FORENSIC INVESTIGATION: A PANACEA TO EXPEDITIOUS DISPOSAL OF CRIMINAL TRIALS IN NIGERIA

Abstract

In Nigerian jurisprudence today, there are so many unsolved criminal cases in which the prosecution or the defence has reached to a dead end thereby creating a mindset to the court. Cases are resolved on probable evidence and presumptions of circumstantial evidence before the court. However, there is an efficient procedure to reaching a concrete decision in the evidence before the court. Forensic investigation is a panacea to the expeditious disposal of criminal trials in Nigeria. The essence of this write up is to bring to the limelight the need for constant reliance to forensic reports because the results from this investigation are more certain and concrete evidence in prosecution of cases. Forensic reports are not speculative; rather it researches on the timeline of the events involved in a crime scene. The use of DNA and other genetic factors in forensic investigation is a growing area of research which will become more prevalent in criminal cases as more research is done. The certainty of forensic investigation reports is to the extent that samples collected from crime scene can promptly denote time and likely culprit to the crime. Doctrinal methodology is employed in the analysis of data gathered from primary and secondary legal sources. This article recommends forensic investigation for effective, efficient and expeditious disposal of criminal trials and its application by courts.