Selected Aspects of the Forensic Examination of Textile Traces
General problems of the fibre and textile industries
Author:
- Wąs-Gubala Jolanta
Department of Criminalistics, Institute of Forensic Research, Kraków, Poland
 Full text | Abstract: For years the practice of examining fragments of single fibres separated from textile products and transferred onto other (foreign) surfaces has been applied in order to establish a link between a person or persons and an object or the scene of a criminal event. These fibres are imperceptible or barely perceptible to the naked eye and can only be revealed through the use of certain techniques of securing such material. The evidential value of transferred fibre traces, possibly coming from a known source and recovered in the case of a specific criminal event, depends on a number of factors. The particular circumstances of the event, the way in which evidence is gathered at the crime scene, the precision of laboratory tests, the colour and type of fibres recovered, and the measurable effects of destructive processes can all enhance or lessen the evidential value of such material. In this publication, the results of multi-aspect research conducted in the area of forensic examination of fibres are presented, concerning questions relating to the interpretation of analytical results. This research has helped to illustrate how important trace fibre evidence can be in clarifying the circumstances of a wide range of crimes. |
Tags: single fibre, fibre trace, forensic examination, evidential value
Citation: Wąs-Gubała J.; Selected Aspects of the Forensic Examination of Textile Traces. FIBRES & TEXTILES in Eastern Europe 2009, Vol. 17, No. 4 (75) pp. 26-29.