Lee sought change and devoted his career and much of his life to the study and promotion of forensic science. Building on his education from the Central Police College, Lee came to the United States to learn more about this field. In 1972, he majored in forensic science and earned a bachelor of science degree from John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York. In 1974, he received a master's from New York University and, in 1975, he earned the title of doctor for his biochemistry degree from New York University.

After working at the New York University Medical Center from 1966 to 1975, Lee became an assistant professor at the University of New Haven, Connecticut, and founded the university's forensic department. Three years later, he became the director and was granted tenure as a full professor. Other titles Lee has held include commissioner for the Department of Public Safety, chief criminalist and director of the Connecticut State Police Forensic Science Laboratory in Meriden, Connecticut.

Today Lee, chief emeritus of the Connecticut Department of Public Safety Division of Scientific Services, continues helping agencies in the United States and other countries solve their cases with no true retirement in sight. As a distinguished professor, he teaches a field course in the Forensic Science Program at the University of New Haven, and edits seven academic journals. Lee also is the director of the Forensic Research and Training Center in Branford, Connecticut; the founder and a member of the board of directors of the Henry C. Lee Institute of Forensic Science at the University of New Haven; and he continues to conduct research.

"Law Enforcement Technology" asked Dr. Lee what changes he has witnessed in the field of forensic science during the past 45 years and what changes might be expected in the years ahead.

LET: How has forensic science, especially the technology, changed since you began your career?

Dr. Lee: In the 1960s, the forensic field was really primitive. We basically relied on identification methods. We did a little fingerprinting (relying on brushes, not the 250-some techniques used to find latent prints today), crime scene photography, drug identification, chemical tests or maybe TLC (thin layer chromatography), and blood - presumptive blood testing and, if you were really good, some ABO typing - and ballistic and document examination. Basically, we wanted to find out the nature of the compound.

As you know, in forensic science we start with identification, then we conduct a comparison and go into individualization. That's the ultimate goal: to individualize an item. In the '60s we basically used wet chemistry. Nobody cared too much about the laboratory. We were very underbudgeted with few people. Most of the time, we worked in a renovated room. For example, when I joined the Connecticut State Police, we used a men's room that had been converted to a laboratory and the whole laboratory had only one microscope. In the 1970s, the war against drugs brought federal funding to law enforcement laboratories. We did quite a bit of drug work and started to have some instrumentation including GC (gas chromatography) analysis. Serologists in the '70s started looking at precise ABO typing and other isoenzyme analysis methods. We started approaching individualization but we couldn't do what we do today. For example, if you have DNA from blood or semen, you can say with almost 100-percent certainty the DNA belongs to one individual or his/her identical twin.

With advances in instrumentation, techniques from the initial sample preparation to the analysis to database searches became more automated.

We've made tremendous strides.

LET: What technologies in the future will most likely help forensic science make even more strides? Dr. Lee: Looking to the future, there are four major areas to expect change:

Teleforensics - Crime scenes will be linked to forensic experts or to the laboratory using Internet technology. Even though I work hard, I try hard, how many crime scenes can I respond to every night? In other words, you can't be in every place at a given time. With a teleforensic program, the crime scene can come to us.

Editor's note: The Henry C. Lee Institute of Forensic Science is a partner with the National Institute of Justice to make new crime scene technology available to law enforcement agencies at a low cost. The institute focuses on forensics research, public education and training professionals in criminal justice and related fields.

Data mining - We will see a massive amount of data mining. For example, if a shoe print is found at a scene today, we photograph the print or do a casting, and send it to the laboratory imprint examiner, who will look at a computer to try to reach a conclusion. In the future, the shoe print image will be searched against a shoe print database, which will be able to determine the print is a Size 9 Puma sneaker, manufactured in China. That information will reach the detective before he leaves the crime scene.

Digital documentation of the crime scene and 3D reconstruction - Traditional prints are slowly being replaced with digital images. These images can be quickly transmitted to the laboratory and make crime scene reconstruction - especially 3D reconstruction - easier.

Expert system and crime modeling - If a detective, for example, has a question about how to collect saliva, instead of doing whatever he pleases, he can search an expert database for complete instructions, including what to use for collection, how to use it and how to preserve the sample.

LET: While technologies will change, will the role of forensic scientists remain the same?

