Inside a real-life forensics laboratory

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I realise that real-life forensics laboratories differ depending on the expertise available, the facilities in place, and the most practical set of tests that forensics scientists can do feasibly (what tests can be performed over a long time rather than what is trendy). I also know that crime TV shows like Crime Scene Investigators (CSI) and its different variants (for example, CSI: NY and CSI: Miami) have forever shaped what I imagined a forensic laboratory would look like: dramatic lighting, gleaming glassware, and giant LCD screens.

Reality set in when I visited a county forensics laboratory. Friendly chemists (not the socially awkward ones typecast in TV shows) welcomed me and other visitors on a facility tour. Pieces of fancy equipment were not in shortage, as we were shown mass spectrometers attached to gas or liquid chromatography instruments. Old-school chemistry tests showing colour reactions for positives and negatives were demonstrated, just like the ones shown on TV sans the cast blocking, the zooming in on reaction vials, and the spotlight that focuses on the colour reactions.

Like their on-screen counterparts, the forensic scientists I met typically go to court as subject matter experts. Thus, they are signed off as competent testing personnel for their expertise. Pieces of evidence are securely stored, and their movements in the laboratory are meticulously documented.

What struck me the most were the scientists' stories—without specifics—about their findings. It's as if they showed me the underbelly of a society riddled with crime. 

Sounds like Gotham City, right?

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