Forensic Botany. A Practical Guide. 2012. (Essential Forensic Science). 216 p. gr8vo. Paper bd.

This guide is an accessible introduction to the way inwhich botanical evidence is identified, collected and analysed in criminal cases. Increasingly this form of evidence is becoming more important in forensic investigation and yet there are few trained botanists able to assist in such cases. The book combines well known collection techniques in a field oriented format that can be used for casework. Collection of evidence differs from formal plant collection in that most professional plant collectors are gathering entire plants or significant portions of a plant for permanent storage and reference. Evidence frequently consists of fragments, sometimes exceedingly tiny. Exemplars (examples of reference plants) are collections of plants made in the manner a botanist would collect them. These collections are necessary to link or exclude evidence to or from a scene. Various methods that allow easy collection, transportation, and preservation of evidence are detailed throughout the book. This book is written for those who have no formal background working with plants. It can be used as a practical guide for students taking forensic science courses, law enforcement training, legal courses, and as a template for plant collection at any scene where plants occur and where rules or laws are involved. Veterinarians, various environmental agencies, anthropologists, and archeologists are examples of disciplines that are more recently in need of plant evidence.