Dr. Lee: Some people still misunderstand the forensic science field. Others still think forensic science should be only for the prosecution. Scientific evidence should be totally objective and without bias. In other words, let the evidence speak for itself. Instead of using scientific evidence to prove a suspect is guilty, it could prove a suspect is not guilty.

The forensic science field is basically the application of scientific methods to analyze physical evidence. Forensic applications are not limited to criminal law, and can include civil law, consumer protection, product liability, medical integrity, highway safety, environmental protection, consumer protection and national security.

In the '60s or '70s, forensic scientists did not dare do private consultation work. A recent survey from the American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors showed almost 90 percent of forensic laboratories allow their scientists to do consultation work.

LET: You say today's court system is in need of reform.

Dr. Lee: Instead of a total adversary system (you either only testify for the defense or the prosecution), the experts should be court-appointed. They should look at the evidence objectively and call it as it is so the jury doesn't have to be totally confused. Now any time someone is on trial - even for a traffic accident - both sides parade expert witnesses. For example, forensic psychiatrists. You have five people say this defendant is insane and five other equally qualified experts say the defendant is normal. This only creates confusion for the court and the jury.

LET: If you had a classroom of law enforcement managers, what lessons would you want them to learn?

Dr. Lee: Three simple lessons:

1. They should wholly support their forensic laboratory and crime scene investigators. As you know, most forensic examiners are underpaid and overworked. Many departments would rather buy a new cruiser than a new microscope. The forensic laboratory needs support - not only when a case hits the fan and there's a controversy or problem that requires millions of dollars to fix. Every year departments should look at how to train forensic scientists and crime scene investigators, and how to get funding for their training. Education is important.
2. The crime scene experts in the field and the forensic lab experts should work together. Laboratory people, instead of living in an ivory tower, should understand the crime scene and realize that searching a crime scene is not an easy job. The two groups should have total cooperation and communication. Local, state and federal employees, badge or no badge, should work as a team instead of having a traditional turf war.
3. Keep an open mind. Don't ever develop tunnel vision. Anything can happen. Have an open mind so the public will trust us. Once the public found out law enforcement would cover up things, then they didn't trust us anymore, especially cases relating to a police shooting, police brutality, a rich/famous person or politician, or all of those. We should do our best to treat everybody equally, work totally objectively and call it as it is.

LET: What should law enforcement managers keep in mind when selecting forensic technology?

Dr. Lee: Some technologies today are extremely expensive. Others are much more reasonable. When selecting new technology, keep these criteria in mind:

1. It needs to be durable.
2. It needs to meet the national standard.
3. It needs to be convenient to operate.
4. It should be versatile.
5. It must be reliable.
6. It should be economic enough to purchase and often economic enough to purchase multiple units.

LET: What should law enforcement managers keep in mind when selecting forensic training?

Dr. Lee: Law enforcement executives should understand crime scene investigation is part of forensic science. Forensic scientists also have to understand crime scene investigators are members of the forensic science team. Unfortunately, many scientists never have crime scene training and many crime scene investigators never have forensic training. That's why college education is important. A degree in forensic investigation should be required to conduct crime scene analysis. And forensic laboratory people should also take courses in crime scene investigation and crime scene reconstruction. A piece of physical evidence should not be looked at in an isolated form because, as they say, identification is the simplest examination. Once you identify a substance as blood, what does it mean in the context of the whole case? Nowadays forensic scientists are becoming too specialized. We've lost this perspective and that's why. It's extremely important for the National Institute of Justice to continue funding crime scene training and forensic courses.

Editor's note: The National Crime Scene Training Center, housed within the University of New Haven Henry C. Lee Institute of Forensic Science, received a $2 million grant from the Department of Justice. The center is open to all law enforcement officials and forensic scientists and offers basic, intermediate and advanced training without charge to attendees. See www.hcleeinstitute.com for more information.

LET: (Looking at some of his more famous cases, Lee has solved a murder without a body, he's assisted in the investigations of the suicide of President Clinton's former White House attorney (Vincent Foster), he's reviewed JFK's assassination and the O.J. Simpson case.) After investigating more than 6,000 major cases, does anything surprise you?

