GSPIA to hold new crime scene investigation, forensic classes

Students can now see Pitt’s own version of “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” the television… Students can now see Pitt’s own version of “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” the television series on crime scenes, in classrooms on campus. The Graduate School of Public and International Affairs added two new undergraduate administrative justice classes focusing on forensic evidence to the spring term.

“I thought that it was time that we introduce students to [this area of study],” Lee Weinberg said.

Weinberg is the director of undergraduate programs for GSPIA, which includes the administration of justice, legal studies and public service programs. He added that, in the past, forensics and criminalistics was not covered adequately in the administration of justice major.

Criminal prosecutions are relying on crime scene investigation more, making the information from these two classes valuable to students, Weinberg said.

Crime scene investigation will focus on the “collection, preservation, analysis and utilization of physical evidence in criminal prosecutions,” according to an e-mail summary of the classes sent out by Barbara Mowery, senior academic adviser of the College of Arts and Sciences.

According to Weinberg, criminalistics will focus on the more scientific aspects of crime scene investigation. Class topics will range from blood, hair and fingerprint analysis to “cause of death issues,” Mowery’s statement read.

No prerequisites exist for either class.

Weinberg said students had been asking about classes such as these since the O.J. Simpson trial. He added that interest in the classes has probably grown as a result from high profile cases such as the Westerfield trial in California and from the CBS television series, “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.”

While Weinberg wanted to add these classes for several years; he said he had difficulty finding “the right people to teach” them.

That changed with Ron Freeman and Dr. Edward Strimlan. Freeman will be teaching the crime scene investigation course, and Strimlan, an employee of the Allegheny County Coroner’s Office, will teach the criminalistics course.

Freeman served as head of the city police homicide division, and later as its commander, according to Weinberg. Freeman was also a former administrative justice student and a student of Weinberg’s at Pitt.

“I was in touch with him over the years, and we had discussed the idea of his doing some teaching, but he did not have the time,” Weinberg said.

Freeman’s recent retirement gave him the opportunity to teach the crime scene investigation course, Weinberg said.

“I believe Dr. Strimlan contacted me and indicated he had been teaching a similar class [of criminalistics at other institutions] and would like to do so at Pitt,” Weinberg said.

Weinberg added that Strimlan’s class might be taking trips to the Allegheny County Coroner’s Office.

The courses are offered as electives for the administrative justice major, but Weinberg added that if there is interest in the programs, he hopes to add more.

“I would like to develop a concentration within the administrative justice major,” Weinberg said.

Although the administration of justice major is offered through the College of General Studies, CAS students are also welcome to take the classes as electives.

Weinberg said the classes were deliberately scheduled so students could take both courses simultaneously in the spring term.