Criminalistics Applied to Forensic Chemistry

Course manual 2023/2024

Course content

The course will start with an overview of the basic concepts in forensic science and the essential steps of the forensic process. For practical and didactical reasons, the process has been divided in four phases as could be seen by a forensic scientist; the investigation of the scene of the incident (crime), the analysis, the interpretation and the reporting. Each of the phases in the process will be individually explored using examples from several forensic areas of expertise. These areas of expertise are generally based on specific forensic traces and make use of various methods and techniques that can be roughly divided into two main categories: instrumental measurement based and human observation based. Chemical analysis of paint, glass, explosives, illicit drugs, fire accelerants and documents are examples of the first category. The comparison of fingerprints, handwriting, speech, tool marks and cartridge marks are examples of the latter. Some of the aforementioned areas will be used to illustrate each step of the process as well as the intertwined nature of the complete process. Moreover, evidence interpretation is subject to a paradigm shift: the classical interpretation is being replaced by an interpretation based on a more logical approach and the use of likelihood ratios (also known as Bayesian approach). Therefore, special attention will be given to this issue.

Study materials

Literature

• Books

  Bernard Robertson, G.A. Vignaux, Charles E.H. Berger. Interpreting evidence : evaluating forensic science in the courtroom. Chichester, West Sussex, UK : John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., Second edition, 2016. This book can be accessed digitally through the UVA librabry

   

  
  Asten, Arian van. Chemical Analysis for Forensic Evidence. Amsterdam, Netherlands ;: Elsevier, 2023.

  This book can be accessed digitally through the UVA librabry

   

   

  Selected Chapters (indicated in Canvas) from: ARW Jackson, JM Jackson. Forensic Science (3ed) Pearson: 2011. (9780273738404). 

   

Objectives

• 1. Describe parties involved in a forensic process (Prosecution, Defense, Forensic Scientist, Court, Police) and explain their roles.
• 2. Explain the types of forensic inference (classification, individualisation, identification, association, reconstruction).
• 3. Explain how forensic traces are generated (pattern transfer, matter transfer, indivisibility of matter) and how information (features) can be extracted from traces.
• 4. Explain the scientific basis of the analytical techniques most commonly used in the analysis of non-biological traces.
• 5. Determine the weight of evidence using Likelihood Ratio’s (in a Bayesian framework).
• 6. Critically review the essential steps in case (pre)-assessment and interpretation for a simple case: (define key issue, create relevant hypotheses, assess (expected) probabilities of outcomes, calculate (expected) weight of evidence), at source and activity level.
• 7. Recognize and avoid common fallacies in forensic reasoning (Prosecotors’ / Defence fallacy.
• 8. Apply the criteria used in this study programme to characterise presentations as appropriate for master level.

Teaching methods

• Lecture
• Presentation/symposium
• Self-study

Lectures, tutorials and discussions.

Every week there is lecture, a tutorial and a discussion topic and every student is expected to participate. During the tutorials the topics covered in the lectures will be reinforced with information from real cases while the discussions will be conducted on Canvas.

Learning activities

Attendance

This programme does not have requirements concerning attendance (OER part B).

Additional requirements for this course:

Attending all scheduled education activities is strongly advised. By doing so, you actively contribute to a lively learning community and significantly improve your chances of successfully completing the course. The designated mandatory activities play a crucial role in achieving the course objectives and are essential for your overall progress.

Additional requirements for this course:
It is presupposed that all students will be present in class.

Assessment

All components will be graded on a scale from 1 to 10, with a maximum of one decimal after the point. These grades are used to calculate the final grade. In order to pass the course, all components and the final grade have to be sufficient, i.e. at least a five and a half. When a student has not fulfilled this requirement, the examiner will register the mark ‘did not fulfil all requirements’ (NAV) whether or not the averaged grade is sufficient.

The components will be weighted as follows:

1. Presentations (group assignment, individually graded; 10%)
   There will be two rounds of presentations (“drug pills” and “strength of the evidence”)
2. Tutorials/discussions (30%, individual)
   Every week there is a discussion topic or an assignment and every student is expected to participate.
3. Final exam (60%, individual)
   
   

The assignments, the presentation and the exam will be assessed on an individual base.The assignments and exam are designed to assess the theoretical and practical aspects related to the learning outcomes 1 - 8

The final grade will be announced at the latest 15 working days after the final course activity (November 15th). Between this date and 35 working days after the final course activity (December 13th), a post-exam discussion or inspection moment will be planned. This will be announced on Canvas and/or via email.

Table of specification:the relation between the Learning Outcomes (LO) of the course, the assessment components of the course and the Exit Qualifications (EQ) of the Master’s Forensic Science (described in the Introduction in the Course Catalogue)

Assignments

1. The Tutorials/discussions

There will be regular discussion topics or an assignment and every student is expected to participate. During the tutorials the topics covered in the lectures will be reinforced with information from real cases while the discussions will be conducted on Canvas. In general, one or more articles will be assigned and the discussion will originate from the list of key issues given with the articles. Consistency in the entire articles and relations among the research question, the chosen method and the conclusions will be often addressed. The deadlines for submission of discussions and assignments are communicated in Canvas.

For every assignment and every discussion there will be a numerical grade given. The possible grades for the tutorials/discussion are given by a conversion of a verbal scale to numerical (not delivered=0, unsatisfactory=4, satisfactory=6, good=8, excellent=10).

2. Presentations

There will be two rounds of presentations (“drug pills” and “strength of the evidence”). The presentations will be group assignments, one on feature extraction and comparison (drug pills) and one on case assessment (strength of the evidence) using a case example. Only the second presentation will be graded (on an individual base) for which a standard assessment form will be used.

3. The final examination

The final exam will be assessed on an individual base.

Fraud and plagiarism

The 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' applies to this course. This will be monitored carefully. Upon suspicion of fraud or plagiarism the Examinations Board of the programme will be informed. For the 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' see: www.student.uva.nl

Course structure

Additional information

Basic concepts of chemistry: atoms and compounds.

Contact information

Coordinator

• dr. Maarten Blom