Publisher's Synopsis
This is a book that examines and explains the increasingly sophisticated methods used by forensic scientists to solve crimes. Jack Batten, author of crime fiction and law books, sheds light on the activities used by scientists at the scenes of crimes and later, in the laboratories.;The book investigates a variety of forensic sciences, each by way of a particular Canadian trial, guided by the detectives, lawyers and scientists who worked on the cases. The book looks at footprinting, and the case where a footprint left in the snow helped catch two men for attempted murder. It also looks at ink analysis, illustrated by the case where a defence attorney noticed different coloured inks in a police witness's notes, and at food analysis, shown as successful in the Truscott case, where analysis of the victim's stomach contents helped to fix the time of death. Forensic accounting is also looked at, in the case of Trinidad's notorious "Mr. Ten Percent", when government money was traced and found, years after it had been considered lost. The book also focuses on the analysis of blood, hair and semen, and shows how one of Canada's first DNA examinations led to Johnny Terceira's conviction for the murder of Andrea Atkinson.
