• Mega Links in Criminal Justice by Dr. Tom O'Connor - Program Manager of CJ and Homeland Security, Director, Institute for Global Security Studies
• Dr. O'Connor's Lecture Notes for Forensics
• Dr. O'Connor's Lecture Notes for Criminal Investigation
• Federal Bureau of Investigarion Reports and Publications page
• Crime and Clues: the Art and Science of Criminal Investigation
• The Crime Library - your one-stop shopping site for articles in layperson's terms
• National Criminal Justice Reference Service - is a federally funded resource offering justice and substance abuse information to support research, policy, and program development worldwide.
• The Thin Blue Line - New South Wales unofficial website and Australia's Largest Law Enforcement Website
• Academy of Behavioral Profiling - a professional association dedicated to the application of evidence based criminal profiling techniques within investigative and legal venues

Introduction to Forensic Science | The Crime Scene | Physical Evidence | Properties of Matter and Analysis of Glass and Soils | Organic Analysis | Inorganic Analysis | The Microscope | Hair, Fibers and Paint | Drugs | Forensic Toxicology | Arson & Explosion Investigations | Forensic Serology | DNA | Fingerprints | Ballistics, Tool Marks & Impressions | Questioned Documents

• Virtual Tour of a Forensics Lab
• Watch a Forensic Expert Witness (DNA Analysis - direct examination)
• Watch a Forensic Expert Witness (DNA Analysis - cross examination)
• See how an autopsy is done
• Explore forensic anthropology
• Explore forensic dentistry

• Admissibility of scientific evidence under Daubert
• Autopsy (step-by-step description of an autopsy)
• Forensic Anthropology
• Forensic Science Resources in a Criminal Fact Investigation Index
• History of Forensic Science

• Making a photographic record of a crime scene
• The crime scene
• Explore a virtual murder scene

• Forensic science resources - links to CSI articles and sites
• Crime scene investigation - guidelines and articles on response, evidence collection, photography, etc.
• Crime and clues - articles on crime scene protection, processing and reconstruction
• Crime scene investigation - a guide for law enforcement
• Death investigation - a guide for the scene investigator
• Forensic entomology - good general site for info on how entomology is used

• There are no web extras for this chapter

• An introduction to Criminalistics and Physical Evidence - article providing a brief introduction to concepts and principles of physical evidence
• Evidence dynamics: Locard's Exchange Principle & Crime Reconstruction
• "Statistics and Trace Evidence: The Tyranny of Numbers"

• There are no web extras for this chapter

• US Metric Association
• Mass and Weight Conversion
• Matter/Mass/Atoms/Molecules - links to websites, online lessons and online activities about the properties of matter
• Pictorial Periodic Table
• States of matter - brief animated explanation of behavior of molecules in various states of matter
• Demonstrations of Physical Properties - online lab suggestions for demonstrating temperature effects, measuring density, explaining refractive index, and lab exercises
• Electromagnetic Spectrum
• Physical Properties of Glass and Soil
• Collecting Crime Evidence from Earth - online article by forengic geologist Raymond C. Murray that includes a discussion of soil analysis
• Forensic Examination of Soil Evidence - online report from Interpol about methods and advances in soil examination
• The Atom Builder - interactive exercise that explains fundamentals of atomic structure and allows users to try to construct stagle atoms from subatomic particles
• The Atom and Electromagnetic Radiation - discussion of nuclear structure and electromagnetic radiation with practice problems
• Intro to Quantum Mechanics - layperson's explanation of basic concepts of quantum theory

• Watch the gas chromatograph at work
• Watch animated depictions of thin-layer chromatography & gas chromatography
• Animated demonstration of gel electrophoresis
• See how a spectrophotometer works
• Watch the mass spectrometer at work

• Chromatography - simple description of chromatographic processes with diagrams
• Basic Principles of Spectrophotometry - online simulation of a spectrophotometer
• Beer's Law - online experiment applying Beer's law using spectrophometer simulation

• There are no web extras for this chapter

• Demonstrations of Physical Properties - online lab suggestions for demonstrating temperature effects, measuring density, explaining refractive index, and lab exercises
• Electromagnetic Spectrum
• The Atom Builder - interactive exercise that explains fundamentals of atomic structure and allows users to try to construct stagle atoms from subatomic particles
• The Atom and Electromagnetic Radiation - discussion of nuclear structure and electromagnetic radiation with practice problems
• Intro to Quantum Mechanics - layperson's explanation of basic concepts of quantum theory
• Chromatography - simple description of chromatographic processes with diagrams
• Basic Principles of Spectrophotometry - online simulation of a spectrophotometer
• Beer's Law - online experiment applying Beer's law using spectrophometer simulation

