 To Catch a Thief:

A Glass Density Lab

By Jeanette Hencken

lass is often used in crime scene investigations. layered with plastic. Many things can be determined from a pane of There are enough differences in glass that comparisons Gglass with holes in it. For instance, the direction can be made that will give useful information about whether that a bullet was fired from, and which bullet was fired first, or not the fragments are from the same pane. The density are just a few examples. By piecing together a piece of glass of glass from a single pane can vary as much as .0003 g/ that has been broken, it can be determined if a piece of glass ml. Density measurements can be made that will distinguish found on a suspect comes from that pane. If the piece fits fragments of glass that differ in density as much as .001 g/ml. into the pane like a jigsaw puzzle piece, then the chance of it Using flotation measurements, the density of glass fragments coming from that pane and that pane only are overwhelming! can be determined. Often the glass is too shattered to piece together. In this In order to determine the density with an accuracy that case the crime lab will compare the density of the glass at the is sufficient to distinguish between types of glass, the glass crime scene to the density of the glass found on the suspect. should be suspended in water. Buoyant force on the glass The forensic lab will use the differences in impurities to equals the mass of the volume of water displaced. The volume eliminate glass samples that are not connected, as well as of the water displaced is then calculated by multiplying the determining the chance that a piece of glass could match a density of water (at room temperature) by the mass of the glass found at the scene. water displaced. We are a society with lots of uses for glass. Glass is made The second method for differentiating between glass in large batches by many manufacturers. How can we say fragments is refractive index. A simple method for comparing that one piece came from only that pane at the crime scene? indices is the immersion method. If a fragment of glass is At this point in time, scientists are unable to distinguish one immersed in a liquid with the same refractive index, the glass piece of glass exclusively from another. will seem to disappear in the liquid. Glass that is made of the However, there are some differences in types of glass, same material has the same index of refraction. which are important. Most window and bottle glass are made Using these two techniques, density and refractive of soda-lime glass. The main ingredient in all glass is sand, index, glass fragments can be compared and a match can be SiO2. determined. Soda-lime glass has Na2CO3 and CaO added to it to By far the most definitive method of glass comparison is make it easier to work with and not soluble in water. Heat the matching of broken pieces. If the fragments of glass from resistant and headlight glass have boron oxide added for a suspect can be fitted into the puzzle of fragments found at strength. Tempered glass is rapidly heated, then cooled to a crime scene, then it is extremely unlikely that the fragment make it break apart into millions of tiny pieces. It is used in came from any other source. In a court of law, the matching the windows of all motor vehicles. The only exception to piece will be presented as the missing piece.. this is cars made in the U.S. have windshields made of glass

52 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com Teacher’s Density Lab Set Up Materials Needed:

• one pane/piece of glass for each work station you want to set up • a chisel and hammer • a cardboard box (slightly bigger than the glass) • several pieces of broken glass of different types (Pyrex, window, headlight, etc.) • 250ml beakers • fishing line • tap water • balance that reads to .001g Procedure:

Place the pane of glass in the cardboard box, and punch a hole in the glass near the center with the chisel and hammer. Put on cloth gloves and collect all the pieces in the box. On the on a workspace, piece together (if possible) the broken pieces. Remove one piece from the puzzle. Place one or two other types of glass and the missing piece on a pieces of paper marked exhibit A, B, C, etc. Part I

Have a 250ml beaker and some fishing line placed at each workstation.Also have exhibits A, B, C, etc., placed at each work station. (Each station should have different sets of A, B, C, etc.) Demonstrate to the class how to find the density by the following method: Density = Mass/Volume Find the mass of the glass by weighing it on the balance. Using all digits show on the balance. Find the volume by displacing the mass of the glass and using the density of water as 1.0g/ml. For example Mass of A found to be 1.567g Fill the beaker half full of water and record its mass.(154.321g) Tie the fishing line around the piece of glass. While the beaker is on the balance, carefully lower the glass into the water so that all the glass is in the water, but not touching the sides or bottom of the beaker. Record the mass of the beaker and glass. (155.071g) An important assumption made in this calculation is that the fishing line is not significant in the measurement of the volume of the glass. This assumption gives no significant error unless a large amount of fishing line is use.

Mass of glass = 1.567g Volume of the glass = (155.071-154.321)/ 1.000g/ml = 0.7510ml Density = 1.567g/0.751ml = 2.086g/ml

The students should repeat this for all suspect pieces and compare the results.

