Whole-Item Recovery
Definition
Collection of an item for controlled later sampling instead of immediate partial recovery. Prioritisation chooses examinations according to relevant questions, material and competing needs. More testing is not automatically better.
- Context
- Evidence collection
For example, recovering clothing intact can permit coordinated later sampling while preserving relationships that would be lost by taking only one field swab.
Coordinate potentially destructive or incompatible examinations and preserve the relationship between results and the original item.
Related terms
- Chemiluminescence
- Chemiluminescence is light emission generated by a chemical reaction rather than by an external excitation light source. Forensic applications include screening reactions...
- Collection Blank
- A control addressing relevant collection-device or handling background. Their selection should match the contamination pathways and stages being assessed. A clean control...
- Continuity Record
- Documentation connecting an exhibit’s identity, possession, handling and storage. Document material subdivisions and derivatives as part of that history. Continuity and analytical...
- Substrate Comparison
- A sample used to investigate relevant background on an item, distinct from process blanks. Material from an appropriate part of an item...