The first recorded scientific examination of a corpse was carried out by a Roman doctor called Atistius on the murdered Julius Caesar, but it was not until the 19th century that the history of scientific crime detection really began. The author charts the rise and development of forensic detection in fascinating, gruesome detail, covering, among other subjects, forensic toxology, ballistics, sexual criminology and the latest advances in forensic investigation techniques, including genetic fingerprinting and psychological profiling.