Forensics Chapter 1 Introduction to Forensic Science and the Law Flashcards

8594198296	criminalistics	the examination of physical evidence; the term forensics may also include broader areas of investigation, such as pathology	0
8594204217	evidence	anything that tends to establish or disprove a fact; can include documents, testimony, and other objects	1
8594211993	ballistics	the science that deals with the motion, behavior, and effects of projectiles, most often firearms and bullets	2
8594217946	odontology	in forensics, examination of bite marks and dental identification of corpses	3
8594221415	pathology	investigation of sudden, unexplained, or violent death	4
8594224608	entomology	the study of insects	5
8594229076	polygraphy	the use of the lie detector	6
8594232981	statutory law	legislative acts declaring, commanding, or prohibiting something	7
8594238827	case law or common law	the body of law made up of judicial opinions and precedents	8
8594243143	stare decisis	Latin; "to stand by the decision", meaning previous legal decisions are to be followed	9
8594247827	civil law	deals with noncriminal suits brought to protect or preserve a civil or private right or matter	10
8594253994	criminal law	regulation and enforcement of rights setting the acceptable limits of conduct in society	11
8594258440	misemeanor	a minor crime, less than a felony, usually punished with a fine or confinement other than in prison	12
8594263959	felony	a serious crime, such as murder, punishable by more than one year or imprisonment up to execution	13
8594268499	probable cause	situation in which a reasonable and prudent person, viewing the available information, would conclude that a crime has been committed and that the suspect committed it	14
8594277268	Miranda rights or Miranda warning	rights guaranteed by the Constitution that police must tell arrestees about, especially the right to remain silent and the right to an attorney	15
8594286706	booking	a police procedure following arrest that requests basic information about the suspect, a photograph, fingerprints, and perhaps a line up	16
8594294178	arraignment	the first act in a criminal proceeding, where the defendant is charged and brought before court to hear charges and enter plea	17
8594298696	nolo contendere	in a criminal lawsuit, a defendant neither admits nor denies a crime but accepts punishment as though he or she were guilty	18
8594309838	preliminary or evidentiary hearing	a hearing before a magistrate or judge to determine whether a person charged with a crime should be held for trial; also sometimes called a preliminary examination	19
8594315107	bail	money put up to guarantee that the defendant will appear in court as directed. A bondsman will pay the bail for a fee of 10 percent of the bail amount. If the defendant does not appear when the time comes, the bondsman may hire bounty hunters to find and return the suspect	20
8594327802	grand jury	a group of people sworn to inquire into crime and, if appropriate, bring accusations (indictments) against the suspected criminals	21
8594333895	indict	to formally accuse a person of a crime	22
8594335220	plea bargaining	an agreement in which a defendant pleads guilty to a lesser charge and the prosecutor in return drops ore serious charges to avoid the cost and time of a trial	23
8594346171	violation	a breach of a right, duty, or law	24
8594350143	infraction	violation of a rule or law that is not punishable by prison	25
8594353433	probative	in evidence law, tending to prove something	26
8594355631	material	in evidence law, relevant and significant. A material witness has information about the subject	27
8594360538	hearsay	testimony given by a witness who relates not what he or she heard, saw, or knew personally, but what others have said. The knowledge is dependent on the credibility of the other person, and therefore is not admissible in court unless it meets a hearsay exception	28
8594377145	expert witness	an individual whom the court determines to possess knowledge relevant to the trial that is not expected of the average layperson	29
8594395677	Frye standard	commonly called the "general acceptance" test, the Frye standard dictates that scientific evidence is admissible at trial only if the methodology or scientific principle on which the opinion is based is "sufficiently established to have gained general acceptance in the particular field in which it belongs". The Frye test applies only to "new" or "novel" scientific methodologies.	30
8594442640	Daubert ruling	updated revision of the Frye standard for admissibility of expert scientific evidence that implicitly endorses a classical definition of the scientific method, including hypothesis testing, estimates of error rates, peer reviewed publication, and general acceptance	31
8594455866	junk science	theories based on distorted, flawed, or untested hypothesis not derived from or tested by the scientific method	32
14082798282	forensic science	the application of science to criminal and civil laws that are enforced by police agencies in a criminal justice system	33
14082823829	Locard's Exchange Principle	whenever two objects come into contact with one another, they exchange materials between them	34
14082833529	scientific methos	a process that uses strict guidelines to ensure careful and systematic collection, organization, and analysis of information	35