Each major city has a Crime lab which is dedicated to the types of problems and crimes associated with the area. For example, in a city with drug trafficking along state or international borders there is usually a Federal forensics lab which can deal with drug investigation. A typical forensics lab breaks into the following subsections, hair and fiber/trace analysis, drugs and technology, forensics photography, ballistics and firearms analysis, dental/odontology, anthropology, fingerprinting, medical examiner/coroner, questioned documents, serology/forensic biology (DNA), evidence collection teams (CSI), evidence intake and security, records and archive section, support staff.
Most labs are organized so that each section is separated from the others based on what equipment is used in what department. One of the most important things in a crime lab is the handling and passing down of evidence. From the time it comes off the crime scene, evidence must be catalogued and signed for every person that touches it. Whom ever comes into contact with evidence folders or bags has a certain responsibility to maintain the security of the evidence. Evidence tampering is a crime punishable by law, this is why evidence handling is a difficult area.
Book:
Fisher, Barry and David Fisher, Jason Kolowski. Forensics Demystified. : McGraw-Hill, 2007.
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