Part II (optional) If the puzzle can be put together, have the students decide which piece A, B, C, etc., belongs to the original pane of glass. Do this by having the glass pieces all together except those pieces from the suspects. A perfect fit gives an extremely high probability of the glass being from the same pane, which means in a court of law, the matching piece will be considered the missing piece.

53 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 Catching a Thief Student Glass Density Lab Name(s)______

Crime Scene: At 2:50 p.m., Jim leaves the school building to walk to his car. When Jim gets to his car, he immediately sees that it has been vandalized. The driver’s side window has been broken and his stereo is gone. He goes back into the building and calls the police. After many students and teachers have been questioned, it is determined that several students could have been at the scene (they were out of class or missing during last hour). After questioning these students, the police decide to search two of these suspects. Upon each of the suspects they find glass fragments. Shawn claims to have cut school last hour, while Erica claims that she was merely cleaning up and using the bathroom during art. The glass fragments found on Shawn (suspect 1) and Erica (suspect 2) are turned over to the crime lab for analysis along with samples of glass from the crime scene.

Purpose: . To understand density and to be able to use the density equation. . To determine which glass fragments, if any, came from the crime scene. Materials: • glass fragments from the crime scene and suspects • beaker, 250ml • fishing line • scissors • water • balance Procedure: A. Find the mass of a piece of glass from the crime scene using the balance. Record the mass below. Repeat this for one piece of glass from each suspect. B. Tie a piece of fishing line, 10cm long, around the glass from the crime scene. Find the mass of a 250ml beaker half-filled with water. While the beaker is still on the balance, carefully lower the piece of glass into the water so that all the glass is in the water but not touching the sides or the bottom. Find the mass of the beaker water and the glass. Record below. Repeat this procedure for each of the suspect’s glass fragments. C. (Optional) Determine which suspect’s piece of glass fits in the broken glass perfectly.

Data Table:

Glass Fragment # Mass of Glass (g) Mass of beaker, Mass of beaker Mass of displaced water, and and water (g) glass (g) glass(g)

54 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com theCALCULATIONS: beaker water and the glass. Record below. Repeat this procedure for each of the suspect’s glass fragments. The mass of the volume of water displaced by the glass can be used to calculate the volume of the glass. C.Subtract (Optional) the mass Determine of the beakerwhich suspect’sand water piece from ofthe glass mass fits of thein the beaker broken, water glass and perfectly. glass to get the mass of the volume of water displaced. DataA. Find Table: the mass of the volume of water displaced for each glass fragment. Record in the Data Table above.

Assuming the density of water is 1.000g/ml, then the volume of each piece of glass can be calculated using the density formula: Density of the glass = Mass of water displace divided by Volume

B. Room temperature is ______. At this temperature, the density of water is ______. You have the mass of the water displaced. Solve the equation for the volume. This is equal to the volume of the glass fragment.

Volume = mass of water displaced/density of water 1. Volume of crime scene fragment =______

fragment as found with the balance and the volume of the fragment as calculated above. 2. Volume of suspect 1’s fragment =______Density = Mass/Volume 1.3. VolumeDensity of suspectfragment 2’s from fragment crime =______scene =______

2.C. DensityTo find ofthe fragment density onof eachsuspect fragment 1 =______of glass solve the equation for density using the mass of the glass fragment as found with the balance and the volume of the fragment as calculated above.

3.Density Density = Mass/Volumeof fragment on suspect 2 =______1. Density of fragment from crime scene =______Questions: 1. Which of the suspect’s glass matches that found at the crime scene? 2. Density of fragment on suspect 1 =______2. Is this a class or individual characteristic? 3. DoesDensity this of mean fragment that thison suspect suspect 2 had =______to be the person who vandalized the car? Explain why or why not!

Questions:

1. Which of the suspect’s glass matches that found at the crime scene? 2. Is this a class or individual characteristic? 3. Does this mean that this suspect had to be the person who vandalized the car? Explain why or why not!

55 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 What’s Going On?

