Forensic Geology

Dear Colleagues,

In the last 20 years, the references to forensic geology have been equal to a mean value of 23,000/y. This discipline has been becoming an increasingly developing scientific topic of criminalistics, interfacing two worlds: the earth sciences and the justice system.

Forensic geology applies the scientific principles and techniques of earth and environmental sciences to solve criminal cases, reconstruct unknown events, and provide forensic evidence in court.

The judicial cases solved by forensic geologists are increasingly developing worldwide. The most common criminal cases involving geological evidence (such as minerals, soils, sediments, rocks, anthropogenic materials, microfossils, and groundwaters) are related to homicides, corpse concealments underground, kidnappings, hit-and-run accidents, environmental disasters, animal maltreatment, wildlife crimes, geotechnical problems, and geohazards.

In outdoor crime scenes, geological evidence may transfer from the crime scene to suspects, associating or excluding them with or from the crime scene. During forensic geology investigations of outdoor crime scenes, geology, botany, entomology, and legal medicine may be simultaneously involved in a holistic approach to analyze inorganic, anthropogenic, and organic materials found as trace or micro-trace physical evidence on the victim. Cooperation among forensic experts is of paramount importance for the success of investigations.

The main disciplines used by forensic geologists are sedimentology, micropaleontology, physical geology, mineralogy, petrography, geochemistry, hydrogeology, soil sciences, geomorphology, stratigraphy, regional geology, remote sensing, and applied geology and geophysics.

The analytical methods applied to geological trace evidence may be non-destructive or destructive, are ruled by protocols, and usually aim to compare unknown and known samples and study geological evidence provenance.

As the editor of the collection “Forensic Geology”, I encourage authors to submit original research articles, case studies, and review articles that discuss the key concepts of forensic geology and criminalistics involving crime scene experts, including but not limited to the following topics:

• Forensic soil and trace/micro-trace comparisons and provenance studies;
• Search for homicide graves and concealments of items;
• Red–amber–green-coded RAG priority search systems;
• Geophysics applied to crime scenes;
• GIS and remote sensing applied to criminal investigations;
• 3D laser scanner reconstructions of outdoor and indoor crime scenes;
• Human and animal toxicological analyses on human and animal remains related to substances present in the environment;
• Plant and animal DNA studies on geological evidence;
• Environmental forensics (groundwaters and soil pollution by landfill leachate contamination);
• Geographical profiling;
• Education in the field of forensic geology.

Dr. Roberta Somma
Collection Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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