Criminalistics forensic science is a traditional scientific speciality which has long played a supporting role to law enforcement around the world, in the fight against crime and providing supporting evidence for courts of law. Crime scene examinations and scientific evidence are typically utilised as a reactive tool to explain, or clarify, what has occurred in a crime scene: therefore assisting juries and court officials make judgements of culpability of those on trial.
Nonetheless, there is a strong argument that forensic science, and the resultant forensic intelligence, should not only be used as reactive evidence, but also as a proactive means of gathering advantageous actionable intelligence for the ‘deterrence and reduction of crime’(Almog, 2014, p. 325), in the prevention of attacks, and possibly, for the early intervention and protection of future targets.
Is Criminalistics Forensic evidence/intelligence being proactively exploited as a intelligence tool to identify actors, targets and possibly prevent terrorist attacks?
In Nigeria, it is not being used at all. Maybe your jurisdiction does. Countries that intend to combat terrorism in all its façade lack political will to do so. Where there's no will in this regard, thee will be no effective countering of terrorism, not to talk of appropriating forensic evidence and intelligence paraphernalia to combat it.
Andrew Williamson, can I ask you: what's your idea of using forensics in this regard, against terrorism, proactively? What particular forensic tool are you looking at here?
Hi Victor,
I’m particularly interested, and have spent my career in, criminalistics forensics, the crime scene elements, as opposed to the digital.
It still appears to me that the analysis of physical evidence is still being used in a mainly reactive role where there are real prospects for it to be proactive.
So I’m thinking about the forensic results from terror related scenes, covert operations or surveillance and what intelligence that can provide to deter, detect or even prevent attack’s.
Thanks
Unfortunately, NOT! Often times, the governments react too fast by using force without a detailed long-term plan which fails in the long run even if it seems to be working initially.
It can be very useful for prevention, but we need a big change.
On one hand from law enforcement, to assure the quality of the operations (nowadays we speak another time about errors in Forensics activity and about the possible strategies for minimize its effects, for example with the important purposes of Sydney Declaration), and on the other hand from Governments. When Criminalistics/Forensic Science will be "free" from errors problems, maybe Governments can understand that it's a powerfull tool to use for preventing crimes.
- Badges
- Science topic
- Similar topics
- Geoscience
- Asia
- India