Archival Notice
This is an archive page that is no longer being updated. It may contain outdated information and links may no longer function as originally intended.
Home | Glossary | Resources | Help | Course Map
The forensic witness should consider the following philosophical and attendant procedural questions to help facilitate the most effective testimony:
- If forensic investigation suggests a result that is scientifically, technically or factually irrefutable, why can't experts simply gather around a table and resolve the dispute in a spirit of collegiality and fraternity?
- Why must an expert be subjected to grueling and rigorous cross-examination when the facts are so clear? The expert is confident of his or her expertise and has studied the facts and tested the evidence. The expert is educated and trained in the applicable specialty and can provide answers to most questions about the scientific evidence.
- How can another expert witness study the same facts, data or evidence and reach a different conclusion?
- How can the attorney know the results of the expert's research and testing in advance without preparing adequate groundwork to arrive at those conclusions? An attorney who draws conclusions without the evidence hinders the expert's role in providing accurate testimony, or it may appear that the expert's integrity is being challenged
Additional Online Courses
- What Every First Responding Officer Should Know About DNA Evidence
- Collecting DNA Evidence at Property Crime Scenes
- DNA – A Prosecutor’s Practice Notebook
- Crime Scene and DNA Basics
- Laboratory Safety Programs
- DNA Amplification
- Population Genetics and Statistics
- Non-STR DNA Markers: SNPs, Y-STRs, LCN and mtDNA
- Firearms Examiner Training
- Forensic DNA Education for Law Enforcement Decisionmakers
- What Every Investigator and Evidence Technician Should Know About DNA Evidence
- Principles of Forensic DNA for Officers of the Court
- Law 101: Legal Guide for the Forensic Expert
- Laboratory Orientation and Testing of Body Fluids and Tissues
- DNA Extraction and Quantitation
- STR Data Analysis and Interpretation
- Communication Skills, Report Writing, and Courtroom Testimony
- Español for Law Enforcement
- Amplified DNA Product Separation for Forensic Analysts