Hard Evidence: How Detectives Inside the Fbi's Sci-Crime Lab Have Helped Solve America's Toughest Cases

by David Fisher

Provides an insider's view of detective work in a modern crime lab, detailing the facts associated with the most notorious cases in modern history, including the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 and the Kennedy assassination. 25,000 first printing.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction

316 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

Librarian’s note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

David Fisher is the author of more than twenty New York Times bestsellers and coauthor of Bill O'Reilly's Legends and Lies series. His work has also appeared in most major magazines and many newspapers. He lives in New York with his wife and two sons.

Reviews

[Cade Cox · Rating 4 out of 5]

Imagine being in charge of a criminal case in which you are taking the lead role in finding a mass murderer. This is just part of the action jam packed into the realistic experience of reading the book Hard Evidence. Throughout the book, the reader gets a look at the true wonders and horrors of being in the FBI. Various detectives and lab specialists give their personal experiences on what types of issues have been presented to them while on the job. As the book progresses, you the reader will see how many criminal actions go unknown to public. These are just some of the reasons I wanted to read this book. Like many others, I want to know what people have done when he or she turns up in jail. Hard Evidence goes into detail on this and gives examples of how terrifying the human race can truly be to one another. If you are interested in learning about the corruption of people in the United States, then this is a book for you. Hard Evidence is a thriller from page to page and doesn't disappoint.

[Catten · Rating 5 out of 5]

One evening, David Fisher was having dinner with his friend FBI Special Agent Joe Pistone. (You might recognize Joe as the author of Donnie Brasco: My Undercover Life in the Mafia.) The two men began talking about the FBI's crime lab and Fisher asked if he could visit it. The next week, Fisher stood in front of the FBI Headquarters building in Washington, D.C. without a clue as to what the next two years would bring.

Nearly 200 hours of interviews later, Fisher put it all together. The result is this absorbing behind-the-scenes look at the FBI's crime lab.

Everything you always wanted to know about crime labs is here, compressed into about 400 pages and made real before your eyes. Fisher starts out with an overview of the lab and who works in it. He then divides the remaining eight chapters by units within the lab. For example, chapter two is titled "The Little Green Specks of Death: The Chemistry/Toxicology Unit." It's logical, not-too-terribly technical, and downright fascinating.

And it's not just he science, it's the people, too.

Jim Gerhardt of the Documents Section, for instance, was asked by a police agency to compare the handwriting on a note found next to a murder victim to a sample of a suspect's writing on an envelope. By chance, the sun lit the envelope at just the right angle and Gerhardt saw writing indentations on its surface. Closer investigation revealed the note, which said "Happy Birthday, Friend," matched the indented writing on the envelope: The note had been written with the envelope beneath the note paper. While comparing handwriting may sound rather boring, Fisher draws on the experiences of the examiners in each section, tosses in tons of cases — some familiar, some not — and makes even the mundane task of sorting carpet fibers exciting.

Anyone who wants to round out his or her knowledge of investigation techniques ought to read this book. And if you're planning the perfect crime, read is carefully, because these guys are good.