I spent the five happiest years of my life in a morgue. As a forensic scientist in the Cleveland coroner’s office I analyzed gunshot residue on hands and clothing, hairs, fibers, paint, glass, DNA, blood and many other forms of trace evidence, as well as crime scenes. Now I'm a certified latent print examiner and CSI for a police department in Florida. I also write a series of forensic suspense novels, turning the day job into fiction. My books have been translated into six languages.
Usually the biggest worry is getting sick or faint around dead bodies. But actually they rarely do.
Sending it through the mail is not a problem if packaged properly. The color of the top depends on what kind of testing is requested, drug, DNA, etc.
Yes, absolutely.
I'm not sure what you mean by 'specialize in homicide'. Forensic techniques can be utilized to investigate any crime, but if you mean you only want to work on homicides, then I don't know of any positions like that. The closest thing would be to work for an agency where the work is mostly homicides, such as a medical examiner's office. But even they would also investigate suicides, industrial accidents, etc.
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Where I live we have many burglaries. There really isn't a busiest time of year, though things sometimes pick up when the kids are out of school. When I worked at the coroner's office I also swore there were more homicides in September and December.
That all depends on where you work and what your job duties are. I spent about 90% of my time sitting in front of a computer looking at fingerprints. When I was at the coroner's office I probably spent 40% of the time examining victim's clothing, 10% on gunshot residue testing, 30% on hairs and fibers, and 20% everything else.
I have no idea. Do you have a copy of the autopsy report? That should be available fro the coroner's or medical examiner's office.
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