2017

5/16 - 18 Ask the 10th Annual Veterinary Forensic Sciences Conference. New York. You’ll Learn About New approaches to collaboration to better combat animal cruelty The Morgue Guy innovative partnership between the ASPCA, NYPD and NYC District Attorney’s Offices Recent advances and new techniques, perspectives and practices in Q. I’ve taught high school forensics for two years and love it except for veterinary forensics and animal law Case studies demonstrating the impact of one thing: theft. But students aren’t forensic sciences on cruelty case outcomes. www.ivfsa.org for more info. to blame. Our creepy biology teacher is. At least three days a week he will show up at my classroom after 6/1 - 6/30 students leave and ask questions. Then, at least once a week something Mercyhurst University Summer Short Courses, Pennsylvania. I need to run a lab will go missing, Mercyhurst University Forensic Anthropology is excited to announce their mostly after we’re done with the unit. annual summer short courses will be held in June! Five courses, each 5 days, And after something disappears I can will be offered this year. Courses cover a range of topics including Death Scene always find it in his room. He denies Archaeology, Human Osteology, Biological Profile, Analysis of Bone Trauma, taking the item and laughs at me. We have about a dozen students and Documentation and Interpretation of the Fatal Fire Scene. Each course in common, but I’ve spoken with provides extensive classroom and hands-on training that will give participants a all of them and have no reason to thorough understanding of each topic. A flyer including registration information suspect any. and course fees is posted on the Mercyhurst University Department of Applied Forensic Sciences website. https://www.mercyhurst.edu/ridge-college- He knows I’m single, late 20s, and don’t have a boyfriend. He makes intelligence-studies-and-applied-sciences/applied-forensic-sciences for more sure he brings up the words “semen,” info. “rape,” or “sex” every time we talk. His hair is always greasy, he smells like cigarettes, and he makes sure 6/14 - 16 he sits next to me on professional development days. I’m sick of being Bloodstain Analysis Workshop. Florida. The purpose of this three day workshop harassed. I can’t prove he’s taking is to introduce Bloodstain Pattern Analysis, as well as enhancement and detection my supplies, and both assistant of blood evidence at crime scenes. Proper documentation of these types of principals insist he’s harmless and scenes and the collection of biological evidence will be discussed. Classroom I’m not being a good sport. What lectures and hands-on practical exercises will be provided. Attendees should can I do? bring their own camera equipment and tripods, and wear comfortable but ¬—Amber Kioln, Taquikaq, AK appropriate clothing. Basic DSLR camera knowledge is a plus. For more info go to http://maples-center.ufl.edu/activities/ A. No one should have to put up with the conditions you’re describing. Set up a camera in your classroom or camouflage your cell phone after 6/26 - 30 school and come back an hour later. Forensic Anthropology Workshop. Louisiana, This course is designed especially Document your conversations with for students, medical examiners, and death investigators. Topics include basic Casanova and make sure the voice techniques to determine the sex, age ancestry and stature of an individual memo app on your phone is running. from skeletal remains. Other topics include lectures on bone trauma, recovery Don’t be antagonistic and see if he ups his game for the recording. After techniques and time since death. Instructors will also provide case studies from you get a piece of equipment back their own experiences. Laboratories allow the students hands-on experiences to dust it for prints. Build a harass- reinforce lecture topics. This course carries three (3) hours college credit. For more ment case slowly and carefully and info go to www.tulane.edu. when you’re ready show it to your principal. If he’s a good ol’ boy take it to district HR.

56 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com What’s Going On?

7/17 - 20 Pattern Evidence and Blood Stain Analysis,Texas. This four day course will Just be broken into two sections. The first two days will cover Bloodstain Pattern Analysis including the fundamental physics of blood-staining, along with the for Fun recognition, processing, and analysis of blood stains at crime scenes. The third and fourth day will covers topics that deal with Pattern Evidence such as Latent Be KeWL Print Identification and Latent Print Processing. See www.cjcenter.org/stafs for KWL is an often overlooked tool more info. that can make assessment easier. If you’ve never used one the K stands for Know, the W stands for Want To Know, and the L stands for what was Learned. These 8/14 - 16 three little letters will let you take International Conference on Evidence Law and Forensic Science. Maryland. the pulse of your students and On August 14-16, the Sixth International Conference on Evidence Law and their understanding of the material. Forensic Science will be held in Baltimore The previous conferences have been held in Australia and China. The sixth conference is cosponsored by the You can make up worksheets with University of Maryland, the Offices of the Chief Medical Examiner and Attorney a title and three columns labelled General of the State of Maryland, China University of Political Science and Law, with K, W, and L. Or you can ask and Dian Diagnostics The first day of the program will focus on the relationship your students to use their own paper. between evidence law and forensic science, the second day on the judicial standards for admitting expert testimony, and the third day on bridging the gap After you announce the title of between science and law Abstract and manuscript submissions are welcome the next unit ask your students between November 1, 2016 and April 30, 2017 The requirements for submissions to write down in the K column are set out at the conference website, http://wwwicelfs2017 theiaescom everything they know about the topic. Then do the same in the W column for what do they want to learn by the end of the unit. Fi- nally, ask them to put their papers away and when the unit is over ask them to fill out the L column and list what they’ve learned. Online Forensic Education Ask your students to share what, if any, misconceptions they had in their K column. Then open a Please search “online forensic education” with Google. We regret we do not have discussion about the W column. the space to present the list here. Did everyone have their questions answered? If not, explore with your students what issues were not explained. Ask your students to review aloud the L column as part of their review for the unit quiz or test. Challenge them to take their KWL home and run it on family Do you or your organization have a workshop, seminar, conference, members. Hearing family mis- training opportunity, or announcement you’d like to share and have conceptions will be interesting for included free? Please email us at [email protected] and students who will then reveal the tell us about it! truth from their L columns. This will be another layer in reviewing the material.

