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1235
First Forensic Science Case in China
In 1200's China, somebody in a village was stabbed. The villagers collected every knife in the village, and set them out. Later, flies were attracted to the traces of blood on one of the knives. The owner of the knife then confessed to the murder. -
Mathieu Orfila
The Father of Toxicology. He discovered ways of detecting poisons on bodies by testing different toxins on animals. -
William Herschel
As an officer for the British Indian Civil Service, he began to use fingerprints to identify workers. This is one of the earliest cases of fingerprints being used to identify people. -
Alphonse Bertillon
The Father of Criminal Identification. He developed Anthropometry, which uses body measurements to identify individuals. -
Henry Faulds
He used fingerprints to eliminate an innocent burglary suspect. This is an early example of fingerprints being used in a forensic setting. -
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
The author of the immensely famous "Sherlock Holmes" stories. These popularized scientific crime-detection methods in forensics. -
Francis Galton
Published "Finger Prints", which was the first definitive study into the science of fingerprints. He gave proof of their uniqueness, and how to classify them. -
Hans Gross
Wrote "Criminal Investigation". He wrote the first paper describing how to apply scientific principles to forensics. Kinda had a half mustache. -
Karl Landsteiner
He discovered the ABO blood groups, for which he received a Nobel Prize. -
Edmond Locard
He incorporated Gross' principles within the real world. He founded the Institute of Criminalistics in Lyons, France. -
Albert S. Osborn
Published "Questioned Documents". He developed the fundamental principles of document examination. His work led to the eventual creation of Document Examination Units. -
Leone Lattes
He developed a method to find out the blood type of dried blood. This was useful in solving crimes that were not discovered immediately. -
August Vollmer
He founded and headed the first crime lab in the United States, which was located in Los Angeles. -
Calvin Goddard
He created the comparison microscope, which was originally used to compare bullets. It can also be used to compare hair samples.
