Daily Pioneer News

UWP students, Michael Annable and Marissa Johnson

PLATTEVILLE - The $4,700 that Aric Dutelle, lecturer for the criminal justice program at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, obtained in funding through the Platteville 1866 Fund for the Forensic Investigation Research Facility at the Pioneer Farm is being put to good use.

Two students collaborated during the fall 2007 semester on a unique research project measuring the decomposition rates of pigs in a northern climate. The two UWP students, Marissa Johnson and Michael Annable, submitted an original research proposal for an independent study class, in which they will conduct research and present on their findings. The hope is that the research will be published and assist in criminal investigations within the tri-state area.

Annable and Johnson, both senior criminal justice majors are discovering the unique climate differences between northern and southern climates. The Forensic Investigation Research Facility is the first of its kind in the northern U.S. and allows criminal justice faculty and students to conduct on-going research into northern climate-related effects on body decomposition. The results of such research can be critical in death investigations, helping forensic investigators determine such factors as the time and cause of death. Criminal justice majors and minors will receive firsthand experiential learning from the facility.

Annable and Johnson based their research off of a similar experiment done in South Carolina; however, their research is very different due to the location of UWP's Forensic Investigation Research Facility. Dutelle commented about the benefits of the facility for the tri-state area.

"Our hope is to develop the research facility to train students and law enforcement on what to look for and how to interpret a crime scene specifically for the tri-state area," commented Dutelle.

The students elected to investigate the decomposition rates of pigs due to their similarities with human skin composition. Annable and Johnson used two pigs in their research. The control pig sat on a cement block and decomposed much slower than the experimental pig that lay in the grass.

Of the differences observed Annable and Johnson noticed insect activity and decomposition rates between the two pigs differed greatly. Other considerations between this experiment and at other southern facilities are rapid weather fluctuations and species of insect.

"The research was successful measuring ground cover variances, affect of wind and sun on decomposition and collection of environmental related data which affects decomposition rates in Southwestern Wisconsin. The students are making use of the Biology Department to identify the entomological evidence, which was documented. They are assembling their collected data to present at the American Academy of Forensic Sciences annual conference being held Feb. 18 to 21, held in Washington D.C.," added Dutelle.

For more information on the UWP Forensic Investigation Research Facility, contact Dutelle at (608) 342-1596 or dutellea@uwplatt.edu.

Contact: Aric Dutelle, lecturer, criminal justice, (608) 342-1596, dutellea@uwplatt.edu Written by: Lisa D. McLean, UWP Error! Contact not defined. (608) 342-1194, mcleanl@uwplatt.edu