Uses and Abuses of Forensic Science

Abstract

In the broadest sense, forensic science is any science used in the resolution of legal conflicts. Forensic science has come to mean the study and practice of applying natural and physical sciences to the just resolution of social and legal issues. Application of forensic science reduces the number of cases entering the court systems by allowing many decisions to be reached before litigation. Forensic psychiatry concerns the practice of psychiatry in its special medicolegal context. Forensic psychiatrists must complete a psychiatric residency training program, and a few advanced post-residence programs have been instituted. Forensic anthropology deals with the identification of skeletal remains through the application of standard anthropological techniques. The law views forensic science as its handmaiden, and conflicts almost invariably are resolved in favor of the mistress. The chapter considers the distinction between the introduction of evidence and the introduction of an interpretation of that evidence.