ABSTRACT
This chapter further examines assertions about the epistemological character of forensic investigation. Many forensic scientists have themselves reflected about the nature of their work and the scientific status of forensic practices. A range of ideas have been put forward regarding what unites the various forms of evidential analysis that may be included under the term ‘forensic science’. The first part of the chapter describes such reflections and outlines how contemporary commenta tors have sought to engage more closely with various positions drawn from the philosophy of science and epistemology. Interpretations of probability based around Bayes’ Theorem have formed a popular basis for siting the epistemological character of forensic science in certain jurisdictions, including England and Wales.
