The quarterly newsletter of the Rhode Island Department of Health Safe and Healthy Lives in Safe and Healthy Communities Science in the Service of Justice Scientific Crime Detection is the Heart of DOH's Forensic Lab. The Forensic Sciences Laboratory in the Department of Health , working with the state's law enforcement agencies, played an important role in bringing the perpetrators to justice. For over 60 years, the Forensic Lab offered the latest and highest quality forensic scientific services available. Established in 1938, just six years after creation of the FBI Laboratory, Rhode Island's forensic laboratory continues to protect the public by examining evidence for the state's law enforcement community. Laboratory staff document evidence arriving at the laboratory, preserved and properly secured until work can be started.
Forensic experts uncover hidden clues about the crime and the identity of the perpetrator.
As the analysis progresses, laboratory staff members regularly discuss their findings with police investigators, medical examiners and prosecutors. This close working relationship often results in additional testing or a new direction to the investigation. The forensic scientist often appears in court to present and interpret scientific findings. The identity and weight of the drug contribute to prosecution and sentencing. Technicians draw inferences about the dose and the time and route of ingestion.