St. Joseph's Forensic Science class has been learning the basic principle of forensics, which was formulated by Edmond Locard: "Every contact leaves a trace." Locard, known as the "Sherlock Holmes of France," believed that the perpetrator of a crime will bring something into the crime scene and leave with something from it, and that both can be used as forensic evidence. During labs in class, students isolated and extracted DNA from strawberries and dusted for latent fingerprints. A latent fingerprint is a hidden impression of a person's finger that is transferred to another surface and is not visible to the naked eye. Students carefully lifted the prints using adhesive tape, and finally examined it under a microscope to analyze the details.
To enhance their learning, forensics teacher Ms. Elsinger enlisted the help of Detectives Slajer and Cortes from the Conway Police Department. The detectives gave the students an opportunity to locate and collect evidence from a secondary crime scene, a vehicle. Detective Slajer depicted the scenario of the primary crime scene, then led students outside. Detective Cortes prompted the students to let the evidence tell the story when examining the vehicle as both detectives encouraged the students to look for evidence. Following the experts' advice, students collected biological evidence such as blood samples and DNA from a soda bottle. They also collected physical evidence from the vehicle. The transfer of trace evidence was readily visible, clearly illustrating Locard's principle. The students demonstrated a deep understanding of the concepts thanks to these detectives and the engaging, hands-on nature of the lesson.
What is next for this forensics class? Ms. Elsinger has a mock crime scene planned after a unit on analyzing hair samples and blood spatters . . . just in time for Halloween! 
