The concept, subject and tasks of forensic science are fairly widely studied by forensic experts. Experience shows that the actions that are implied by this term are very often used in legal practice. As a rule, they are necessary to establish a fact.
So, we will consider in more detail the tasks, subject and object of a forensic examination, as well as those areas where this procedure is widely used.
General concept
So what is forensics? This concept is widely used in practice and in the simple colloquial speech of professional lawyers. Their activities, as a rule, are associated with the establishment or refutation of a certain fact. It is for such purposes that the procedure in question is usually assigned.
The concept, subject and objectives of a forensic examination are presented in legislative acts that are currently in force in Russia. In particular, they are enshrined in the articles of industry laws of the Russian Federation.
If we talk about the general concept of examination, then it means a certain list of interrelated actions of specialists that are aimed at any research. With regard to specifically forensic examination, it has certain features that set it apart from all other types of similar procedures.
Forensic Features
Examining the tasks, subject and object of a forensic examination, one can notice certain distinctive features that distinguish it against the general background of other procedures of a similar nature. First of all, it should be understood that all processes referred to by this name should be carried out only on the basis of Russian legislation, which, moreover, is sectoral. The judicial examination procedure is described in more detail in the Criminal Procedure Code, as well as in the Arbitration Procedure Code of the Russian Federation. Very often, forensic examination is carried out in accordance with the provisions prescribed in the articles of the Civil Procedure Code of the Russian Federation. It is in the listed normative acts that the entire exhaustive list of legal rights and obligations that the parties to the procedure is carried out is contained. In addition, they also provide clear rules for resolving issues that may arise during the study of the materials provided. All procedures prescribed in these laws must be very strictly followed.
Another distinctive feature of the forensic examination is that according to the results of its conduct, an act drawn up in the course of studying the question should be issued. It is he who has the status of a source of evidence.
The essence of expertise
Studying the subject and tasks of forensic examination, it should be understood that it is in them that the essence of this concept lies. So, the essence of this procedure is to conduct an objective analysis of the facilities provided on those issues that have been posed or submitted for decision. The materials for expert examination in court can be sent both by the court itself and by the investigator in the process of which the case in question is being processed. It should be noted that the expert assessment can be presented not only material evidence, but also written, as well as electronic documents.
The purpose of the examination is to establish the data that exist, or to refute the alleged information. In practice, only those objects are subject to expert evaluation, the exact data of which are directly related to the case under consideration, and as regards the issues to be clarified, they should be essential for resolving the course of the situation considered in court.
The essence of the examination also lies in the fact that, based on the results of its examination, a special act must be drawn up, in which accurate information on the issues clarified is indicated. It is such an act in a trial that has the status of a source of evidence, and all the data that is written in it and confirmed by the signature of an expert is nothing more than evidence that can be used both in favor and to the detriment of the parties.
Subject
If we talk about the subject of forensic examination, then this concept can be considered from two sides: from practical and scientific.
It should be noted that this concept is considered one of the main specialists in practice whose activities are related to expert practice. The category of such persons primarily includes employees of internal affairs bodies and prosecutors who conduct investigations and, due to their activities, often need to identify or refute any evidence.
If we consider this concept from a scientific point of view, then it can be interpreted as a certain set of laws of the properties of objects, as well as their transformations, which can be observed in the process of considering a specific case.
As for the consideration of the concept of the subject of forensic examination from the point of view of practice, it can be interpreted as a process of establishing facts or specific information about a particular circumstance that has been or is taking place. These circumstances must necessarily be directly related to the case under consideration, which can be both civil and criminal, administrative or, for example, arbitration.
Along with the concept and subject of forensic examination, it is necessary to consider what the meaning of a significant circumstance or, as it is called in practice, a fact, means in the legal sense. It means a certain event, result, any knowledge, as well as truth, the reliability of which was proved by an investigation.
In simpler terms, the subject of a forensic examination is a specific task posed by a specialist conducting an expert study. It is he who needs to solve it, using the available knowledge on the necessary specialty.
The objects
Many people mistakenly believe that the concepts of the subject and the object of a forensic examination are identical. In fact, this is not so at all. As for the object, it is the material that is subject to study by an expert. As for the subject, then, as already mentioned above, a specific task posed to the specialist acts as it.
Speaking about the objects of the research, you should be aware that they can be all the material evidence that was submitted for consideration in court. In addition, they include those materials that are studied by the investigating authorities in the process of fulfilling their professional duties. The categories of such include found corpses, evidence, objects, weapons, animals, individual samples, etc. Speaking more simply, then in criminal practice the objects of examination are the evidence of a crime presented in material form or, as they are also called, evidence.
Documents are a special object for the study of specialists in the field of forensics and in other fields. This is due to the fact that their evidentiary value lies primarily in the content itself. The list of documents may include all acts, reports, references, etc. All of the materials listed are official, their main distinguishing feature is the availability of necessary details, the list of which is established by special requirements. In addition to official documents, there are also unofficial documents, including diaries and letters. However, it should be understood that in order to use such materials as objects for examination, the author identification procedure must be carried out.
As for the samples, they are also considered a special object for expert research. They are certain samples that have the ability to display the characteristics of animals, people, substances, materials or any objects. Such objects are used for examination. In order to receive them, the investigator of the police or other official who is conducting the investigation, in order to obtain such samples, must issue a decision on this action.
Methods
Speaking about the subject of forensic examination and considering the list of its possible objects, one should not lose sight of such a concept as a method. What it is? The subject and method of forensic examination are interrelated concepts, since the second follows from the features of the first. The concept of a method implies those actions by which experts fulfill their professional duties, as well as establish the truth in the questions asked. Ongoing operations can be both logical and instrumental. In practice, it often happens that these research methods are combined. Very often, a certain set of operations is a kind of regularity that can be used in similar cases.
