Professor Bas Kokshoorn
On 1 May 2021, Dr B. (Bas) Kokshoorn took up the position of Professor by Special Appointment at the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences (HvA).
Bas Kokshoorn’s field of study is the interpretation of forensic evidence, with a specific focus on what trace evidence can tell us about the actions of those who left these traces. He is involved in national and international research projects in which questions from forensic practice are always paramount.
Professor by Special Appointment in Forensic Trace Dynamics
This Professorship by Special Appointment is the result of collaboration between the HvA’s Faculty of Technology and the Netherlands Forensic Institute (NFI), where Prof. Kokshoorn has built a solid professional reputation in the field of DNA analysis. “The need for improved techniques to detect minute quantities of trace evidence demands new processes and expertise in both research and education.”
Forensic trace dynamics
As a Professor by Special Appointment in Forensic Trace Dynamics, Bas Kokshoorn’s goal is to enhance our understanding of the ‘behaviour’ of the minute quantities of trace evidence that can now be detected using novel technologies and methods. “We are able to detect, interpret and identify ever smaller quantities of trace evidence from crime scenes, but this progress has major implications for the work of forensic examiners.”
“On the one hand, it will trigger changes in the initial stages of the forensic process, for the crime scene investigators responsible for locating and gathering trace evidence, as well as for forensic examiners tasked with processing and analysing that evidence. On the other hand, it will raise new questions in court, such as what can such trace evidence tell us regarding the details of past events? How and when was evidence left at the scene? Could it have been inadvertently moved? In other words, forensic trace dynamics. The key here is to examine combinations of different types of forensic trace evidence, such as DNA, fingerprints, glass fragments or gunshot residue. I want to focus my research on that area, much of which is still uncharted territory.”
Curriculum Vitae
Bas obtained his PhD from Leiden University in 2008, since when he has worked at the Netherlands Forensic Institute as an expert in the field of human biological trace evidence and DNA, and as a Principal Scientist.
Positions at the NFI
- 2008-2015 Forensic scientist
- 2015-2019 Senior forensic scientist
- 2019-present Principal Scientist
Positions elsewhere
- 2001-present Research Associate, Naturalis Biodiversity Center
- 2018-present DNA Assessor, Netherlands Register of Court Experts
- 2021-present Professor by Special Appointment, Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences