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.
Physical evidence was always extremely important. What has changed with technology is what types of evidence are more commonly examined. It used to be hairs and pollen and now it's touch DNA and cell phones.
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Huh, that's a good question. I hope my books show what it's really like, except, of course, that my protagonist spends much more time out of the lab than in it, which is not at all realistic.
The non-fiction TV shows and books show reality, however, you have to remember that they're presenting cases that most investigators may come across once or twice in a lifetime.
Fiction shows, like "CSI" in which they have computerized databases of every substance in the world including toothpaste and wall paint, or ones in which female pathologists wear cocktail dresses to work. are definitely not realistic at all.
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Medicine. Forensic pathologists are doctors and go to medical school. So I would suggest you take every science course you can, especially biological sciences. Best of luck to you!
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I used to analyze dried paint with an FTIR, which I believe would detect lead, but as to what would be better I really don’t know. Sorry I can’t be more help.
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Auto Mechanic
If I know nothing about cars, how can I tell if a mechanic is ripping me off?
Flight Attendant
What kinds of passengers annoy you the most?
School Teacher
Do you think teachers are underpaid? Why?
That all depends on where you work, what the caseload is, and what your job duties are. If you work someplace with a huge backlog and more work than you have personnel for, it could be stressful. When I was at the coroner’s office it was exhausting, we had a ton of work, not much staff, were underpaid, and my boss was a little crazy, but i loved it so much I didn’t care. At the police department now we have just enough people to manage the work, so even though it gets busy at times we stay on a pretty even keel. Good supervisory management is key (in any field). Best of luck!
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Once in a great while something will catch me when I’m not expecting it. But very rarely.
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Possibly, I suppose. If they were swabbed thoroughly and the swabs picked up a few skin cells, then it would be within the realm of possibility.
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