UNH, China University Establish Forensic Technology Research Center

The new center will focus on developing and using technology to enhance law enforcement, investigation, forensic methods and data mining in both countries. Its mission will be to link scholars, researchers, students, forensic scientists, law enforcement, the legal community and professional practitioners in many fields to address the scientific and social issues confronting forensic science and the criminal justice system throughout the world.

"This is milestone for forensic research and development," said Henry C. Lee, UNH chaired professor and renowned forensic scientist.  "The new center will focus on training and research using the newest technology in combating global crime."

The project, supported with $200,000 in contributions, will include the development of robotics to use in crime scene investigation. The robotics will be controlled remotely whether from the next room or from across the world. The hope is that the information discovered at a crime scene can then be shared across law enforcement agencies and investigators in various locations in real time, if necessary.

In addition to the Technology Research Center, a memorandum of understanding between the two universities was signed today establishing an exchange of faculty and visiting scholars, short training courses offered by the Henry Lee Institute and participation in the master’s program of the Henry Lee College of Criminal Justice and Forensic Sciences.

As part of the five-year agreement, students and faculty from the China University, Lee Institute staff, and UNH forensic science faculty and students will conduct joint research to develop new tools and applications in digital forensic investigation, rapid DNA, facial recognition and biometrics, case management and evaluation, and robotics for scene investigation.

Laboratory space at the Lee Institute will be allocated for the new venture. The two universities will also exchange faculty and students and run a visiting scholar program.

China University of Political Science and Law is the premier law school in China and the largest institute in the world for legal education. It has more than 1,400 faculty members, 21,000 students and 100,000 graduates, many of whom have become the leaders in law enforcement and jurisprudence in China. The forensic medicine program at CUPL is the largest program in China focusing on the interaction of medicine and the law.

Today’s announcement was made at a signing ceremony at the Henry C. Lee Institute for Forensic Science at UNH, which was founded by Lee and opened in 1998. Attending the ceremony were UNH President Steven H. Kaplan and Lee. William Yeh, CEO of CSI Technology Group in Somerset, N.J., and a delegation from China attended the ceremony as well.  CSI Technology Group .will assist in the establishment of the center and in the development and testing of software and technologies.

Lee has been a member of the UNH faculty since 1975. He is one of the world's leading forensic scientists. His work, coupled with the University of New Haven's forensic science program, one of the foremost in the nation for more than 40 years, was the catalyst for the creation of the institute, Lee said.

About the University of New Haven

The University of New Haven is a private, top-tier comprehensive institution recognized as a national leader in experiential education. Founded in 1920 the university enrolls approximately 1,800 graduate students and more than 4,600 undergraduates.