Introduction
By Jay A. Siegel, Ph.D.
Director, Forensic and Investigative Sciences Program
Indiana University, Purdue University, Indianapolis
It seems like every day the news brings forth another story about crime in
the United States. Although the crime rate has been slowly decreasing over
the past few years (due perhaps in part to the aging of the population),
crime continues to be a very serious problem. Increasingly, the stories we
read that involve crimes also mention the role that forensic science plays
in solving serious crimes. Sensational crimes provide real examples of the
power of forensic science. In recent years there has been an explosion of
books, movies, and TV shows devoted to forensic science and crime inves-
tigation. The wondrously successful
CSI
TV shows have spawned a major
increase in awareness of and interest in forensic science as a tool for solv-
ing crimes.
CSI
even has its own syndrome: the “
CSI
Effect,” wherein jurors
in real cases expect to hear testimony about science such as fingerprints,
DNA, and blood spatter because they saw it on TV.
The unprecedented rise in the public’s interest in forensic science has
fueled demands by students and parents for more educational programs
