Knowledge of the science behind fires is critical to understanding a fire’s cause and successfully presenting that determination to the authorities or in litigation. Now in its second edition, Scientific Protocols for Fire Investigation focuses on the practical application of scientific principles to determine the causes of fires. Uniquely qualified with years of experience in on-site investigations, lab analyses, and courtroom presentation, the author provides a resource that is unparalleled in depth and focus.
The book explores:
- The history of fire investigation and the basic chemistry and physics of fire
- The science of fire dynamics—how things burn and how they interact with their surroundings while doing so
- Practical procedures for conducting fire scene inspections
- Laboratory examination of fire debris to test for the presence of ignitable liquid residues and for potential ignition sources
- Relevant scientific principles as applied to 30 actual fires
- The evolution of the mythology of arson investigation
- The common root causes of errors in fire investigation
The final chapter discusses the professional practice of fire investigation. It examines quality assurance, business practices, and the fundamentals of being an expert witness, with advice for giving testimony in depositions and at trial. Other highlights of the second edition include new and expanded discussions on novel training methods, first assumptions, computer fire modeling, low voltage ignition sources, the questionable validity of some origin determinations, and recent changes in NFPA 921.
Thorough and accessible, this volume not only provides the practical information necessary to conduct an effective inquiry but also offers insight into the science, history, and theory behind what makes fire investigation a multi-faceted profession.
John Lentini discusses the book in a video on the CRC Press YouTube Channel.
John J. Lentini has been at the center of most of the important developments in fire investigation in the past 30 years. He began his career at the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Crime Laboratory in 1974. He has been at the center of the standardization of both laboratory and field investigations of fires. As co-chair of the International Association of Arson Investigators (IAAI) Forensic Science Committee, he was the principal author of the first laboratory standards published by the IAAI in 1988. He was the first civilian elected to the ABC Board of Directors and among the first group of individuals certified by the ABC as Fellows in fire debris analysis.
He has been a contributor to the development of National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 921, Guide for Fire and Explosion Investigations, and a member of the NFPA’s Technical Committee on Fire Investigations since 1996. His study of the Oakland Hills fire in 1991 resulted in a rethinking of much of the conventional wisdom in fire investigation, and his laboratory work has resulted in research papers that are standard works in the field. He is a frequent invited speaker on the subject of the standard of care in fire investigation and laboratory analysis of fire debris, as well as on the progress of standardization in the forensic sciences.
