Police Teams Dealing with Undetected Crime, commonly referred to as the X Archives, operate within the voivodship police headquarters. They accumulate the most experienced officers and deal with the most serious crimes from the past, mainly the murders whose perpetrators have not been detected so far. The teams of several people make a thorough analysis of the acts of undetected crimes, they reach sources of information and use the latest achievements of forensic science. Two databases are particularly useful, i.e. AFIS and DNA. For this reason, the most attention has been given to them.
PL
Policyjne Zespoły ds. Przestępstw Niewykrytych, zwane potocznie Archiwami X, funkcjonują w ramach komend wojewódzkich policji. Skupiając najbardziej doświadczonych funkcjonariuszy, zajmują się najpoważniejszymi przestępstwami sprzed lat, głównie zabójstwami, których sprawców nie udało się dotychczas wykryć. Kilkuosobowe zespoły dokonują wnikliwej analizy akt niewykrytych przestępstw, docierają do źródeł informacji i wykorzystują najnowsze osiągnięcia kryminalistyki. Szczególnie przydatne są dwie bazy danych: system AFIS oraz baza DNA. Z tego względu właśnie im poświęcono większość tego opracowania.
DNA identification, which counts a few decades only, has revolutionized forensic science. Over a short period of time, genetic identification has become the most effective method of human identification, even when a tiny amount of biological material is available. Its dynamic development has allowed shifting efforts from group to individual identification. DNA analysis is broadly used for identification of criminal offenders, and due to computer-based DNA data bases – also allows detection of offenders internationally. The technique is fundamental in identification of disaster victims and also historically – in identification of bone remains. Furthermore, it is very useful in verification of wrongful convictions. In civil litigation, DNA analysis is irreplaceable in cases involving paternity testing. Genetic identification has quite solid scientific foundations and therefore, it has dethroned fingerprint identification, being earlier recognized as the “golden” standard of human identification. What is more, DNA analysis triggered the wave of criticism towards the majority of forensic methods of identification, which are considered to be characteristic by a high level of subjectivity, and which started the process of scientific development of these methods.
JavaScript is turned off in your web browser. Turn it on to take full advantage of this site, then refresh the page.