ABSTRACT
Physical evidence is the backbone of forensic science and can exist in many different forms. This chapter explains the methods for discovery and analysis of evidence as well as specifying which kind of cases each type of evidence is typically encountered in. The field has never been as technologically sophisticated as it is, and the methods that are used have advanced exponentially since the inception of forensic science. Forensic biology evidence is most commonly used in relation to criminal cases, but can certainly be used in immigration and paternity matters before the court. Information gleaned from evidence in a criminal case should help to prove or disprove some fact of consequence. Forensic biology has grown to the discipline it is today through the development of three foundational applications used to associate an item of evidence with a person of interest: antigen polymorphism, protein polymorphism, and DNA polymorphism.
