CRIMEBUSTING Breakthroughs in Forensic Science

Hardback. In the previous 200yrs, the scales of justice benefited from the contribution of a new ally in the fight against crime...science. Previously, felons and miscreants had to be caught in the act or leave the most obvious clues but, in the early 19th century, medical jurisprudence began to play a role. With improvements to the microscope mid-century, other scientific developments gathered pace. Dental and fingerprint analysis permitted the identification of specific individuals. Ballistic examination meant that spent bullets could be tracked back to the gun which fired them. Toxicological tests were refined to the point where the domestic poisoner almost gave up this desperate pastime. Miniscule fragments of clothing, skin, paint, or even glass could be studied to place a suspect at the scene of the crime, and more recently DNA has provided the forensic expert with the ultimate tag...or has it? In this study, the author examines 20 famous cases in forensic science, each one a significant signpost on the route to the scientific solution of crime. Ranging from the bodysnatching case of Burke and Hare in 1828 to the extensive use of scientific data today, her case studies show the fragile interdependence of forensic science, the criminal justice system, and human nature. Contents include : Marie Lafarge, Professor Webster, Palmer, Lamson, Harris and Buchanan, Eyraud and Bompard, the Stratton brothers, Crippen, Leroy Brady, Sacco and Vanzetti, Browne and Kennedy, Jeannie Donald, Ruxton, Pitchfork, Timothy Spencer + others. Illus., Selected Sources and Index. 240pp. 8vo h/back. From the library of true crime writer, Wilfred Gregg, with his personal b/plate. F. in F. dw.