• Forensics plays an important role in investigationsmicro image by Andrey Kiselev from Fotolia.com
  
  Forensics play an important role in legal investigations in criminal and civil matters. Several areas of forensic science are used during an investigation. Each discipline deals with a specific type of evidence.
  
  

Forensic Anthropology

• Forensic anthropology is used to determine the age, gender and race of a deceased person. Forensic anthropologists examine skeletons and use their expertise to identify the victims of explosions, fires and plane crashes, as well as natural disasters such as earthquakes.
  
  

Forensic Toxicology

• Forensic toxicology determines whether toxins were involved in a death. Forensic toxicologists examine tissue and fluids for the presence of drugs, poison or other toxins. Forensic scientists also determine if drugs were used in sexual assault cases or if poisons were used in crimes against animals. Forensic toxicology is also used in the workplace when employers drug test employees.
  
  

Questioned Document Examination

• Questioned document examination is used to uncover forgeries and other document alterations. Forensic professionals can determine whether a signature has been forged, traced or altered with correcting fluid. Questioned document examiners can also determine the type of pen, paper, toner or pencil used to create a document.
  
  

Criminalists

• Criminalists analyze physical evidence found at crime scenes and interpret how that evidence fits into investigations. The evidence that's analyzed includes hair, blood, semen, soil or paint chips.
  
  

Forensic Odontology

• Forensic dentists analyze bite marks related to violent crimes such as rape, murder or assault and utilize dental records to identify victims of car accidents and plane crashes. Forensic odontology is also used in civil matters related to workers compensation, personal injury and dental malpractice.
  
  

Importance of Communication

• Forensic scientists must have excellent written communication skills since they are required to file reports. They also need good verbal communication skills since they often testify as expert witnesses in court.