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Many colleges and universities offer forensic science courses ranging from a single introductory class to majors. Previous research has not addressed how valuable these courses are to undergraduate criminal justice students who aspire to enter the law enforcement field. A random sample of law enforcement agencies in Michigan were surveyed. Seventy-eight percent of respondents agreed that knowledge of forensic science was important and 46% preferred that applicants have a forensic science background prior to hiring. The knowledge areas deemed most important were interviewing techniques, crime scene documentation, evidence collection, and latent fingerprint analysis.
Forensic science refers to the scientific analysis of evidence and, as such, is located at the juncture of the sciences, law enforcement, and the law. The specialties making up the forensic sciences have grown considerably in complexity, breadth, and depth during the past several decades (Evett 1993; Pena 1997). Today, forensic evidence is crucial in many criminal cases and is a vital part of the criminal justice system (Lindquist 1991). Currently, most forensic evidence is collected by law enforcement officers (Berg and Horgan 1998; Garland and Stuckey 2000). Law enforcement agencies have an increasing responsibility to locate, identify, secure, and correctly collect evidence in criminal cases. Failure to do so will not only lessen the likelihood of a criminal conviction but can also tarnish the image of the law enforcement agency.
In response to the increasing forensic science demands being placed on law enforcement personnel, many criminal justice programs now offer a criminal investigation class, a forensic science class, or a concentration of such classes (Lindquist 1994; Lindquist and Smith 1983). These classes are offered to broaden the students' knowledge about the importance of forensic evidence as well as its wide range. Lindquist (1994:60) writes, "Because criminalistic courses are so common at the undergraduate level, their relevance begs examination." Many of the students who take these forensic science courses will later become law enforcement officers. In part, these courses are intended to improve the employability of students in criminal justice. However, it is unclear what level of forensic science awareness and knowledge is desired by law enforcement agencies. This study seeks to determine what forensic science information law enforcement agencies expect of their new recruits.
DEFINING FORENSIC SCIENCE AND ITS...