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Show 6 Signpost-Tuesday, May 8, 1984 It's elementary, my dear Watson WSC Criminalists Examine Evidence For Intermountain Area Police by Valerie Bingham Contributing Writer At first glance it may appear that Sherlock Holmes is alive and well and sleuthing on the WSC campus. After a double take and some explanation, however, it becomes more clear that the famed detective's double is actually James Gaskill. It's most probably the hat that causes the confusion. The distinctive deerstalker hat that Holmes wore in all his adventures is the very style which suits Gaskill. Gaskill, however, says there is no connection between Holmes and his reason for sporting the unique topper. He claims, "I just like that kind of hat." The similarity between the two men does not stop there. Less obvious, but perhaps more ironic, is the fact that Gaskill thrives on criminal investigaitng, just as Holmes did. Gaskill, however, adamantly maintains he is a criminalist, while Holmes would be viewed more as a criminologist. The distinction is an important one to Gaskill and his fellow criminalists who work with the physical evidence of crimes, while Holmes focused more on the psychology surrounding the criminal. In 1972, Gaskill started the WSC Criminalistics Lab. The lab is used in conjunction with teaching in WSC's Department of Corrections and Law Enforcement Education. In fact, other than schools in Arizona and California, WSC is the only school in the West to offer a degree in police science. In addition, the lab serves all the government agencies in northern Utah and the south-west corner of Wyoming, and up until two years ago, was the only criminalistics lab in Utah. The lab functions with the help of three other criminalists besides Gaskill. One of those criminalists, Steve Garrett, explains that the lab analyzes physical evidence involved in crimes. Such physical evidence as blood, hair, sweat, saliva and semen are examined at the lab, and the criminalists report their findings to the appropriate officials for use as evidence. This usually involves testifying in court as to their findings. Garrett explains that the criminalists may drive as many as 12 hours to give a five minute court testimony. "Courts are demanding more and more physical evidence," says Garrett. According to him, that can be identification evidence, such as fingerprints, or circumstancial evidence, such as a footprint, which is not definitive identification. A jury will weigh such evidence in determining the outcome of a case. According to Garrett, "Most of the cases we get are drug related." In fact, almost 70 percent of the physical evidence examined in the lab is drugs, ranging from marijuana to heroin. The staff in the lab also work on firearms examinations, matching slugs to gun barrels; serial number restoration for bikes; identifying types of accelerants in arson cases; and fingerprint identificaiton. Sgt. Richard Peterson of the Ogden City Police Department says he works with the lab on "just about any type of case," including homicides, burglaries and rapes. All this may sound like something out of a television program, although Garrett maintains, "We're not like a Quincy." Not unlike Quincy, however,' is the value placed on the determinations made in the laboratory setting. According to Peterson, the work conducted by the criminalistics lab is "absolutely critical" because police work has been incorporated into the age of technology. 'The day of relying on a confession is very quickly fading," says Peterson. "We (criminalistics) have to do this to stay ahead of the criminals because they're getting smarter all the time." As indispensable as Sherlock Holmes has been to readers and as Quincy has been to television viewers, so too it seems is the WSC criminalistics lab to real life sagas of crime in Utah and Wyoming. h i y - U Signpost photo Bob George Criminalist Steve Garrett stands inside the Weber State crime lab which is located in the Social Science Building. Garrett and three other members of the crime lab are involved in examining evidence brought to them from areas in northern Utah and parts of Wyoming. "ONE OF THE FUNNIEST FLATOUT FARCES EVER PUT ON FIUTv "THE FEEL-GOOD FLICK OF THE YEAR!" COSMOPOLITAN MAGAZINE BLAKE fD WARDS' UNION MOVIE May 9,10,11,12 7 & 9:30 P.M. Wednesday is 1$ night! Psych Students Present Papers A student from Weber State and a student from Utah State presented papers at the Northwest Undergraduate Psychology Research Symposia at Central Washington University on April 27. Todd Wilcox (Weber State College) presented a paper titled "Influence of perceived levels of authority on students' acceptance of non-individualized personality descriptions." Jody Smith (Utah State University) presented a paper titled "A social commons dilemma game: A study of size variables." The papers were well done and well received. The students were made to feel welcome and visited with the keynote speaker -Ronald Smith, director of Clinical Training at the University of Washington. The trip was organized by Dr. Hal Bertilson, WSC psychology. Discover.... Ogden's One-stop Wedding Shop Bridal Gowns Decorating Flnwprc - -tj V"-v Invitations Appointments Not Necessary Layaways and charge cards accepted Special Wedding Pac $199 UNIVERSAL Party & Display 393-5353 3770 Kiesel 0 - - a f a 0. CL 0. Take a i GURSE this SuRRer COURSE CREDIT TUITION Plants in Human Affairs 4 Introduction to Chemistry 5 Child Development 5 Principles of Advertising 4 Intro To Mass Comm 3 Mass Media & Society 3 Police Process 3 English Composition 3 Intro To Fiction 3 Poetry Writing 3 Physical Geography 5 American Civ 5 Utah History 3 Principles of Adv (mktg) 4 Intro to Music 3 Music Essentials 3 American Natl. Govt. 5 Intro to Public Admin 5 Criminology 3 Heredity 5 " Does not include text & materials To register for a correspondence course, call 626-6600 or come to Promontory Tower 4th floor. WEBER STATE COLLEGE DIVISION OF CONTINUING EDUCATION $98. 118. 118. 98. 77. 77. 77. 77. 77. .77. 118. 118. 77. 98. 77. 77. 118. 118. 77. 118. |