Forensics Week 2025
- hdickinson46
- Mar 24
- 6 min read
I Day One
3/17/25
Mr.Garside - The Devil is in the Details
The details of a matter are its most crucial/essential/significant aspect. Forensic Evidence is any item considered to be of evidentiary value that can be examined by a person of specialized training to give an opinion about it. DNA is what everyone wants. It will clear you or it will convict you. The most common places are teeth, bones (tricky with marrow transplants), hair follicles, semen, salvia, and blood (it's degradable and destructible). Regarding bite marks, they are the most common in child abuse cases. Nowadays, bitemarks can be difficult to look at. There are braces, Invisalign, dentures, and veneers.
Digital forensics is also one thing that can ruin you. There are people who are looking for one thing that you said that can ruin you. Apple car screens will be your biggest tattletail.
There are four stages of death to help you determine the time of death.
Pallor mortis: increased paleness due to the suspension of blood circulation
Algor mortis: cooling of the body temperature… in really cold or humid areas, it is harder to determine this.
Rigor mortis: stiffening; usually starts in 4 hours depending on the heat. Guys can go into rigor mortis faster than women because they have more muscle mass. Also, kids go way slower because their bodies contain more fat than muscle.
Livor mortis: the bruising of death; begins within 10 minutes but is not visible until after two hours. Once it sets in and fills, it tells.
Why + How = Who
There are many common myths about forensics. For one, there are not always fingerprints; some people are born without them. There also isn’t DNA either. To add to this, it is assumed that most suicides leave a note. This is not true and in fact, less than 10% do.
Day Two
3/18/25
Footprint Impressions – Expanded Instructions
Step 1: Prepare the Mixture; Fill the provided bag with the required amount of water. Double-check the instructions to ensure the correct water-to-mix ratio. Make sure the bag is properly sealed before proceeding to avoid spills.
Step 2: Knead the Mixture; Knead the bag for 1 minute and 30 seconds to thoroughly combine the mixture. Use your hands to squeeze and rotate the bag, ensuring there are no dry clumps left inside. The mixture should have a smooth, consistent texture when ready.
Step 3: Cut the Corner of the Bag; After kneading, use scissors to carefully cut a small corner off the bottom of the bag. Make the opening large enough for the mixture to flow smoothly but small enough to allow control while pouring.
Step 4: Pour the mixture into the Impression; Begin pouring the mixture into the footprint impression. Start at the heel and slowly move toward the toe to ensure an even fill. As you pour, gently push the liquid with your hand or use the bag to guide it into all the details of the impression. If you have any excess mixture, pour it around the edges to reinforce the structure. Lightly tap the surface to remove air bubbles and ensure the mixture fully settles into the impression.
Step 5: Allow the Mixture to Set; Let the mixture sit undisturbed for 30 minutes to allow it to begin hardening. Avoid moving or disturbing the mold during this period to prevent distortions.
Step 6: Remove the Mold; After 30 minutes, carefully pop the impression out of the mold. Gently loosen the edges and lift the mold to reveal the footprint. Once the impression is removed, allow it to cure completely for 48 to 72 hours. Keep the impression in a dry, undisturbed area while it hardens fully. After curing, the impression will be ready for display or further examination.
Day Three
3/19/25
Today we are doing dental impressions with Ms.Dona. Ms. Dona is a certified dental hygienist. Molds take about 20 minutes to harden but still remain brittle. They used Mohammed and Sophia as our patients. First, Ms. Dona stirred the molding. She starts on the bottom and lets the tray sit filled with the casting. It then begins to harden around the teeth, getting every groove even including the permanent retainers on the backs of your teeth. Next, they started on the bottom tray.
Dental records can be used to identify human remains when other methods, such as fingerprints or DNA, are not available—especially in cases of mass disasters, fires, or decomposition. Teeth are highly resistant to destruction, making them reliable for identification. Forensic odontologists can analyze bite marks on victims or objects to link a suspect to a crime. While controversial due to potential errors, it can still provide critical evidence in certain cases.
