Seminar “Applications of Forensic Chemistry in the Administration of Justice”

Our University successfully held the seminar “Applications of Forensic Chemistry in the Administration of Justice”, an event that brought together more than 160 attendees in person and 25 participants virtually.

The activity included the participation of students from the Criminology and Law programs at the Fundadores campus, as well as 30 students from the La Chorrera campus, who attended accompanied by Professor Milisa Madrid. In addition, students from the School of Chemistry at the University of Panama, UDELAS, and UDI also participated, creating a high-level, interdisciplinary academic space.

Seminar Development

The event unfolded according to the program and brought together national and international experts in the field of forensic chemistry:

• Cinthia Linares, Criminalistics Investigation Coordinator, gave the opening remarks.
  
  
• Professor Alexie Brenes presented the topic “Introduction to Forensic Chemistry”highlighting the general applications of this area within forensic science.
  
  
• Professor Francisco Wellington spoke about “The role of the criminalist in the collection of forensic chemical evidence”showing types of evidence, packaging techniques, and procedures for sending it to the laboratory.
  
  
• Professor Carlos González addressed the legal framework related to the collection of evidence, including laws, relevant articles, chain of custody, and the participation of experts in the oral trial.
  
  
• Prof. Rene Moreno presented “Forensic chemical analysis in Panama”, with emphasis on gunshot residue studies and environmental chemical analysis.
  
  

The event also featured the participation of leading international experts:

• Chemist Andrés Cometa, from the Institute of Legal Medicine of Colombia, spoke about the use of acidic and basic substances for the commission of crimes, associated statistics and types of analyses performed.
  
  
• Javier Bonda, a pharmaceutical chemist from the Scientific Technical Institute of the Judiciary of Uruguay, presented the methods of analysis applied to drugs seized in his country.
  
  

Finally, the closing remarks were given by Professor Darinel Murillo, Research Coordinator for the Law area.

A significant contribution to academic training

This seminar strengthened the understanding of the scientific and legal processes involved in criminal investigation, reaffirming UMECIT's commitment to comprehensive education, professional development, and the training of specialists capable of responding to the challenges of the administration of justice.