In fact, one should distinguish the methodology for conducting the procedure in question from the method, as well as the subject from the object of the forensic examination. If we talk about the technique, then it implies a certain set of methods that are used to study a specific object of examination. All such systems are formed on certain scientific methods, on the special properties and nature of the research procedure, as well as on earlier experience that was in the process of solving the tasks. By the way, the latter also includes rules that were developed independently by an individual expert or specialist in a particular industry.
As for the main characteristics that are inherent in the methods of examination, all of them are inherent in a scientific nature. This means that every method that is applied in practice must have some scientific justification. All of them have ever been created and are being created with the help of the right combination of achievements and knowledge gained in technology and science. It is thanks to such validity that its reliability is ensured.
Any research methods of the subject of forensic examination provide for the possibility of preservation of the subject in its original form. In some cases, of course, the destruction of the investigated object can also be carried out, however, as a rule, this is done on the basis of the written permission of the person who conducts the investigative measures.
All methods by which a forensic examination is carried out should be completely cost-effective. This means that the cost that is spent on the research process itself should not be more valuable than the result that must be obtained during the procedure.
There is a certain scientific classification of methods that are used for research submitted for forensic examination of a subject. It implies the division of all techniques into general and special.
Common methods include all those that are universal in nature. These include observation, measurement, description, modeling, experiments, etc. Recently, additional methods have been added to their number - cybernetic. Their implementation is based on modern information technology.
In the list of special methods , all those that are developed specifically for a certain type of examination should be highlighted. Most of them are developed specifically for ballistic, handwriting, portrait, technical and other types of examinations.
If we talk about techniques, they are also divided into several types: typical, private and specific. As for the first type, they are aimed at expressing the experience of solving the tasks in the generalized sense. Practice shows that this type of methodology can be applied by a specialist in the field of expert activity without any changes or adaptations. As for methods of a private or specific nature, as a rule, they are the result of a special, creative approach to achieving appropriate results on tasks.
Types of Expertise
In legal practice, there is a large list of types of examinations that can be applied in the activities of employees of investigative bodies. All of them are divided depending on the subject and object of the forensic examination. Within each of these species, subspecies can be distinguished. We consider each group of examinations in more detail below.
Forensic
The concept, subject, objectives and object of a forensic examination of this type are clearly defined in the articles of the Code of Criminal Procedure, which is currently in force in Russia. It is they that state that it can be appointed in the event that it is necessary to establish direct contact of the victim with the suspect, as a result of which the crime was committed. As a rule, this is done by examining the evidence left at the place of the dangerous act, as well as other microparticles that are directly related to the situation in question.
It should be noted that it is the forensic examination that is very important in judicial practice, because it allows you to learn about the smallest details of any crime.
A group of forensic examinations may include some others that relate to the study of a certain category of objects: ballistic, fingerprinting, odorology, etc. They can also solve questions regarding the presence of a certain habit in a person, the characteristics of materials and tools, with which, for example , a murder was committed, as well as odor belonging to a particular person, etc. Very often, a forensic medical examination is used for injuries with blunt objects, as well as sharp ones. As a rule, it is carried out during the consideration of cases involving domestic violence and, in some cases, murder. It should be noted that such an examination also very often applies to the medical group, which will be discussed in more detail below.
If we talk separately about the subject of this type of examination, then this is all the circumstances that have occurred and the facts that relate to the materials of the criminal case (or, in some cases, civil). All these facts must be proved by applying the methods of special knowledge.
Psychiatric and medical
The subject of a forensic medical examination is, as a rule, living people. In some cases, corpses or animals, as well as facts that are related to them, also act in his role. Specialists conduct research in this area solely to determine the severity of the injuries (often found during the forensic examination of injuries with sharp objects), the state of health of the injured or guilty person (for example, to simulate the disease), the ability to have sexual intercourse and etc.
As a rule, for carrying out this type of examination, additional actions are required that are of a different nature. An example of this can be laboratory tests or radiography, an autopsy of a person’s burial site, etc. As a rule, specialists carry out actions in a laboratory or in a hospital.
As practice shows, in relation to injuries caused by sharp objects, forensic medical examination is carried out most often. This is due to the fact that the greatest number of killings and injuries is done precisely with knives, sharpeners and other items of a similar type.
As for the subject of forensic psychiatric examination, it is a certain list of mental disorders of a person, as well as the characteristic features of his psyche and behavior. Practice shows that it is no different from that provided for in general psychiatry. - , , , , , .
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Economic
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Despite the fact that environmental review is one of the types of forensic, most often it is carried out outside the consideration of the circumstances of the case. A striking example of this is the case when the environmental impact assessment is necessary when creating a new building area of the city. In this case, an act is required in which information about the presence of plantations in a given area is determined. In some cases, this action is carried out in order to confirm the justification of the application submitted to the court.
What can an environmental impact assessment be done for? First of all, it may include studies of soil or water bodies, forests, the state of the atmosphere and air. This group also includes studies in the field of determining the state of biogeocenoses, as well as radiation conditions. In practice, such studies are very often carried out that determine the level of environmental impact of a particular enterprise or other business entity.
Other types of expertise
All of the above forensic examinations are those that are most often found in the practice of considering cases, as well as their investigation. Of course, research can be carried out in various other areas, depending on what is the subject of the investigation.
Practice shows that specialists with special knowledge can conduct research in the field of art history, agriculture, linguistics, biology, food, etc.
All of them can be carried out in the form of a main examination, additional (if it is necessary to clarify certain information that constitutes a separate object from the studies presented earlier), and also repeated (when there is doubt about the correctness of the conclusion or if the data obtained need to be double-checked, which often happens in connection with newly discovered circumstances in the case under review).