Criminalistics: Forensic Science, Crime and Terrorism, Second Edition

The author has very succinctly put together crime scene investigation. There is no fluff here. The chapter looks at the fundamental steps to crime scene investigation. I would like to see a little more detail if wanting to put together an entire course. However, for a survey of forensic science course, this abbreviated chapter is appropriate. It was wise of the author to have omitted any crime scene reconstruction activities or to discuss the multitudes of visualization and enhancement methodologies and technologies. These topics are more often found in traditional crime scene investigation textbooks.
On a whole, this text is very well suited for a criminal justice curriculum that offers courses relating to the analysis or application of forensic science to the testing of physical evidence. The text provides a sufficient amount of science for the criminal justice reader be able to apply the science to analyze the evidence correctly. The text is not appropriate for a science-based forensic science curriculum.

-Marilyn T. Miller, EdD
Associate professor in the Department of Forensic Science in the College of Humanities and Sciences at Virginia Commonwealth University.
Prior to teaching, Dr. Miller was a forensic scientist going to crime scenes and analyzing the evidence in forensic laboratories in PA, FL and NC. She has testified hundreds of times in federal and state courts in over a dozen states.
Reviewed in the Ivestigative Sciences Journal, Volume 3, Number 1, March 2011