To fingerprint or not to fingerprint? That is the question

Chantal Mustoe, Chemistry co-editor In October 2013, in the case of Regina v. Bornyk, a man was arrested, tried and acquitted of breaking and entering in Surrey, British Columbia. The judge assessed the fingerprint evidence himself and dismissed it due to “unexplained discrepancies” and possible effects of “institutional bias” in fingerprinting and the “subjective certainty” […]

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Fentanyl analysis: From the back alley to the crime lab

Lawrence Cheung, Chemistry co-editor The widespread use of illegal drugs in British Columbia is chilling. It is a growing epidemic and the number of drug related deaths has increased each year since 2012. The situation is so bad that B.C.’s health minister, Terry Lake, has asked the federal government to declare a national public health […]

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