LAHORE: The forensic science ‘made the dead speak’ as it appeared to be a paradigm shift from oral testimony to scientific physical evidence testimony in the modern world.

The DNA analysis and other forensic evidences were being used to revisit closed cases in US, eminent forensic experts at an international conference said here on Wednesday.

The first international conference in Pakistan on “Forensic Science and Justice” began at the Government College University Lahore here on Wednesday under the auspices of the varsity’s chemistry department, Punjab Forensic Science Agency (PFSA) and the Higher Education Commission (HEC).

More than 500 experts, including lawyers, judges, forensic experts, police officers and academicians, are participating in the three-day event comprising six technical sessions -- on ‘Jurisprudence’, ‘Forensic Toxicology and Drug of Abuse’, ‘Crime Detection and its Investigation’, ‘Forensic Biology’, ‘Forensic Psychology’ and ‘Cyber crimes’.

In his opening ceremony address, GCU Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Muhammad Khaleequr Rahman said the conference was first of its kind in the country to discuss latest methods to overcome obstacles affecting judicial system.

“About 11 eminent forensic scientists from the US, UK, Canada, Egypt and Australia are practicing in the conference”, he added.

In his keynote address, Dr Garth Glass Berg, the executive director of Chicago Regional Crime Lab, USA, said forensic science made the dead speak.

“Humans can lie, forget or get frightened by the crime scene, but physical evidence is always there as a silent witness,” he said, adding the change from oral testimony to scientific physical evidence was a paradigm shift in the America’s criminal justice system.

He told the participants that like human fingerprints, every firearm in the world left unique print on its ammunition, and it could be proved in the court what specific firearm was used to fire ammunition.

Terrey H Gilbert, an eminent defense attorney from Ohio, USA, said DNA analysis and other forensic evidences were being used to revisit closed cases in US in which biological crime scene specimens were maintained.

“Questionable convictions based on non-scientific evidence such as “eyewitness” identification are now being reversed through new tests using this advanced science. As a result, hundreds of innocent people in the last 20 years have been released,” he said, adding that the DNA exoneration had now called into question widely accepted notions of reliability of traditional evidence.

Punjab Forensic Science Agency Director General Dr Muhammad Ashraf Tahir said prior to the establishment of PFSA, forensic techniques were applied in less than one per cent of the crime investigations in Pakistan.

“Above and beyond sanctioning wider discretion to the investigators, this practice also leads to a situation where large number of evidentially fragile cases is submitted to the courts and resultantly convictions remains low,” he added.

He said PFSA had proved its excellence at the international level and they were receiving cases from US, UK, Egypt and other countries. He called for establishing more state-of-the-art forensic science agencies in the country to support the judicial system.

On the occasion, GCU faculty of science and technology Dean Prof Islam Ullah Khan said about 70 papers would be presented by eminent forensic experts at the conference which stressed refining objectives, deliberating delivery plan details, discussion and dissemination of emerging results.

Lahore High Court former chief justice Khawaja Muhammad Sharif spoke on the role of physical evidence in criminal justice system. Eminent Chemist Dr Muhammad Akhyar Farrukh presented a paper on ‘Green synthesis of magnetic nanopowder for the development of latent fingermarks’.

Prof Dr Harpal S Buttar from University of Ottawa, Canada, GCU chemistry department chairperson Dr Adnan and Tanta University, Egypt, forensic medicine department head Dr Mona Elghory also attended the opening ceremony of the conference.

Published in Dawn, October 23rd, 2014