Can 'contamination' occur in body bags?-The example of background fibres in body bags used in Australia

摘要

Impurities that are transferred to a crime scene or a body can have a significant negative impact on the investigation if the existence of the contamination is not known, and the source of the contamination is not identified. Forensic consumables, such as DNA swabs, have been known to have caused contaminations, wrongfully linking crimes throughout Europe. In that context, this study focused on body bags, widely used to transfer a corpse from the crime scene to the morgue. Our preliminary survey showed that several countries and Australian Jurisdictions are conducting the sampling of trace evidence at the morgue after the transportation of the body. Potential impurities present in body bags could thus interfere with pertinent traces.