Cutting edge technology brings crime scene to court
NIGEL - Regional court prosecutor Bradford Dias called forensic image expert Const Linda Sylvester Phala from SAPS Springs to the stand during a murder trial on July 22, where he reconstructed a crime scene through three dimensional (3D) imaging.
This cutting edge technology provided the magistrate Mr Juan Voogt, defense attorney Mr De Kock, the accused and eye witnesses with a panoramic view of the crime scene. It also allowed clarity on certain critical aspects of the case, such as the exact distance and measurement between the gunfire shots. The forensic technology presented in court by Const Phala, is known as SPHERON.
SPHERON had been introduced to South African courts since 2012 and the fundamental concept thereof is to capture real world data such as crime scene images and make it available to the creative process of visualisation during a court case.
“The capturing device basically scans a crime scene and brings it to court in the form of a virtual tour. It can therefore be seen as a reconstructed crime scene,” Const Phala explained. The process eliminates lengthy trials caused by delays where crime scenes are re-visited multiple times.
SPHERON may soon become a game changer in high profile court cases and it has, according to Const Phala, already been applied successfully in several local cases.
