TOWSON, Md. — The Baltimore County Police Department uses forensic science every day when solving crimes.
The department gave WMAR-2 News an inside look at its Forensic Services Section.
We first got to see the Crime Scene Unit.
This unit responds to everything from assaults, burglaries, robberies and more.
When they first get to the scene, they document what they see by taking notes. However, they also can do more with a camera.
Megan Hamp is a forensic services technician.
She demonstrated how they can use a camera to see exactly what it looks like at a crime scene.
Baltimore County Police showcases its Forensic Services Section
She says the crime scene unit is a mix of civilians and officers.
They are also responsible for collecting fingerprints.
For Hamp, she says it's important they do everything the right way.
"When we arrive at the scene, we make sure we are wearing the right PPE, the scene is secure, communicating with any officers or the detectives," said Hamp.
Once the evidence is collected, it then goes to the evidence processing unit.
There, they have the technology to do footwear comparisons. Collecting footprints has helped investigators solve homicides.
WMAR-2 News also got to see the Firearms Identification Unit.
This unit is responsible for examining firearms-related evidence.
So, if an illegal gun is recovered from the street, they can have that information put in a database.
Getting that information into the database as quickly as possible is crucial when it comes to solving crime.