57 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 Stoopid

. Crooks The police just dream about geniuses like these guys...

Russell “Rusty” Moore had just finished a long afternoon painting his porch in Gulfport, FL. He was relaxing on his porch steps after several beers when two police cars pulled up in front of his house. The officers hurried inside to the house next door and remained there for several minutes. When even more time elapsed, Rusty became irritated that the cops had parked in front of his domicile and decided to take matters into his own hands. With a still-wet brush and a handy can of paint Rusty, painted his name across the hood of one car, and a big “R” across the other. When confronted by the cops, he admitted to the crime and was promptly arrested. Klaus Schmidt walked into a bank in Berlin with a pistol and demanded money. The terrified tellers began putting cash into a bag, but noticed he appeared to be acting strangely. A few minutes later one of he cashiers asked him if he wanted smaller bills too and Klaus replied, “You’re damn right it’s a real gun!” It began to dawn on the staff that Klaus had a disability: he was deaf. One of the managers set off the alarm and as the ear-splitting sound tore through the room, Klaus didn’t seem to notice. He also didn’t notice when police arrived until they arrested him. Incredibly, Klaus later tried to sue the bank for exploiting his disability. Donald “Chip” Pugh, a Lima Ohio man, heard there was an arrest warrant out in his name for arson and vandalism. He found the document online and was insulted. He called into a radio station and told them, “Man, they just did me wrong. They put a picture out that made me look like I was a Thundercat... or James Brown on

Subject content of the issue is subject to change without notice, sorry the run. I can’t do that.” He promptly texted local police a more flattering photo of Summer reading himself. They thanked him for being helpful and asked him to come in and speak to them. Chip had other ideas, but authorities picked him up soon after in Florida. Daniel Jones of Cinnaminson, NJ later proved to have a blood alcohol level three times the legal limit when he was arrested at a golf course in the Florida Keys. Witnesses say he drove erratically in a golf cart attempting to run down a rooster in a nearby neighborhood. One witness said, “He was adamant about trying to hit the rooster.” The hunt ended when Jones flipped the golf cart, injured himself and his two passengers, and the police showed up. The rooster, however, jumped out of the way and wasn’t harmed. Al Stewart, 31, of Hallandale Beach, FL and three of his friends were out at a tavern celebrating the end of the week when Barbara Lee, 45, a local woman on the other side of the room, became convinced the men were throwing gang signs at her and each other. She took the abuse for as long as she could before deciding to put an end to their behavior. Barbara left the tavern and got a friend, 19-year old Marco Ibanez, who returned with her to the bar and quickly confirmed the blatant display. He pulled out a knife and savagely attacked the four men. A bouncer tried to intervene, but Barbara nailed him in the back of the head with a beer bottle. Police arrived before anyone died and Lee and Ibanez found themselves charged with assault with a deadly weapon. On the way to jail a cop explained to the geniuses that all four men were deaf, and the gang signs were sign language. Stephan Abraham and Diamond Cox stopped at a North Carolina gas station, threatened the clerk with a gun, and made what should have been a clean getaway.

Next Issue: However, a man at the station’s outside ATM realized what happened and decided to follow them as he called 911. Meanwhile, Abraham and Cox called 911 because a strange car was following them. Both dispatchers stayed on the phone until the trio crossed a county line where police were waiting to arrest the robbers. 58 The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com Stoopid Movies More stoopid criminals; these guys are priceless. Click on the cameras below to see the movies (internet connection required).

59 www.theforensicteacher.com www.theforensicteacher.com The Forensic Teacher • Spring 2017