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Thursday, January 30, 2020

Crime series at URI kicks off Jan. 31

Crime Scene Cleanup, Veterinary Forensics among topics of URI’s spring Forensic Science Seminar Series
By Ian Weiner

discover bbc GIF by britboxThe use of civil litigation in forensic science cases across the nation, how to appropriately and effectively clean up a crime scene, and an extensive look into Frances Glessner Lee’s recreations of crime scenes in dollhouses that were then used to train homicide investigators are among the topics that will be explored during the University’s spring Forensic Science Seminar Series.

The series brings leading figures in several forensic science specialties to URI, and is free and open to the public.



“There is a great deal of interest in forensic science and the forensic science program seminar series provides a platform at the University to bring in speakers that will present on topics in the news and of concern to the students and to the general public,” said Dennis Hilliard, director of the Rhode Island State Crime Laboratory at the University of Rhode Island and adjunct professor of biomedical sciences in the College of Pharmacy. 

“The significant topics of interest during the spring 2020 semester include Genetic Genealogy, used extensively in solving cold cases, and Rapid DNA Analysis, which will allow law enforcement to connect suspects to crime scenes quickly.”

The lectures will be held on Fridays from 3:30 to 5 p.m. in Room 105 of the Richard E. Beaupre Center for Chemical and Forensic Sciences, 140 Flagg Road, Kingston campus.

The series speakers and their topics are as follows:

Jan. 31, Mike Holleran, a 31-year veteran of the Massachusetts State Police, “Crime Scene Cleanup”

Feb. 7, Steve Quartino, retired U.S. treasury agent and president of Discreet Investigative Solutions, “U.S. Treasury Law Enforcement- Pre and Post 9-11”

Feb. 14, Jessi Brown, forensic scientist at the ANDE Corp., the first and only company to receive National DNA Index System approval from the FBI, “Rapid DNA Analysis”

Feb. 21, Wayne Miller, a retired agent from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, “Fire and Explosion Scene Forensics”

Feb. 28, Thomas Blackwell, director of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency’s Northeast lab, “You found drugs in that?”

March 6, Martha Smith-Blackmore, president and director of Forensic Veterinary Investigations, “Veterinary Forensics”

March 20, Ray Wickenheiser, a New York state trooper, “Investigative Genetic Genealogy”

March 27, Kirk Yeager, a member of the Federal Bureau of Investigation explosives unit, “Explosives and Terrorism”

April 3, George Handel, from the Center for Disaster and Human Assistance Medicine, “Traumatic Injuries”

April 10, Andrew Reitnauer, of Delta Forensics with 14-years of experience as a latent print examiner and senior crime scene responder, “Latent Fingerprint”

April 17, Eva Marie Mancuso, managing partner at Hamel, Waxler, Allen and Collins, “Civil Litigation”

April 24, Bruce Goldfarb, executive assistant in the Maryland office of the Chief Medical Examiner, “Frances Glessner Lee – Unexplained Deaths”