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.
The 'forensics industry' encompasses at least twenty different areas, from pathology to accounting, so any certifications would be administered by that disciplines organizing body. Fingerprints, for example, are regulated through the International Association for Identification. Death Investigators have their own organization. Whether or not these certifications are required for your job is up to the agency (such as your city police department or a county medical examiner's office) hiring you for that job.
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I’ve never had someone ask for transcripts at an interview, and I think it would be a little unreasonable for them to expect you to have them with you without warning.It will be generally like any other interview. When they ask what experience you have in forensics be sure to mention specific tests and techniques you’ve done, like superglue, crime scene reconstruction, the AFIS system, etc.
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It depends on what you're talking about--was what contaminated with what? Lots of things can be contaminated with things without results being affected. Take blood, you can mix blood with paint or dirt or maybe oil or types of soap and that won't affect the DNA profile. If you mix it with bleach or other blood, it will. So if you had, say, heroin, and it gets mixed with fingerprint powder or cotton fibers, it's still going to test as heroin. If you mix it with cocaine, maybe it won't. (Controlled substances are not my field.) So 'contamination' is not a one-size fits-all word.
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Yes. I don’t know if it’s actually from the poop or from the skin cells sloughed off on it, but you can.
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Call Center Employee (Retail)
I've heard that a lot of startups are hiring really well-educated college grads and paying them a lot, reasoning that customer service is often a client's most lasting impression of a brand. What do you think, and is it something you see spreading?
CPR Trainer
Why does the 'official' CPR method change from time to time?
Nail Technician
How sanitary are the pedicure basins really?
Sorry, but I’m not trained in digital forensics. I have absolutely no idea.
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I’m sorry, no. I don’t feel qualified to do that.
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Most people are cross-trained in more than one area. In smaller agencies people might have to wear a lot of hats.
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