Journal Guide

Forensic Science International publishes original contributions in the many different scientific disciplines pertaining to the forensic sciences. Fields include forensic pathology and histochemistry, chemistry, biochemistry and toxicology (including drugs, alcohol, etc.), biology (including the identification of hairs and fibres), serology, odontology, psychiatry, anthropology, the physical sciences, firearms, and document examination, as well as investigations of value to public health in its broadest sense, and the important marginal area where science and medicine interact with the law.Forensic Science International publishes:Original Research PapersReview ArticlesPreliminary CommunicationsLetters to the EditorBook ReviewsCase ReportsThe journal covers all legal aspects of the general disciplines listed above, as well as specialist topics of forensic interest that are included in, or are related to, these disciplines, e.g.:Biochemical and chemical analyses, and the forensic application of advanced analytical, physical, chemical and instrumental techniquesBitemark evidenceBattered child syndromeQuestioned documentsBallistics, projectiles and woundsFingerprints and identificationTool marksContact tracesPoisoningBreath analysersAccident investigation and mass disasters

Forensic Science International: Genetics is specifically devoted to Forensic Genetics. This branch of Forensic Science can be defined as the application of genetics to human and non-human material (in the sense of a science with the purpose of studying inherited characteristics for the analysis of inter- and intra-specific variations in populations) for the resolution of legal conflicts.The scope of the journal includes:Forensic applications of human polymorphism.Testing of paternity and other family relationships, immigration cases, typing of biological stains and tissues from criminal casework, identification of human remains by DNA testing methodologies.Description of human polymorphisms of forensic interest, with special interest in DNA polymorphisms.Autosomal DNA polymorphisms, mini- and microsatellites (or short tandem repeats, STRs), single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), X and Y chromosome polymorphisms, mtDNA polymorphisms, and any other type of DNA variation with potential forensic applications.Non-human DNA polymorphisms for crime scene investigation.Population genetics of human polymorphisms of forensic interest.Population data, especially from DNA polymorphisms of interest for the solution of forensic problems.DNA typing methodologies and strategies.Biostatistical methods in forensic genetics.Evaluation of DNA evidence in forensic problems (such as paternity or immigration cases, criminal casework, identification), classical and new statistical approaches.Standards in forensic genetics.Recommendations of regulatory bodies concerning methods, markers, interpretation or strategies or proposals for procedural or technical standards.Quality control.Quality control and quality assurance strategies, proficiency testing for DNA typing methodologies.Criminal DNA databases.Technical, legal and statistical issues.General ethical and legal issues related to forensic genetics

Forensic Science International: Genetics Supplement Series is part of a duo of publications on forensic genetics, published by Elsevier on behalf of the International Society for Forensic Genetics. Their website can be found at www.ISFG.org.Supplements to Forensic Science International: Genetics are published under the title Forensic Science International: Genetics Supplement Series. All subscribers to Forensic Science International: Genetics automatically receive this publication.Please visit the website of the parent journal for more information about Forensic Science International: Genetics (ISSN: 1872-4973) at http://www.elsevier.com/locate/fsigen.

Forensic Science Policy & Management is dedicated to improving the effectiveness, efficiency, quality, and operations of forensic science laboratories as well as to the education and training of forensic scientists. In addition, the journal explores the government and institutional policies that affect the practice and management of forensic science.

Articles in the journal will focus on the business of forensic science laboratories, including but not limited to
• Best practices in forensic science and management;
• Policy critiques and recommendations;
• Education and training of scientists and other laboratory staff;
• The economics of forensic science practice;
• Quality control/quality assurance;
• Staffing and other human resource issues;
• Process and efficiency improvements;
• Budgeting and other management issues facing laboratory supervisors;
• Ethical issues;
• The intersection of law and forensic science;

Original research articles, case reviews, position papers, editorials or commentary, book reviews, and letters to the editors are welcome.

Forensic Science Policy & Management: An International Journal does not focus on the science of forensic science, but rather on how scientists, managers, and policy makers practice and use that science. The journal will provide a vital dialogue for exploring both current practice in forensic science and methods for improving and advancing the field so that it can meet rapidly increasing public needs and expectations.

Authors and readers will include scientists, practitioners, laboratory supervisors/directors, and policymakers in academia, government, and forensic science laboratories around the globe.

All submitted manuscripts are subject to initial appraisal by the Editor, and, if found suitable for further consideration, to peer review by independent, anonymous expert referees. All peer review is single blind and submission is online via ScholarOne Manuscripts.

  Publication office:Taylor & Francis Group, 530 Walnut Street, Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106

Forensic Science, Medicine and Pathology explores all aspects of modern day forensics, applying equally to children or adults, either living or the deceased. The range of topics covered includes forensic science, medicine, nursing, and pathology, as well as toxicology, human identification, mass disasters/mass war graves, profiling, imaging, policing, wound assessment, sexual assault, anthropology, archeology, forensic search, entomology, botany, biology, veterinary pathology, and DNA. Forensic Science, Medicine, and Pathology presents a balance of forensic research and reviews from around the world to reflect modern advances through peer-reviewed papers, short communications, meeting proceedings and case reports.

The journal strives for an international authorship and publishes a broad scope of forensic sciences including:

• Forensic pathology
• Clinical forensic medicine
• Forensic psychiatry
• Forensic toxicology and chemistry (including drugs, alcohol, etc.)
• Forensic biology (including the identification of hairs and fibers)
• Forensic genetics
• Anthropology
• Criminalistics
• Document examination
• Accident investigation
• Crime scene investigation
• Explosive
• Quality assurance
• Forensic entomology
• Forensic odontology
• Digital evidence
• Gunshot injury, etc.

Peer Review Policy
All peer review is double blind and submission is online via Editorial Manager.

The journal Forensic Toxicology provides an international forum for publication of studies on toxic substances, drugs of abuse, doping agents, chemical warfare agents, and their metabolisms and analyses, which are related to laws and ethics. It includes original articles, reviews, mini-reviews, short communications, and case reports. Although a major focus of the journal is on the development or improvement of analytical methods for the above-mentioned chemicals in human matrices, appropriate studies with animal experiments are also published.Forensic Toxicology is the official publication of the Japanese Association of Forensic Toxicology (JAFT) and is the continuation of the Japanese Journal of Forensic Toxicology (ISSN 0915-9606).This publication is supported in part by a Grant-in-Aid for Publication of Scientific Research Results from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.