Criminal justice professionals need a new place to meet science insulated from the adversary battle of courtroom expert testimony and the ‘gotcha’ traditions of daily journalism, a new way to inform scientists about the realities of practice—in short a new tradition that integrates science into the criminal process. The science portrayed on CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is real, and there is more science available than is ever shown on television. The Center for Modern Forensic Practice of the John Jay College of Criminal Justice mobilizes that science to support criminal justice professionals who are making a concrete difference on the streets—it uses science to provide not only more evidence, but a higher quality of evidence, and an enhanced ability to evaluate evidence.

---

Center News Articles

   

Center Wins Grant for Ground-Breaking Arson Screening Program
The Center has won a grant of $248,000 from the JEHT Foundation for an innovative Arson Screening Project, designed to assess the damage done by generations of “bad science” arson convictions. The Arson Screening Project will be the first program to address systematically the roles played by improved science in revealing mistaken convictions in a non-DNA context.

The 63rd Annual Short Course for Prosecuting Attorneys, and the 51st Annual Short Course for Defense Attorneys.
The Center will continue its association with Northwestern University School of Law’s renowned Short Courses  by organizing the forensics content with presentations by Center affiliates Peter DeForest, Peter Diaczuk, James Doyle, Angela Crossman and John Lentini.

Dr. Peter R. De Forest , having retired from the Department of Science at John Jay after 37 years, has joined the Center as Chief Science Fellow.>>Read More