Articles Published by NIJ

Identifying individuals through next generation DNA sequencing may involve degraded or mixed samples. A researcher has developed a technique to make fragmented DNA more readable, and a method to help pull individual profiles from mixed samples.

The forensic power of DNA is clear, but biological evidence also contains RNA, another potential source of information. Because RNA decomposes quickly, its utility is considered limited. Could this decomposition provide information about a sample’s age?

The regions of the genome relied on for identification of individuals pose challenges for analysts because they often produce artifacts during processing. NIJ-funded research has led to a solution that lessens the artifact problem.

Key questions have arisen about how DNA data are to be interpreted statistically. Two NIJ grants have supported research that has far-reaching implications for testing hypotheses using DNA evidence and expressing confidence in the conclusions reached.

NIJ-funded researchers adapted a method used to detect human exposure to environmental and occupational chemicals to significantly extend the limited time period when tests can identify evidence of certain illicit drugs in the body.

After analyzing individual blood droplets on inclined surfaces, researchers in this NIJ-funded project said measurements show the current standard method is accurate for drops that hit at right angles but has significant errors at shallow impact angles.

An NIJ-funded study explored injury and forensic evidence in sexual assault cases using data from different types of medical examiners, laboratories, and the police.

Fiber evidence has long been an important part of criminal cases, for it can associate a suspect with a crime scene. This project details new analytical procedures that allow fiber comparisons that are more detailed than standard forensic practices.

Researchers create a metric to determine the difficulty of matching latent and known fingerprints, then link that difficulty to error rates.

Two researchers with a long record of research into the forensic value of very small particle populations examined cell phones, handguns, drug packaging, and ski masks from the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office to determine if such particles can make phys