Day Four
3/20/25
On March 19, 2025 forensics arrived at the scene at 10:30 PM, following the initial response by patrol officers who arrived at 9:45 PM. The victim, a woman married for five years, was discovered unconscious in the bathtub by her husband. According to his statement, he got off work at 6:30 PM, met coworkers for drinks at Bonefish, and left around 9:15 PM. Upon returning home, he called for his wife, received no response, and eventually found her in the bathroom.
The victim was submerged in the bathtub, with only her face and feet exposed. The husband stated that he pulled the plug, attempted to lift her out of the tub but dropped her, causing her to fall to the floor. He immediately called 911, and despite his efforts to perform CPR, paramedics declared her dead upon arrival.
The couple had been married for five years but was reportedly discussing divorce. The husband may have been unfaithful, and the victim, a stay-at-home wife, was experiencing anxiety and depression due to the strained marriage—though she never shared these feelings with him. Despite working out daily, she was often fatigued and had a family history of high blood pressure.
The victim went to the gym that day and returned home around 8:00 PM. She was known to take long, hot baths frequently. A pastor escorted the emotional husband away from the scene to help him calm down.
Day Five
3/21/25
On the final day of Forensics Week, before Mr. Garside revealed the actual results, each group presented their conclusions. Our group determined that the victim’s death was an accident and provided evidence to support this theory.
We began by discussing the victim’s injuries, which aligned with an accidental scenario. The broken ribs were a result of the CPR performed by both the husband and paramedics. Additionally, the contusion on her head occurred when her husband attempted to lift her out of the bathtub but accidentally dropped her onto the bathroom floor. There were no signs of foul play—no indications of strangulation, and no bruises on her wrists or ankles, ruling out any struggle or restraint.
We then explained why the husband was not responsible for her death. Despite the couple discussing divorce, she was the one initiating it, not him. His emotional response, panic, and desperate attempt to save her life by performing CPR demonstrated that he still deeply cared for her. Moreover, his alibi was solid—he was at Bonefish with coworkers, leaving at 9:15 PM, while she had already returned home by 8:00 PM and was likely in the bathtub when he arrived.
Lastly, we presented medical evidence that supported our conclusion. The victim’s autopsy revealed inflammation in the heart and a high therapeutic range of Xanax in her system, indicating that she was actively taking her prescribed high blood pressure medication. However, mixing Xanax with alcohol can cause extreme drowsiness, unconsciousness, and in severe cases, death. Given that her husband had been drinking that night, there is a possibility she also consumed alcohol, which, when combined with her medication, likely led to her becoming unconscious in the hot bath and drowning.
Our group concluded that the combination of Xanax and potential alcohol consumption led to an accidental loss of consciousness, making her death a tragic accident rather than the result of foul play.
After all groups presented their theories, Mr. Garside revealed the actual cause of death—natural causes. While our group suspected an accidental death caused by mixing Xanax and alcohol, the actual findings pointed to a tragic but natural sequence of events.
The victim’s autopsy revealed inflammation in the heart, which is a condition that can lead to serious complications if not properly managed. Additionally, she was taking Lisinopril, a medication used to treat high blood pressure. On the day of her death, the victim had completed her usual workout and returned home around 8:00 PM. Strenuous exercise can temporarily strain the heart, and when followed by a hot bath, it can further lower blood pressure and cause blood vessels to dilate, increasing the risk of fainting or cardiac complications. Since she had a family history of high blood pressure and heart issues, her body was already vulnerable to these effects.
The combination of factors—heart inflammation, Lisinopril, post-workout strain, and the hot bath—created the perfect storm. Her blood pressure likely dropped too low, and her weakened heart could not handle the added stress, leading to her body shutting down while she was in the tub. As her heart struggled to maintain normal function, she lost consciousness, resulting in her tragic and unexpected death.
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