ABSTRACT
Dierent aspects of human scent evidence have been examined in the past chapters, factors including the generation, collection, and historical developments of the technique. In Chapter 4, there was a focus on the transfer of human scent into the atmosphere. It was shown how environmental variables such as wind, temperature, or terrain dramatically impact the usefulness of scent traces in eld applications. One major factor that was not approached, and which merits a proper discussion, is that of the durability and stability of human scent. Courts of law have continuously placed a heavy burden on this factor, as the utility of scent evidence lies in its availability when a canine performs a search. It makes sense, then, to pose a series of questions:
• How long does scent stay on a collected scent article? • How about on a particular trail le by a fugitive or missing person? • Does scent change over time? Or does it resist change and maintain
its original odor prole? What can destroy it? • What are the optimal parameters for proper storage and preservation?
