OSI examines forensic sciences

  • Published
  • By Jillian K. Speake
  • Air Education and Training Command Public Affairs
RANDOLPH AIR FORCE BASE, Texas (AFPN) --  More than 120 criminal investigators worldwide attended the annual Air Force Office of Special Investigations Workshop here Nov. 3 to 7 to share ideas, technology and expertise.

Although criminal investigators were the target audience, OSI agents were asked to invite anyone on their installation or any of their local contacts who would benefit from the training.

The different police officers and detectives from all over the United States who attended helped the workshop provide a liaison opportunity between the OSI agents, medical specialists, legal professionals and the civilian community.

"I would say the vast majority of our investigations that are run in OSI are going to involve, to some degree, another investigative agency, be it local, state or federal, so having those working relationships is going to increase what we can do and what we can provide ... in the final product," said Special Agent Julie Lecea, forensic sciences consultant in OSI Detachment 401 here. "It's valuable for us to have these connections so we know how other agencies can help us and they know how we can help them."

The workshop also provided forensic science training to criminal investigators by having experts in various fields talk about their specialty.

"Some of the (experts) we have here are the guys who literally wrote the book on all these different topics, and we're very lucky to have them come out and speak to us,” Lecea said. "Our goal was to bring their expertise to the students and have them teach how their science can come to bear on any of our investigations."

Conference topics included child abuse investigations, forensic anthropology, entomology, crime scenes involving weapons of mass destruction and asphyxia and sex-related deaths. Other topics included drug testing, shaken-impact syndrome and various types of wounds.

The students are not the only ones who learned from the experts. Marshall Littleton, a special agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, who spoke on the evolution of fire, also took away valuable information.

"I have been thoroughly impressed with the speakers brought in," Littleton said. "Each one of them, in their individual scientific disciplines, has given me the opportunity to add one more tool to my investigative toolbox. They have given me the opportunity to broach a subject from a little different perspective because I didn't realize that expertise even existed."

Criminal investigators refer to the different tools they have in their "toolbox" to help solve crimes, Lecea said. Investigators constantly add new tools, techniques, databases, resources and technology that can help solve cases.

"A criminal investigator, in my opinion, has to be a jack-of-all-trades," Lecea said. "You have to be able to get into any crime that has taken place and understand all the different players involved. Knowing how to put that (information) together will determine if you're successful or not. Essentially, we're giving them the tools to do that." (Courtesy of Air Education and Training Center News Service)