The University of New Haven’s Henry C. Lee Institute of Forensic Science and the China University of Political Science and Law have announced the formation of the China-U.S. Forensic Technology Research Center.
The new center will focus on developing and using technology to enhance law enforcement, investigation, forensic methods and data mining in both countries. Its mission will be to link scholars, researchers, students, forensic scientists, law enforcement, the legal community and professional practitioners in many fields to address the scientific and social issues confronting forensic science and the criminal justice system throughout the world.
The project, supported with $200,000 in contributions, will include the development of robotics to use in crime scene investigation. The robotics will be controlled remotely whether from the next room or from across the world. The hope is that the information discovered at a crime scene can then be shared across law enforcement agencies and investigators in various locations in real time, if necessary.
In addition to the Technology Research Center, a memorandum of understanding between the two universities was signed establishing an exchange of faculty and visiting scholars, short training courses offered by the Henry Lee Institute and participation in the master’s program of the Henry Lee College of Criminal Justice and Forensic Sciences.
As part of the five-year agreement, students and faculty from the China University, Lee Institute staff, and UNH forensic science faculty and students will conduct joint research to develop new tools and applications in digital forensic investigation, rapid DNA, facial recognition and biometrics, case management and evaluation, and robotics for scene investigation.
