Michelle Taylor

Editor-in-Chief

Forensic

Michelle Taylor has worked on the Forensic brand since 2016. Well established in the industry, Michelle has attended dozens of scientific conferences and conducted interviews with key opinion leaders, including multiple Nobel Prize winners and award-winning forensic scientists. Michelle enjoys writing about investigative forensic genetic genealogy, novel psychoactive substances, next-generation sequencing, sexual assault kits and more. Michelle received her BA in journalism from Elon University in North Carolina. Michelle can be reached at [email protected] Michelle can be reached at [email protected]

ASCLD Recognizes the Top Performing Forensic Labs in the World
April 14, 2020
The American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors (ASCLD) has announced the recipients of its 2020 Foresight Maximus Award, which recognizes the top performing forensic laboratories in the world. read more
Minnesota Forensic Lab Validates THC in Cannabis Test Method
April 10, 2020
Forensic scientists have validated a method to determine the THC quantity of a plant or liquid sample, allowing them to differentiate between hemp and marijuana. read more
Soil Expert Employs Dogs to Help Identify Cadaver Decomposition Islands
April 09, 2020
Environmental scientist Jacqui Aitkenhead-Peterson assists law enforcement by matching soil from crime scenes and suspects and determining evidence of human decomposition products. This year, she added someone special to her team. read more
Longtime Criminalist Uses ‘Old-School’ Technique to ID Victim in 50-Year-Old Murder
April 08, 2020
Want to know the key to fingerprinting and identifying human remains buried 51 years ago? Perseverance, Ivory dish soap and old-school techniques. read more
Kansas Crime Lab Uses Evidence Drying Cabinets to Decontaminate N95 Masks
April 06, 2020
The evidence drying cabinets at the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office Criminalistics Laboratory are putting in overtime during the COVID-19 pandemic. read more
TrueAllele Finds Match for DNA Mixture in 12-Year-Old Murder of College Student
April 02, 2020
The accused, David Kahl, has been a suspect from the very beginning but lab tests have been inconclusive, until now. Cybergenetics and TrueAllele have finally matched DNA from the victim's jeans to Kahl. read more
Genetic Genealogy Leads Florida Police to Arrest in 35-Year-Old Murder of Young Mother
April 01, 2020
A few weeks ago, Mallett called McKinley’s now-adult son, Tim—who he has never met—to let him know they arrested a man for the alleged murder of his mother 35 years ago. read more
NYPD Publishes First Facial Recognition Policy Amid Clearview AI Controversy
March 30, 2020
The NYPD has used a variation of facial recognition technology for almost a decade, but there has been increasing opposition in the last few years, especially recently after a report was published linking Clearview AI, a controversial, startup facial recognition company, with members of the NYPD. read more
Teeth Show Signs of Impactful Events in a Person’s Life
March 27, 2020
Researchers at NYU have shown that teeth can do even more—they can reveal impactful events that occurred during a person’s life. read more
Analytical Method IDs Maggot Species to Better Pinpoint Time of Death
March 26, 2020
Researchers have developed an alternative using advanced machine learning and direct analysis in real time-high resolution mass spectrometry, or DART-HRMS for short. read more
2020 Report Reveals Top Digital Trends Redefining Law Enforcement
March 25, 2020
“Detectives have told me they will step over a dead body to get to the computer, the mobile phone, the Fitbit, the Alexa,” Louis Quijas, former Assistant Director of the FBI, told Forensic. read more
3D Visualizations Improve Jurors’ Understanding of Technical Language
March 23, 2020
Researchers found that 94 percent of jurors understood the technical language of an expert when presented with a 3D-printed model of skull trauma. read more
Forensic Anthropologist Kathy Reichs Discusses her Latest Bones Book, DNA Advances and ‘Experts’
March 19, 2020
Brain lesion. Faceless corpse. Exile. Conspiracy. Exploitation of the vulnerable. If that sounds like a good story, you may want to purchase a copy of Kathy Reichs’ brand-new book. read more
Science Debunks Cultural Medicine Myth: Pangolin Scales are Useless
March 17, 2020
Whether spread because of a bad journal article, ancient cultural traditions or simply rumor, scientists have a responsibility to relay correct, impartial data whenever possible. read more
Mobile Forensic Lab Brings New Dimension to Outdoor Crime Scenes
March 13, 2020
The stocked van was designed by and purpose-built from the ground up for forensic scientists in a project that took more than two years to complete. read more
Florida House Passes Forensic Reform Bill for Felons
March 11, 2020
On Tuesday, the Florida House unanimously advanced to Senate a bill featuring forensic analysis reforms that gives convicted felons more post-conviction options. read more
Forensic Analysis of 3D-printed Firearms: Beyond Traditional Traceology
March 10, 2020
Forensic scientists and crime science investigators need to recognize that the traditional traceology approach must be adapted when investigating a scene where a 3D-printed firearm is suspected. read more
Time-of-Flight Method Helps Forensic Analysts Halt Trafficking of Rhino Horns
March 09, 2020
Forensic lab analysts examine, identify and compare evidence using traditional instrumentation to link suspect, victim and crime scene with physical evidence. The only caveat here is that the victim is an animal, not a human. read more
Research Program Seeks to Validate Unique Hand Identification
March 06, 2020
Are our hands as unique as our fingerprints? If so, can that be proven beyond a reasonable doubt? A new program led by forensic anthropologist Dame Sue Black is asking 5,000 citizen scientists to help answer that question by uploading photos of their hands. read more
2020’s Best Colleges for Criminal Justice, Criminology
March 04, 2020
Based on more than 100,000 college degree programs and the starting salary data of over 5 million graduates, GradReports has ranked 2020’s best colleges by major, including criminology and criminal justice. read more