• Explore the concept of magnification with a compound microscope
• Scan a sample under the compound microscope
• Observe the concept of depth of focus
• Explore the stereoscopic microscope
• Explore the polarizing microscope
• Explore the polarizing microscope 2
• Explore the scanning electron microscope

• Basic Concepts in Optical Microscopes
• Microscope Lab - extensive lists of links to many different topics about microscopes
• Microscopes at Nobelprize.org - a discussion of different types of microscopes and their uses, including a simulation of a scanning electron microscope
• Scanning Electron Microscope - explanation of hte workings of an SEM, with a link to images produced by SEMs
• Types of microscopes - side-by-side comparison of types of microscopes, with links to additional information and images

• There are no web extras for this chapter

• Hairs, Fibers, Crime and Evidence
• Microscopy of Hair part I: a practical guide and manual for human hairs
• Microscopy of Hair part II: a practical guide and manual for animal hairs
• That's Not My Hair
• A Microscopical Study of Exotic Animal Hair: Part 1
• A Microscopical Study of Exotic Animal Hair: Part II
• Trace Evidence - online article discussing the analysis of hair and fibr evidence based on true crime stories
• Forensic Paint Analysis and Comparison Guidelines - article from the July 1999 issue of the online FBI journal Forensic Science Communications

• There are no web extras for this chapter

• Drugs.com - extensive database of information about the use and effects of 24,000 different drugs
• National Institute on Drug Abuse - Division of the National Institute of Health with links to information about effects of and studies about legal and illicit drugs
• General Alcohol Information - fact sheet on impact of alcohol use on accidents, inuries, violence, unwanted pregnancy and othe rareas of public health and welfare
• Impaired Driving Facts - statistics compiled by the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control
• Neuroscience for Kids - information about the history, production, use, effrects and detection of the drugs discussed in the text
• Drugs of Abuse - a publication of the Drug Enforcement Administration describing illicit drugs
• StreetDrugs.org - extensive information about the history and effects of hundreds of different legal and illicit drugs
• Drug Schedules - list of substances classified under each section of the US federal narcotics laws

• Calculate your blood alcohol level
• See how alcohol effects your behavior

• About Alcohol - describes the absorption, excretion, metabolism and circulation of alcohol in the body
• Alcohol Metabolism Effects - describes the chemical breakdown of alcohol and the effects of the by-products of alcohol consumption
• Drugs and Human Performance - National Highway Traffic Safety Admiistration
• Forensic Toxicology - a review
• Forensic Toxicology Slide Show
• How Breathalyzers Work - layperson's guide to understanding how Breathalyzers detect alcohol levels
• Impaired Driving Factsheet - statistics compiled by the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control

• There are no web extras for this chapter

• Arson Investigation - article about the process of arson investigation
• Is It an Accidental Fire or Arson?
• Fire and Arson Scene Evidence: A guide for Public Safety Personnel
• A Guide for Explosion and Bombing Scene Investigation - pdf from the US Dept. of Justice outlining federal procedures for investigation of explosions
• Arson and Explosives - article that discusses principles of combustion, types of explosives and investigation of explosion sites; includes brief list of links to other sites about arson and explosives
• Pyrotechnics, Explosives and Fireworks - detailed article on the workings and types of explosives; has good material about low explosives, high explosives and taggants

• See how blood stain spatter patterns are formed
• Learn about the chromosomes present in our cells
• Learn about the structure of our genes
• See how genes position themselves on a chromosome pair
• See how genes define our genetic makeup

• Animated Blood Types - discusses blood factors, blood typing, antibodies and antigens using both text and animated sequences
• Blood Typing Game - interactive application teaches about blood types and factors by having the user analyze a patien's blood and determine the right type of blood to give in a transfusion
• Bloodstains as Investigative Evidence - discussion of characteristics of blood; shape, persistence and age of bloodstains; procedures for processing blood evidence; and lab analysis of blood evidence
• Bloodstain Pattern Analysis Tutorial - illustrated guide to bloodstain analysis includes examples of different types of bloodstains, blood spatter patterns and directionality and impact angle determination
• Forensic Serology
• How Luminol Works

