Crime Scene Forensics - Direct vs Circumstantial Evidence

Evidence can be direct or circumstantial. What is the difference? Direct evidence refers to evidence that establishes a fact. A good example of direct evidence is statements or confessions made by the witnesses. Circumstantial evidence, on the flipside, requires that a judge and/or jury make indirect judgments, or inferences, about what transpired at the scene of a crime. For instance, if fingerprints or hairs found at the scene are consistent with that of a perpetrator, jurors may infer that the print or hair definitely belongs to the defendant. Since fingerprints or hairs were found at the crime scene, those pieces of evidence links the defendant to he scene.

Circumstantial evidence is not definitive proof. It only provides a general idea of what occurred at the crime scene. Many times, evidence identified forensically is circumstantial. However, direct evidence, such as eyewitness accounts, victims' statements, or offenders' confessions, may influence the interpretation of test results made by the medical examiner (ME). Direct evidence may also influence the ME's reconstruction of the crime scene.

In general, direct evidence is not considered to be as reliable as circumstantial evidence. Historically, eyewitnesses are poor at identifying perpetrators or remembering certain events. Therefore, their eyewitness accounts are not always credible. People have a tendency to make up events as opposed simply restating actual events like a tape recorder.

Crime Scene Forensics - Direct vs Circumstantial Evidence

Furthermore, circumstantial evidence is more objective while direct evidence is subjective. Circumstantial evidence provides a more credible answer. An eyewitness account of what happened can be wrong approximately half the time whereas saliva and blood evidence can accurately set apart one person from the rest of the general population.

Crime Scene Forensics - Direct vs Circumstantial Evidence
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