Forensics Ch. 2 Vocabulary

Chain of Custody

The documented and unbroken transfer of evidence.

Circumstantial Evidence

(Indirect evidence) evidence used to imply a fact but not prove it directly.

Class Evidence

Material that connects an individual or thing to a certain group (see individual evidence).

Crime-Scene Investigation

A multidisciplinary approach in which scientific and legal professionals work together to solve a crime.

Crime-Scene Reconstruction

A hypothesis of the sequence of events from before the crime was committed through its commission.

Direct Evidence

Evidence that (if true) proves an alleged fact, such as an eyewitness account of the crime.

First Responder

The first police officer to arrive at a crime scene.

Individual Evidence

A kind of evidence that identifies a particular person or thing.

Paper Bindle

A folded paper used to hold trace evidence.

Primary Crime Scene

The location where the crime took place.

Secondary Crime Scene

A location other than the primary crime scene, but that is in some way related to the crime, where evidence if found.

Trace Evidence

Small but measurable amounts of physical or biological material found at a crime scene.