Dr. Lee: Once in awhile I'm still surprised, but we know most homicides are committed for basically 16 different reasons. And we know the crime scene is the most dynamic, most important aspect of the total investigation. The integrity and the security of the crime scene are crucial. We absolutely have to meet the scientific and legal requirements or the court is going to throw the evidence out. You cannot just do whatever you as an individual please.

Editor's note: For his hard work, Lee has received 10 honorary doctorate degrees as well as numerous awards, citations and commendations. Among his awards are the John A. Dondero Memorial Award from the International Association for Identification, Distinguished Fellow of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, the Medal of Justice from the Justice Foundation, the Ellis Island Medal of Honor and the Teacher of the Year Award from the University of New Haven.

LET: Looking at your career in forensic science, what is the accomplishment of which you are most proud?

Dr. Lee: I'm most proud of my students. A lot of them have become police chiefs, chiefs of detectives, lab directors, managers in charge of programs, professors, medical examiners, even big-time lawyers. Many of them have given me a lot of credit for bringing forensic science to the level it is today. But I cannot claim credit by myself - we have a lot of good people in the forensic field working together.

I'm also really proud of the textbooks we have published to share the knowledge with people willing to learn, willing to try. We've also published quite a few crime books, which are not fictionalized. Every case we select has a message with educational value. We emphasize the crime scene, how we approached the case, what was successful, what wasn't successful. Last year, cases appeared in 14 episodes of Court TV's "Trace Evidence: The Case Files of Dr. Henry Lee." The show began airing more episodes in June. The cases do not focus on rich or famous people, but rather the day-to-day individual. We talk not only about the cases we link to a suspect, but cases that exonerate a suspect, and how law enforcement and prosecutors review the evidence and decide to drop the case. That's rare. We see forensic science coming to reach a level called "truth justice," a justice system for everybody.

Editor's note: Lee has authored or co-authored more than 30 books (including "Cracking More Cases: The Forensic Science of Solving Cases," co-authored with Thomas O'Neil; "Famous Crimes Revisited: from Sacco-Vanzetti to O.J. Simpson," co-authored with Jerry Labriola; and "Henry Lee's Crime Scene Handbook," written with Timothy Palmbach and Marilyn Miller).

LET: Not everyone in forensic science will stick with the field until retirement (let alone three retirements). Why is crime scene work especially susceptible to high employee turnover?

Dr. Lee: Crime scene investigation is among the most difficult professions. These people work a lot of hours. And it's not "CSI" - by the second commercial, you always find a clue and by the end of the episode, you're eating in a fancy restaurant. The crime scene people work long hours and they have a lot of pressure. They also have fewer chances to get promoted or recognized. Many of them just simply burn out.

Another factor is the rapidly changing technology. The crime scene people don't have a chance to even learn how to use the instrument they bought. They don't know the limitations or how to use it. They sometimes read a paper or listen to somebody give a lecture misleading the investigator. The chief might get mad at the crime scene people and say, "Hey, I watch 'CSI' and they can do that, why don't we do that?" or, "I just went to a conference and this guy says luminol can do everything." Finally, people realize luminol is not a miracle fix. These types of pressures and the pressure to testify in court make them change their minds.

LET: What thoughts do you have for retaining good people throughout the forensic science field?

Dr. Lee: People choose the forensic science field/crime scene because they are really devoted. How do you motivate your people? In my life, I never received a penny of overtime, but I still work hard. Even now retired three times, I'm working 16 to 18 hours a day, seven days a week. To work in this field, you have to have passion and devotion. Crime scene/forensic people have to understand they're working in a profession; it's not their job. If you treat what you do as a job, say 9 to 4, then you shouldn't be in the field. If you treat it as a profession, you want to do the best. In the early days, I spent my own money on training and equipment. To say the department has no budget is no excuse for not receiving training.

Those who work in forensics like to stay to do their work. You have to develop a career path for them. They cannot be a captain or a chief. Special ranks need to be developed for laboratory and crime scene employees so they don't compete with the field rank. They can have Forensic Specialist 1-4 instead of lieutenant, captain, major and so forth.

Anyone working in forensic science - at the crime scene or in the laboratory - or supervising those who do can find inspiration in Dr. Henry Lee, a man who clearly has a passion for his profession. For a detailed list of his accomplishments and more info about forensic science, see www.drhenrylee.com.