GAINESVILLE, Fla. – When federal investigators working the Michael Vick dogfighting case needed someone to dig up and analyze the remains of eight pit bulls buried on the football star's Virginia property, they summoned Melinda Merck.
The nation's top forensic veterinarian, Merck was one of the few specialists trained in processing crime scenes involving animals. Her job at the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals involves helping prosecutors build court cases, and she saw there weren't nearly enough vets and other professionals with those skills.
The 46-year-old Merck is trying to change that, co-founding a first-of-its-kind veterinary forensic science training program at the University of Florida. She and scientists from the university's renowned human forensics lab are sharing their expertise with animal-cruelty investigators, police and veterinarians who come from around the world.
In a nod to the popular TV shows, it's already being called "Animal CSI."
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1 comment:
Great thought!
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