LIsa Black
Cape Coral, FL
Female, 49
I spent the five happiest years of my life in a morgue. As a forensic scientist in the Cleveland coroner’s office I analyzed gunshot residue on hands and clothing, hairs, fibers, paint, glass, DNA, blood and many other forms of trace evidence, as well as crime scenes. Now I'm a certified latent print examiner and CSI for a police department in Florida. I also write a series of forensic suspense novels, turning the day job into fiction. My books have been translated into six languages.
At my department I mostly work with fingerprints, analyzing and comparing fingerprints that I collect off pieces of evidence or pick up at crime scenes or ones that the officers submit after they collect them at crime scenes. I will also go to crime scenes, photograph, collect prints, items of evidence, maybe test for blood or collect samples of blood with sterile swabs. There’s also a lot of time spent writing up all this information in our reports and other paperwork. If I worked in DNA or ballistics or toxicology, I would probably spend all day in the lab doing those types of analysis. So it depends on where you work, what services they provide, and what your exact position is. I hope that helps!
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I have no idea as I’ve never worked as a first responder. I would suspect that’s largely a plot device for film or books, but I don’t actually know.
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I don’t know what you mean by pure math. Most crime scene work, fingerprints, tool marks, serology, might need regular adding and subtracting, but I don’t know of any field that uses calculus or algebra. DNA analysis uses a lot of statistics and ballistics and traffic accident investigation might use physics and geometry. But those are the only examples I can think of.
Best of luck!
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My job isn't like TV--I'm not involved in every single aspect of the investigation. My job is to provide forensic support to the detectives, so in any given case I estimate I know perhaps 20% of the overall information relating to the crime. I don't know what witnesses, victims, suspects have said, what financial or phone records might show, etc. etc. The detectives would probably tell me if I asked, but I'm usually too busy with all the other cases to ask.
Who to arrest and who to prosecute is up to the detectives and the prosecutors. They don't ask my opinion, and in light of the first paragraph, I probably couldn't give them an informed one.
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I'm sorry but I have absolutely no idea. I didn't know there was a cost. I would have guessed that their attorney could request a court order to do so from the judge and the police agency that has the print would take care of it, but I really don't know. Sorry I can't be more help.
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Yes, I love true crime. I read pretty much the entire section of the downtown branch of the Cleveland Public Library while I was a secretary before I got into forensics. The books I write are fiction but I'd love to write true crime.
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Wow, that’s a tough question! I’m not sure I could come up with ten.
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