Ethics in Forensic Science

This work will draw upon the expertise of the editors as authors and various contributors in order to present several different perspectives with the goal of approaching and understanding when ethical lines are crossed. In order to achieve this goal, comparisons of various canons of ethics from related fields such as medicine, law, the military, science and politics will be examined and applied. Case studies will be presented throughout to illustrate ethical dilemmas and challenge the reader with the goal of greater understanding.

1. A Brief History of Ethics Jennifer Downs

2. The Forensic Practitioner’s Quest for Truth Fr. William Willoughby, III, Sister Elena Thompson, and J.C. Upshaw Downs

3. General Forensic Ethical Dilemmas Jay A. Siegel

4. Codes of Ethics in Forensic Science Societies:  The Organizational Parameters of Morality and Conduct Kenneth E. Melson

5. Ethical Foundations for SANE Practice Linda E. Ledray and Susan Chasson

6. Ethics Codes in Other Organizations: Structures and Enforcement J.C. Upshaw Downs and Anjali Ranadive Swienton

7. Teaching Ethics Max M. Houck and Robin T. Bowen

8. Ethics in Law Enforcement; Defining the Thin Blue Line Fred E. Stephens

9. Criminal Investigational Ethics James Markey

10. Ethics in the Crime Laboratory and in Crime Scene Investigations Barry A.J. Fisher

11. Ethics for Child Abuse Prosecutors – A Call to Leadership Rachelle L. Carnesale

12. Ethical Duties of Attorneys and Experts in Cases Involving Forensic Evidence, from the Perspective of the Defense Andrea Roth

13. Ethics in Testimony Joseph P. Bono, Anjali Ranadive Swienton and J.C. Upshaw Downs

14. Judicial Ethics Haskell M. Pitluck

15. Ethics, Forensics, and the Post-Conviction Process Jules Epstein

16. Whistle Blowers J.C. Upshaw Downs

17. Ethics in Media Anjali Ranadive Swienton and J.C. Upshaw Downs

Practitioners in forensic and/or criminal justice programs, crime scene investigators/photographers, law enforcement training centers, police academies and local agencies with a secondary audience of forensic consultants and forensic scientists.

• First book to comprehensively address ethics in forensics beyond the laboratory
• Real-life cases presented involving unethical behavior to illustrate concepts
• Discusses ethical considerations while delineating opinion from fact in testimony
• Places forensic ethics within the canons of the legal and medical systems