LIsa Black
Cape Coral, FL
Female, 49
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 have no idea as I’ve never worked as a first responder. I would suspect that’s largely a plot device for film or books, but I don’t actually know.
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I don’t know what you mean by pure math. Most crime scene work, fingerprints, tool marks, serology, might need regular adding and subtracting, but I don’t know of any field that uses calculus or algebra. DNA analysis uses a lot of statistics and ballistics and traffic accident investigation might use physics and geometry. But those are the only examples I can think of.
Best of luck!
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My job isn't like TV--I'm not involved in every single aspect of the investigation. My job is to provide forensic support to the detectives, so in any given case I estimate I know perhaps 20% of the overall information relating to the crime. I don't know what witnesses, victims, suspects have said, what financial or phone records might show, etc. etc. The detectives would probably tell me if I asked, but I'm usually too busy with all the other cases to ask.
Who to arrest and who to prosecute is up to the detectives and the prosecutors. They don't ask my opinion, and in light of the first paragraph, I probably couldn't give them an informed one.
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I'm sorry but I have absolutely no idea. I didn't know there was a cost. I would have guessed that their attorney could request a court order to do so from the judge and the police agency that has the print would take care of it, but I really don't know. Sorry I can't be more help.
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Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon
Do you ever operate on guys who get their jaws busted in a fight?
Correctional Officer
Why does gang formation and racial segregation happen so much in prisons?
Subway Store Manager
The 6" sub is too small and the 12" is too big. Why no 9-inch sub?
There have been a few cases in which I testified where the defendants were found not guilty, and I was fine with that. In some there simply wasn't sufficient evidence, in one it was clearly self-defense, in two the defendants were charged with murder and I figured it should have been manslaughter. But that's why we have a jury system, and they did a good job.
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Yes, I love true crime. I read pretty much the entire section of the downtown branch of the Cleveland Public Library while I was a secretary before I got into forensics. The books I write are fiction but I'd love to write true crime.
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Yes.
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