I spent the five happiest years of my life in a morgue. As a forensic scientist in the Cleveland coroner’s office I analyzed gunshot residue on hands and clothing, hairs, fibers, paint, glass, DNA, blood and many other forms of trace evidence, as well as crime scenes. Now I'm a certified latent print examiner and CSI for a police department in Florida. I also write a series of forensic suspense novels, turning the day job into fiction. My books have been translated into six languages.
I'm so sorry but I don't know. I'm not trained in digital forensics.
I see, but I still couldn't say. It depends entirely upon the hiring agency and what kind of pool of applicants they typically have--basically, who they have to choose from. There will be a basic set of requirements but after that, advanced degrees are better than high school diplomas, degrees from accredited schools better than non-accredited, internships at forensic agencies very helpful, etc. The best way to know is to call the places you would like to work at and ask them. If you can get a tour of their facility, even better, then you can gently ask the people who work there where they went to school and so on. Shorter answer: It won't automatically get you in or automatically keep you from getting in. Of course it certainly couldn't hurt. Best of luck!
With hairs, you can’t identify one to a specific person with only microscopic examination—the main reason it is hardly used these days, and typically only as screening to decide to do DNA analysis. Then DNA analysis is actually done on the skin cells clinging around the root, because the actual hair doesn’t have any nuclear DNA. It does have mitochondrial DNA though few labs can do that.Fiber analysis is also rarely done these days because it can’t be positively identified to an article of clothing, or is it possible (usually) to find out how many of that article had been manufactured or sold and who they were sold to, etc. An analyst can say the fiber is consistent with coming from that article but that’s all. Unless there is a ‘jigsaw match’, a section of the material found that can be fit back into the article of clothing like a puzzle piece.Hope that helps!
I’m not a pathologist but I think it’s possible even if not likely. Bodies start to stiffen in 1-2 hours but rigor reaches its peak somewhere around 12 hours. It can depend a great deal on temperature, body type and medical conditions.
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It is scientific information applied to matters pertaining to the law. And what you major in depends on what area you're going in to--pathology, toxicology, entemology, etc.
I don't see why not!
Best of luck.
Answer to both is: maybe. If she was buried in the earth over 20 years, unless the ground was always frozen or so dry that she mummified, there will most likely be only skeletal remains left. So they might be able to establish identity from dental records, medical device implants (say a pacemaker or an artificial hip), or something left in the grave with her (like an ID card). I believe anthropologists can tell from the pelvic bone if someone has given birth, but not if pregnant at the time of death. However depending on how far along the baby is, they might have their own bones present so then it would be obvious. Best of luck!
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