Articles Published by NIJ

The importance of non-targeted testing to keep pace with a rapidly evolving synthetic opioid market.

Introduction to the National Best Practices for Improving DNA Laboratory Process Efficiency

NIJ-funded researchers developed a novel metric to assess probability that an unknown sample of a drug matches a library sample, with profound implications for standardization of mass spectrometry results.

Illicit opioid supplies can be greatly reduced if distribution networks are disrupted. New research highlights the power of computer modeling and community-based intelligence to reveal network connections.

For cases in which violence is a contributing factor, new research presents the importance of characterizing the NamUs database.

The reliability, interpretability, and cost-benefit of three-dimensional laser-scanned images for crime scene documentation is assessed.

Criminal investigators use physiological changes and insect development to determine how long a body has been dead, but scientists are using the trillions of microbes involved in human decomposition to find more accurate postmortem intervals.

A new postmortem image database will be a resource for research in forensic anthropology, pathology, and radiology.

Researchers created an open-access computer program for estimating the age of skeletal remains that outperforms current methods. The algorithm is based on 20 age-related skeletal changes identified by experienced forensic anthropologists.

“Wherever he steps, whatever he touches, whatever he leaves, even unconsciously, will serve as a silent witness against him.” Edmond Locard (1877-1966), forensic science pioneer

Improving postmortem interval estimation with standardized and simplified protocols could significantly impact medicolegal death investigations by providing more accurate and reliable data for determining time since death.