Forensic Examination of Soil Evidence

Abstract

Soil can provide important information to criminal investigations as transfer evidence because many criminal cases take place under circumstances such that soil transfers to a criminal or victim. The variation in soils from place to place makes soil valuable evidence to prove linkage between a suspect and a crime scene. Soil is a complex mixture with a variety of mineralogical, chemical, biological, and physical properties. Considering such complexity, a variety of methods have been developed for forensic science purposes. Because minerals are an important component of soils, mineralogical examination is essential in forensic soil identification. Additionally, many other methods can be applied to raise the discriminating power, but not all kind of methods need to be used. What is important is that examiners select an appropriate combination of methods by considering the context of the soil samples. This report summarizes a wide range of reports on the analysis of soil components and of closely related materials such as plant fragments, pollen and spores, and diatoms, with emphasis on the importance of screening tests consisting of several simple techniques. The soil formation process involves parent materials, temperature, water condition, vegetation, time, and the chemical processes of solution, oxidation, reduction, and even human activities. The history of a soil's development as the results of such complex soil formation process is strongly reflected in soil color. The systematic observation of multiple soil colors is especially useful for screening.