WHAT IS FORENSIC RECONSTRUCTION?
Forensic reconstruction is akin to putting together a puzzle without knowing what the picture is supposed to look like, with the additional challenges of irrelevant, missing and altered pieces.
We believe that scene reconstruction sits on the apex of forensic science, requiring the highest level of understanding and holistic interpretation of the various evidence types. Knowledge of the series of events that surround the occurrence of an incident or commission of a crime is gained through deductive and inductive reasoning, and the use of physical evidence, scientific methods, and interpretation of their interrelationships.
In reconstruction, the forensic scientist seeks to determine the What, Who, When, Where and How of a crime. Many factors and possible outcomes have to be considered when analysing a complex crime scene. Hence, only a forensic scientist with both the breadth and depth of experience can critically evaluate the scene and develop credible scenarios on the events that could have transpired.
THE LIGHT IN THE TUNNEL
Forensic reconstruction plays a very important role in shedding light on what truly happened in a crime or accident. The events leading to an incident (e.g crime, traffic or industrial accidents) are often messy, illogical and difficult to understand.
In most cases, the people making judgments and giving statements about what occurred are the eyewitnesses. While most witnesses want to help and deliver their honest perceptions of what occurred, their perceptions are frequently incomplete, inconsistent and even incorrect.
Forensic reconstruction enables you to do two important things before you present your case in court or to other authorities:
- Corroborate or refute eyewitness accounts of the crime or accident scene.
- Gain new information about the incident.
Both of these outcomes allow you to strengthen your case so that you have a greater chance of convincing the judge that your account of the incident or crime is trustworthy. If you are relying upon eyewitness testimony to win your case, you need expert reconstruction to verify and support the witness’s perception of what occurred. Otherwise, the defence team may create a sense of doubt when cross-examining your witness.
If you are defending a case that relies heavily on eyewitness testimony, expert reconstruction gives you the chance to validate or disprove the witness’s account of the crime or incident. Although you may be able to cast doubts on their credibility by researching their character and lifestyle, it is scientific evidence drawn from thorough reconstruction of the incident that is going to help you disprove faulty eyewitness evidence.
Reconstruction of a scene will also help you see what happened in a scientific manner that stands up in court. You will gain new insight into your case and have the opportunity to construct the best possible strategies to present your evidence in court.
EXPERIENCE AND KNOWLEDGE ARE ESSENTIAL
We are a team of five forensic scientists with more than 80 years of forensic experience. We are highly-respected experts in the field, and our names are well recognised in the courts of law. This is important because it takes a lot of experience and training to handle a reconstruction case properly.
Only an expert with a well-trained eye and mind can put that puzzle together without missing important pieces or placing too much emphasis on irrelevant pieces. Not everyone is great at putting together jigsaw puzzles, and not every forensic scientist has the expertise for reconstruction case.
SCENE RECONSTRUCTION EXPERTISE
Scene reconstruction is one of our specialties. We have the right balance of experience and professional knowledge to competently analyse all pieces in any case and put them together in a scientific manner. This may include any combination of the following:
- Keen observations
- Critical thinking/analysis
- Holistic evidence interpretation
- Rigorous hypothesis testing
- Logical reasoning
- Identifying all possible scenarios and outcomes
Different types of scenes will require additional skills with even more advanced training and knowledge. For instance, reconstruction of a shooting scene requires a forensic scientist able to determine bullet trajectory, sequence of shots, the positions of everyone involved and other shooting-specific objectives. Traffic accident reconstruction may require a forensic scientist to determine how fast vehicles were traveling before the accident occurred and how involved parties reacted throughout the accident.
ANSWERING CRITICAL QUESTIONS
Our forensic reconstruction analysis services will help you answer critical questions regarding your crime scene or accident:
- Who was involved? What were their roles in the crime or accident?
- What really happened?
- Why did this happen?
- Where did this happen? Not just general locations, but specific locations
- When did this happen? Not “after noon,” but down to the sequence of events.
If you can answer these questions and present them in court with the support of highly-esteemed forensic scientists, you can put the odds of winning the case in your favor. That is what The Forensic Experts Group is here to do for every reconstruction case.
LEARN MORE:
- Forensic Reconstruction – A Primer for Lawyers – Singapore Law Gazette, May 2015
- How a Forensic Specialist Can Help Your Next Case
- Apply Forensic Expert Analysis to Your Case
- The Effective Expert Witness
Please call us at 6459 0494 or email us at enquiries@forensicexperts.com.sg.