Crime sleuths cope with ‘CSI’ Effect

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Alan Boyle

Science editor

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What real-life sleuths need
Houck said there was a crying need for more basic research, particularly into methods other than DNA testing, such as fingerprint analysis. DNA testing is "the more attractive younger sibling and it got more attention, and some of the older siblings were ignored," he said.

He said the federal government provided just $12 million to $15 million annually for forensic science research, through the National Institute of Justice.

"There is more money spent in this country on holistic medicine every year than there is on forensic science research, and I find that appalling for any number of reasons," Houck said.

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Despite the grumbling, the experts conceded that the real-life routine of a crime investigator probably wouldn't get the kinds of TV ratings "CSI" and "Law and Order" do.

"As I tell my students, it's less about wearing leather pants and driving Hummers than it is about wearing a Tyvek jumpsuit and crawling under somebody's porch and looking for body parts," Houck said. "That's the reality of it."

Sniffing out clues
Jane Servais and her dog Glory provided a taste of that forensic reality for journalists at Sunday's briefing.

Before the event, Servais hid a glass jar containing several extracted human teeth, donated by a dentist for training purposes. Then she brought Glory into the room, passing by rows of seated journalists. "If she starts barking at you, that's a bad sign," Servais remarked.

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At the appointed time, the dog was set to work. Glory paced around the front of the room, sniffing one spot after another, and it didn't take long for her to stop at a corner of the speaker's table, look up at Servais and start yipping.

"Show me!" Servais said. Glory jumped up on the table. Sure enough, the jar with the teeth had been placed underneath that corner of the table.

Servais said no high-tech sensor could match the nose of a trained canine when it comes to catching the scent of human remains — although some researchers might debate that claim. Servais and Glory have helped out with a wide variety of crime-scene cases in the Washington area, including the aftermath of the 9/11 terror attack on the Pentagon.

There are some challenges Servais and Glory won't take on: For instance, Servais has turned down requests to search for Civil War-era remains, or look for the buried remains of infants years after their disappearance, because in those cases there wouldn't be enough of a scent left behind even for Glory's sensitive nose.

And then there are times when even cadaver-sniffing dogs just have an off day.

"If they're uncomfortable at all, they're not as well-focused, and if they're not focused they're not as effective," Servais said. "That's when, as a handler, you've got to pull them out."

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