THE University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona will begin offering a first degree in forensic science this September. It is expected that the programme will help to meet the demand for trained personnel in the field, which is increasingly being used to solve major crimes, such as murder and rape.

The proposed BSc in Forensic Science will have a first cohort of about 20 students. Those accepted to the programme must have a strong background in the sciences, according to senior lecturer Dr Wayne McLaughlin, who heads the Biochemistry section at the university.

He noted that the students – who are expected to have CXC/CAPE level passes in Physics, Chemistry and Biology – will pursue a course in those subjects, as well as Regional Law in their first year.

In year two, they will do advanced courses in Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Analytical and Organic Chemistry, as well as Material Sciences.

Final year courses will include Forensic Chemistry, Forensic DNA, Forensic Anthropology and Forensic Toxicology.

“As a forensic scientist, you come across so many different situations so your background has to be as wide as possible,” McLaughlin, also co-founder of Caribbean Genetics (CariGen), told the Sunday Observer.

CariGen is a UWI-funded private medical laboratory offering services, such as DNA profiling for use in sexual offences crimes, paternity testing, and the identification of missing people.

Speaking at the UWI Research Day forum on Thursday, McLaughlin said the process of DNA profiling was not a fast-pace as depicted in popular television shows such as CSI. But he said that the use of DNA in court cases in Jamaica was on the rise.

“We’re doing quite a number of new forensic cases and have the capacity to do more. The system is fully automated and expandable if the workload increases,” he said, noting their work at CariGen.

At the same time, he said that a system such as that used by CariGen was “not cheap”. DNA tests in a rape case averaged around US$1,000, he said.

They would involve DNA testing of the alleged victim and perpetrator, and testing of crime scene samples, McLaughlin said.

He added that the preservation of local crime scenes by the police was an area that needed to be improved if the use of DNA testing is to be a successful crime solving tool.

McLaughlin has been involved in a number of well-known cases where forensic science has proven key. These include the successful release from prison of Stafford Webb, a man who – more than four years ago – was wrongfully convicted of the rape of an 11-year-old girl.

He also helped in the identification of Julia and Richard Lyn, the elderly Mandeville couple whose remains were found at a dumpsite earlier this month. The Lyns were robbed and abducted from their home on December 10 last year.

editorial@jamaicaobserver.com