• Understand the structure of DNA and follow the step-wise construction of the DNA molecule
• Polymerase Chain Reaction
• See the 13 CODIS STRs and their chromosomal positions
• See how to calculate the frequency of occurrence of a DNA profile
• Understand the operational principles of capillary electrophoresis
• See the electropherogram record from one individual's DNA
• Animation depicting Y-STRs
• Inheritance of Mitochondrial DNA
• Structure of mitochondrial DNA
• DNA Forensics

• Principles of Forensic DNA for Officers of the Court
• Using DNA to Solve Cold Cases: Special Report
• Convicted by Juries, Exonerated by Science: Case studies in the use of DNA
• DNA Evidence: What law enforcement officers should know
• DNA from the Beginning - an animated primer on the b asics of DNA, genes and heredity; features a series of animated flash tutorials on genetics and DNA
• DNA Structure - animated online tutorials about the basics of DNA; includes a lesson plan for instructors teaching about DNA and review questions for students
• DNA Testing: an introduction for non-scientists - an illustrated explanation/article that explains in simplified language the theory and process behind various types of DNA testing, including STR and RFLP, and discusses PCR contamination
• DNA Typing and Identification - lecture notes
• DNA Workshop - overview of basics of DNA including replication and protein synthesis; features an interactive presentation on replication and synthesis
• Short Tandem Repeat DNA Internet Database
• How DNA Works

• There are no web extras for this chapter

• Super Glue to the Rescue
• The Detection and Enhancement of Latent Fingerprints - pdf article from the 2001 Interpol forensic Science Symposium
• Fingerprint Patterns - online article discussing the various types of fingerprint patterns, accompanied by extensive illustrations
• The Fingerprint System - online article that traces the history of fingerprinting and discusses the elements of the standard fingerprinting system used by law enforcement
• Frequently Asked Questions about Fingerprints
• The History of Fingerprints - article that traces the history of the use of fingerprints in crime solving
• IAFIS Home Page - FBE web site for the Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System; describes the functions and organization of IAFIS and the fingerprint identification services it provides
• Is Fingerprint Identification a "Science"? - article written by a fingerprinting expert that examines the criteria that validate the science of fingerprinting; also includes a large list of links to identification evidence
• Ridges and Furrows - site that presents information on fingerprinting history, the anatomy of skin, friction ridge identification, latent print development, AFIS and more
• Taking Legible Fingerprints - information from the FBI outlining proper procedures for lifting fingerprints

• Practice matching bullets with the aid of a 3-D interactive illustration
• Casting a footwear impression

• Ballistics Slide Presentation
• FirearmsID.com - contains information about firearms identification, ballistics, distance determination, history of firearms identification and case studies
• Firearms Identification and Ballistics - article that covers bullet and cartridge identification, ballistics, gunshot residue analysis, tool marks and other impressions, and includes a small list of links
• Firearms Identification - comprehensive article about firearms identification and examinstion, tool mark identification and collection and analysis of evidence
• Firearms Tutorial - covers many aspects of firearms identification including history, ballistics, tissue injury, gunshot residue and laboratory methods
• Footwear, The Missed Evidence - article about collection and interpretation of footprint evidence
• Footwear and Tire Impression Evidence
• Forensic Dentistry: Issues in Animal and Human Bite Mark Analysis
• Handwriting, Typewriting, Shoeprints and Tire Treads: FBI Laboratory's Questioned Documents Unit - FBI article that includes sections on identification of shoeprints and tire treads

• There are no web extras for this chapter

• Emily J. DeWill, Certified Document Examiner - page with articles on history, theory, and applications of document examination
• Forgery Finder - site that discusses handwriting identification and offers examples of altered documents, obliterations, ink identification, graffiti and anonymous letters
• Guidelines for Forensic Document Examination - article that discusses procedures for collecting, handling and examining questioned documents
• Handwriting, Typewriting, Shoeprints and Tire Treads: FBI Laboratory's Questioned Documents Unit - article that includes sections on analysis of questioned handwriting and typewriting samples
• Obtaining Handwriting Specimens - article on sources of and methods for obtaining and submitting handwriting samples
• Questioned Document Examination - discusses the history, techniques and court use of document examination; includes a brief list of links to document examination sites