READ: The Crime Lab

Crime Lab Organization

A crime laboratory, which is also often called a crime lab, is a scientific laboratory using primarily forensic science for the purpose of examining evidence from criminal cases. Most crime labs are not equipped or staffed to house all of the possible services necessary and thus some evidence is sent to other crime labs to be analyzed. Crime labs can be found in local and state police departments depending on the size of the area.  In addition, the FBI national crime lab is located in Quantico, Virginia. While some crime labs only have a few employees, the FBI Crime Lab employs over 500 scientific experts and agents!   

Major Crime Labs

Examine four of the largest Major Crime Lab Agencies in the United States in the Interactivity below. While the DEA, ATF and FBI are all part of the Department of Justice, USPIS is actually part of the United States Postal Service!

Forensic Science Specialties

Forensic Science is a collection of many sub-specialties of science. Many experts are needed when investigating the various evidence left at the scene of a crime.  Check out the descriptions of a few of the common specialty areas of Forensic Science.

Interactive: Forensic Science Specialties

 Georgia Virtual, Introduction to Forensic Science and Criminal Justice, CC BY-NC-SA 3.0